Seeking disability or access accommodations? Apply for Access & Disability Services by following the steps below. 

Helpful items to have before applying

• WCC username and password
• WCC student ID number
• Disability documentation

Here's how to get started:

1. Complete the online ADS Student Application  - This brief questionnaire allows you to describe your disability experience and explain requested accommodations. Please complete this step, even if you don’t have documentation ready.
2. Upload documentation (if available) - After completing the ADS application, you'll be able to upload documentation. Documentation should include a diagnosis and how the nature of the disability impacts you in an educational environment. IMPORTANT: Please note that you should not delay meeting with us out of concern for not having the right paperwork. Our first priority is meeting with you.
3. Check your email for a link to schedule an appointment with an ADS Advisor - We will email the address you provided in the application. Appointments can be conducted over the phone, Zoom or in-person.

   Please review the ADS Student Handbook before your appointment.

Accommodations are approved through an interactive process - a dialogue between you and your ADS advisor to help us understand the barriers you experience due to your disability, and what reasonable accommodations could overcome those barriers.

Accommodations are generally not provided retroactively and must be renewed on a quarterly basis.

The Transition of Students with Disabilities to Postsecondary Education document from the Office of Civil Rights, while geared toward recent high school graduates and the transition to and differences between high school and college, contains helpful information for any college student accessing accommodations. 

Cedar Hall Residence Housing

If you will be living in Cedar Hall Student Housing and need disability accommodations in housing, complete the Housing Accommodation Application.

Need to renew your approved accommodations?

If you are registered for spring quarter and would like to utilize your approved accommodations please renew your accommodations through the MyADS student portal using your WCC network username and password. If you have forgotten your password you can reset it at the following website; https://mywcc.whatcom.edu/ResetPassword.aspx?action=PasswordReset.

Once you log in you will complete the following steps:

1. Select appropriate quarter (Spring 2022)
2. Enter the course number(s)
   1. For example English 101 section OL1 enter 37523, Math 99 section A enter 39098
3. Click button “Step 3 - Continue to Customize your Accommodations”
4. Select appropriate accommodations from approved list for each class
5. Click button “Submit Your Accommodation Request”

You can meet with an ADS advisor at any time to:

• Find out about ADS processes
• Be referred to additional resources: Academic Coaching, Tutoring, Veteran Services, Counseling, etc.
• Change or update accommodations
• Check-in on how the quarter is going

Schedule an appointment through MyADS Student Portal or by phone 360 383 3139.

Cedar Hall Residence Housing

If you will be living in Cedar Hall Student Housing and need disability accommodations in housing, complete the Housing Accommodation Application.

Transferring to another college/university?

This transfer checklist will help you be prepared as you continue your education. 

MyADS Student Portal – scheduling an appointment 

1. www.whatcom.edu/access
2. Log in to MyADS Student Portal using your MyWCC student username and password
3. Select the Request for Appointment link  
4. Follow the prompts
5. Submit Request for Appointment
6. Check your student email for appointment confirmation

*Note: Assigned Primary Advisor refers to your main ADS advisor (Melissa or Kerri)

Steps for Renewing Your Accommodations: 

1. Log in to your MyADS Student Portal by selecting the blue button on the left of this landing page. Log in using your WCC username (first initial, last name, last four digits of your student ID number. IE: AOrca1234) and password (the password you created when you set up your student network account). You will land on the Overview screen.
2. Scroll down to “Select Accommodations for Your Class” box. (Figure 1)
3. Select the appropriate quarter and classes and click on Step 2 – Continue to Customize Your Accommodations.
4. In the Final Step: Select Accommodations for Each Class box (Figure 2), select from the list of accommodations you want to use for each class. If an accommodation you have been approved for is missing from the list, contact the ADS office by emailing ADS@whatcom.edu. 
5. Select the “Email this accommodation letter” box.
6. Click “Submit Your Accommodations Requests”. A Faculty Notification Letter (FNL) will be emailed to your WCC student email and to your instructor(s). You can print a copy of your FNL any time after it has been sent. Go to “My Dashboard”, select your class from the drop down menu and click “Generate PDF”.

