Documenting a Disability

In order to provide a clear and equitable process for requesting accommodations, Wake Forest University has adopted the following documentation guidelines. Students and parents are encouraged to refer professional evaluators to these guidelines before submission of documentation for an accommodation request.

Records are limited to RL&H staff and members of the Housing Accommodation Review Committee (HARC).

Documentation Guidelines

1. A qualified professional must conduct the evaluation. Documentation should be obtained from a licensed medical or mental health professional who is not a relative of the student requesting accommodations.
2.  Up-to-date documentation. Documentation should be current, typically within the last five years, with some variability based on the condition. More recent documentation may be requested for conditions where symptoms vary over time, such as some anxiety based-conditions or medical conditions with fluctuating symptoms over time.
3. We encourage providers to use our Provider Form when submitting documentation to ensure that all required elements are met. Should you wish to submit other documentation, please ensure all required elements of documentation are met, those elements are as follows:
   • Presented on letterhead. Should include contact information as part of the letterhead to aid in follow-up as needed.
   • Diagnosis. Please include date diagnosed and most recent evaluation.
   • Functional Impact of the Diagnosis. A person with a disability is someone who has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities which may include, but are not limited to, caring for oneself, performing manual tasks, seeing, hearing, eating, sleeping, walking, standing, lifting, bending, speaking, breathing, learning, reading, concentrating, thinking, communicating, and working.
   • List of procedures and/or assessments used to diagnose disability. These will vary by disability but might include medical evaluations, clinical interviews, cognitive tests, etc.
   • Recommended accommodations for housing/dining. Including how those accommodations would reduce the functional impact of the disability diagnosis.
   • Anticipated duration of functional impact. Is this a condition that follow up is needed to determine functional impact after a set time period? (6 months? 1 year?) Or is functional impact anticipated for the duration of studies at Wake Forest University?
   • Known history of use of accommodations for housing/dining.

How do I submit my documentation?

Documentation may be submitted to our office in one of the following ways:

1. Uploaded through the Housing Portal. This is the preferred method.
2. Emailed as a single .pdf file. The email address for documentation submission is housing@wfu.edu.
3. Sent by fax to our office. Our fax number is: 336.758.4686
4. Sent by mail to our office.
   Office of Residence Life and Housing
   Attn: Housing Accommodation Review Committee
   Wake Forest University Box 7749
   Winston Salem, NC 27109

Need Help?

Please feel free to contact our office with any questions about the above guidelines. A printable version of our guidelines for documentation is available to share with your health providers.

If you had accommodations previously but do not have current or complete documentation, submit the documentation that you have, and we may be able to grant provisional accommodations to allow time to obtain comprehensive and updated documentation.

If you need more information, please contact Residence Life and Housing by email (housing@wfu.edu) or call 336.758.5185.