Guidelines for Documentation of a Learning Disability

To qualify for services, a student must provide documentation of a diagnosed learning disability. The guidelines that follow are provided to assure that evaluation reports are appropriate to determine eligibility and to support requests for reasonable accommodations. The Office of Disability Services (ODS) staff is available to consult with students or diagnosticians regarding the following guidelines:

1. Evaluators must be qualified professionals with comprehensive training and experience relevant to the postsecondary population. The following professionals would generally be considered qualified to evaluate and diagnose a learning disability: trained, certified and/or licensed school psychologists, neuropsychologists, clinical psychologists and/or learning disability specialists. Reports must include names and professional credentials of the evaluators, and be on letterhead, typed, dated, and signed.

2. Testing must be comprehensive. Minimally, domains to be addressed must include, but are not limited to:

   • Aptitude. The Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale - III (WAIS-III) with subtest scores is the preferred instrument. The Woodcock-Johnson Psychoeducational Battery - III: Tests of Cognitive Ability or the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale: Fourth Edition are acceptable.
   • Achievement. Current levels of functioning in reading, mathematics and written language are required. Acceptable instruments include the Woodcock-Johnson Psychoeducational Battery - III: Tests of Achievement; Wechsler Individual Achievement Test II (WIATII); Stanford Test of Academic Skills (TASK); Scholastic Abilities Test for Adults (SATA) or specific achievement tests such as the Test of Written Language- 3 (TOWL - 3), Woodcock Reading Mastery Tests - Revised, or the Stanford Diagnostic Mathematics Test. The Wide Range Achievement Test - 3 (WRAT - 3) and the Mini-Battery of Achievement (MBA) are not comprehensive measures of achievement and therefore are not suitable.
   • Information Processing. Specific areas of information processing (e.g., short and long term memory; sequential memory; auditory and visual perception/processing; processing speed) must be assessed. Information from subtests on the WAIS-III , the Woodcock-Johnson Tests of Cognitive Ability, or the Detroit Tests of Learning Aptitude-Adult (DTLA-A), as well as other instruments relevant to the presenting learning problem(s) may be used to address these areas. This is not intended to be an exhaustive list or to restrict assessment in other pertinent areas.

   Acceptable alternative tests may be determined by the ODS.

3. Testing must be current (3 years old or less) in order to assess the current impact of the disability on academic functioning.

4. A diagnostic interview should be included in order to describe the presenting learning problem, confirm a history of the disability, and rule out another medical basis for current limitations.

5. Test scores and dates of testing must be included.

6. Interpretation by the diagnosing professional must be included.

7. Recommendations for accommodations will be considered when they are based on evidence of a substantial limitation to learning supported by test data and/or clinical observation.

8. Accommodations are always individually determined. Once the ODS receives documentation, the student has a responsibility to make an appointment with the ODS staff to discuss his/her eligibility to receive accommodations and appropriate referral for support services.

9. Individual Education Programs (IEPs) and Section 504 plans are useful but are not, in and of themselves, sufficient documentation to establish the rationale for accommodations.

ALL DOCUMENTATION IS CONFIDENTIAL AND SHOULD BE SUBMITTED TO:

Jane Warner
Coordinator
Office of Disability Services
Keene State College
229 Main Street
Keene, NH 03435-2609

or faxed to a confidential line at 603-358-2313.