Student Disability Services
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See What Services You Qualify For

The Office of Student Disability Services (SDS) provides a wide range of services for eligible undergraduate and graduate students, including those with acute medical issues and those in recovery.

Accessible Media

The Office of Student Disability Services coordinates with publishers and faculty members to provide eligible students with electronic files of their textbooks and instructional materials. These files are commonly referred to as e-text, and are compatible with assistive technology programs and devices used by individuals with disabilities.

E-text was made possible as a result of Chapter 219 of the Education Laws of 2003, whereby publishers and other producers of instructional material are required to provide alternate format textbooks to students with disabilities. By using e-text, along with the resources found in our Access and Technology Center, students with disabilities can often increase their overall academic performance.

How to Request Services

Students determined to be eligible by our office for this accommodation must complete and submit an Alternate Format Textbook Request form to our alternate textbook coordinator for each book required. Students must also sign an Electronic Text Distribution Agreement upon receipt of their books. For more information, please call SDS at 718-960-8441 or stop by room 238 in Shuster Hall.

Staff & Peer Notetakers

For students who are eligible for notetaking services, the Office of Student Disability Services recruits and pays staff notetakers an hourly wage. (Interested staff notetaker applicants should take a look at our Policy and Procedures Manual for Staff Notetakers and complete and return a Staff Notetaker/Reader Application to room 238 Shuster Hall.)

Students with disabilities may also recruit a peer notetaker—a fellow student in their same class—to take notes on their behalves. Peer notetakers receive a stipend of $100 for their service and are honored with a reception at the end of the semester. Interested peer note-takers recommended by their professors or by peers must complete and return a Peer Notetaker Application to room 238 in Shuster Hall.

How to Request Services

Once a student is determined eligible and initiates services, our office makes every effort to recruit notetakers before the semester begins. But we can only do so with your active participation in the process. The following is a list of your primary responsibilities for arranging and managing notetaking services:

Testing Accommodations

The Office of Student Disability Services works with Lehman faculty to provide testing accommodations to students who qualify. Our Testing Center, located in room 238 Shuster Hall, is equipped with three computers containing assistive and general technology for students who require it. A proctor, reader, or scribe can also be made available by our office if you are eligible.

How to Request Services

Students who are eligible for testing accommodations during a test or a quiz, such as extended time, use of assistive technology, or a distraction-free room, should notify their professors at the beginning of the semester. (The office can furnish the student with an accommodation letter, which details the services to which the student is entitled.) Some professors request that SDS administers extended-time exams; other professors may choose to oversee exams themselves, with the required accommodations in place. Students must follow the SDS test accommodations policy outlined below, and take the following five steps to receive this service:

Sign-language Interpreters

The Office of Student Disability Services can provide eligible students who are deaf or hard of hearing with sign-language interpreters. Students requiring this service must provide our office with at least one week advance notice to guarantee services.

Elevator Keys

For information on how to obtain and elevator key, please contact us directly at disability.services@lehman.cuny.edu

Assistive Technology Services

Assistive technology (AT) makes it possible for individuals with disabilities to perform functions that might otherwise be difficult or impossible. It can range in nature from hardware devices such as wheelchairs to computer software and hardware. The Office of Student Disability Services supports and maintains accessible computer workstations with state-of-the art AT for all of the office’s registered students in Shuster Hall, rooms 181 and 238, in its Access and Technology Center (ATC) in Leonard Lief Library, room 146, and in classroom labs on an as-needed basis.

One-on-one, personalized training on general technology software and on assistive technology hardware/software is provided by our in-house, assistive technology specialist. The type and amount of training provided is determined on a case-by-case basis. (For some equipment, training is required prior to use or equipment loan.) The SDS also hosts group AT demonstrations and workshops in the ATC. For more information on assistive technology programming, please contact Pedro Laureano, our Access and Technology Specialist, either by phone at 718-960-1167 or by e-mail at pedro.laureano@lehman.cuny.edu.

The Access and Technology Center (ATC) in room 146 of the library is equipped with eight computers. Similar to the computers in Shuster, the computers in the ATC contain current versions of both mainstream and assistive technology programs. (For a list of available software and devices, please see the Assistive Technology Software Programs and Hardware Devices section below.) Height-adjustable workstations are available for students in wheelchairs or for those with other mobility impairments. There are also five flatbed scanners, three CCTVs, two large-print keyboards and a laser printer with duplex printing capability. Color printing is available as well. (The ATC is open during regular library hours; for information, call 718-960-8577). A valid Lehman ID is required for library entry.)

