The Office of Accessibility Services (OAS) serves all undergraduate and graduate students at Goucher. We facilitate any accessibility need for staff, faculty, and guests of Goucher. The OAS is designed to meet the needs of students who have unique abilities. Unique abilities are formerly known as disabilities/accommodations.
Alignment With DEIJ Initiatives
When you think about inclusivity, historically, individuals with unique abilities have been excluded. The Office of Accessibility Services aligns with Goucher’s DEIJ initiatives by providing inclusivity for individuals with unique abilities. We embrace unique abilities and gifts to manifest and grow while matriculating at Goucher. The OAS also prepares and educates students for life after graduating from Goucher, leveraging their skills and abilities while contending with their challenges.
OAS Goals
Our primary goal is to support students with unique abilities in having a fulfilling and successful college experience. The OAS is tasked with providing equal access for all students to participate in college programs and activities inside the classroom and in the campus community. We strive to educate, inform, and raise awareness surrounding the importance of inclusivity for students, faculty, and staff with unique abilities.
OAS Resources
In the past year, the OAS has updated policies that directly affect the Goucher community. We have added new staff to ensure we can fully support the Goucher community:
Director: The director is tasked with monitoring necessary accommodations, working with faculty and staff to ensure compliance with the ADA, and, thus, promoting program access, including both facilities and technology access. The director also engages in individual problem-solving with all affected constituencies to provide equal access to the college’s educational programs for all qualified students. The director is also the ADA compliance coordinator for the Goucher College campus.
Assistant Director: The assistant director’s duties include supporting the director in working with students to establish accommodation needs via intake meetings and medical/mental health documentation review, providing and establishing accessibility needs for the entire campus, and academic advising for students with accommodations.
Accessibility Assistant: The accessibility assistant supervises student notetakers and provides administrative support for the OAS.
OAS New Initiatives
During the next one to three years, the OAS team, in partnership with other offices across campus, plans on building integrative education and social activities, which will include:
- creating a more in-depth orientation for first-year students supporting their transition to higher education;
- prioritizing universal access when planning Goucher-wide events and activities to ensure we are being fully proactive rather than reactive; and
- developing policies that support inclusivity for faculty planning.