TIP: If you get an error message when trying to log in, clear your browsing history and cookies. Log in again.

Questions? Contact us at 360-383-3139 or email ADS@whatcom.edu

Figure 1: screenshot of Select Accommodations for your Class screen

Figure 2: screenshot of Final Step: Select Accommodations for Each Class

Guide for Educators, Parents and Students with Disabilities

ADS Student Handbook - Processes and expectations for accessing services.

Quarterly Checklist for Students - Student responsibilities and reminders.

7 Things to Know About College Disability Services - This article explains what to expect when you transition from high school to college.

Documenting a Disability For Higher Education - Guidance on what information disability documentation should include.

Process for Accessing Academic Adjustments for Students with Disabilities- Procedure and processes for the Access and Disability Services program.

Service Animal Procedure - Whatcom Community College Procedure 744 regarding service animals on campus.

Service Animals Infographic - Service animal explanation and expectations.

Guidance Information for Students Regarding Medical Seizures - Whatcom Community College's response when a student has a seizure on campus or at a campus related event.

Disability Verification Form - ask your health care provider to complete this form to document your disability or health condition.

Hardship Withdrawal Petition - use this form if you need to withdraw due to a medical hardship or emergency.

SBCTC Common Release Form - use this form to request or send your disability documentation and/or accommodations from one institution to another

If you'd like to receive extra support during your time at Whatcom Community College, we encourage you to consider joining the college's TRIO Student Support Services program. TRIO helps students pay for college, succeed in classes, graduate with a degree or certificate, and transfer to great universities.

 The benefits of joining TRIO include:

• A personal academic coach to support you in selecting your summer and fall classes and mapping out all the requirements for your degree
• A personal financial coach to help you maximize your financial aid, apply for scholarships, and save money
• Free 24/7 online video tutoring in 300+ subjects.
• Free group trips to visit universities and enjoy off-campus events
• A small, supportive community of students and staff

 To learn more about the TRIO Program, please click this link to visit our website or click this link to view our short video.

 You can apply for the TRIO Program online at this link.

 If you have any questions about the TRIO program, please feel free to email Adam Beals at abeals@whatcom.edu.

Welcome to your college journey! College is different than high school and when accessing services for a disability it is going to look a little different. As a college student, you won't have an IEP or 504 Plan like you did in high school but instead you participate in an interactive process with the ADS office.

We can still use that IEP or 504 plan as documentation of your disabilities or access challenges. Follow the steps for setting up accommodations by clicking on the New Students tab under the For Students section above.

The following resources are for your information and may be helpful in understanding the differences between high school and college.

Guide for Educators, Parents and Students with Disabilities

College Readiness for Students with Disabilities - Educators and Parents One-Pager

College Readiness for Students with Disabilities - Student One-Pager 

Differences High School College

Transition of Students with Disabilities to Postsecondary Education - Dept of Education

Text to Speech programs - List of free text to speech apps or programs.

Directions for web browser speech-to-text (Windows, macOS, iOS, Chromebook, and Android operating systems)

Note Taking programs - List of free notetaking apps or programs.

College Funding for Students with Disabilities - Resources for funding college, includes federal and state aid, grants, and scholarships.

Scholarships for Students with Disabilities - listing of scholarships for learners with disabilities provided by bestcolleges.com

Scholarships:

BMO Capital Markets Lime Connect Equity through Education Scholarship for Students with Disabilities

• March 21 Deadline 

The Louie Family Foundation Scholarship

• March 15 Deadline 

Incight Scholarship

• April 15 Deadline  

The Disabled Student Scholarship

• August 1 Deadline 

Study and Planning Tools for College Students - Elizabeth Hamblet has worked with college students with learning disabilities and ADHD for a long time.  While she specializes in helping students with learning disabilities and ADHD, her tips and strategies are relevant for all kinds of learners. She shares them here so that everyone can benefit.

National Center for College Students with Disabilities - federally-funded national center for college and graduate students with any type of disability, chronic health condition, or mental or emotional illness.

