Can a unversity require a disabled student to live on campus?

[paintking19]

The university (won't mention name to protect them) I will be attending this fall has a residency requirement requiring all freshman to live in forms unless the student lives within 60 miles, is married, has children, etc. I don't meet any of these. Due to a physical disability I require a private bathroom (for sanitation) and nursing care. The university has already told us they cannot provide a private bathroom, and although my off-campus request has not yet been denied, the few school officials we have talked to seem to believe we will get denied. I'm wondering if I am protected by law? Does the university have to allow me to live off-campus? Is that considered a "reasonable modification" as described in the Americans with Disabilities Act?

 

[Ohiogal]

The university (won't mention name to protect them) I will be attending this fall has a residency requirement requiring all freshman to live in forms unless the student lives within 60 miles, is married, has children, etc. I don't meet any of these. Due to a physical disability I require a private bathroom (for sanitation) and nursing care. The university has already told us they cannot provide a private bathroom, and although my off-campus request has not yet been denied, the few school officials we have talked to seem to believe we will get denied. I'm wondering if I am protected by law? Does the university have to allow me to live off-campus? Is that considered a "reasonable modification" as described in the Americans with Disabilities Act?

Why do you need a private bathroom? Do you share a bathroom at your home with your family? It is very possible that you can be denied off-campus. Then you can choose to attend another university that won't force you to live on campus like every other other freshman.

 

[LdiJ]

Why do you need a private bathroom? Do you share a bathroom at your home with your family? It is very possible that you can be denied off-campus. Then you can choose to attend another university that won't force you to live on campus like every other other freshman.

Have you ever lived on campus in the dorms? If you had, you might understand the sanitation problem. Believe me its nothing like sharing a bathroom with family.

 

[swalsh411]

First, I would review this document to see if this college is even covered by the ADA

http://www.disabilityrightsca.org/pubs/530901.pdf

 

[Mass_Shyster]

Do you share a bathroom at your home with your family?

When I use the bathroom at home, there's only one person in it at a time. When I was on-campus, the bathroom had multiple shower stalls and toilet stalls, but those stalls were the only private places in the bathroom. Too small for anything but showering.

 

[swalsh411]

What do you need to do in a bathroom other than going to the bathroom, showering, and personal grooming? And what about a dorm bathroom makes this difficult for you? You will need to be able to answer these questions if you intend to pursue this.

 

[Ohiogal]

Have you ever lived on campus in the dorms? If you had, you might understand the sanitation problem. Believe me its nothing like sharing a bathroom with family.

Back to assuming aren't you? How are these dorms arranged? How old are these dorms? When is the last time you have ever been in college dorms? On what campus is OP? How many rooms share a bathroom? Are the bathrooms co-ed or not? Seriously, you are assuming quite a bit including about my knowledge. Quit doing that.

 

[ecmst12]

If nursing care is required, OP probably has a pretty significant disability and a communal bathroom might well be unreasonable. If there are dorms that have bathrooms shared just by 2 adjoining rooms, that might be considered a reasonable accommodation. My school had some dorms like that, not sure if OP's does. But the request hasn't been denied at this time, so panic is premature.

 

[DeenaCA]

I'm a little surprised that the university doesn't have any dorm facilities with accessible features that work for you. I'd have expected that they would have developed policies for accommodating students with disabilities long before this year.

There's a lot of good information at swalsh's link in post #4 (http://www.disabilityrightsca.org/pubs/530901.pdf). Here's an excerpt:

I am attending a school that does provide housing options to its students. May I request reasonable accommodations with regard to my housing? Is the school required to provide me with an accessible housing option?

Yes. If your school provides housing options for any student, then it is required to provide both reasonable accommodations to its housing policy and accessible housing options. The school may not charge more for accessible housing or housing provided with a reasonable accommodation than it charges for comparable inaccessible housing. Examples of reasonable accommodation in campus housing include housing located close to campus or to a shuttle or bus stop, priority for single or larger units, or allowing a student to have a service or companion animal despite a "no pets" policy. The school must make accessible housing available in a number of housing options, so that students with disabilities have housing opportunities equal to those of students without disabilities.

At the end of that document there is a sample request form for the student and a sample verification form for a medical professional. You should read the whole document; it goes into detail about the kind of documentation you need.

I'm not aware of any case law on this specific issue, but there's a well-known case in which a university was charged with violating the Fair Housing Act by refusing to permit a service animal for a student with disabilities (US v Millikin University).

I'd recommend that you contact a disability advocacy group on campus or in your area. If you're not able to resolve this with the university, you can file a fair housing complaint online at http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?src=/program_offices/fair_housing_equal_opp/online-complaint. They have an app now so you can file with a smartphone.

 

[paintking19]

Thank you for all your responses. To answer a few questions: I actually have do have my own bathroom at home. One of the biggest problems with dorm bathrooms is that most only have a shower, not a bathtub. I have a skin disease that causes my skin to blister and tear very easily. I also have a weak immune system and cannot fight off germs and bacteria like most people. I take baths and actually mix bleach in with the water to milk infection(yes it does hurt, but not as bad as life threatening infection). I suppose it could be possible to share a bathroom with 1 or 2 people as long as I cleaned the tub everytime, but we've been told these rooms are usually for upperclassmen. And this is not my attempt to bend the rules. I would love to be able to live in the dorm with every other student, but it's just not safe. Also I wear bandages all over my torso, basically like a vest. That is why I need a nurse. And I know that it can't be done in a dorm bathroom.

 

[OHRoadwarrior]

I suggest you immediately register with the universities disabilities accommodation department. This should be a routine issue for them to handle.

 

[paintking19]

I suggest you immediately register with the universities disabilities accommodation department. This should be a routine issue for them to handle.

I did so already. At this university you apply for Disabled Services. They contact your doctor and determine eligibility. I was determined eligible, however for dorm/housing accomadations they referred me to the housing department, where I requested an exemption. I guess it's all up to who gives in first.

 

[OHRoadwarrior]

I did so already. At this university you apply for Disabled Services. They contact your doctor and determine eligibility. I was determined eligible, however for dorm/housing accomadations they referred me to the housing department, where I requested an exemption. I guess it's all up to who gives in first.

They should enable you to get the exception. Call them back and advise them you are not being given appropriate consideration by housing. If needed go up a level or two politely. This needs to go to administration for a waiver, not housing I suspect.

 

[cbg]

Am I the only one to notice that he hasn't been denied yet?

 

[OHRoadwarrior]

Am I the only one to notice that he hasn't been denied yet?

LOL, Good point.