Contact Information
Student Accessibility Services
Location: Academic Success Center; Technology (TECH) Building, second floor
Email: accessibility.services@ut.edu
Phone: (813) 257-5757
Office Hours: Monday-Friday 8:30 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Summer Hours: Monday-Thursday 8 a.m. - 5:30 p.m.
The University of Tampa’s Notetaking Accommodation Policy outlines how Student Accessibility Services provides reasonable and effective notetaking accommodations for students with disabilities in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act. The policy explains the University’s responsibilities in implementing approved accommodations, the use of technology-assisted notetaking, and students’ responsibilities for ensuring that recorded lectures and transcripts are used appropriately and solely for personal academic purposes.
As a private university, UTampa is subject to Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act, which requires reasonable modifications and, where necessary, appropriate auxiliary aids and services to provide individuals with disabilities equal access and effective communication. The ADA regulations specifically identify notetakers, real-time computer-aided transcription services, audio recordings, accessible electronic and information technology, and other effective methods as examples of auxiliary aids and services. Accordingly, where Student Accessibility Services determines that recording, transcription, or technology-assisted notetaking is an appropriate accommodation, faculty should permit its use consistent with the terms of the approved accommodation and the University’s restrictions on use and disclosure.
The ADA does not itself require separate approval from a faculty member before a University-approved accommodation may be used. Once an accommodation has been approved by Student Accessibility Services, faculty are expected to permit and implement the approved accommodation. A faculty member may also include a notification in the syllabus informing students that “this class may be recorded for purposes of an approved disability accommodation.”
Florida law does provide privacy protections for certain oral communications, including restrictions on recording communications made under circumstances in which a speaker has a reasonable expectation of privacy. Those laws do not eliminate UTampa’s obligations under federal disability law or prohibit the University from implementing an approved recording or notetaking accommodation.
Students registered with Student Accessibility Services who are entitled to the notetaking accommodation must use it for their personal study only. Lectures recorded for accommodation purposes cannot be shared with others without the consent of the lecturer. Audio-recorded lectures cannot be used in any way against the faculty member, other lecturers, and/or students whose classroom comments are recorded as part of classroom discussion. Information contained in audio recordings is protected under federal copyright laws and may not be published or quoted without the expressed consent of the lecturer and without giving proper identity and credit to the lecturer.
Students who are approved for a notetaking accommodation have a responsibility to the following:
Ensure that the audio recordings made in the below listed class are for my personal academic use only, and will not release the recordings or transcripts to any other person, nor post or share them online or in any other forum.
Ensure that I will not hinder the instructor of the course from obtaining a copyright of these lectures.
Understand that at the discretion of the instructor, audio-recording may be prohibited during portions of classes which involve personal discussion and self-disclosure.
Understand that failure to abide by these responsibilities may lead to a referral to the Office of Student Conduct or may result in a violation of UTampa’s Academic Integrity policies.
An audio recording agreement is available on Accommodate and by request through Student Accessibility Services, which students and faculty can sign to ensure understanding of the appropriate use of the accommodation. The signed copy should be emailed to Student Accessibility Services to update student records.
Student Accessibility Services uses a digital notetaking system as the auxiliary aid to fulfill the notetaking accommodation. Implementation of the notetaking accommodation is handled through Student Accessibility Services. Genio Notes allows the student to audio record the lecture, receive a transcription, and organize their notes. For all students who need class notes, this is the primary way in which we fulfill notetaking requests.
When a student who has been initially approved for the notetaking accommodation completes the accommodation process and requests their letter of accommodation, Student Accessibility Services will create the student’s Genio Notes account. The student receives an automated invite email from Genio Notes to finish setting up their account and ITS will provide the Genio chiclet on their UTampa portal. From there, students can start using Genio Notes.
If a student who has been approved for the notetaking accommodation has a disability related concern as to why Genio Notes will not fulfill their accommodation needs, Student Accessibility will engage the student in the Interactive Process in order to determine reasonable alternatives to the accommodation.
