Chapter 6
College Student Development
Programs and Students with
Learning Disabilities
by Kenneth Gobbo
Overview
At the end of every semester, students anticipate the grades they have earned in their
courses, calculate their grade point averages, and count the number of credits they still
need in order to earn their degrees. Many of them are eventually graduated, having
completed programs of study that prepare them to enter into professional careers.
However, when they look back on their college experiences, the highlights will likely
include much more than what happened in class. Former students remember friends
made in the residence halls, clubs, activities and social events, athletics, and road
trips. This is as it should be, as most colleges and universities focus on the education
and development of a well-rounded person. Professionals in the field of student development contribute a great deal to this important institutional goal. They are active
partners in the fashioning of programs that complement and enhance the academic
curriculum.
There is considerable research to confirm the critical role student development
professionals play in higher education. Students who are active in campus organizations tend to be more satisfied with their college experience. Participation in clubs
and organizations produces “positive outcomes for students.” Alumni report that
involvement in the co-curriculum prepares them for leadership roles in their careers
(Astin, 1993; Pascarella & Terenzini,1991). It is clear that experiences in areas not traditionally academic, but essential to college life, are fundamental to a student’s psychosocial and cognitive development.
Since the 1960s, the term “student development” has referred to many things,
including theoretical perspectives, student outcomes, and position titles. It refers to
what happens to students during their time in a college or university. It is what professionals work at as they apply developmental theory to postsecondary settings, where
students endeavor to master increasingly complex developmental tasks (Winston &
Scott Anchors & Associates, 1993; Evans, Forney, & Guido-DiBrito, 1998). Over the past
twenty years, a somewhat limited body of theory has expanded to include a variety of
ways to view the developmental process. It has also grown to include theory relating to
the psychosocial and cognitive development of women and minority students. This
chapter examines the needs of students with learning disabilities and attention deficit
disorders, and the different developmental paths many of them follow.
For students with learning disabilities and attention disorders, the completion of
an academic program can be a challenging and frustrating experience, as a consequence of difficulty in language processing, sustaining focus, or any number of other
concerns that result from having a learning disability. For many students in this group,
there are difficulties in nonacademic areas of their lives as well. There may be a range of
concerns that make it difficult to adjust to life at college. These may include issues that
range from adjusting to living away from family and with a new roommate to forging
an identity that includes the expression and new and deeper understanding of their
own selves in terms of personal philosophy, politics, ethnicity, and sexuality. Daily difficulties, such as keeping a schedule and organizing materials while maintaining a balance between academic and social sides of life, may pose real challenges. The balance
they strive for involves multiple options: social and political organizations, student
professional organizations, campus media, Greek organizations, and any number of
associated leadership possibilities. They also grapple with choosing a major and considering its implications for career choice. Any college student is likely to experience
periods of confusion and frustration as he/she picks a way through the many opportunities created for and by students as they strive to build their own smaller communities
within the larger academic community. When a learning disability adds layers of difficulty to the process of development, the challenges a student must face become
greater. Difficulties may include interpreting information from the environment, social
and emotional concerns exacerbated by a history of difficulty fitting in, and related low
self-esteem. For these reasons, the student development professionals who frequently
advise and guide these students certainly face a unique set of issues.
The purpose of this chapter is to investigate the concerns faced by students with
learning disabilities as they seek to find their place in the academic community. This
will be done in a way that is informed by student development theories and an understanding of some of the different paths of development some students with learning
disabilities may follow. It will examine the needs of college students with learning disabilities and attention disorders, and discuss some possible strategies for meeting
needs that might be used by professionals in the field of student development.
The chapter will also address specific areas of concern to those who work in student development, residence life, new-student orientation, student activities, athletics,
campus judiciary programs, and social organizations. It will also consider concerns
that might be faced by those who work with health and wellness programs and career
planning and placement programs. Matters related to counseling and academic remediation, which frequently come under the area of student development, are mentioned
briefly here but treated in more detail in other chapters.
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Understanding Learning Disabilities
An Overview of Theory
Student development professionals rely on a wealth of theory as they design and
implement programs to support students and enhance the experiences they have
in college. Developmental models that focus on cognitive change and its relationship to decision-making, and on the ability to solve increasingly complex problems in
a variety of ways, have been popular among those working in the field. Psychosocial approaches that focus on the development of identity have also been evolving
over half a century. These schemata provide student development professionals
with a philosophical and theoretical underpinning for much of what they do.
