CUNY Policies

In accordance with federal law and existing CUNY policy, textbook and course materials information must be submitted to the online bookstore Akademos/Vitalsource at least two weeks prior to the date the schedule of classes is made available. Textbook information for Spring 2025 not previously entered, must be entered immediately. Courses which do not require a textbook, must also be identified as such. This information is necessary to ensure that course materials are accessible to students with disabilities by the first day of class to the greatest extent possible. Department chairs are responsible for ensuring textbook information is posted for all departmental courses. The Provost and department chairs have access to textbook compliance reports through CUNY’s Tableau site. If a department does not have access to the report, please complete the CUNY Tableau Server Access Request Form. 

Note: The Interim Dean of Faculty has direct administrative access to the bookstore site.

Per Board of Trustees policy, all fully online courses, both synchronous and asynchronous, must be delivered in a University-supported LMS (Brightspace) or an alternative LMS that meets CUNY’s cybersecurity policies and complies with data privacy laws (however, support may not be available to help faculty or students with alternate systems). 

See the complete policy for additional information: LMS Use Policy for Online Classes.

We strongly recommend that instructors upload their course materials in the University-supported LMS (Brightspace) for each class regardless of modality. A Brightspace course site has been created for every CUNY class scheduled for Spring 2025. Uploading course materials in the LMS will help instructors identify accessibility problems using Ally, a tool within both Blackboard and Brightspace, and work with technical experts to improve accessibility of course materials. Ally generates alternative formats that enable students to choose how to engage with the course’s digital content. 

Resources on how to use Ally effectively can be found here:

Ally for LMS Help for Instructors

Ally Quick Start for Instructors

Instructor FAQs for Ally

In accordance with the ADA, NYS IT Accessibility Policy, and other laws, instructors should consider the accessibility of course materials, online learning products, platforms, and applications, including content they created, prior to use in the course. Ally will assist with this determination for content uploaded to Brightspace, and technical expertise will be made available to faculty as needed. 

In addition, you can seek technical assistance directly from D2L at 1-888-895-2511.

All faculty must have an ADA statement on the first page of their syllabus that includes the location and contact information for OAS. 

See sample language in part 7 of the Guidelines this will also available on Our Faculty Resources page:

Please be aware that some students with disabilities may experience unique challenges accessing and using web-based technology or otherwise adapting to online learning and may require an accommodation, such as assistive technology, or a different kind of support. Please encourage students who have these concerns to contact OAS as soon as possible. If you choose to use a different platform such as Pearson it is essential that you make sure it is accessible for students who need accommodations.

All student requests for accommodations or academic adjustments (“accommodations”) that fall under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) must be vetted first by the Office of Accessibility Services (OAS). Such accommodations may impact classroom or exam protocols or other curricular or extracurricular activities. If the student directly requests an accommodation with an instructor or staff that has not been approved by OAS (or the instructor or staff has not received an accommodation letter listing the particular accommodation), the student should be directed to OAS to initiate the process. Faculty and staff are prohibited from denying OAS-approved accommodation requests on their own or from discouraging students from seeking an accommodation with OAS. Once OAS has approved a student’s accommodation request, faculty and staff must cooperate and assist in ensuring that the accommodation is delivered.

One of OAS’s departmental goals has been to streamline the accommodation request process and reduce the amount of follow-up required of students and faculty. We are pleased to share that CUNY has launched CUNY Accommodate across all campuses on January 2^nd.  We will no longer use Symplicity Accommodate; we will be using CUNY Accommodate. The new site can be accessed via the link below with your CUNYfirst credentials.  CUNY Accommodate is an innovative platform designed to streamline the management of student accommodations, providing a more efficient way for Faculty to receive accommodation forms, fulfill student exam requests, and retrieve completed exams. With CUNY Accommodate, students with disabilities will have a streamlined process for requesting their accommodations, ensuring a smoother experience for everyone involved. This system integrates students, their accommodations, course schedules, Faculty, and the Office of Disability Services (ODS) into one cohesive platform, promoting an inclusive and supportive environment for all students. We encourage you to familiarize yourself with CUNY Accommodate by exploring our self-directed instructional videos and comprehensive guides that walk you through what you need to know to use the system (Access SharePoint then enter your CUNYfirst username and password to get started). 

You can access these resources and the CUNY Accommodate system using the links below.

CUNY Accommodate

Faculty Resources (Video & Documentation)

If you have any questions or require further assistance regarding CUNY Accommodate, please contact the Central Office of Disability Programs at Disability@cuny.edu.

As a reminder, accommodation cards are obsolete. Professors will be notified of student accommodations via a letter sent electronically by our office. If anyone has any questions or concerns, please reach out to OAS for clarification.

