Student Services

Student Life Services | Career and Counseling Services 
Policy for Students With Learning Disabilities | Athletics

Student Life Services:

Aurora University provides many services, facilities, and programs for its undergraduate and graduate students, including resident and commuter students. For detailed information, consult the "A-Book," an on-line manual provided for students by the Student Life Office.

Housing: Aurora University has four on-campus residence halls - Wilkinson, Jenks, Memorial-Davis, and Watkins Halls - with accommodations for approximately 400 residents. Both undergraduates and graduates are welcome to apply for residential accommodations. In most halls, single, double, and triple rooms are available, as well as suites. Recreation and study areas and laundry facilities are located in each residence hall.

Food Service on Campus: Students on meal plans eat in the Upper Level Cafeteria in Alumni Hall. Commuter students are also welcome to eat in the cafeteria, either by paying a flat per-meal rate at the door, or purchasing a commuter meal ticket through the Sodexho Food Service. The University Commons, usually referred to as "The Spot," serves hot and cold fast food. Located in the lower level of Stephens Hall, the Spot is available as a social gathering place and study area. Limited food and beverage service is also available in Dunham Hall.

Career and Counseling Services:

Center for Faith and Action: 
The Aurora University Center for Faith and Action was founded to sustain multi-faith understanding and action. It will focus on curriculum, University and community service, and academic and scholarly activities. The Center is dedicated to discovering and deepening connections between faith and daily life, advocating and working for justice, and promoting human dignity for all people.

Campus Ministries: 
Campus Ministries aims to help students affirm their religious identity while living in an interfaith environment. It sponsors inspirational programs, community service opportunities, and classroom consultations on faith-related issues. It also coordinates the activities of student organizations, such as Alpha-Omega, Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA), and Gospel Choir. The office is located next to the Lowery-Wackerlin Chapel on the third floor of Eckhart Hall.

Counseling Center: 
Contact the Campus Counseling Center for information on services available free of charge to students, as well as for referral information to services in the community. The Campus Counseling Center helps students work through the common social and personal problems associated with orientation to college life.

Career Services Center: 
The Center offers a variety of workshops, seminars, and individual services to assist students in identifying their career goals and working toward them in an organized and effective way. Assistance in writing resumes and sharpening interviewing skills is also available. Career fairs and other placement activities are offered both on campus and throughout Illinois in connection with the Illinois Small College Placement Association. The services of the Center are available free of charge to all Aurora University undergraduate and graduate students and alumni.

Academic Advisement Services: 
Aurora University uses a dual advisement model in which students may be advised by faculty or professional staff advisors in the Advisement Office. All students must participate in the advisement process prior to registering for classes each term. After the student's first term on campus and if he/she has declared a major, the student meets with a faculty advisor in the student's major for advisement.

Professional advisors help students wishing to drop or add courses, help clarify university rules and regulations for students concerned with graduation requirements, transfer work, double majors, minors, and perform graduation audits. The Academic Advisement Office is open Monday through Friday and has evening hours.

Learning Center: 
The Learning Center provides trained peer tutors in a variety of disciplines, as well as professional tutors in math, writing, and study skills. Workshops in word processing and computer-based tutorials also are available. Services are free to all Aurora University students - undergraduate or graduate. The Center is open six days a week and has evening hours.

Student Clubs and Organizations: 
Over three dozen student clubs and organizations are established at Aurora University. Both undergraduate and graduate students, whether resident or commuting, are eligible to organize a student group and apply for recognition and funding.

Wellness Center: 
The Center is located in the lobby area of Jenks Hall, where a licensed registered nurse is available on campus weekdays for assessment and treatment, consultation and referral, and immunization compliance guidelines. The Director of the Center provides wellness programming on campus as well.

Statement of Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA): 
Aurora University is committed to making reasonable accommodation and to providing accessibility to its programs, activities, and employment for all persons defined as having documented disabilities based on the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.

Policy for Students With Learning Disabilities

Policy Statement:
Aurora University will provide reasonable accommodations for students with a diagnosed and verified learning disability. In order to access such services, the student must present a diagnostic report for review by the University. The diagnostic report must be prepared by a qualified psycho-educational practitioner and be based on standardized, reliable and valid testing instruments. Learning disabled students will have full access to all facilities and services of the University on the same basis as all other students.

