The Ohio State University at Mansfield

Learning Disabilities Guidelines

Students with disabilities must provide the office with documentation that meets the University's general documentation guidelines; however, described below is a preferred documentation profile for individuals with learning disabilities. This type of documentation validates the presence of a disability covered under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and is the most useful in providing information to support accommodation requests and anticipate future accommodation needs. All documentation is subject to a team review and will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.
 

• A comprehensive psycho-educational test battery, which means intelligence/ability testing and educational/achievement testing, is recommended. A full diagnostic report, including all standard test scores as well as subtest scores and the evaluator's narrative is recommended. If you are providing information from a public school, include the most recent Multifactored Evaluation (MFE) and Individual Educational Program (IEP) and the original eligibility evaluation and/or any other MFE's that include the results of a psycho-educational test battery.
   

• A diagnosis made by (a) qualified professional(s) i.e., licensed school psychologist, licensed psychologist, learning disabilities/educational specialist is suggested.
  
  
• Assessments normed for adults are preferred. What this means is that your assessments should not be assessments for children, but rather tests that are designed for adults, i.e. WAIS-III rather than WISC-III.
  
  
• A diagnosis of a learning disability and type(s) of learning disability (ies), which should be supported by test data and a description of functional limitations are important.
  
  
• Suggestions for appropriate accommodations are helpful. It is important that these suggestions are based upon functional limitations. If it is not evident why an accommodation is suggested by assessing test scores and resulting functional limitations, then a rationale for the accommodations is necessary.
   
• Along with the above information, transfer students are encouraged to provide written verification from the previously attended school, which includes the dates served and the accommodations used.