Welcome to Accessibility.
The Goldman Center for Student Accessibility supports students and their families through this transition to college for both prospective and committed students. Here, you'll find an overview of our accommodations request process as well as important information about the changes that happen with disability-based accommodations in the academic, housing, and dining environments in higher education.
Accommodations do not automatically transfer from high school to college. If you wish to continue receiving academic accommodations after high school, you'll need to request accommodations through the Goldman Center.
The transition from high school to college can be a rewarding but challenging time for many students and their families, and students with disabilities have an extra step to navigate this transition. The Goldman Center for Student Accessibility is here to provide insight, guidance, and information for you at each step of the way. Now that you are committed and confirmed for starting in the fall, you are welcome to apply for disability accommodations. Students can request accommodations at any time; however, for incoming fall semester students, we recommend beginning the process in the summer well before arriving on campus in August. The process can sometimes take several weeks, so we encourage you start as soon as possible. The professional staff in the Goldman Center are ready to help!
The Goldman Center is featured in the May modules created by NTC First-Year Experience.
- For more background, review the slides of our Accessibility at Tulane Family Programs webinar.
- For an overall consideration of your transition to college as a student with health considerations, visit our helpful guide for information about campus resources and living in New Orleans.
Important Deadline Information
Important Dates and Deadlines in the Goldman Center
Academic: We encourage incoming students to apply for their academic accommodations over the course of the summer (May-July) so that any approved accommodations can be ready for the fall start. To honor this timeline, submit a request for academic accommodations before July 15 for priority consideration ahead of the semester start. While academic accommodations can be approved at any time, no accommodation is retroactive, so taking care of this process over the summer is important.
For incoming Spring Scholars or spring transfer students, please submit your academic accommodation request for October 15.
Housing: Incoming students seeking housing-based accommodations in the residence halls should apply for housing accommodations between March 1 and May 1 with the Goldman Center. This deadline is important so that your application can be processed ahead of room selection for incoming students; applications received after this deadline will be considered and granted on a rolling basis, depending on capacity. For more information regarding housing accommodations and the housing accommodation process, please refer to our Housing Accessibility page.
Dining: Incoming students who are seeking accommodations should explore support through Tulane Hospitality and consider a Dining Plan Petition. Additional support for dining-based concerns can be found through our Dining Accessibility page.
For accommodations in any of these environments, the general application remains the same.
Read more about the differences in laws, guidance, and philosophies in high school accommodations versus accommodations in higher education. These differences change the necessity and delivery of some accommodations you may have received in high school. Explanation of these differences would be communicated in your application process during your Access Interview.
Accommodations in High School:
- Guarantee success
- Legal guidance is provided by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)
- IDEA provides the mandate and funding for in-school individualized instruction/special education services as well as transportation, therapy services, and tutoring
- Teachers will remind students of assignments, provide missed information to students when absent, and provide additional support such as teacher provided notes
- The school is responsible for identifying students with disabilities, providing support, and involving the parents
- The parent is the student's advocate
Accommodations in College:
- Guarantee access, a key component of success, for students with disabilities. Accommodations must not amount to a fundamental alteration.
- Legal guidance is provided by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, and the Fair Housing Act (for housing accommodation requests)
- The ADA and Section 504 require colleges to provide accommodations and support services, but not services of a personal nature, such as individual therapy or tutoring services based on a disability
- Students are responsible for activating accommodations, asking professors for help/support, and for making up missed work
- Students with disabilities must request accommodations with the school and must be an active participant in the accommodations process
- The student is expected to self-advocate
Accommodations and Resources at Tulane:
The Goldman Center facilitates the interactive process for accommodations at Tulane. As a facilitator of access, the Goldman Center is a neutral evaluator of the student's requested accommodations related to identified barriers to access and considering what academic adjustments may be necessary to create that access. We consider the student's request, provided documentation and recommendations, and the resources available within the program. As such, the Goldman Center is the final evaluator of what accommodations are necessary for a student. Each request is approached in an individualized process-- the guidance detailed on this page and across our website is for informational purposes around typical considerations and policies.
For incoming students, the transition from high school to college may be challenging as academic demands shift. We have put together helpful guidance for frequently requested accommodations and resources incoming students put in their online request. For further information about some of the terminology used on this page or in our process, visit our Key Terms page and review the information linked below.
- Academic:
- The Goldman Center: Request accommodations and review our academic accessibility resources. Since accommodations cannot create a fundamental alteration, review additional information for accessibility-related questions around the NTC foreign language requirement and course registration.
- Academic Advising: Incoming Students
- Housing:
- The Goldman Center: Request accommodations and review our housing accessibility resources
- Housing & Residence Life: Logistics
- Dining:
- The Goldman Center: Request accommodations and review our dining accessibility resources
- Tulane Hospitality: Health and Wellness plans
Applying for Accommodations with the Goldman Center
Accommodations in college may pertain to the academic, housing, and/or dining environments depending on your disability-related needs in college. Incoming students wishing to continue academic accommodations in college MUST complete our Request Form and submit supporting documentation.
Ideally, you should submit your application and documentation simultaneously. If you have questions or concerns about our documentation requirements, please refer to our Documentation Guidelines. Students needing current documentation may consider utilizing the Fillable Provider Form. This form is not necessary if you have a current, comprehensive psychoeducational/neuropsychological evaluation to provide.
Accommodation plans from high school are typically not sufficient supporting information for requesting disability accommodations at Tulane, since accommodation plans in high school deliver accommodations based in success rather than access.