Statement for Students with Special Needs:
Individuals who have any situation/condition, either permanent or temporary, which might affect their ability to perform in class are encouraged to inform the instructor at the beginning of the term. Adaptations of teaching methods, class materials including text and reading materials or testing, may be made as needed to provide equitable participation.

Definition:
A learning disability may exist in the presence of average-to-superior intelligence and adequate sensory and motor systems. The marked discrepancy between intellectual capacity and achievement is what characterizes a learning disability. Many learning disabled students have high intellectual ability and creative talent, the development of which benefits society as much as the well being of these individuals. Although the majority of learning disabled students can be characterized as having difficulty with reading, writing skills and math skills, the degree and scope of these difficulties varies, as do the defects in the underlying psychological processes. For these reasons, academic adjustments must be made on an individual basis.

A learning disability is any of a diverse group of conditions that cause significant difficulties in perception, either auditory, visual, and/or spatial. Of presumed neurological origin, it covers disorders that impair such functions as reading (dyslexia), writing (dysgraphia), and mathematical calculation (dyscalculia), aural receptive dysphasia, sequential memory, and minimal brain dysfunction. Learning disabilities, even of the same type, will vary widely between and among students. Learning disabilities are defined as a "handicapping condition" under Section 504 of the Federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and as a permanent life condition under the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. The act required post-secondary educational institutions to make "reasonable adjustments" for such students with disabilities in order for them to fulfill academic requirements.

Identification Procedures:
The student must request accommodations for his or her learning disability. If the request comes to the Admission Office, staff will correspond with the student or parent indicating the need to provide a diagnostic report to the Learning Resource Center. If the request comes from elsewhere in the University, the LRC will initiate correspondence outlining the policy and the need for a verifiable diagnosis.

Students must submit a recent (within three years) psycho-educational evaluation prepared by a qualified diagnostician. The report must include testing of intellectual ability and achievement as well as a diagnosis and treatment plan. A list of some of the qualified individuals in the Chicagoland area who can provide such an evaluation will be made available upon request.

Institutional Review:
Upon receipt of the diagnostic report, it will be reviewed and verified by staff of the Learning Resource Center. If the diagnostic report is acceptable, then the LRC will provide the student with documentation of the verified learning disability. At the student's discretion, the documentation can be provided by the student to his or her professor. The professor will meet with the identified learning disabled student to determine reasonable accommodations.

If a diagnosis of a learning disability is not confirmed, the LRC will inform the student and refer the student to other appropriate sources of help.

Reasonable Accommodations:
The University will provide faculty with suggestions on how he/she may make accommodations for students with diagnosed learning disabilities. The professor may consult with the LRC to determine what accommodations may be appropriate.

Student Responsibility:
It is understood that it may be necessary for a learning disabled student to put in extra work, use a tutor, and/or seek special help outside of class. The student has a responsibility to fulfill his/her part by continuing extra help as recommended for his/her particular problem. If a student requires specialized services beyond what is normally provided by the university (e.g. a proctor), these services must be paid by the student.

Faculty Responsibility:
Faculty responsibility should include observation and referral for all students when a discrepancy is noted.

Administrative Responsibility:
Administrative responsibility should include seeking grants, staying abreast of the latest resources, and developing an ongoing support services task force to evaluate what we are providing.

Advising:
Advising for new students with confirmed learning disabilities should be initially coordinated through the Learning Resource Center. Assignment to a permanent departmental advisor will be made after a major is chosen or an initial term completed.

Grievance Procedure:
Any student who desires to challenge the accommodations made in his or her case should follow the procedures outlined:

Informal Review: The dean of the school in which the student is majoring will review the student's complaint and take appropriate action if necessary.

Formal Review: If the informal review does not resolve the issue, the student may request a formal review. The Provost of the University will ask the Faculty Council to appoint a three-person committee to investigate and make a recommendation for his or her decision on the matter.

Athletics:

Aurora University has a long history of excellence in intercollegiate athletics. A member of NCAA Division III, AU fields intercollegiate teams in football, soccer, basketball, baseball, tennis, volleyball, softball, and golf - often with championship results. About 40% of all resident students, and many commuters, participate in intercollegiate athletics.

For those with a more private interest in sports and fitness, there is an extensive campus recreation and intramural program. Facilities include racquetball courts, weight room, and fitness center, which are available to both resident and commuter students.

Posted: 11 March 2002