Navigating College with Vision Impairments - college experiences and interventions for students with vision impairments, vision loss or blindness.

Guide to Online College With A Learning Disability - critical information for students with learning disabilities who want to enroll in online courses. Information such as securing and using learning disability accommodations, locating assistive technologies, and navigating online course sites.

MyADS Student Portal

The place to:

• renew your accommodations
• schedule an appointment with your ADS advisor
• see your approved accommodations (called eligibilities in the portal)
• request your digital textbooks
• request an interpreter or transcriber for a campus event
• and more

Log in today!

The ADS Office values the diversity students with disabilities bring to WCC’s campus community. Through intentional programs, services, and reasonable accommodations, ADS strives to ensure equal access to students with disabilities. ADS staff also encourage the development of independence and self-advocacy skills while supporting the learning experience.

The ADS office is located in Laidlaw Center, Room 134.  ADS is a center for disability education and resources for students, staff and faculty. ADS provides accommodations through an interactive process - a dialogue between you and your ADS advisor to help us understand the barriers you experience due to your disability, and what reasonable accommodations could overcome those barriers.

Academic adjustments and reasonable accommodations are provided in accordance with the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA), the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and Washington State Law.

Below you will find procedures, resources and information to assist you in your work. Contact ADS staff with any questions or concerns you have regarding access.

Accessibility FAQ - Got questions? This is a great place to start. 

ADS Handbook for Faculty and Staff - Processes and expectations for faculty and staff.

Captioning or Correcting Auto-Captions

As the creator and subject matter expert of the videos you post, it is your responsibility to ensure the captions are accurate. Every video posted publicly is required to have accurate captions.

Here are your options and the differences between them:

1. MyADS Faculty Portal or Request for Captioned Media form – upload a video that has auto captions and one of the ADS team will correct the captions. Editing privileges of the video and a schedule of when the video will be used will be needed.
2. Canvas Caption Hub – uses AI to create the captions. Does not put in punctuation and will most likely have misspellings. If a video already has auto captions, sending them through Caption Hub will not correct them. Use this method if a YouTube or Panopto video does NOT have auto captions generated.
3. YouTube/Panopto – when creating a video, run it through the auto caption option. Video owner/creator needs to manually correct captions/punctuation.

 When to use which method:

1. If there is a student accommodation for captioning use the MyADS faculty portal or self-correct the captions. Note – I only have two part time hourly staff so I need to prioritize their time to work on captions for a required accommodation.

   Steps for MyADS Captioning Request - how to upload captioning request to MyADS Faculty Portal.

2. If there is no accommodation, auto captions is fine. I recommend if it is a video that will be used multiple quarters/classes, self-correcting the captions a little at a time may save having to rush through and try to get it done with a time crunch when a student who depends on captioning for communication access enrolls.

 Directions for captioning or correcting the auto-captions of your created videos on YouTube, Panopto or Vimeo:

• YouTube Instructions
• Vimeo Instructions
• Panopto Instructions
• CaptionHub Direction

Why Caption?

• Individuals with hearing loss or deafness
  • Approximately 48 million Americans experience some degree of hearing loss. Hearing Loss Association of America

• Captions increase comprehension
  • 52% of students found captions improve retention and comprehension. Oregon State University’s eCampus Research Unit
• English Language Learners
  • 66% of ELL students found captions “very” or “extremely” helpful. Oregon State University’s eCampus Research Unit
• More flexibility in where videos are watched.
• Maintains state and federal compliance.
  • 60% of those with hearing loss are in the workforce or educational setting. Non-captioned videos is a liability to the college. U.S. Laws for Video Accessibility

Sign Language Interpreters in the Classroom - How to guide for working with sign language interpreters.

Typewell Transcriber in the Classroom - How to guide for working with a classroom transcriber.

Medical Seizure Protocol for Faculty and Staff - What to do if a student has a seizure.

Memory Aid Cue Card Accommodation - What a memory aid accommodation is and how it is to be used.

Service Animals Infographic - Service animal explanation and expectation.