General Guidelines for Documentation of a Disability
The Community College of Baltimore County (CCBC) with campuses at Catonsville, Dundalk, and Essex, is committed to the philosophy of nondiscrimination for individuals with disabilities and ensures that all programs and activities of the College are in compliance with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990. In order to fully evaluate requests for reasonable accommodations or auxiliary aids in the college environment, CCBC requires proper documentation of the disability, including an evaluation by an appropriate professional describing the current impact of the disability as it relates to the college environment. It is the student’s responsibility to provide this documentation to the appropriate Disability Support Services’ office, where it will be kept in a confidential file.For individuals who have recently received services from a public school system, necessary information would most likely be contained in the most recent psychological and educational evaluations. Although an Individual Education Plan (IEP) or Section 504 plan may help identify services that had been effective in high school, it may not be considered sufficient documentation for the postsecondary institution. Documentation should be prepared by a qualified professional.
While documentation may meet CCBC’s requirements to support accommodations, the student should be prepared to provide additional and/or more current documentation when transferring to a 4 year institution or when requesting accommodations for any standardized tests required for professional or career certifications such as the TEAS, NCLEX, PRAXIS, CDL, etc.
CCBC recognizes that the specific elements and format of the evaluations will vary. These guidelines are intended to assist students and professionals as they provide information that supports appropriate and reasonable accommodations. Any questions regarding these guidelines may be directed to the appropriate office noted above.
Specific documentation guidelines as appropriate for the disability
Learning Disability
Attention Deficit / Hyperactivity Disorder (ADD/ADHD)
Psychological Disability
Hard of hearing / deaf
Low vision / blind
Other health impairment
Mobility or Orthopedic Disability
Autism Spectrum Disorder
Cognitive Disability
The following guidelines are provided so that CCBC, through the disability support office on each campus can respond appropriately to the individual needs of the student. Each office will determine eligibility for reasonable accommodations based on the content of the documentation submitted by the student. The disability support office reserves the right to request additional documentation, and/or an update of documentation previously submitted and may request the written consent of the student to contact their health professional to discuss information contained in the documentation.