Academic accommodations are determined on an individualized basis through an interactive process that involves student self-disclosure, documentation of disability, and an initial meeting with a Disability Specialist.
Disability Services Drop-In Hours
Renew Accommodations for the Current Semester
Students who are already approved for academic accommodations must renew them at the start of every new semester. This process gives students the chance to review their accommodations and decide which accommodations to activate for each of their current classes. Completing the Semester Request also sends a notification to their course instructors and allows them to review the students’ accommodation letters.
These are the steps to complete your semester request:
- Log into the MyWeingartenCenter student portal.
- Select Accommodation > Semester Request from the left menu.
- Click on “Add New”.
- Select the current semester from the drop-down list.
- Select “Review the Renewal”
- Under each accommodation, your active courses will be listed. If you need to use the accommodation in a course, leave the box checked. If you don’t need the accommodation for a course, you can uncheck it.
- Click “Submit” to finish.
Disability Services will confirm your request, send your accommodation letters to your professors, and send you an instruction email.
Please note:
- The accommodation letters sent to professors include a list of accommodations but no information about disability.
- If you add a course after submitting a semester request (during the course selection period), you will need to submit another semester request for that additional course. Otherwise, faculty for that course will not be notified of the accommodation(s).
Request Additional Accommodations
Students who are already approved for accommodations can request additional accommodations at any time during their Penn career by completing a Supplemental Accommodation Request. An additional accommodation may be needed when a student’s disability or medical condition changes over time, or when a new course presents unique accessibility barriers or challenges. Complete a Supplemental Accommodation Request through the MyWeingartenCenter student portal. After completing the Supplemental Accommodation Request, the student should also schedule a 25-minute follow-up appointment with their Disability Specialist to discuss the new request.
Testing Accommodations
Students who are approved for test-taking accommodations should speak with their course instructor early in the semester about how to handle these accommodations. Some course instructors prefer to arrange a place and time to give their exams with accommodations themselves. In many cases, it is preferable for the student to test through Disability Services.
Students who wish to take their accommodated tests through Disability Services must schedule each quiz, test, or exam at least eight days in advance through the MyWeingartenCenter student portal. All tests proctored through Disability Services will take place in the Center for Accommodated Testing, located in the Holman BioTech Commons (3610 Hamilton Walk). The Center for Accommodated Testing is located one floor down from the main entrance on the blue level. Students are encouraged to visit the center prior to their first exam.
Note: Students in Penn Law, Penn Dental, Penn Vet, Perelman School of Medicine MD Program, Penn Engineering Online, or Wharton MBA programs should make all arrangements for test accommodations with their School’s Disability Services liaison.
Note-Taking Accommodations
Reasonable accommodations are provided pursuant to the Americans with Disabilities Act, the ADA Amendments Act, and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. Section 504, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of physical or mental disability, requires postsecondary institutions to provide auxiliary aids and services, which may include audio recordings, to eligible students with disabilities.
Disability Services offers note-taking assistance for eligible students. All students approved for note-taking accommodations should monitor their Penn email accounts for communication from the note-taking services team. Students must sign the Audio Recording Agreement and complete the Note-Taking Assistance Request Form before the note-taking services team will take any action.
If students have any questions or want an update on the status of their request, they should email sds-notes@vpul.upenn.edu.
Messenger Pigeon
Students approved for note-taking accommodations may be able to use Messenger Pigeon, an application that audio records class sessions to generate transcripts, summary notes, and recordings that students can play back for personal study use. The Weingarten Center will create a Messenger Pigeon account for a student after they have:
- Submitted a semester request for the current semester.
- Signed the Audio Recording Agreement through the MyWeingartenCenter student portal. The agreement must be reviewed and signed at the beginning of each semester.
- Completed the Note-Taking Assistance and Audio Recording Request Form provided by an accommodation specialist.
Students should speak with their instructors about using Messenger Pigeon during class sessions.
Summary Notes from Student-Recorded Class Sessions
Students provided with Messenger Pigeon will need access to a laptop, smartphone, or tablet to use this service. The Weingarten Center will delete students’ Messenger Pigeon accounts, including audio recordings and transcripts, 10 business days after the end of the current term unless other arrangements have been made with the student and course instructor.
Course instructors should send the following notification to all students in their class via a Canvas announcement or email:
To provide equal access to learning and eliminate barriers for students with disabilities in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, the ADA Amendments Act, and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, students with academic accommodations approved by Disability Services may audio record class sessions in this course.
If an instructor has questions or concerns about audio recording in their class, they should contact Disability Services (disabilityservices@vpul.upenn.edu) rather than addressing these questions or concerns with the student directly. The student’s assigned disability specialist may work with the student and course instructor to explore options based on an individualized determination of the student’s access needs.