The field has also benefited from management theory, including organizational
change and research that considers how individuals grow and change in different
environments.
Cognitive Theories
Cognitive theories suggest that changes in behavior are related to changes in
thinking. Swiss psychologist Jean Piaget studied shifts in the quality of thinking from
infancy to adolescence, when formal abstract reasoning abilities ordinarily develop
(Piaget, 1969: Piaget & Inhelder, 1971). Lev Vygotsky, the Russian psychologist who
plotted the impact of social influences on thinking, has also had an impact on the
course of cognitive theory (Vygotsky,1932/1962). These cognitive theories look at the
ways people think but not at what they are thinking.
William Perry (1980, 1981—see Figure 6.1) was the first to focus on college students and design a theory of intellectual and ethical development based on his interviews with them. He was strongly influenced by Kohlberg (1981, 1984) whose work
was an extension of Piaget’s initial explorations of moral decision-making among
young children and its relationship to cognitive development. Perry’s theory discusses
a process of cognitive development that brings students from a dualistic understanding of the world during which things are viewed in terms of absolutes (good and bad,
black and white) to a more complex understanding of the pluralism of ideas (from
multiplicity to a position of relativism). Ideally, with this ability to include a range of
Figure 6.1 — Perry’s theory of intellectual and ethical development
(adapted from Perry, 1970)
Dualism
Multiplicity
Relativism
Commitment
opinions in context, students are gradually able to make a commitment based in
deeper understanding. Perry’s work is still used regularly by student development
professionals and has served as the basis for a number of later theories and models of
cognitive development that have emerged over the past 25 years.
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Many in higher education felt that Perry’s theory was very useful. However, it did
not clearly reflect the experiences of an increasing number of women who were
enrolling in colleges and universities. Researchers including Gilligan (1982); Belenky,
Clinchy, Goldberger, and Tarule (1986); Baxter Magolda (1992); and King and Kitchner
(1994) responded by offering a broader view of cognitive development and devising
more gender-inclusive theories that emphasize subjective knowledge as well as constructed knowledge. Gilligan (1982, 1990) responded to the male orientation in Erikson
(1980) and to Kohlberg’s (1981, 1984) stages of identity and moral development.
Gilligan and her associates developed a theory emphasizing an ethic of care and the
importance of connections between individuals.
The work of Belenky, et al. (1986) with a diverse group of women students
enrolled in a variety of institutions explored different ways of knowing and understanding. These ways of knowing included a range of “epistemological perspectives”:
silence, received knowing, subjective knowing, procedural knowing, and constructed
knowing. This theory delineates increasing levels of ability to understand, which
value acceptance of one’s own voice and personal understanding differently than
Perry’s model.
Patricia King and Karen Kitchner (1994—see Figure 6.2) worked with men and
women to develop a seven-stage model of intellectual development known as the
reflective judgment model. This model is significant in that it traces students’ ability
to reason in an increasingly reflective way about increasingly complex problems, and
to make defensible arguments about their beliefs and choices. The model discusses
seven stages, beginning with a prereflective level in which knowledge comes directly
from authority figures, then moving to a quasi-reflective stage in which knowledge is
certain but not always observable. In stage three, the student acknowledges a “temporary” lack of understanding or uncertainty and the ability to use his/her own opinion
until absolute knowledge becomes available. The ability to accept uncertainty, even if
only on a temporary basis, and the confusion that goes with it is an important step in
the development of reflective knowledge.
Figure 6.2 — King and Kitchner’s stages of reflective judgment
(adapted from King & Kitchner, 1994)
Pre-Reflective Thinking
Knowledge
is absolute
and
concrete
Knowledge
is absolutely
certain but
not immediately
available
Quasi-Reflective Thinking
Knowledge
is absolutely
certain or
temporarily
uncertain
Knowledge
is uncertain
–it involves
ambiguity
Knowledge
is contextual and
subjective
Reflective Thinking
Knowledge
is constructed
into
individual
conclusions
Knowledge
is the
outcome of
a process
In the fourth stage, individuals come to believe that there is some knowledge
that is uncertain—there are just some issues that one cannot know with certainty. In
stage five, an individual believes that while some things are uncertain, people come to
know things based on subjective understanding—sometimes known as “relativism.”
