# Appealing Accommodation Decisions

It is the responsibility of the Access and Accommodation Services staff (AAS) to analyze all information when making equal access decisions. On occasion, a student may not agree with the identified accommodations offered. As required by the Americans with Disabilities Act, AAS staff must provide students with a process for prompt review and resolution in these cases.

If a student does not agree with an accommodation decision made by the access counselor they worked with, the student may file an appeal through the Access and Accommodation Services Appeal Process. The following steps outline the process.

##### Step 1:

For informal re-consideration of accommodation decisions, students must contact the AAS Director via email detailing:

- - - The accommodation they requested
        - What decision was made
        - Why they are appealing the decision, and
        - Any relevant supporting documents that should be evaluated during reconsideration.

This should be done within seven (7) working days after the student was notified of the accommodations decision. If informal discussions with AAS staff have not resolved the issue, the student can submit a written complaint to the Vice Chancellor of The Division of Access and Institutional Engagment (or designee) within ten (10) working days of the issuance of the denial notice or the approval of alternate disability accommodations.

##### Step 2:

The Vice Chancellor of The Division of Access and Institutional Engagement, or their designee, shall meet with the individual within seven (7) working days of the receipt of the complaint. After the meeting, the Vice Chancellor, or designee, will review all available information to see if the initial decision was reasonable. The Vice Chancellor, or designee, will provide the student with a written decision via their A-State email within five (5) working days of the meeting with the student.

**Process Note:** When an appeal is being reviewed during Steps 1 – 2 and the student shares new personal information or documentation that was not provided during the initial review, the Vice Chancellor, or designee, reserves the right to refer the student back to the student’s initial Access and Accommodation Services access counselor they met with for reassessment of the situation, as the presence of new information may have impacted the original decision, had it been shared initially.

##### Disability Grievance Procedures

Students seeking information about a Discrimination Grievance based on disability should contact Dominique White, who serves as the ADA Coordinator for Arkansas State University, or visit Access and Accommodation Services on Knowledge Base for [more information about the disability grievance procedures](https://kb.astate.edu/books/grievances-appeals-and-course-substitutions/chapter/grievance-procedure "Grievance Procedure").

##### Contact Information

Dominique White, Ed.D., LPC, CRC  
Director of Access & Accommodation Services and ADA Coordinator

<dowhite@astate.edu>  
(870) 972-3964

Reng Student Union, Suite 2181  
Jonesboro, AR 72401