Associate Director of Student Accessibility Services

Amherst has taken a leadership role among highly selective liberal arts colleges and universities in successfully diversifying the racial, socio-economic, and geographic profile of its student body. The College is similarly committed to enriching its educational experience and its culture through the diversity of its faculty, administration and staff.

Job Description:

Amherst College invites applications for the Associate Director of Student Accessibility Services position. The Associate Director of Student Accessibility Services is a full-time, year-round position, starting at $72,000 per year - commensurate with experience. Given Amherst's distinction as one of the most diverse liberal arts colleges in the country, the successful candidate will demonstrate the ways in which they bring value to and will work towards supporting a broadly diverse community.

The Associate Director of Student Accessibility Services reports to the Director of Student Accessibility Services (SAS). The Associate Director (AD) will work as part of a team spearheading student engagement, helping to comply with and advocate for laws, policies, and practices that enhance the College's support for accessibility and people with disabilities. With the Director's input, the AD will supervise the Access Coordinator and will collaboratively build and run programs that will engage students to participate in and learn about disability and accessibility. The AD will also implement services for students with disabilities, focusing primarily on the mandates of Section 504 and the Americans with Disabilities Act, MA State laws, and Amherst College policies.

The AD assists in managing a comprehensive program of services to meet the needs of students with disabilities within the framework of federal regulations, currently accepted learning theories, established best practices, and available financial resources. The Associate Director will be focused on student engagement and programming, supervision and collaboration with the Access Coordinator, and will also assist in the development, enforcement, and evaluation of policies and practices to ensure institutional compliance with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Americans with Disabilities Act (1990), the Americans with Disabilities Amendment Act (2008), and other federal, state and local laws/regulations pertaining to persons with disabilities.

This is an on-campus position, required to be on campus 5 days/week, and not eligible for remote work.

Summary of Responsibilities:

Student Engagement

• Providing training, programming, and ongoing education and consultation/collaboration opportunities for students

• Providing training, programming and ongoing education and consultation/collaboration opportunities for administrators, faculty, and non-SAS staff designed to increase the awareness and responsiveness of the campus community to shared legal responsibilities related to accessibility and the rights of students with disabilities

• Ensures that SAS planning and programming is inclusive and effective for the diverse community and multiple identities represented within the Amherst College community. Have a particular emphasis on the diversity of ability

• Provides educational programs on disability services for the community at large

• Establish and maintain programs for college student mentors and mentees

• Establish and maintain an Access and Disability Peer Educator Group

Accessibility Services

• The Associate Director is expected to manage the day-to-day operations of the Access Coordinator and serve as a backup to the Director and Access Coordinator. This will include the supervision of training and professional guidance for staff, including Student Accessibility Ambassadors and all contractors

• Responding to inquiries from prospective students, current students, parents, faculty, and staff in alignment with legal guidance and established practices in the field

• Meet with students individually to assess accommodations, the provision of counsel on specific (student-identified) barriers, and manage student progress to ensure the ability to learn and live on campus successfully

• Review and interpret diagnostic evaluations, including medical documentation, psychological, and neurological psychology reports, to determine appropriate accommodations

• Maintaining appropriate documentation and confidential record systems for those served by the office

• Individuals with disabilities increasingly benefit from transportation support, furniture, and technological aids. The Associate Director will be involved in developing, implementing, maintaining, and impr