Phone: 301-447-5006

• Study Skills
• Peer Tutoring
• Supplemental Instruction
• Disability Services
• English as a Second Language
• Student Athlete Academic Support

The programs of Learning Services are designed to provide all students with the tools necessary to be seccessful in their course-work. Students are encouraged to participate in these services, however they are expected to take responsibility for their academic career.

Study Skills:
The goal of this program is to teach college-level study skills. Students participate in workshops on time management, reading college-level text books, note-taking, test-taking, and learning strategies throughout the academic year. Learning specialists also meet individually with students to assess and teach study skills. Students practice study techniques using notes and textbooks from the classes in which they are enrolled.

Peer Tutoring:
Students who have problems mastering the content in a class may recieve assistance from trained peer tutors who are faculty-recommended. Peer tutors help students prepare for specific subjects; they are intended as a supplement to regular class work. Classes for which students have difficulty with content, have regularly scheduled meeting times for tutoring. Tutoring for other classes is arranged on an as-needed basis. Note: Foreign language tutoring is arranged through that department.

Supplemental Instruction:
Some classes which have been identified as particularly demanding have special peer tutors known as Supplemental Instruction Leaders. The SI Leader is a student who has taken the class in a previous semester and mastered the material. The leader attends class, takes notes, and conducts regularly scheduled review sessions. Students learn study stratigies in the context of reviewing course content. Research demonstrates that students who participate in supplemental instruction earn significantly higher mean final cours grades than non-participants.

Disability Sevices:
Mount Saint Mary's University recognizes that students with disabilities are entitled to reasonable accommodations and appropriate academic adjustments stated in Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. Students with disabilities should contact the Director of Learning Services to discuss their eligibility for accommodations and academic adjustments. Current valid documentation of a disabling condition describes its affects on academic performance is required.

Guidelines for the Documentation of a Learning Disability

Students who are seeking LD services from Mount Saint Mary's University on the basis of a diagnosed specific learning disability are required to submit documentation to verify eligibility under Section 504 of the Vocational Rehabilitation Act of 1973.

The following guidelines are provided in the interest of assuring that evaluation reports are appropriate to document eligibility. The Director is available to consult with diagnosticians regarding any of these guidelines.

1. Testing must be comprehensive. It is not acceptable to administer only one test for the purpose of diagnosis. Minimally, domains to be addressed must include (but are not limited to):
   * Aptitude. The Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Revised (WAIS-R) with subtest scores is the preferred instrument. The Woodcock-Johnson Psycho-Educational Batter-Revised: Test of Cognitive Ability or the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale: Fourth Edition are acceptable.
   * Achievement. Current levels of functioning in reading , mathematics, and written language are required. Acceptable instruments include the Woodcock-Johnson Psycho-Educational Batter-Revised: Tests of Achievement; Sanford Test of Academic Skills (TASK); Scholastic Ability Test for Adults; or specific achievement test such as the Test of Written Language-2 (TOWL-2), Woodcock Reading Mastery Tests-Revised, or the Stanford Diagnostic Mathematics Test. The Wide Range Achievement Test-Revised is NOT a comprehensive measure of achievement and therefore is not suitable.
   * Information Processing. Specific areas of information processing (e.g., short and long term memory, sequential memory; auditory and visual perception/processing; processing speed) must be assessed. Use of subtests from the WAIS-R or the Woodcock-Johnson Tests of Cognitive Ability is acceptable.
   – This is not intended to be an exhaustive list or to restrict assessment in other pertinent and helpful areas such as vocational interests and aptitudes.
2. Testing must be current. In most cases, this means within the past three years. Since assessment constitutes the basis for determining reasonable accommodations, it is inn the student's best interest to provide recent and appropriate documentation to serve as the basis for decision-making about a student's need for accommodations in a University environment which is academically competitive.
3. There must be clear and specific evidence and identification of learning disability. Individual "learning styles" and "learning differences" in and of themselves do not constitute a leaning disability.
4. Test scores/data should be included. This is important since certain college policies and procedures (e.g., petitioning for permission to substitute courses) require actual data to substantiate eligibility.
5. Professionals conducting assessment and rendering diagnoses of specific leaning disabilities must be qualified to do so. Trained and certified and/or licensed psychologists, learning disabilities specialists, and educational therapists are typically involved in the process of assessment. Experience working with an adult population is essential.
6. Evaluators should be able to demonstrate that the selection of assessment instruments is based upon their suitable ability (i.e., reliability and validity) for use with an adult population.
7. Diagnostic reports must include the names and titles of the evaluators as well as the date(s) of testing.

All documentation is confidential and should be submitted to:
Director of Learning Services
Mount Saint Mary's University
214 Bradley Hall
Emmitsburg, MD 21727