P203: Accessibility for Persons with Disabilities

2. DEFINITIONS

College Community: Includes employees, students, members of the Board of Governors, members of Boards or committees established by the College, volunteers, contractors, individuals providing service or research, individuals or groups who rent or use College facilities, visitors, applicants and guests.

Disability:

• Any degree of physical Disability, infirmity, malformation or disfigurement that is caused by bodily injury, birth defect or illness and, without limiting the generality of the foregoing, includes diabetes mellitus, epilepsy, a brain injury, any degree of paralysis, amputation, lack of physical co-ordination, blindness or visual impediment, deafness or hearing impediment, muteness or speech impediment, or physical reliance on a guide dog or other service animal or on a wheelchair or other remedial appliance or device;
• A condition of mental impairment or a developmental Disability;
• A learning Disability, or a dysfunction in one or more of the processes involved in understanding or using symbols or spoken language;
• A mental disorder; or
• An injury or Disability for which benefits were claimed or received under the insurance plan established under the Workplace Safety and Insurance Act, 1997.

3. POLICY

3.1. Scope

This policy applies to all community members, and to all College activities, functions and premises. The Accessibility Standards included in the attached Guideline A are consulted to determine the specific scope of application.

3.2. Principles

In fulfilling our mission, Fanshawe College strives to provide its programs, facilities, goods and services in a way that respects the dignity and independence of people with disabilities and that facilitates their inclusion into all aspects of the college learning and working environment.

Fanshawe College embraces the requirements of the AODA and is committed to expanding its access and support to all students, employees and visitors with disabilities, by having as its goal a barrier-free learning and working environment to enable academic and employment success.

To ensure AODA obligations are achieved, the College complies with the Accessibility Standards in Guideline A. The College uses reasonable efforts to ensure its policies, practices and procedures address the AODA Standards in our daily operations, and that they are consistent with the principles of independence, dignity, integration and equal opportunity.

3.3. Responsibilities

3.3.1. Community Members: Understanding and complying with the requirements of this policy.

3.3.2. Employees, Volunteers, and Service Providers: Employees, volunteers and any other parties who provide goods, services or facilities on behalf of the College are required to comply with the Accessibility Standards established by the AODA, as set forth in the Accessibility Standards included in Guideline A and are required to participate in training mandated by the AODA and this policy.

3.3.3. Managers: In addition to their general responsibilities as employees of the College, managers are responsible for ensuring that all employees within their departments are provided with the training required by the AODA and this policy.

3.3.4. Human Resources: Human Resources is responsible for facilitating the training of employees and any others as required by the AODA and this policy.

4. REFERENCES

College Policy:

A101: Accommodation of Applicants and Students with Disabilities

C106: Purchasing

P103: Safe College Campus

P204: Accommodation for Employees with Disabilities

P212: Staff Recruitment

5. ADDENDA

Guideline A: COMPLIANCE WITH AODA ACCESSIBILITY STANDARDS

Addendum: Guideline A: COMPLIANCE WITH AODA ACCESSIBILITY STANDARDS

Effective: 2021-05-14

1. PURPOSE

The purpose of this Guideline is to inform employees and others of the means by which the College achieves its commitment to fully comply with AODA and its Accessibility Standards. This Guideline is based on the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act 2005 (AODA) and the Integrated Accessibility Standards Regulation (Ontario Regulation 191/11).

The goal of the AODA is to remove barriers and make Ontario a welcoming and accessible place for persons with disabilities. To help organizations identify, prevent and remove barriers to accessibility, the AODA sets out General Requirements (see section 2 below) as well as specific Accessibility Standards in five key areas of daily living:

• General Requirements Standard (section 2 below)
• Customer Service Standard (s3)
• Information and Communications Standard (s4)
• Employment Standard (s5)
• Transportation Standard (s6)
• Design of Public Spaces Standard (Accessibility Standard for the Built Environment) (s7)

These standards are rules that organizations in Ontario must follow so that people with disabilities have more opportunities to participate in everyday life. Fanshawe College commits to ensure operational policies and procedures are developed under the AODA and its Accessibility Standards.

Accessibility information and resources are available on the College employee portal and the College website.

2. GENERAL STANDARDS

The College ensures compliance with AODA General Requirements by:

• Establishing an Accessibility Policy and Guidelines;
• Developing a Multi-Year Accessibility Plan;
• Incorporating accessibility when procuring goods, services and facilities;
• Making self-service kiosks accessible; and,
• Training employees, volunteers, and all others who provide goods, services or facilities, on the requirements of the Accessibility Standards and the Human Rights Code as it pertains to persons with disabilities

3. CUSTOMER SERVICE STANDARDS

3.1. Scope

The Customer Service Standards apply to the provision of goods, services or facilities to members of the public and other third parties.

3.2. Definitions

Customer: A member of the public or other third party to whom the College provides goods, services or facilities.

Dignity: The state of being worthy of respect. The College treats persons with disabilities with dignity to permit the person to maintain self-respect and the respect of other people.

Guide dog: An animal as defined in section 1 of the Blind Persons' Rights Act.

Independence: A state of being that exists when a person with disabilities is allowed to do things on their own without unnecessary help or interference from others.

