1. Students with
Disabilities
Helpful information for your class

2. Description
The Rehabilitation Act defines a disability as an
individual who has a physical, mental, or learning
disability, which substantially limits one or more major
life activity
(i.e., seeing, hearing, speaking, walking, sitting, standi
ng, breathing, reading, writing, or performing
mathematical calculations, and caring for oneself);
or who has a record of such impairment; or who is
regarded as having such impairment. Both the
impairment and the limitation of a major life activity
must be established to be eligible under the ADA.

3. Categories
 Chronic systemic conditions affect  Mobility impairments range from
one or more of the systems of the very limited stamina to paralysis of
body and include conditions such the lower or upper extremities and
as cancer, diabetes, epilepsy, and may include conditions such as
HIV-AIDS. arthritis, back disorders, cerebral
palsy, spinal cord injuries, and
 Hearing disabilities can range from neuromuscular disorders.
students who have difficulty
hearing, have lost hearing in one  Psychiatric disabilities refer to a
ear, or are completely deaf. diagnosis of a mental disorder from
a licensed professional and may
 Learning disabilities refers to include conditions such as
significant difficulties in the depression, bipolar disorder,
acquisition and use of listening, anxiety disorder, and
speaking, reading, writing, schizophrenia.
reasoning, and/or mathematical
abilities, with the presence of at  Vision disabilities include low vision,
least average intelligence. This total blindness, and partial sight
includes conditions such as such as impaired field of vision.
dyslexia, dyscalculia, and
dysgraphia, and can be extended
to include attention deficit
disorder.

4. Examples of Accommodations
The following adaptive equipment is available for loan
through the College OSSD.
 Tape recorders
 Assistive Listening Devices and FM Systems
 Dictionary Spell-checkers
 Talking dictionary spell-checkers
 Calculators
 Talking calculators
 Specialized keyboards
 Victor Readers (used with audio books)
 Magnifiers

5. Contact Information
Open Campus
Denise Giarrusso
Director of Services for Students with Disabilities
101 West State Street, Room A1020
Jacksonville, FL 32202
Phone: (904) 632-5007
Fax: (904) 633-8110
denise.giarrusso@fscj.edu