Prospective Students

Policies

Nondiscrimination Policy

Boston University Center for Digital Imaging Arts does not discriminate against any individual on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, physical or mental disability, sexual orientation, genetic information, military service, or because of marital, parental, or veteran status.

The following persons have been designated to coordinate CDIA’s non-discrimination policies:

On the CDIA Campus:
     Waltham, MA: Tom O’Brien, Campus Director
     Boston University Center for Digital Imaging Arts
     274 Moody Street
     Waltham, Massachusetts 02453
     781-209-1700.

     Washington, DC: Jim Cameron, Campus Director
     Boston University Center for Digital Imaging Arts
     1055 Thomas Jefferson Street, N.W.
     Washington, D.C. 20007
     202-625-1110.

At Boston University:
     Director of Equal Opportunity, Equal Opportunity Office
     25 Buick Street
     Boston, MA 02215
     617-353-9286.

     For student disability related inquiries:
     Director of Disability Services
     9 Deerfield Street
     Boston, Massachusetts 02215
     617/353-3658 (v/TTY)

Inquiries concerning the application of nondiscrimination policies may also be referred to the
Regional Director, Office for Civil Rights, U.S. Department of Education, J.W. McCormack POCH, Room 222, Boston, Massachusetts 02109-4557

Regional Director, Office for Civil Rights, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Ave., Washington, D.C. 20202

Applicants With Disabilities
Boston University Center for Digital Imaging Arts encourages qualified students with disabilities to apply for admission. You may voluntarily request information about available services by contacting the Boston University Office of Disability Services http://www.bu.edu/disability/contact-us/request-for-general-information/ at 19 Deerfield Street, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, or by calling 617/353-3658 (v/TTY). Your inquiry will be confidential. It will not be disclosed to the Admissions Office or affect your eligibility for admission.

Accommodations Requests by CDIA Students
CDIA provides accommodations to eligible students with disabilities in conformance with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. Requests for disability accommodations must be made in a timely fashion to Boston University Office of Disability Services, 19 Deerfield Street, Boston, MA 02215; 617-353-3658 (Voice/TTY) www.bu.edu/disability . Students seeking accommodations must submit appropriate medical documentation and comply with the policies and procedures of Disability Services at http://www.bu.edu/disability/policies-procedures/academic-accommodations/.

Grievance Procedure
If a CDIA student believes that he or she has been discriminated against on the basis of disability, he or she may file, in writing, a formal grievance pursuant to the policies set forth at http://www.bu.edu/disability/policies-procedures/additional-information/grievance-procedure-in-cases-of-alleged-discrimination/.

Accommodations for CDIA Students

A collaborative effort between the Boston University Office of Disability Services (Disability Services) and CDIA will help ensure that students with disabilities are appropriately accommodated. Students enrolled in courses and programs at CDIA must follow the same process for obtaining accommodations as students at Boston University. Reasonable accommodations and modifications will be determined by Disability Services in light of the student’s impairment and course requirements. Disability Services will then work directly with CDIA staff to ensure implementation of approved accommodations.

Information regarding disability policies and services may be found on-line at www.bu.edu/disability or by contacting the Office of Disability Services at 19 Deerfield Street, Boston, MA 02215; 617-353-3658 (Voice/TTY). Procedures for requesting accommodations are listed below.

Requesting Accommodations
Students enrolled at CDIA should complete the steps listed below reasonably in advance of the anticipated need for services/accommodations. The accommodations process may take several weeks, therefore students are strongly encouraged to initiate the process well before classes begin. Disability Services will make a case-by-case determination of the student’s need for any requested auxiliary aids, accommodations, or special services determined to be necessary.

The following steps must be completed:

1. Students must be admitted to a CDIA program before requesting accommodations.
2. Students should establish contact with a Disability Services staff person as soon as they have been accepted into a CDIA program.
3. Students must provide appropriate documentation of disability. Guidelines and required Disability Verification forms for different disability types can be found at http://www.bu.edu/disability/policies-procedures/evaluators/. Students must file a formal Request for Accommodations Form (RAF) for each semester or module in which they expect to receive accommodations.
4. Accommodations will not be implemented until appropriate documentation is received and approved. It is in the best interest of students to send all necessary paperwork as early as possible. Accommodations are not retroactive.
5. Once the review process is complete, if the request is approved, students will be e-mailed a PDF of the Faculty Accommodation letter. Students are responsible for delivery of letters to each of their faculty members and for discussing arrangements for accommodation delivery with those faculty members.
6. Any requests for specific accommodations that require outside services, such as digital audio books, enlarged text, interpreter services, captioning, etc. should be requested reasonably in advance, as some services may require up to six weeks to implement.
7. If there are difficulties receiving accommodations at anytime during the semester or module, students must contact Disability Services as soon as possible at 617-353-3658.

Student Responsibilities:
The student must:

  1. 1. Identify him or herself to Disability Services and provide professional documentation of the disability.
  2. 2. Consult with Disability Services to determine specific accommodations that may be necessary.
  3. 3. Contact his/her instructors regarding arrangements for accommodations in each course.
  4. 4. Maintain the same responsibility for his or her education as students without disabilities. This includes compliance with CDIA expectations for academic performance and behavior.
  5. 5. Remind the instructor of any testing accommodations in advance of each exam.


Things to know:

  1. 1. Receiving accommodations and services in high school does not automatically qualify you for services at CDIA.
  2. 2. The services and accommodations you receive at CDIA might be very different from the services you received previously.
  3. 3. Your instructors are not obligated to provide you with any accommodations without authorization from Disability Services.
  4. 4. The accommodations process can take up to three weeks and requires significant current documentation of your disability as well as an in-person meeting or phone consultation with Disability Services. Therefore, plan accordingly and begin the process early!
  5. 5. You do not have to disclose the nature of your disability to your instructors; that process is entirely up to you.
  6. 6. Accommodations may not fundamentally alter the nature of the classroom or program and cannot lower the academic standards. ODS will consult with CDIA in appropriate circumstance to ensure this does not occur and that CDIA has followed an appropriate process in determining the fundamental requirement(s) at issue; however, such consultation should not result in an unreasonable delay in accommodations being provided to the student.