Va Yang

This section made it very clear that you must be careful and diligent about the role you play, and the role you do not, when it comes to disability support. Do not promise accommodations nor share information that a designated disability liaison is more prepared to triage and answer. Also, its important to know that an institution cannot ask about disability during the admissions process and to focus on technical standards of performance instead. 

I thought this whole section was quite interesting and informative. I am now much more appreciative of universal design and how it has impacted everyone’s access and utilization of places and products. The examples of how universal design of learning (UDL) were eye opening, from the use of intuition of technology to appropriate multi-media formats to diversity of dietary needs. I also like the concept of universal design as leading with a philosophical though of access for everyone because it benefits all communities regardless of how they self-identity.

I enjoyed this section of the reading, it was very thorough and eye opening for me-especially all the terms. I will be much more mindful and use the appropriate terms that the deaf and hard of hearing community prefer-this is important for me to know and knowledge to pass on.

I though the reading was clear and concise; Federal law assures equal access for people with disability by protecting the person (not the disability) from discrimination. I liked the clarification on whether emotional support animals are considered service animals-they are not. I GREATLY appreciated the subject matter acknowledging and teaching about unique challenges such as with Asperger’s syndrome and how equal access is achieved when students have the same opportunities as their nondisabled peers, the emphasis is to focus on this end goal even if the the “means” to get there is different-this really struck me as a mentor and… >>>

I was not very familiar with the Solomon's Amendment or the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act-and wow, I’m a bit shocked. My question is, I do not recall institutions publishing a student facing notice that reflects federal law’s that interact with FERPA. In the reading it was not clear to me if the institution needs a policy or should have practice with notifying students in this regard. It would matter since the federal laws will most likely supersedes FERPA.

I find it interesting that student employees are not able to access their own individual grades, when quite honestly, the student won’t have security access to change or manipulate the grades in the system and will mainly have a “view” only capacity.

One of the more aggressive take-aways from this portion of the reading was the explicit responsibility of the educational institution to annually notify students regarding all their rights. When I was an undergrad student, there was not this much energy and emphasis on FERPA compliancy-to the degree of severity as it is conveyed now. Privacy and autonomously have in many ways, become a human rights issue and I cannot image the historical concerns and issues before FERPA was in place to protect students and also, intuitions themselves.

I wish there as more reading content as it relates to how institutions are now modifying their verification process and caller identification or documents submission process, considering our growing digital world and how this pandemic has completed shifted our daily lives. Everything is digital, including how we store our passwords and private information. How have institutions changed their policies and procedures to still abide with FERPA while embracing some of the restrictions of this pandemic.

I really like the focus on defining what “consent” generally looks like, especially the last portion about consent being withdrawn at any time-I think this is very important in the teachings of consent. I’m also shocked to find out that some states do not define consent, seeing as though more and more sexual assault victims and survivors report and come forth. My question is, how does a Title IX coordinator education and create an environment where students feel comfortable learning and being held accountable for bystander intervention and sexual assault dynamics within at a trade or technical college- when… >>>

I found it very interesting that under title IX, an institution is obligated to investigate an act of cyberstalking, even if the event occurred off campus because it can still create a hostile environment for the student. I wonder what are the circumstances in which the victim and/or the perpetrator wanted an attorney or legal representation and why the institutions would advice against it? How about in circumstance the victim/perpetrator does not have the funds for an attorney but desires one; I know institutions are obligated to provide a network of social resources, but this is a specific and costly… >>>