×
×
homepage logo
LOGIN
SUBSCRIBE

Hassan, Casey, Cassidy request review of higher education resources and access for students with disabilities

By Staff | Jan 14, 2021

U.S. Sen. Maggie Hassan

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Bob Casey (D-PA), and Bill Cassidy, MD (R-LA) are requesting a Government Accountability Office review of how colleges and universities are working to ensure that students with disabilities can access the same learning opportunities as their peers during the COVID-19 pandemic. The three Senators serve on the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee.

“Under normal circumstances, accessing the appropriate accommodations can prove challenging for students in higher education,” wrote the Senators. “During the COVID-19 pandemic, students face many of the same challenges in accessing appropriate accommodations as they did prior to the pandemic, but must now do so navigating remote and distanced learning.”

Dennis Green, Director of the Southern New Hampshire University Campus Accessibility Center stated, “Providing equal access to higher education during this crisis and period of remote learning requires teams of individuals using a variety of resources. Through universal design, new technologies, and formal accommodations, we can create an accessible and equitable experience for our students. We thank Senator Hassan for requesting this report that will look at how institutions of higher education are working to achieve that goal, and we look forward to the best practices that it will highlight for remote learning.”

The Senators are requesting that the Government Accountability Office conduct a review that details the challenges that students with disabilities are facing – including those related to the COVID-19 pandemic – and examples of how institutions of higher learning have succeeded in supporting these students.

Newsletter

Join thousands already receiving our daily newsletter.

Interests
Are you a paying subscriber to the newspaper? *