The Goldman Center for Student Accessibility is processing an unprecedented amount of requests for disability-based accommodations. As such, this process can take several weeks, depending on your request.
- We attempt to respond to new applications within 3-5 business days. If you have provided all relevant documentation for your request, you will be contacted with a request to self-schedule your Access Interview, either in-person or virtually, with a member of our team.
- If you do not have documentation submitted along with your request for accommodation, you will be reminded to provide supporting medical documentation to supplement your request. You will receive up to three (3) reminders to provide documentation before we will archive your application. You may re-activate your request at any time by contacting our office via phone or email.
- Once you have your Access Interview with a member of our team, please allow 10-15 business days to process your request for academic accommodation. In the event we need to conduct a fundamental alteration exploration or consult around your request, this timeline may be prolonged. IF YOU ARE REQUESTING A HOUSING ACCOMMODATION, please note the following:
- Housing accommodation requests are processed through the Goldman Center in conjunction with the Housing Accommodation Committee, an interdepartmental group comprised of relevant campus partners in supporting your request for accommodation-support at Tulane. The Committee meets on the first Friday of every month. Please allow until the second Friday of the month for a housing accommodation determination to be processed and rendered.
In sum, from the time of your application submission, your request may take anywhere from one to six weeks to process, depending on appointment availability and volume of requests.
The Goldman Center is open Monday-Friday from 8:30AM to 5:00PM Central Standard time. As such, please exclude weekends from this timeline. Any contact to our office over the weekend or University closures will be responded to as soon as possible once business operations have resumed.
A member of our team will reach out to you to self-schedule your Access Interview. This scheduling will be facilitated via Calendly with the member of our Goldman Center professional staff assigned to your application; if Calendly is not a convenient scheduling tool for you, you may also contact our office directly at (504)-862-8433 or goldman@tulane.edu to schedule this consultation. Once you schedule, you will be provided with a Zoom link/additional appointment information via your email associated with your application.
During the Access Interview, we will discuss your request for accommodation in conjunction with your lived experiences, provided documentation, and accessibility considerations at Tulane.
Your Goldman Center initial consultation, or Access Interview, is a critical component of your accommodation request. In this meeting, a Goldman team member will ask clarifying questions about your experiences in the academic, housing, and/or dining environment intended to provide you will the most appropriate form of support. You'll be able to share your first-hand narrative of your experiences and navigate your concerns with our experienced and professional staff.
A timeline for determination, requests for follow up information or additional documentation, and other individualized next steps will be communicated to you in this meeting.
Fore context, feel free to review our resources on our interactive process and expectations of self-advocacy ahead of your Access Interview.
Once you have your Access Interview with a member of our professional staff, a determination will be rendered; this determination may include specifcally approved accommodations and a referral to appropriate campus resources which help mitigate accessibility barriers. Accommodation determinations are made by considering your supporting documentation, first-hand narrative, program expectations, existing supports on campus, and fundamental considerations in the program.
A request for a specific accommodation is NOT guarantee of approval of that accommodation.
This determination may take at least 10-15 business days (roughly two to three weeks) from the time of your meeting. However, all housing requests must be processed through the Housing Committee, which meets once a month (on the first Friday). Therefore, housing requests take longer to process.
Frequently Asked Questions
We know we can't cover every question or concern unique to each student and family, but below are some common questions for students in the application and acceptance phase. If you'd like a more in-depth conversation or consultation for you/your student's accommodation needs, please don't hesitate to contact our office at goldman@tulane.edu or (504)-862-8433. We operate during standard business hours, Monday-Friday 8:30AM-5:00PM, and respond to inquiries outside of these hours as soon as we are able to.
Our online application system and information portal is confidential to our office. Your request for accommodations is not affiliated with your Tulane application nor admittance.
It's important to know what your accommodation approvals could look like at each institution you are applying to, since there are changes in practices across universities. If you'd like to schedule a consultation to discuss potential accommodations, you may fill out the online application. For the most informed determination decision, be sure to provide thorough and current documentation of your accommodation needs.
Your accommodations do NOT automatically transfer. To continue receiving accommodations, be sure to request accommodations through the Goldman Center. If approved for continued accommodations, these accommodations may look different because of access-based concerns.
This question is unique for each student. The Goldman Center's role is to review what is necessary for access based on a direct connection between disability and an identified barrier inherent in the environment.
No accommodation should be granted if it is unnecessary for access, or if it poses a fundamental alteration to the standards set by the program.
Thus, some accommodations in high school are not appropriate in this environment.
The Role of Parents and Families
The best way to support your student is to continue fostering the same self-advocacy skills you have been teaching throughout your student’s educational career. It is imperative that your student completes the request for accommodations in their own words, though you are more than welcome to help them navigate this application process. While our process is inherently student-led, student-focused, and student-centered, you are able to join your student in their Access Interview with our office, with the consent of your student. The Goldman Center will not schedule meetings or approve accommodations without the direct involvement of the student at each step.
We know this is as much a transition for you as it is for your student. You can support your student by encouraging them to reach out to our office to discuss any questions or concerns they have about the accommodations process. You are also welcome to share information about additional campus resources, such as Student Success and Case Management, that you can read more about here.
For students hesitant to inquire about accommodations, either as a student who has not yet contacted the Goldman Center or a student already approved for accommodations with the Goldman Center, it is important that you encourage them to reach out to us to schedule a meeting (in-person or virtual) to discuss their questions and concerns. While we understand that students may feel hesitant to reach out or utilize their accommodations, your student must drive the conversation for support.
An Open Letter to Parents of Students with Disabilities About to Enter College