At the discretion of the instructor, audio recording may be prohibited during portions of classes that involve sensitive content, such as personal discussion and or self-disclosure, that will not be assessed or needed for reference in the course. In these situations, the instructor may inform the class that recording apps/devices should be turned off and that students may not take notes. If this occurs, the instructor should inform students when they can turn their recording devices back on and resume taking notes.
Summary Notes from Instructor-Recorded Class Sessions
In some cases, if schools or instructors provide students with access to recordings of class sessions, students may have the option to upload those recordings to Messenger Pigeon to generate summary notes, but students must first speak with their instructor. Students must also communicate with their disability specialist and the note-taking assistance team (sds-notes@vpul.upenn.edu) regarding this option. The Weingarten Center will delete students’ Messenger Pigeon accounts, including audio recordings and transcripts, 10 business days after the end of the current term unless other arrangements have been made with the student and course instructor.
Important Notes About Messenger Pigeon
- Students are only allowed to use Messenger Pigeon during class sessions in courses for which they have approved note-taking accommodations. Students should not use Messenger Pigeon during any activities outside of class sessions.
- Students should email sds-notes@vpul.upenn.edu if they experience any technical issues or have concerns about the quality of summary notes.
Peer Note-Taker
If Messenger Pigeon is not available for a course in which a student has an approved note-taking accommodation, Disability Services will make efforts to recruit and hire another student in the class to share their notes. The process is anonymous. The note-taker uploads their notes to the MyWeingartenCenter portal for the student with a note-taking accommodation to access.
Students approved for note-taking accommodations who are interested in accessing notes created by a peer note-taker must complete the following steps:
- Submit a semester request for the current semester.
- Complete the Note-Taking Assistance and Request Form provided by an accommodation specialist.
The recruitment and hiring process for peer note-takers can take several weeks to complete. In some cases, Disability Services may not be successful in recruiting a peer note-taker but will continue exploring other options for note-taking assistance.
Students who have any questions or concerns about the notes they are receiving from a peer note-taker should email sds-notes@vpul.upenn.edu.
Audio Recording Class Sessions Accommodation
Reasonable accommodations are provided pursuant to the Americans with Disabilities Act, the ADA Amendments Act, and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. Section 504, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of physical or mental disability, requires postsecondary institutions to provide auxiliary aids and services, which may include audio recordings, to eligible students with disabilities.
Students approved for the audio recording class sessions accommodation may be able to use Messenger Pigeon, an application that audio records class sessions to generate transcripts, summary notes, and recordings that students can play back for personal study use. The Weingarten Center will create a Messenger Pigeon account for a student after they have:
- Submitted a semester request for the current semester.
- Signed the Audio Recording Agreement through the MyWeingartenCenter student portal. The agreement must be reviewed and signed at the beginning of each semester.
- Completed the Note-Taking Assistance and Audio Recording Request Form provided by an accommodation specialist.
Students provided with Messenger Pigeon will need access to a laptop, smartphone, or tablet to use this service. The Weingarten Center will delete students’ Messenger Pigeon accounts, including audio recordings and transcripts, 10 business days after the end of the current term unless other arrangements have been made with the student and course instructor.
Course instructors should send the following notification to all students in their class via a Canvas announcement or email:
To provide equal access to learning and eliminate barriers for students with disabilities in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, the ADA Amendments Act, and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, students with academic accommodations approved by Disability Services may audio record class sessions in this course.
If an instructor has questions or concerns about audio recording in their class, they should contact Disability Services (disabilityservices@vpul.upenn.edu) rather than addressing these questions or concerns with the student directly. The student’s assigned disability specialist may work with the student and course instructor to explore options based on an individualized determination of the student’s access needs.
At the discretion of the instructor, audio recording may be prohibited during portions of classes that involve sensitive content, such as personal discussion and or self-disclosure, that will not be assessed or needed for reference in the course. In these situations, the instructor may inform the class that recording apps/devices should be turned off and that students may not take notes. If this occurs, the instructor should inform students when they can turn their recording devices back on and resume taking notes.
Important Notes About Messenger Pigeon
- Students are only allowed to use Messenger Pigeon during class sessions in courses for which they have approved Audio Recording Class Sessions accommodations. Students should not use Messenger Pigeon during any activities outside of class sessions.
- Students should email sds-notes@vpul.upenn.edu if they experience any technical issues with Messenger Pigeon.
Sign Language Interpreting and Real-Time Transcription
Students who are approved for sign language interpreting or real-time transcription for communication access will receive these services through Disability Services. Disability Services staff will request the student’s class schedule at least one month in advance of the start of each semester and find coverage for each class meeting through one of the university-approved agencies. Requests for one-time events that require sign language interpreting or real-time transcription for a student can be directed to the Disability Services email account.
More information about the university’s guidelines for communication access can be found on the Web Accessibility website.