CW: Ableism
In recent years, disability accommodations have become a heated debate on college and university campuses. A recent article, The Law School Accommodations Racket, has sparked renewed interest in a larger issue impacting higher education: What is the role of a college or university in providing accommodations for disabled students and ensuring that access to those accommodations is equitable and fair?
Accommodations are available to help students learn. These can include extra time to complete their tests, assistance with taking notes, alternative test settings, flexible attendance, and more. Accommodations are not a perk or an advantage. They are necessary for students to be able to learn.
People who need accommodations shouldn’t feel bad for needing them. Discussions about “gaming the system” and intense scrutiny do just that. Scrutiny can be an obstacle for those already facing challenges.
Throughout my college career , I’ve had more than one experience that has caused me to question whether I should be in college and whether I am smart enough to receive my college degree.
This was particularly the case in 2024. I sent an email to the president of Greenfield Community College. I e-mailed her regarding my frustrations with the disability services office. She forwarded my e-mail to the former provost.
Two months later, I received an e-mail from the provost about my concerns. His response left me in disbelief. Instead of offering to help me get what I needed, he suggested that I transfer to another college.
The message was loud and clear. I was the problem. The provost implied that my needs were unreasonable and that the college was not required to accommodate them.
I sought help, advocated for myself, and followed every procedure that I should have followed. Sadly, the proposed solution was for me to leave. That answer not only negates my concerns, but it also reaffirms the dangerous notion that disabled students are a burden and not a part of the college community.
Furthermore, it reinforces the harmful notion that I am lucky to be in college at all and that accommodations are not a right but a privilege. Ableist attitudes like the former provost’s are part of why so many disabled students don’t ask for help, minimize their needs, or believe that they don’t belong.
However, the reality is that there is no special treatment, just equal access. Accommodations help disabled students show their abilities, and their talents.
If a college isn’t offering reasonable accommodations for students, it’s not doing its job. It’s doing the opposite.
Talking about accommodating or not accommodating in higher education should not be about who is “gaming the system.” It should be about the reasons the system is so hard to navigate in the first place and what institutions need to do to make sure disabled students are not just admitted, but welcomed.
Source
Testerman, Andrew. “The Law School Accommodations Racket.” James G. Martin Center for Academic Renewal, 10 June 2026, https://jamesgmartin.center/2026/06/the-law-school-accommodations-racket/.