Learning Disability and ADHD Support

Cabrini provides support services and appropriate accommodations for qualified students with learning disabilities (LD) and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

In addition to submitting to the Director, the ARC Support Services Application, the student must include documentation that is on professional letterhead stationery and include the signature, title, and credentials of the professional who conducted the evaluation.

The Director/Assistant Director of the Accessibility Resource Center (ARC) will meet with each student and prepare a student accommodation letter VISA (Verified Individualized Services and Accommodations) which students  present to their instructors to verify the need for classroom and testing accommodations.

Interested students with documented LD and ADHD may schedule appointments with a Student Accessibility Specialist who provides individualized academic support and serves as a student advocate with faculty while developing their own advocacy skills. Approved accommodations may include: Extended testing time, testing in a distraction reduced environment, assistance with note taking, and more. Assistance with course selection is also available. 

Documentation of an Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
To document ADHD, a student must submit a current report based on the results of a comprehensive evaluation by a medical doctor or licensed psychologist experienced in the area of ADHD.

The report must include the following information:

• a clear statement of a diagnosis of ADHD
• identification of procedures and instruments used to make the diagnosis—examples include Wender Utah Rating Scale, Brown Attention-Activation Disorder Scale, and Beck Anxiety Inventory
• relevant information about the individual's history which substantiates the diagnosis
• analysis of evaluation results including standardized test scores, if available
• description of the functional difficulties caused by the ADHD in an academic setting
• recommendations for appropriate accommodations to help compensate for the ADHD

Documentation of a Learning Disability
To document a learning disability, a student must submit a report from a comprehensive psychoeducational evaluation performed within the last three years by a licensed psychologist or certified school psychologist.

The report must clearly state that a learning disability exists, provide data and analysis substantiating the diagnosis, and verify the need for accommodations by identifying deficits that significantly affect academic performance.

At minimum, the following information must be included:

• an assessment of cognitive functioning based upon results of one of the following tests:
  • Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale - III or Revised (WAIS-III or WAIS-R)
  • Woodcock-Johnson Psychoeducational Battery - Revised: Tests of Cognitive Ability
• data about specific areas of information processing (e.g., perceptual ability, memory, processing speed)
• information about academic achievement including current levels of reading, mathematics, writing and spelling ability as measure by the following:
  • Woodcock-Johnson Psychoeducational Battery - Revised: Tests of Achievement
  • Wechsler Individual Achievement Test (WIAT) individual scaled subtest scores