STUDENT AFFAIRS LEADERSHIP COUNCIL
Support Services for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Students
Custom Research Brief
I. Research Methodology II. Executive Overview
III. Interpreting and Other Services
IV. Disability Services Funding and Staffing
TABLE OF CONTENTS
RESEARCH
ASSOCIATE Joe LeMaster
RESEARCH
MANAGER Sarah Moore
THE ADVISORY BOARD COMPANY WASHINGTON, D.C.
© 2012 The Advisory Board Company 2 Services for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Students: What support services do other institutions offer for deaf and hard of hearing students? What services are considered essential or especially popular within this particular student population? Have there been any changes to the services in recent years? How do disability services staff members collaborate with other offices within student and academic affairs to support students with disabilities?
Structuring the Disability Services Office: What is the organizational structure of the disability services office at other institutions? How is the office funded? Aside from staffing, what are the major cost areas for the office? How have other institutions successfully managed costs within the office while still providing a high level of service to students?
I.RESEARCH METHODOLOGY Project Challenge
A member institution approached the Council with the following questions:
Sources
Education Advisory Board’s internal research library http://www.educationadvisoryboard.com National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) http://nces.ed.gov/
Contact institutions’ websites
Research Parameters
The Council interviewed disabilities services administrators at small to midsize institutions serving deaf and hard of hearing student populations.
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I.RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
A Guide to the Institutions Profiled in this Brief
Institution Location Institution Type
Campus Setting
Carnegie Classification
Approximate Total Enrollment
(Fall 2010) University A South Public Rural: Fringe Doctoral/Research
University 14,000
University B South Private City: Small
Baccalaureate Colleges—
Diverse Fields
1,800
College C Mid-Atlantic Private Suburb: Small
Baccalaureate Colleges—Arts &
Sciences
3,500
University D Pacific
Northwest Public Suburb:
Midsize
Master’s College and Universities (larger programs)
6,500
University E Northeast Public City: Small
Research Universities (high
research activity)
13,500
Sources: National Center for Education Statistics
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II. EXECUTIVE OVERVIEW Key Observations
Commonly available support services for deaf and hard of hearing students include interpreters, note takers, priority course registration, testing accommodations, smartpens, captioning and transcription, and FM loop systems.
Most contact institutions employ a combination of full time and part time interpreters;
third-party interpreters are typically only contracted when staff interpreters do not possess adequate scheduling capacity to serve student needs. Some interpreters maintain additional responsibilities, such as serving as a coordinator for the disability services office. Only one contact institution contracts with a third-party service to provide all of the institution’s interpreting needs.
Compensation for student note takers varies by institution; some note takers are volunteers, and some institutions provide stipends and priority course registration. Multiple contact institutions assign at least two note takers per class to ensure the shared notes are comprehensive.
Contacts report significant difficulty with providing captioning services in a consistent and cost effective manner. Although an in-house captioning service using student workers is likely the least expensive option, contacts encourage faculty to incorporate course materials with existing captions or transcripts. Some institutions rely on third-party captioning services for time sensitive captioning needs, but these services are employed sparingly due to their high cost.
Funding for contact institutions’ disability services offices is typically allocated from university general funds. Additional funding is secured through state and federal reimbursements, fee-based academic support services, and the student life division.
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III. INTERPRETING AND OTHER SERVICES Overview of Academic Services
Contact institutions offer a variety of academic support services for deaf and hard of hearing students, as outlined in the table below. All contact institutions offer interpreting services, note taking services, testing accommodations, and priority course registration.