The objective of providing accommodations for students with disabilities is to ensure their equal participation and not to dilute or fundamentally alter academic or extracurricular requirements. If you believe an approved accommodation is not suited to a particular situation, or if you have any questions about delivering an approved accommodation, please contact Elena Beharry, PsyD at ebeharry@jjay.cuny.edu. Alternatives to approved accommodations must be assessed and approved in writing in advance by OAS. Please do not attempt to negotiate alternative accommodations with the student.  

Here are several points and clarifications regarding testing for OAS-registered students:

• Students who request testing accommodations must do so with OAS at least seven calendar days before a scheduled exam. Faculty will then be notified that a student in their class will be taking their exam in our office. Faculty can send their exams to the OAS office electronically or deliver them in-person. Please note: Faculty need not wait for a student testing accommodation request. Faculty are encouraged to submit the exam to OAS ahead of time.

• All testing accommodations for in-person exams must take place in the OAS Testing Center unless OAS approves a different arrangement in advance. Instructors should not provide a testing accommodation on their own in lieu of an approved testing accommodation.

• Once OAS notifies the instructor that a student in the instructor’s class will take an upcoming exam in the OAS Testing Center, it is the instructor’s responsibility to ensure that OAS receives the exam to be administered at least 48 hours before the beginning of the exam. This can now be done through CUNY Accommodate by uploading your exam (see below) or you can contact the Office of Accessibility Services, at accessibilityservices@jjay.cuny.edu to arrange drop-off to OAS.

• OAS will attempt to accommodate instructors’ preferences for when an exam in the OAS Testing Center should be administered; however, the precise timing of the exam will also depend on the student’s schedule and the operating hours of the OAS Testing Center. This means that some exams, as determined by OAS, may occur before, during, or after the time when other students in the class take a particular exam. OAS will notify instructors when their students’ exams have been scheduled to take place in the OAS Testing Center. Instructors who have concerns about asynchronous administration of exams should contact the OAS or the Academic Integrity Unit for strategies on how to maintain or foster academic integrity while upholding the requirement to accommodate students with disabilities.

• OAS normally arranges the return of exams administered in the OAS Testing Center to instructors by the following day that the College is open. Instructors should coordinate with OAS about when and how exams are returned to them. In some cases, particularly when instructors are not available to retrieve exams in person within 72 hours, OAS may be required to scan and deliver exams to instructors electronically. Under no circumstance should students be penalized for any delays in returning exams to the instructor. 

John Jay College does not discriminate against any student on the basis of pregnancy or related conditions or parental status. If a student discloses a pregnancy or related condition to an employee, the employee must:

1.  Promptly provide the student with the Title IX coordinator’s contact information (below)

2. Inform the student that the Title IX Coordinator can coordinate reasonable modifications to preserve their equal access to the institution’s education program or activity.

Absences due to medical conditions relating to pregnancy, childbirth or related conditions will be excused for as long as deemed medically necessary by a student’s doctor. Students must be given the opportunity to make up work missed due to pregnancy, childbirth or related conditions. In addition, failing to accommodate pregnant or parenting students may violate Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972. If you have questions related to Title IX, please contact Jessica Greenfield, at jgreenfield@jjay.cuny.edu, Title IX Coordinator and Chief Diversity Officer and Director, Office of Compliance & Diversity at cdo@jjay.cuny.edu.

All faculty must have an ADA statement on the first page of their syllabus that includes the location and contact information for OAS.

Suggested language:

“I am committed to creating a course that is inclusive in its design. Students who need an accommodation due to a disability are encouraged to contact the Office of Accessibility Services (OAS) within the first week of class or as soon as possible thereafter.  Requests for Accommodations can only be approved by the OAS. Students with disabilities are entitled to confidentiality over disability-related status or details. Students are not required to disclose their specific disability to their instructors or anyone else. All OAS approved accommodations will be honored and implemented in my course.”

Contact OAS, New Building, room L.66

Phone: (212) 237-8031

Email:  accessibilityservices@jjay.cuny.edu.

As indicated in the syllabus statement above, students with disabilities are entitled to confidentiality over disability-related status or details. Students are not required to disclose their specific disability to their instructors or anyone else. (Instructors are entitled to know when their students have registered with OAS and what accommodations they have been approved to receive.) Instructors and staff must take care not to seek the disability-related status or information from students or to disclose a student’s disability status to others in or outside the classroom.

CUNY has a list of built-in accessibility features found on Brightspace listed on their website, located at https://www.cuny.edu/academics/brightspace-transition/faq/. 

John Jay has their own user guides and tutorials for both Instructors and Students located at Learning Management User Guides & Tutorials | John Jay College of Criminal Justice (cuny.edu).