Transforming the Higher Education Experience of Students with Disabilities Through Innovative System Design and...

This paper will outline the systematic approach taken in University College Dublin to ensure that students with a disability are adequately supported and have full and equal access to their chosen college course. UCD were early adopters of the mainstreaming model recognising that specialist services could not adequately support the increasing numbers of students declaring a disability and that a whole college approach was required. This paper describes the opportunistic changes to a student support structure that have consolidated mainstreaming and enhanced supports for students with disabilities in a large Irish university Giving responsibility to specific roles throughout the college and sharing information in a systematic way ensures that consideration is given to all students with disabilities and not just those who have a visible disability or have the confidence to make themselves known to faculty and other staff. Knowledge of the diversity in the classroom has encouraged faculty to consider Universal Design in the construction and delivery of their courses and pockets of good practice have led to widespread recognition that this approach is not only beneficial to students with disabilities, but the entire student population which is becoming increasingly diverse. The systems we will describe include an integrated student record and Needs Assessment, the use of class lists to share information to target groups and a sophisticated exam reporting system, all of which have led to a streamlined service with minimal administrative requirements. We will also describe the business intelligence tools used to provide a visual representation of Widening Participation data for individual programme areas which ensures that College Principles are cognisant of their progress relative to national targets and where resources should be focused.