Skip to main content
Learning Support Services

Faculty & Staff

LSS provides academic support for all undergraduate and graduate students, such as one-on-one academic coaching, study tools videos, and workshops that will help students develop strategies and skills around time management, organization, study techniques, test taking strategies, test anxiety, and more.

Students with Documented Disabilities

In conjunction with faculty, LSS is committed to providing “reasonable academic accommodations” for students with learning disabilities, ADHD, Autistic students, and students with mental health conditions that rise to the level of disability. Students with disabilities must self-identify to LSS by providing notice of their disability and the required documentation to LSS in order to receive academic accommodations. Once students have registered with LSS and been approved to receive academic accommodations, they are expected to complete a Request for Accommodation Letters through ClockWork that will be sent to their professors.

How to Provide Students with Accommodations

Professors are responsible for providing students with the accommodations LSS has approved in compliance with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act. Professors will receive an email notification that a student in their course is registered with LSS and has sent them an accommodation letter for that class. Professors must review and confirm receipt of these letters through ClockWork for Professors.  For more information about this process, please refer to our Clockwork Guidelines.

All faculty members should announce on the first day of class the desire to speak confidentially with any student with special needs as soon as possible, and course syllabi should include a statement about students with disabilities. Please use the following syllabus statement:

Office for Access & Disability Services and Learning Support Services:

It is the policy of Villanova to make reasonable academic accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities. All students who need accommodations should go to Clockwork (Student Login) via myNOVA to complete the Online Intake or to send accommodation letters to professors. Go to the LSS website http://learningsupportservices.villanova.edu or the ADS website www.villanova.edu/accessible for registration guidelines and instructions. If you have any questions please contact LSS at learning.support.services@villanova.edu or 610-519-5176, or ADS at ods@villanova.edu or 610-519-3209.

An announcement of this type will help preserve the student’s privacy, demonstrate your willingness to provide assistance, and encourage an early identification for accommodations. When a student with a disability does request an accommodation, please feel free to consult with the Office of Learning Support Services for assistance in providing the services.

It may also be helpful to include a syllabus statement announcing that assistance is available to all students at Learning Support Services. Here is an example:

Learning Support Services (LSS) provides academic support services and workshops for undergraduate, graduate, and continuing education students at Villanova University. One-on-one sessions are available in university-relevant skills such as time management, study strategies, academic reading, learning styles, test-taking, and test anxiety. Students of all abilities, including successful students who want to enhance their academic skills and students who are struggling, are welcome to use these services. There is no extra charge for these services and they are open to all Villanova students.

How can you approach a student who is having academic challenges that are interfering with their success in the course?

  • Make the student aware of the relevant support services:
  • If it is a first-year student, consider that they may be experiencing common difficulties in adjusting to the new environment. Talking about specific types of support might help the student adapt more readily and feel more comfortable.
  • If you have a sense that the student’s abilities exceed what their grades reflect, talk about how they prepare for class, studies, etc. Ask: “How did you do things in high school? What kinds of strategies or help did you use?  Did you receive any additional academic support in high school? Did you have extra time on exams?” This will encourage the student who has a documented disability to disclose it. Do not ask directly if they have a disability. Only the student can come forward with this information, we cannot ask directly. Our primary goal is to let students know that support is available and then it is up to them to come forward.

Students who have not been diagnosed with a disability, but who tell you they believe they may have one, should go to LSS for an initial information session.

June 2021

For the past several years, our department has primarily used person-first language to address students with disabilities. Person-first language uses disability identity as a secondary identifier (for example, I am a student with Autism) and was popularized as a way to combat a history of using identity-first language to other, exclude, and discriminate against people with disabilities.

The disability community is diverse. In recent years, some communities have indicated that identity-first language is preferable. Notably, this includes many Autistic and Deaf communities. In response to this change and following guidelines from the Association of Higher Education and Disability (AHEAD), LSS will be using identity-first language in some of our materials and communication. We will be using both person-first and identity-first language, so you may see both student with a learning disability and Autistic student.

Ultimately, we wish to honor all identities and acknowledge individual language choices. Please join us as we continue to learn and grow in our understanding of how barriers in the classroom and on campus impact disabled community members.

Additional Resources

AHEAD Statement on Language

National Center on Disability and Journalism Disability Language Style Guide

How to Refer a Student to LSS 

The Office of Learning Support Services encourages you to refer any student who may be struggling with study skills, time management issues, test-taking skills, reading skills, and test anxiety regardless of whether or not they have a documented disability.  Please complete the Student Referral Form so that we have some background information before we meet with the student. If you have any questions, please contact us at learning.support.services@villanova.edu or call 610-519-5176.

Image of LSS Logo, Villanova University Crest with Learning Support Services written underneath

Office of Learning Support Services

Location:

Learning Commons in                      Falvey Library, Suite 212

Address: 

800 Lancaster Avenue                      Villanova, PA 19085

Phone:

610.519.5176

Fax:

610.519.8015

Email:

learning.support.services@villanova.edu

Follow us:

@VillanovaLSS

Hours of Operation:

Monday through Friday

9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. 

Meet Our Staff

Maps & Directions to Campus

 

Student Testimonials

“I can honestly say that the support I received from LSS was key to my success as a student at Villanova and today as an ongoing student of life.”

~ UG Alum, Class of 2021, Mathematics

"LSS has constructively impacted my experience as a learning-disabled student at Villanova. [They] empowered me with the courage to advocate for myself and relinquish some of my pathological anxiety." 

~ UG Alum, Class of 2022 & MA Alum, Class of 2023, Communications

“Working closely with Villanova LSS starting the first week of my freshman year really changed the trajectory of my academic career.”

~ UG Alum, Class of 2022, Psychology

"During my time at Villanova, LSS was the most helpful academic resource available. The LSS team is extremely friendly and are always there to make sure you achieve your academic goals!" 

~ UG Alum, Class of 2023, Mechanical Engineering