Iowa Regents Institutions Disability Awareness Summit

This presentation, "Empowering Success: Collaborative Approaches to Supporting Students with Disabilities at Iowa State University," highlights the key strategies and partnerships developed by the Office of Student Assistance to enhance support for students with disabilities. Attendees will explore how collaboration with Student Accessibility Services, faculty, and other campus resources leads to personalized support for students and fosters an inclusive campus environment. Through case studies and best practices, participants will gain practical insights into empowering students with disabilities to succeed academically and personally.

About the Presenter

Megan Van Heiden (she/her/hers) serves as the Senior Assistant Director in the Office of Student Assistance at Iowa State University. In her role, Megan provides resources to students experiencing difficulties or crisis situations to ensure they have the opportunity to achieve their academic and personal goals. Megan values the collaboration with a number of campus departments as well as community providers, working alongside each other to support students experiencing significant challenges, including mental health concerns, sexual misconduct, personal concerns, or academic challenges. Megan values empathy, connectedness and inclusion, and uses those principles in her work to develop trust and mutual respect with those she meets.  

Other things in life that bring Megan great joy is the connection and love of her husband and friends, her squishy bulldog, Benny, live music, the outdoors, and a passion for taking care of what is around her; people, plants, animals, the environment, her community, and herself.

In a time of abundant data, the ability to translate data into compelling and engaging stories can transform how you communicate insights and drive action.  Join me for this session, which is dedicated to finding and communicating stories in your data.  In this session, I will talk about why stories make data more memorable, how to find the story in your data, and how data visualization supports a compelling data story. By the end of the session, you will be equipped with practical insights and techniques to make your data more impactful and persuasive. No experience in data or storytelling is necessary!  

About the Presenter

Dr. Liz Housholder is an Associate Director with the Office of Assessment, Research, and Institutional Effectiveness.  With over ten years of research experience, she specializes in program assessment and customer experience research. She has spent years connecting customer experiences to outcomes and using assessment to drive institutional and organizational improvement.  A former Ames townie and Iowa State grad, she completed her Ph.D. at the University of Minnesota in Mass Communication and Political Psychology. Prior to joining the staff at Iowa State, she worked as a Market Research Manager for Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield in Des Moines.   

Larger numbers of students who require accommodations are entering higher education classrooms. The majority of these accommodations do not require much work on the part of the instructor. This presentation will focus on designing courses that proactively incorporate supports that allow all students to be successful in the classroom. These supports not only aid students in the classroom, but can be used in an employment settings to support employees with a variety of needs. 

About the Presenter

Dr. Linda Impecoven-Lind is a Professor of Teaching in the School of Education. She specializes in educating students with disabilities, disability and society, the history of disability, and literacy. All three of her degrees are from Iowa State University, and the emphasis of all degrees was in Elementary Education, Special Education, Sociology of Disability, and Reading Language Arts. After completing her Ph.D., she was an Assistant Professor at Cleveland State University for two years before coming back to Iowa State University. Prior to completing her Ph.D., she was a middle school special education teacher in central Iowa. 

This presentation delves into the legal aspects of accommodations in higher education, emphasizing the compliance roles of disability offices. Through detailed case studies, we will analyze how institutions have successfully navigated legal requirements and address common challenges. We’ll highlight key legal precedents and their implications for disability services, offering practical insights into ensuring adherence to regulations like the ADA and Section 504. Attendees will gain a deeper understanding of how to effectively manage accommodation requests and maintain compliance while fostering an inclusive academic environment.

About the Presenter

Brett Lohoefener serves as an Associate General Counsel for Iowa State University. He provides legal assistance in the following areas:

• Student Affairs (academics, conduct, organizations, FERPA/privacy, residence life, health & wellness, study abroad)
• Risk and Compliance Management
• Accessibility and Accommodations
• Civil Rights (non-discrimination, anti-harassment, non-retaliation, Title IX)
• Subpoenas, Court Orders, Tort Claims

This presentation will provide a brief history of programs and services offered by the Academic Success Center (ASC) and Student Accessibility Services (SAS) to provide academic and executive functioning support for students at Iowa State University. Participants will gain more detailed insights into the current efforts between SAS and ASC to recognize opportunities for collaboration and deliver coordinated care for students, with a focus on two services that have started in the past year - Accountability Groups and the ABLE Peer Mentoring.

About the Presenters

Sydney Kelty (Accessibility Coordinator; Student Accessibility Services at Iowa State University) 

As one of the Accessibility Coordinators, Sydney is responsible for coordinating services that include determining eligibility, administering accommodations, and collaborating with faculty to provide reasonable accommodations at Iowa State University. Beginning this fall, Sydney has taken on the role of peer mentoring program coordinator for the department. In this capacity, she facilitates training and supervision of the peer mentors, collects program data, and conducts outreach initiatives across the campus. Last spring, Sydney earned her Master’s degree in Education with a focus on Student Affairs, during which she completed her assistantship at the Academic Success Center (ASC). Her experiences at the ASC have informed her approach to developing the peer mentoring program and fostering collaboration between the two departments involved. 

Bethany Kula-Nickels (Coordinator for Academic Skills Coaching; Academic Success Center at Iowa State University) 

Bethany Kula-Nickels is the Coordinator for Academic Skills Coaching in the Academic Success Center at Iowa State University. In this role, Bethany trains and supervises a team of 10 undergraduate peer academic coaches whose primary responsibility is to meet one-on-one with fellow students to address their individual academic goals or challenges relating to topics like time management, study strategies, reading, and notetaking.  

This session will present findings from a study involving 700 university students who began but did not complete the process of registering for disability accommodations. We analyzed the data to uncover key factors contributing to why students chose not to move forward with their accommodations. As part of this session, a student panel will share personal insights—featuring both students who have successfully registered for accommodations and those who opted not to. The panel will discuss their decision-making process, exploring the benefits and challenges of seeking accommodations and highlighting institutional barriers that may have influenced their choices. Attendees will have the opportunity to engage in an open Q&A session, allowing for consideration of how universities can improve support and accessibility, ensuring a more inclusive and effective accommodation process. 

About the Presenter

Angela Tuttle Prince, Ph.D. (she/her) is an Associate Professor of Special Education at Iowa State University. Her research interests include special education law & policy, secondary transition, and ableism. Before working in higher education, Dr. Tuttle Prince was a special education teacher in South Carolina for nine years. 

TRIO Student Support Services (SSS) at Iowa State University (ISU) serves 250 income-eligible, first-generation college students and students with disabilities each year with the goal of increasing persistence and graduation rates of these students. This session will share details about how TRIO SSS provides a variety of individualized services to participants and develops programming initiatives that are customized to the needs of our target population. Our students develop academic, social, and professional skills that contribute to a holistic educational experience at ISU and remain transferrable beyond graduation.  

About the Presenter

The role of disability professionals in higher education is continuously evolving, reflecting broader changes within the field of disability services. This session will feature a dynamic discussion led by the directors of disability services from the three regents institutions: the University of Northern Iowa, the University of Iowa, and Iowa State University. The session will explore the current priorities of their respective offices, their strategies for addressing the diverse needs of students, and the innovative initiatives they have developed and championed. Attendees will gain valuable insights into how these offices are adapting to new challenges and opportunities in disability services.

Presenters

Clara Hernandez – Director of Student Accessibility Services at Iowa State 

 

 

 

 

Mike Venzon – Director of Disability Services at University of Iowa 

 

 

 

 

Tiffany Dodd – Director of Student Accessibility Services at University of Northern Iowa