Supporting differently-abled students in two New Jersey community colleges
Creators: name: Waale, Mildred Faulkner
Publisher: name: No Publisher Supplied
Year: 2017

description: Federal disabilities legislation (the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act, or IDEIA of 2004) continued the movement of disabled (“differently-abled”) persons from segregated public educational institutions to fully integrated general education classrooms, with appropriate accommodations for the individual’s disabilities. Public schools’ implementation of this legislation has resulted in differently-abled high school students having increased skills and options as they enter the postsecondary world of work and/or education. Currently, there is a wide gap between the levels of support these students experience in public school versus the levels of supports they can expect in post-secondary education and/or in employment. For many of these students, postsecondary education on the campuses of community colleges may bridge that gap.    The purpose of this study was to compare the levels of and different types of support for differently-abled students at two New Jersey community colleges. The following research questions were investigated: (1) What support services are provided to and accessed by differently-abled students in two New Jersey community college settings? (2) What difficulties do administrators and students encounter in providing and accessing support services in the community college setting? and (3) How helpful are these services in supporting students’ progress towards their individual educational and career goals? Twenty differently-abled students and four community college administrators participated in this mixed methods study.     Findings indicated broad use of extended time for testing, testing in quiet testing centers; assistive technology; and pre-enrollment, academic, and transfer counseling services. Major challenges identified by administrators included difficulties in planning for and funding needed services due to open enrollment policies. Challenges identified by students included financial challenges, self-advocacy for required services, balancing the competing demands for time spent at work versus time spent studying, and needing to complete remedial courses prior to earning college credits. Findings also indicated comparative differences in CC1 and CC2 students’ perceptions of the helpfulness and quality of services for the following service categories: pre-enrollment services, academic counseling, assistive technology, and financial services counseling. Additional research is called for to obtain statistical data regarding graduation and attrition rates for differently-abled students, associated with the levels of accommodations and support services they require for academic success. Also, further research is required on cost and requisite funding needed to provide these supports. Possible implications for Disability Services Office (DSO) administrators are: increased use of Association on Higher Education and Disability (AHEAD) standards to self-audit service provisioning; increased scaffolding of differently-abled students throughout their progression in college and their transition to post-college academic/employment pursuits; and direct, mandated instruction in available services and supportive technologies to assist students in accessing appropriate and effective supports.