Center on Disability Student Handbook
Information on Requesting and Submitting Documentation of a Disability
In order to receive services offered through Community College of Philadelphia's Center On Disability, students are required to submit official documentation stating the nature and functional limitations of their disability to our Office. Depending upon one's individual background, documentation of a disability may be on record at previous schools attended, hospitals and/or agencies such as the state Office of Vocational Rehabilitation or at the offices of professional clinicians. The information provided below can assist in obtaining this necessary documentation. If further assistance is required, students should contact the Center On Disability at 215-751-8050 or stop by the office in Room M1-22, which is located on the first floor of the Mint Building.
Documentation of Learning Disabilities
If you are a former student of the School District of Philadelphia, you can request your special education records (I.E.P. and psychoeducational evaluation) by filling out a "Former Student's Application for Records." You can obtain this application by contacting the Board of Education's Student Records Center at 215-875-3640 or 215-875-3921, or you can pick up one in the Center On Disability. Follow these instructions carefully:
- When you are asked on the application to state which records you are requesting, place an X in the box labeled OTHER and specify clearly: ALL SPECIAL EDUCATION RECORDS.
- If it has been more than six months since you graduated or withdrew from high school, mail the application to Student Records Center, P.O. Box 13428, Philadelphia, PA, 19101-3428.
- If you graduated or withdrew during the past six months, mail the application to your former high school.
If you attended private or parochial school, you should contact your high school and request that all of your special education records be sent to the Center On Disability at Community College of Philadelphia. If you are currently enrolled in high school, please talk to your counselor regarding the procedure for obtaining your special education records for submission to the College. If you were evaluated for a learning disability by a clinician outside of the School District, you may contact his/her office and have your documentation forwarded to the College. The documentation should include all results of any testing that was done and should clearly state the nature of the disability and the areas of learning the clinician has diagnosed as being substantially impaired by the disability.
When making your requests from the Board of Education Student Records Department or your high school, please make it clear that you are requesting your special education records, not your high school transcript. These are two separate records.
Please note that if you are requesting your special education records from the Board of Education Student Records Center, you will be charged a fee. All documentation of a disability should be sent directly to:Community College of Philadelphia
Center On Disability, Room M1-22
1700 Spring Garden Street
Philadelphia, PA 19130
Documentation of Physical and Psychological Disabilities
Documentation of a physical or psychological disability can be obtained from previous schools you have attended or from appropriate medical and/or professional clinicians. The documentation should clearly state the nature of the disability and, whenever possible, the areas of functioning they have diagnosed as being substantially impaired by the disability. This will enable us to ensure that appropriate accommodations are being provided.
If you need to request your documentation from The School District of Philadelphia (www.philsch.k12.pa.us) or from a parochial or private school, please follow the same procedures outlined above for students wishing to obtain documentation of learning disabilities.