How to Use Accommodations

A reasonable accommodation is a disability-related modification or adjustment to a course, program, activity, or facility that allows for equal access and opportunity.

If you do not have accommodations approved by Access and Disability Services yet, learn how to obtain accommodations.

  1. Request instructor notification of your approved accommodations through the ADS student portal each semester or term.

    To do so, log in to the ADS student portal using your MCC username and password, and follow these instructions to request accommodations.

    Please note that your classes may not appear in the ADS student portal immediately after enrolling; it may take up to 48 hours for them to become available. Once your classes are available in the portal, be sure to submit your accommodation request through the portal as soon as possible. Accommodations are not retroactive and must be requested before you intend to use them.

  2. Reach out to your instructors about using your accommodations.

    For example, if you plan to take a test in the Testing Center, your instructor may require a reasonable amount of advance notice from you; it is important to find out how much notice is required.

    Here is an example of an email that you can send to your instructor:

Hi Professor,
My name is ____ and I am a student in your ____ class. You should be receiving my accommodations from Access and Disability Services. I plan to use ____. Please let me know if you have any questions or want to discuss this further. Thank you.

Contact ADS at disabilityservices@mchenry.edu or (815) 455-8766 or stop in A256 if you have any issues with the ADS student portal or need support with navigating accommodations with your instructors.

Accommodations Glossary

ADS’s Accommodations Glossary provides descriptions of accommodations that MCC students have used. If you're wondering how to use an accommodation, start by reading this glossary. Some accommodations have more detailed instructions in the Appendices.

Accommodations are individualized to each student and determined through the interactive intake process. For this reason, the glossary does not contain all available accommodations. Contact ADS if you would like to request an appointment to review or reassess your current accommodations.