Rooms 181 and 238 in Shuster Hall are equipped with computers with current versions of mainstream (e.g., Microsoft Office) and AT software. There are closed-circuit televisions (CCTVs) for magnifying print material, as well as a large-print keyboard, scanners and printers.

Software Programs and Hardware Devices

  • ZoomText is a screen-magnification and screen-reading program that provides students with visual impairments both visual and auditory access to what is on screen. Content can be enlarged from as little as 1.25x to as much as 36x the original size.
  • JAWS (Job Access with Speech) is a dedicated screen-reading program for students who are blind or who have severe visual impairments. JAWS tracks a user’s position as work within different applications, and reads literally what is taking place on screen. It helps students auditorily access many mainstream programs (e.g., Microsoft Office suite, Web browsers).
  • Kurzweil 3000 is a comprehensive reading, writing, and studying program for students with learning disorders and for English-language learners. Kurzweil 3000 will read text aloud while highlighting each spoken word. It offers students tools to increase reading speed and comprehension, as well as features to improve writing skills, such as spell checking, word prediction, help with homophones, and a dictionary, to name a few.
  • Read & Write Gold is a reading, writing, and studying program for students with learning disorders and for English-language learners. The program will read text aloud while highlighting each spoken word; it includes a dictionary, audible spell checking, and word prediction as well. Read & Write Gold also offers seamless integration with mainstream programs such as Microsoft Word and Adobe Acrobat Reader.
  • Dragon Naturally Speaking Professional is a speech-recognition program, which is useful for students with motor disorders and/or learning disorders—or for anyone who prefers talking to typing. Dragon converts speech to text in many mainstream programs (e.g., Microsoft Office suite, Web browsers) and allows students fulfill assignments; send e-mail; use the Web; and command and control their computers—all by voice.
  • Abbyy FineReader is a professional-level, optical-character-recognition (OCR) program for creating editable and searchable files, without losing the original file’s formatting. Students who are eligible for alternate format books/e-text can have their books and materials scanned and saved as PDFs or Microsoft Word files. (Publisher permission required.) Existing PDF and image files can also be converted to Microsoft Word.
  • Livescribe Smartpens are notetaking devices available for loan, which are part recorder and part pen. The pen allows you to take notes in a highly efficient way. You can synchronize what you write with your audio recording for quick review of your lecture and transfer your notes to your computer. (This does not necessarily replace a notetaker; training and periodic feedback on usage is required. Subject to availability.).
  • Netbooks are available for loan should a student require typed notes. (Subject to availability; training is required.)
  • Large-print keyboards for students who are visually impaired are available on two stations in the ATC and on one station in the SDS office in 238 Shuster.
  • Handheld CCTVs and portable (nearly full-size) CCTVs for students who are visually impaired are available for loan. (Subject to availability. Training is required.)
  • A high-speed scanner allows students the option of speedily scanning textbooks to create electronic files. Books can be magnified or read aloud with a screen-reading program. (Publisher permission required.)
  • Digital voice recorders are available for loan to students who are eligible for this accommodation.
  • The Victor Reader Stream are audio playback devices available for loan to students who need access to electronic books in proprietary, DAISY format.
  • Large print copies of difficult-to-see/read tables, detailed images, and graphs from students’ textbooks can be processed upon request. (Advanced notice required.)
  • Personal FM transmitter systems to amplify classroom lectures for are available for students who are hard of hearing.

Students registered with the Office of Student Disability Services are permitted to borrow equipment such as digital recorders, Livescribe pens, Victor Reader Stream players, or FM transmitters, for the duration of a semester. They are required to sign a release form, which states that they are responsible for the equipment if lost, stolen, or broken. The SDS is always procuring new equipment. For a current list of available items, or to offer your ideas on new items for our consideration, please call the office at 718-960-8441 ext. 1167 and ask to speak to the Access and Technology Specialist.

additional support

Veterans and Reservists

If you are a member of the military, you may be entitled to special benefit programs for veterans and reservists with or without disabilities. A great deal of support is available on Lehman's campus. 

Transfer Students

The Office of Student Disability Services extends support to eligible transfer students, but it is important to note that, as a transfer student, the documentation requirements and services you receive may vary from institution to institution.

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