DARC Student Services and Resources

General Information: DARC can assist  you with connecting to various supports and services across all Sweetwater Adult Education schools, provide general information about disabilities, access and we can be a liaison with your instructor or counselor at the adult education school you will attend.

The Disability and Access Resource Center staff  is available to ensure students’ needs are met by facilitating necessary documentation for registration, textbooks, supplies and reasonable accommodations, mandated by State and Federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) laws, including: assessment accommodations, assistive technology, enlargements, agency referrals, and resource rooms. Whether you are seeking to learn English, earn your high school diploma, get career training or participate in any of the other programs we offer, our DARC staff is dedicated and passionate about providing the services you need to be successful! 

Flexibility in Academic Learning: DARC is barrier-free and utilizes several instruction options and service options to meet your needs.  You can take a class in-person or in a distance learning model.  In the distance learning model you will:

• Learn the same material taught in the class. 

• Schedule a weekly appointment with the instructor 

• Be required to complete the same work. 

• Recorded lectures and additional support is provided to you.  

For services:  A few of our services include educational advising, mobile phone calendar and organization, accommodations orientation.  We can meet in-person, telephone, email, or text.  We are knowledgable with a variety of platforms and look forward to assisting you.

Academic Development Course: A class that assists students with skills to build confidence in learning, reading, writing, math strategies, test taking/study strategies, executive functioning skills, and to apply learning strategies for your individual learning differences or disability.

Employment Development Services:  1:1 services for vocational assessment, employment readiness to look for a job, workplace accommodations, build high quality resumes, practice job interview questions, and much more.

Accommodations:  DARC commits to provide students with disabilities timely academic accommodations and support services to increase access, retention, persistence and completion of their educational goals 

Educational Advising: The DARC Counselor can assist you in defining your both your short term and long term educational goals that aligns with your goals and disability related needs. Students that have a question regarding their current course enrollment, class offerings or course schedules may meet with the DARC Counselor.

Disability Management

Students that encounter an issue pertaining to the implementation or requesting of their accommodation can schedule a meeting with the DARC Program Manager. Students that are interested in learning self-advocacy strategies and confidence should complete the DARC Interest Form to get connected to the Disability Academic Resource Teacher.

Learning Disability Assessment

If a you believe you may have a learning disability, we encourage you to contact our office to DARC to initiate the learning disability assessment process. During the learning disability assessment process, we will review the current limitations you have identified and how this impacts your learning.   

Instructor Access & Accommodation Consultations

DARC team members collaborate and provide support to instructors to discuss, learn, understand and apply inclusive practices in teaching and for all diverse learners in the learning environment. 

DARC can authorize a variety of individualized accommodations in the classroom or testing accommodations.  Common accommodations include: extended time on exams or projects, breaks throughout the day, textbooks in alternate formats (ex: Audio) and more.  

VARK Learning Inventory

Occupational Information Network (ONET) Career Interest Profile

Job Accommodation Network (JAN)

"No otherwise qualified individual with a disability in the United States. . shall, solely by reason of her or his disability, be excluded from the participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity provided by an institution receiving federal financial assistance."

In 1977, the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare established guidelines for implementing Section 504. Case law has continued to contribute to guidelines for considering accommodation requests. These regulations include the following points:

• Services provided to individuals with disabilities should be as effective as those provided to others.

• There is no obligation to ensure identical results or levels of achievement.

• They must be given equal opportunity to gain the same results or levels of achievement.

• Adult Education institutions are not required to compromise on requirements that are essential to the program or course of instruction or that are directly related to licensing requirements.

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990

The ADA was passed in order to provide a clear and comprehensive national mandate for the elimination of discrimination against individuals with disabilities. It is civil rights legislation that affects some 43,000,000 Americans with disabilities

Sweetwater Adult Education has traveling staff designated to service ADA/504 compliance officer to help students with issues related to disabilities and/or accommodations. Please contact us or submit a DARC Interest Form.