A College Student Remains in Her Classroom

Stories

A College Student Remains in Her Classroom

Ariana is a first-year college student who frequently had seizures during class. One of her professors found her seizures to be distracting, so he insisted that she leave every class early, sit in the hallway, and return at the end of class for the homework assignment. Ariana’s grades began to suffer as she missed more than half of every class. OCRA advised Ariana that her college must make reasonable accommodations for students with disabilities. OCRA advised Ariana that she cannot be asked to leave class because she has a disability. OCRA helped Ariana prepare for a Section 504 meeting with her college, where she advocated for her right to stay in the classroom. At the 504 planning meeting, the team agreed that Ariana could not be kicked out of class because she has seizures. Since then, Ariana has been able to attend the entire class session for the rest of the semester.