Procedures for Receiving Services

Students contacting the Office of Disability Services (ODS) for the first time are given an appointment for an interview with a staff member. The initial session includes:

An interview to determine if the student has been tested for learning problems.

1. If yes, and documentation is within 3 years (or if the student was tested at age 18 or older):
   1. Provide student with Board of Regents (BOR) criteria and request a copy of documentation.
   2. Students bring documentation to the ODS.
   3. ODS submits the documentation to the Regents Center for Learning Disorders (RCLD) at Georgia Southern University.
   4. If documentation meets BOR criteria, an Accommodation Letter is written by the RCLD establishing accommodations.
   5. All requests for University System accommodations (foreign language or math substitutions, additional semesters in Learning Support, and special accommodations for the Regents Exam) must be submitted to the Regents Center for Learning Disorders at Georgia Southern University.
2. If yes, but not within 3 years, or if the student has never been tested:
   1. The student is assisted in the process of obtaining appropriate documentation. The student is provided with standards established by the BOR for outside evaluations and provided with information on obtaining testing from the RCLD at Georgia Southern.
      The student must then choose either "Outside Documentation" or "RCLD" testing.
      
1. OUTSIDE DOCUMENTATION: When outside documentation is chosen, the student compiles the materials and presents them to the Office of Disability Services at SGC. The ODS & RCLD then complete steps 3, 4, and 5 of the previous Section A.
2. RCLD TESTING: When testing from the Regents Center for Learning Disorders is chosen, the student completes a pre-testing packet for the RCLD. This packet is submitted to the ODS at SGC who then forwards it to the RCLD for evaluation.
   The RCLD makes all decisions regarding accommodations and refers them by letter to the Office of Disability Services at South Georgia College who then initiates services. 
3. Each semester students must request and obtain an Accommodation Letter from the ODS for each instructor. The student must come to the ODS to obtain this letter.
   

EVALUATION BY THE REGENTS CENTER FOR LEARNING DISORDERS

The Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia has established three centers for the provision of assessment, resources, and research related to students within the University System who have learning disorders. The Regents Centers for Learning Disorders (RCLD) are located at Georgia Southern University, The University of Georgia, and Georgia State University. Each RCLD is responsible for serving designated colleges and universities within a geographic region.

Students who do not have current evaluations which meet state guidelines may be referred to the Center for evaluation but must meet certain requirements. Students who are referred for testing or an evaluation review must be enrolled in the referring institution. Exceptions to the rule are considered when students who are applying for admission to an institution and require verification of a disability for the institution CPC foreign language requirement. Referral for testing or evaluation review in these cases should come from the institution at which admissions is pending. No exceptions will be made to the University System admissions requirements. (Academic Affairs Handbook, Section E, 2.22.03 [6-04-99].

Students who wish to be tested by the Regents Center for Learning Disorders should contact the Office of Disability Services (ODS). An ODS staff member will schedule an appointment with the student to go over the pre-testing packet. When a student returns this packet an ODS staff member will check for completeness and forward the packet to the RCLD at Georgia Southern. The RCLD schedules the evaluation and notifies the student of the time, date and place for the evaluation.

The Georgia Southern RCLD is located in Hampton Hall on Knight Drive. The student is responsible for the evaluation fee of $500.00. This fee is to be mailed to the RCLD center along with the pre-testing packet.