Service Animal: A companion animal for a person with disabilities where: it is readily apparent that the animal is used by the person for reasons relating to the disabilities; or, the person provides a document from a regulated health professional confirming that the person requires the animal for reasons relating to the disabilities. For the purposes of documentation for a service animal, a regulated health professional includes a member of:

• The College of Audiologists and Speech-Language Pathologists of Ontario;
• The College of Chiropractors of Ontario;
• The College of Nurses of Ontario;
• The College of Occupational Therapists of Ontario, a member of the College of Optometrists of Ontario; a member of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario;
• The College of Physiotherapists of Ontario;
• The College of Psychologists of Ontario; or
• The College of Registered Psychotherapists and Registered Mental Health Therapists of Ontario (O. Reg. 165/16, s 16.

Support Person: Relating to a person with disabilities, means another person who accompanies the person with disabilities in order to help with communication, mobility, personal care or medical needs, or with access to goods, services or facilities.

3.3. Compliance

The College ensures compliance with AODA Customer Service Standards by:

• Establishing policies, practices and procedures on providing goods or services to people with disabilities;
• Using reasonable efforts to ensure that College policies, practices and procedures are consistent with the core principles of independence, dignity, integration and equal opportunity;
• Allowing people to use their own personal assistive devices to access College goods and services and to use College services;
• Communicating with a person with a disability in a manner that takes into account his or her disability;
• Allowing people with disabilities to be accompanied by their guide dog or service animal in College areas that are open to the public, unless the animal is excluded by law; or, if a service animal is excluded by law, by using other measures to provide services to the person with a disability;
• Permitting people with disabilities who use a support person to bring that person with them while accessing goods or services in premises open to the public or third parties;
• Where admission fees are charged, provide notice ahead of time on what admission, if any, would be charged for the support person of a person with a disability;
• Before the College requires a person with a disability to be accompanied by a support person for health and safety reasons, it will consult with the person with a disability to understand their needs, consider health or safety reasons based on available evidence, determine whether there is another reasonable way to protect the health or safety of the person or others on the premises. Admission fees if any would be waived for the support person;
• Providing notice when facilities or services that people with disabilities rely on to access or use our goods, services or facilities are temporarily disrupted;
• Training employees, volunteers and others who interact with the public or other third parties on the topics outlined in the Customer Service Standard;
• Training employees and others who are involved in developing policies, practices and procedures on the provision of goods, services or facilities on the topics outlined in the Customer Service Standard; and,
• Establishing a process for people to provide feedback on how the College provides goods, services or facilities to people with disabilities; how the College responds to feedback; how the College takes action on complaints; and how the College makes the information about the feedback process accessible and readily available to the public.

4. INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATIONS STANDARDS

The College ensures compliance with AODA Information and Communications Standards by:

• Ensuring feedback mechanisms are accessible;
• Providing timely accessible formats and communication supports at no additional cost when requested;
• Upon request, providing emergency procedures, plans and public safety information in an accessible format or with appropriate communication supports as soon as practicable;
• Making the website and web content accessible;
• Providing educational materials and training resources in an accessible format;
• Providing student records and program information on program requirements, availability and descriptions in an accessible format when requested;
• Providing educators with accessibility awareness training related to accessible program or course delivery and instruction;
• Producing accessible educational and training materials; and,
• Making library materials and resources accessible.

5. EMPLOYMENT STANDARDS

The College ensures compliance with AODA Employment Standards by:

• Notifying employees and the public about the availability of accommodation during the recruitment process;
• Notifying applicants selected for participation in an assessment or selection process that accommodations are available upon request;
• Consulting with the applicant and providing or arranging for the provision of suitable accommodation during the recruitment process, when requested;
• Notifying successful applicants of this and other policies regarding the accommodation of employees with disabilities
• Informing employees about accommodation policies for supporting employees with disabilities and advising whenever there is a change to these policies;
• Providing accessible formats and communication supports when requested;
• Providing individualized workplace emergency response information to employees with disabilities when required and when known;
• Reviewing the individualized workplace emergency response information, when the employee moves to a difference location or the employees accommodation needs change or when reviewing the general emergency response policies;
• Providing workplace emergency response information to a person designated to provide assistance to the employee, with the employee's consent and if required;
• Developing accommodation plans for employees with disabilities that includes how the employee participates in the plan, the role of an employee representative, the means by which the employee is assessed, the steps taken to protect the privacy of the employee's personal information, the frequency with which the accommodation plan will be reviewed, updated and in what manner, the manner in which the College can request an evaluation by outside medical or other expert to assist in determining if the accommodation can be achieved and if so, how and if applicable any information regarding accessible formats and communication supports, individualized return to workplace emergency response information and any other accommodation that is to be provided;
• Developing a documented return to work process for employees who have been absent from work due to a disability and require disability-related accommodations in order to return to work that includes the steps taken to facilitate the return to work and an individual accommodation plan; and
• Taking into account the accessibility needs of employees as well as any individual accommodation plans when using performance management processes, career development or advancement processes, redeployment and job changes.

6. TRANSPORTATION STANDARDS

The College ensures compliance with AODA Transportation Standards by procuring services from a transportation provider that provides accessible vehicles.

7. DESIGN OF PUBLIC SPACES STANDARDS (Accessibility Standards for the Built Environment)

The College ensures compliance with AODA Design of Public Spaces Standards by:

• Ensuring that newly constructed or redeveloped outdoor public spaces meet the requirements specified in the standards;
• Ensuring that newly constructed service counters and fixed queuing guides or redeveloped waiting areas (inside or outside) meet the requirements specified in the standards;
• Having preventative and emergency systems in place to ensure all facilities (including public spaces) are well maintained; and
• Having a procedure to notify and provide alternative accessible routes when temporary disruptions occur.