Classroom Services for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Students
Institution
Approximate Number of Deaf and Hard
of Hearing Students
Number of Staff Interpreters
Additional Available Services
University A 65
One full time Two part time (two
additional part time staff will be hired) Hourly interpreters,
as required
Lab assistants Live captioning
Closed/open captioning Listening devices on loan Smartpens on loan
University B 20 Five full time
Two part time
FM system
Onsite captioning studio Deaf and hard of hearing
open house sessions
College C 13
Zero; all interpreters are contracted through an agency
FM / loop systems Transcribing services Captioning services
University D 3
Six part time
Program coordinator provides interpreting services
Captioning services FM / loop systems Smartpens on loan
University E 25 Three full time
Captioning services TypeWell transcribing
services
Interpreting Services
Contacts report that interpreting services are often the most resource-intensive and require specialized staff and coordinator positions. Interpreters are available for any class or university event (e.g., commencement, new student orientation, official student organization meetings), and although the disability services office typically receives a copy of a student’s schedule following registration, the student is responsible for communicating his or her needs to the office. Most contact institutions require students to schedule interpreting services at least one week in advance, but accommodations for last minute request are made whenever possible.
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III. INTERPRETING AND OTHER SERVICES Interpreter Employment
Interpreter staffing pools typically consist or full time or part time workers employed by the university.
Some contacts report that it is more cost effective to employ interpreters instead of contracting with third- party interpreting agencies, depending on the agencies in the region; contacts at University A report that interpreters from a third-party agency can cost between 50 to 75 percent more than a staff interpreter, but contacts at College C assert that using agency interpreters instead of staff interpreters is more cost effective.
Part Time Staff Interpreters at University A
University A currently employs one full time staff interpreter and two part time staff interpreters, and the institution is in the process of hiring two additional part time interpreters. Part time workers are scheduled for approximately 25 hours per week (20 hours of interpreting, five hours of “transition time” between appointments), and additional staff interpreters are available on an hourly basis during busy periods. Contacts report that part time workers are preferred over full time staff for interpreting duties; the part time workers’ scheduling flexibility is ideal for an academic setting since their services are typically required on an hourly basis. The sole full time staff member has administrative responsibilities in addition to interpreting, and part time staff members are only responsible for interpreting services. Third-party interpreters are often only contracted for students enrolled in technical courses.
Unclassified, Hourly Interpreters at University D
Most interpreters at University D work between four and 19 hours per week and are unclassified, hourly staff. Staff members are a mix of certified and pre-certified interpreters, and course placement is influenced by each interpreter’s academic backgrounds. The Program Coordinator for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services also provides interpreting services for approximately 20 hours per week in addition to her administrative duties.
Third-party Interpreters at College C
Approximately two years ago, College C ceased directly employing interpreters and coordinators. The institution contracts exclusively with a single third-party provider, and contacts note that students, faculty, and staff all report a higher level of service compared to the previous in-house interpreters and coordinator. The agency charges the institution with two hourly rates—daytime (8:00 am to 5:00 pm) and weekend rates—and the agency’s full time coordinator is stationed on campus. Contacts state that interpreters are always available when required, and students may request an interpreter with as little as 48 hours notice. Contacts report, however, that agency availability may be limited in other regions;
contacts were only able to locate a single agency that has capacity for the number of hours required by College C. Although contacts indicate that the agency is less expensive than direct employment, a single month of interpreting services during a busy time of year may cost the institution as much as
$35,000.
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III. INTERPRETING AND OTHER SERVICES Note Taking Services
All contact institutions provide deaf and hard of hearing students with note taking services during class.
At University A, University B, and University D, instructors request a minimum of two note takers per class to protect against absences and to provide deaf or hard of hearing students with comprehensive notes. Contacts at University D report students, faculty, and disabilities services staff are satisfied with the process for recruiting and assigning note takers:
Assigning Note Takers at University D
A deaf or hard of hearing student completes his or her
course registration.
The student submits an accommodation request through the
disabilities services web portal.
The course instructor receives an automated
e-mail indicating the student’s needs.
All students registered for the course receive
an automated e-mail requesting note taking
volunteers.
Volunteers register as note takers through the disabilities services
web portal.
Completed notes are scanned and e-mailed directly to the deaf or
hard of hearing student.
Maintaining Anonymity
The automated system ensures that students requesting accommodations are not identified to the note takers at any point, but deaf or hard of hearing students are required to discuss accommodations with their instructors as early into the term as possible, typically within the first week of class.
