Frequently Asked Questions

Click the Section you would like to review: Making Content Accessible| General Questions | Digital Accessibility | General Questions from Supervisors| Pregnancy | Religious belief, observance, or practice 

Documents

• Employee Accommodation Request Form (Online) due to disability or underlying condition | With Medical Request Form
• Employee Accommodation Request Form due to disability or underlying condition (DOCX)
• Employee Accommodation Request Medical Inquiry Form (DOCX)
• Para Transportation Request Form (XLS)
• Town Clerk's Office Location Near Stony Brook
• Employee Accommodation Request Form due to Religious belief, observance, or practice

Making Content Accessible (Resources)

• Website Accessibility

  Click here for more information on creating a Website Accessible.

• Creating Accessible Documents

  Creating accessible Microsoft Office documents by Microsoft.  

• Universal Design in Learning

  For information on Universal Design for Learning (UDL), the Center for Applied Special Technology (CAST) has a framework of research-based guidelines. CAST defines UDL as a framework for improving and optimizing teaching and learning for all individuals based on scientific insights into how humans learn. While these guidelines are helpful for many learners, they are not a replacement for accommodations intended to meet specific needs. You can find a graphic organized to illustrate the principles of Universal Design (UX) here.  

General Questions

• What is "Reasonable Accommodation?"
  A Reasonable accommodation is any modification or adjustment to a job or the work environment that will enable a qualified applicant or employee with a disability to participate in the application process or perform essential job functions. Reasonable accommodation also includes adjustments to ensure that a qualified individual with a disability has rights and privileges in employment equal to those without disabilities.
• How much information does the university need to explore and implement an accommodation?
  The exploration and implementation of reasonable accommodations are done on an individualized basis and are an interactive process. The timeline will vary depending on the complexity of the case and the availability of resources. Therefore, it is best to initiate your request as soon as you suspect you may need a reasonable accommodation.
• I am an employee with a mobility impairment. Do you provide transportation from my home to campus?

  The university does not provide transportation from an employee's home. All employees are responsible for transporting themselves to and from campus.

  Transportation and Parking Operations provide special transportation services for community members with a documented disability or injury. Transportation and Parking Operations operates a shuttle service in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to meet the needs of individuals with disabilities or underlying temporary conditions that require accommodation. You may contact Transportation and Parking Operations at 631-632-6418 OR 631-632-3741

  Stony Brook University individuals who require Special Transportation Services to travel to/from the following Suffolk Transit Connection destinations may request such services through Suffolk County Accessible Transportation (SCAT) Services at (631) 738-1150 (voice) or (631) 981-0104 (TTY);

  SCAT provides curb-to-curb transportation and will pick you up and drop you off between any two points in Suffolk County (excluding Shelter Island and trips that begin and end in the Town of Huntington, which are serviced by the HART paratransit system).

  If you need more information, please visit the SCAT FAQ page ( http://www.sct-bus.org/scat_faq.html). 

   

• What types of accommodation(s) are usually considered reasonable under the ADA for employees or applicants?

  Making facilities used by employees accessible to the disabled, acquiring or modifying equipment or devices, providing readers or interpreters, or similar accommodations are generally considered reasonable. OEA will individually evaluate each situation when presented.

  For accommodations for students, please contact the Student Accessibility Support Center (SASC) at 631-632-6748 or sasc@stonybrook.edu.

   

• What types of accommodation does an employer not have to provide?

  Employers need not furnish personal use items needed in accomplishing daily activities on and off the job, such as eyeglasses, hearing aids, and wheelchairs, as a reasonable accommodation. In addition, an employer need not provide any requested accommodation if it presents an "undue" hardship to the employer.

• What does undue hardship mean?

  An undue hardship includes an action or accommodation requiring significant difficulty and expense, taking into account the nature and cost of the accommodation, the financial resources of the facility, the number of employees of the facility, the effect the accommodation would have on the facility, and the nature of the operations of the employer.

• What, if any, accommodation will I receive?

  Once Stony Brook determines that you may require accommodation, we will engage in an interactive process to determine if any reasonable accommodation might be provided. We will make reasonable efforts to work with you and consider your preference; however, we may move forward with an alternative accommodation that is less burdensome as long as it is appropriate and meets your needs.

• How do I know what information is necessary to document my impairment(s) or provide suggested reasonable accommodation?

  Stony Brook may require supporting documentation from a medical provider if the impairment or a safe and effective reasonable accommodation is not apparent. We will only need the documentation necessary to establish the impairment and determine the appropriate safe and effective reasonable accommodation.

Digital Accessibility 

• What is Digital Accessibility?
  Digital accessibility encompasses all electronic documents, media, tools, and processes used to create digital content and facilitate electronic communication and transactions. Accessibility means that a person with a disability can independently use the tools or techniques, interact with the content, receive the same benefit simultaneously, and with equal ease of use as a person without a disability.
• What if my program does not involve participants with disabilities?
  20% of the population has a disability, and a recent study of college students found that 46% did not disclose their disability. Taken together, we can not assume that we do not work with a student, colleague, or community member with a disability.
• Can we wait until we receive an accommodation request to make our content or service accessible?
  It is much more costly in time and resources to remediate accessibility. We would not construct a building and wait to receive a request for access to the second floor before installing an elevator. We must look at our process and design our content, tools, and processes to be accessible to the broadest audience from the outset.
• What can I do it if I encounter an accessibility barrier on a Stony Brook University website?

  Stony Brook University is committed to providing an accessible experience for all Students, faculty, staff, and community members. If you encounter an accessibility barrier with Stony Brook Content, programs, or services, please submit an  Accessibility Barrier Report Form.

General Questions from Supervisors

• Will OEA contact me if my employee makes a request?

  Yes. As part of our interactive process, we speak with you and the employee to determine what accommodation we can provide that best fits the department's needs and addresses the barrier at work for the employee.

• I already spoke with and approved an accommodation for my employee. Must we notify OEA?

  Yes. Please refer the employee to OEA and inform us of the accommodation to document it for our records.

• My employee gave me medical documentation (including a doctor's note) and asked for accommodation. What should I do?

  Please contact OEA at oea_ada@stonybrook.edu and forward all relevant documentation to the attention of the ADA Specialist, including the original inter-office medical documentation (our internal ZIP is 0251).  Please do not save or make copies of any medical documentation. You may also return the document to your employee and refer them to OEA with their request.   

   

Pregnancy

• Why are pregnancy accommodation requests being handled by OEA?
  While pregnancy is not classified as a disability, individuals experiencing it may require temporary accommodations. To streamline the process, it is logical to have medically related accommodation requests reviewed by OEA staff, who are trained in this area.

Accommodations due to Religious belief, observance, or practice

• Why are religious accommodation requests being handled by OEA?
  Stony Brook University adheres to State and Federal laws and regulations on religious observance and practice. We are pleased to offer reasonable accommodations to faculty and staff members whose work responsibilities may interfere with their sincerely held religious beliefs, practices, or observations. However, if fulfilling such an accommodation would cause undue hardship, we may be unable to comply with the request. Please advise us if you require such an accommodation. The Office of Equity and Access has been designated as the office responsible for handling these requests.