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March 8, 2001

Disabled student services notice should be part of every syllabus, Assembly urges

Faculty Assembly passed a resolution Feb. 27 recommending that a notification about disabled student services be included in course syllabi.

Anne Medsger, chair of the Senate's anti-discriminatory policies committee, introduced the resolution after investigating a complaint by a hearing-impaired student that a professor was reluctant to make any accommodations.

Medsger said the resolution was intended to raise awareness among all parties of the services available for the disabled through Pitt's Office of Disability Resources and Services.

Faculty have complained that while some students ask for accommodations, they are unwilling to classify themselves as disabled and are, in effect, ignoring the University's procedures. Procedures call for students to register with Disability Resources and Services, which then will ensure the proper accommodations are in place for the students as mandated by the Americans With Disabilities Act and University policies.

"There is a procedure in effect," Medsger said. "Our intent with this resolution is to remind both students and faculty that these services are indeed available," and that students recognize the proper procedures.

The statement to be included in course syllabi reads: "If you have a disability for which you are or may be requesting an accommodation, you are encouraged to contact both your instructor and the Office of Disability Resources and Services, 216 William Pitt Union, 648-7890/383-7355 (TTY) as early as possible in the term."

The resolution, which passed unanimously, further calls for deans and department heads to make faculty aware of the statement and "strongly encourages" all faculty members to include it in their course syllabi beginning in fall term 2001.

In other Faculty Assembly business:

* University Senate President Nathan Hershey announced that the University Senate spring plenary session will be held 3-5 p.m. March 21 in the William Pitt Union Assembly Room. The title of the session is "The University in Civic Engagement: Service in the University's Mission." A special "celebration of service" forum will precede the plenary session from noon-3 p.m. in the WPU Ballroom.

* Hershey said he's planning to name the remaining members of a task force to study ideas that were brought out at the recent Senate plenary session on the open university. (See University Times, Feb. 22.) Senate secretary Audrey Murrell of the Katz business school will chair the group and Michael Spring of information science and telecommunications has agreed to be a member. Both professors were speakers at the plenary session.

* Carol Redmond, Senate vice president, said the revised draft of the new Research Integrity Policy was being reviewed by Pitt's research integrity officer, Jerome Rosenberg. Copies of the draft may be obtained at the University Senate Office, 1234 CL.

* Elizabeth Schlenk, co-chair of the bylaws and procedures committee, said her committee needed more information before recommending any bylaws changes that would affect the governance structures at Pitt, including Faculty Assembly and Senate Council.

Hershey had asked the committee to look into issues such as bloc voting by administrators at Senate Council, the deficiency of direct channels to the chancellor, the number of reports on Senate Council's standing agendas and the number of meetings held each year. Hershey said the issue would be raised again at a future Faculty Assembly meeting.

–Peter Hart


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