Note Taker Compensation
Students at College C and University D receive monetary compensation for serving as note takers;
College C provides students with a $100 per semester, and students at University D receive priority class registration and a $50 credit at the bookstore.
Smartpen Availability for Hard of Hearing Students
Hard of hearing students at University D and University A may borrow Livescribe smartpens to assist with note taking. At University D, students that borrow Livescribe pens may not use additional note taking services provided by the disabilities services office.
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III. INTERPRETING AND OTHER SERVICES Captioning Services
Contacts report that although captioning services are critical to effectively serving deaf and hard of hearing students, the services can be expensive and inconsistent without proper planning. Contacts suggest multiple approaches to effectively providing captioning services:
Tutoring and Individual Academic Support
Most contact institutions do not offer tutoring directly through the disabilities services office; office coordinators typically provide the central academic support center with information about individual students’ accommodations and connect students with a peer or professional tutor. At University D, the Program Coordinator for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services provides limited developmental support directly to students.
Encourage Faculty to Incorporate
Already- Captioned
Materials
Disabilities services offices strongly encourage faculty members to provide students with course materials that are already captioned or transcribed whenever possible. Contacts advise reminding instructors about deaf and hard of hearing students’ needs as soon as the disability services office receives a student’s course schedule. Instructors are encouraged to send transcripts to deaf or hard of hearing students (when available) prior to the presentation of materials during class.
Leverage Student Workers for
Captioning Duties
Most captioning duties at University B are completed by student workers using the institution’s onsite captioning studio. The studio is funded by a technology grant, and students use a free program, Universal Subtitling, to minimize costs associated with captioning.
Avoid Expensive Third-Party
Captioning Vendors
Contacts report that many third-party captioning services are prohibitively expensive and should be avoided unless no other options are available.
Typically, students request third-party captioning services when conducting research for an assignment, but contacts report that instructors often request captioning services if they neglect to plan ahead or insist on using materials without an available transcript or captions.
Fee-based Support at College C
Deaf and hard of hearing students at College C may pay an additional fee for one-on-one support from a professional counselor in the Student Academic Support Services office. Fees are charged on a per- semester basis, and students receive guidance on the development of academic skills, weekly meetings with a professional counselor, and assistance locating tutors for specific subject areas.
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IV. DISABILITY SERVICES FUNDING AND STAFFING Funding Sources
At most contact institutions, the disability services office receives funding through the university general fund. Additional state and federal support is also available; at University A, contacts report that disability services are funded directly by the state, and any additional funds are provided by the academic services division. Contacts at University B note that the institution is reimbursed for interpreting services for veterans by the federal government’s Vocational Rehabilitation program.
Staffing Structures
Contact institutions’ disability services offices employ the following staff members:
Disability Services Staff at Contact Institutions
Institution Staff Members
University A
Director
Communication Access Coordinator One full time staff interpreter Two part time staff interpreters One Senior Administrative Associate Two work study students
University B
Director
Assistant Director
Coordinator, Disability Services Five full time interpreters Two part time interpreters Additional student workers
College C
Director
Office Manager
Five professional counselors Four full time graduate workers
University D
Director
Accommodations/Learning Specialist
Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services Coordinator Assistive Technology Specialist
Accommodated Testing Coordinator Six part time interpreters
University E
Director
Office Support Generalist Interpreter Services Coordinator Three full time specialists
The Advisory Board has worked to ensure the accuracy of the information it provides to its members. This project relies on data obtained from many sources, however, and The Advisory Board cannot guarantee the accuracy of the information or its analysis in all cases. Further, The Advisory Board is not engaged in rendering clinical, legal, accounting, or other professional services. Its projects should not be construed as professional advice on any particular set of facts or circumstances. Members are advised to consult with their staff and senior management, or other appropriate professionals, prior to implementing any changes based on this project. Neither The Advisory Board Company nor its programs are responsible for any claims or losses that may arise from any errors or omissions in their projects, whether caused by The Advisory Board Company or its sources.
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