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Understanding Learning Disabilities
During stage six, an individual belief system is built through a process of active
inquiry. Solutions to difficult or poorly structured problems must be constructed
through a process and the generalization of rules of inquiry. Students learn to identify
common elements and form new perspectives by integrating elements. Stage seven is
the most complex. Although a view of absolute reality cannot be assumed, an opinion
can be synthesized through the use of active critical thinking. At this stage, some individuals’ ways of integration are better than others.
Baxter Magdola (1992—see Figure 6.3) also studied cognitive development among
men and women. She looked at change in students from the time of admission to graduation. Her cognitive-constructivist model, referred to as the epistemological reflection
model, defined four ways students reflected on their own ways of understanding. In
some ways, her findings ran in accordance with and extended the ideas of Perry and of
Belenky et al. She found that some ways of understanding and knowing were gender
Figure 6.3 — Baxter Magolda’s epistemological reflection model
(adapted from Baxter Magolda, 1992)
Absolute
Knowing
Transitional
Knowing
Independent
Knowing
Contextual
Knowing
Knowledge is
certain
Knowledge is part
certainty, and part
uncertainty
Knowledge is
uncertain—each
person has own
beliefs
Knowledge is
contextual—based
on the evidence in
context
related but not gender dictated. Again, the process starts with absolute knowing. As in
other theories, those who use this process of knowing see knowledge as absolute and
coming from authorities. The knowledge is received (more often by women) and/or
mastered (more often by men). Transitional knowing views knowledge as an absolute
in some areas but not in others. Reasoning can be interpersonal (mostly with women)
or impersonal (mostly with men). Independent knowing is based on the understanding that knowledge is uncertain. Reasoning can be interindividual (women) or individual (used more frequently by men). Contextual knowledge is an understanding
that judgments are made with in a context. Processes of critical thinking and patterns
can be used to make judgments. Problems can be thought through, and acquired
knowledge can be integrated and applied. Baxter Magdola sees students developing
their own voices early in the process of postsecondary education, and sees them as
partners in the construction of knowledge. It is important to recognize students as
knowers, and as being at different stages of knowing; cognitive theories provide a way
to understand the intellectual and ethical/developmental experience of students. This
development is essential if effective learning is to take place in colleges and universities. In recent years, the ideas of cognitive scientists, such as Howard Gardner (1999)
and Robert Sternberg (1997), have also had a significant impact on teaching, from
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College Student Development Programs and Students with Learning Disabilities
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elementary schools through postsecondary institutions. Their ideas, which recognize
the need to allow for a variety of facets of intelligence in addition to the traditional
verbal and logical/mathematical elements, have allowed for a broader range of teaching styles that in turn complement a broader range of learning styles.
Psychosocial Theories
Psychosocial theories of student development have their roots in the work of Erik
Erikson (1980), whose alternative to Freud’s sexual view of human nature described
individuals confronting and resolving developmental tasks at specific times in life.
Nevitt Sanford suggested that changes involve a period of developmental dissonance,
which pushes development and is central to his theoretical combination of balance and
support. “Change is facilitated when students are challenged to explore new modes of
behavior” (as cited in Winston & Scott Anchors & Associates, 1993, p. 67). The optimal
amount of challenge is a function of or depends upon the amount of support available.
Marcia (1966) and Chickering and Reisser (1993) have focused on Erikson’s work
on identity and developed his ideas in ways that are particularly pertinent to the experience of traditionally aged college students. Marcia views the process of identity
development as involving initial response to difficult situations, followed by a period
of uncertainty, a search for a resolution, and finally a commitment to values, career,
and a personal philosophy. Marcia discusses four identity statuses or different ways of
responding to these crises. They include the following:
• Identity diffusion—no experience of crisis and avoidance of commitment
• Identity foreclosure—an early selection of identity without the devotion of
great effort or struggle.
• Moratorium—a “time out” for active searching and testing of issues related to
identity.
• Identity achievement—a result of having struggled with issues and concerns
related to identity.
The exploration of identity issues that takes place early in a student’s postsecondary career is frequently associated with moratorium.
Chickering and Reisser’s further expansion of identity theory as explained in
their book Education and Identity (1993) is perhaps the most popular and enduring
theory of college student development. The authors view the experience of students’
psychosocial change in terms of seven vectors. These vectors allow for gradual movement in direction as well as magnitude in a variety of areas. They include developing
competence, managing emotions, moving through autonomy to interdependence,
developing mature interpersonal relationships, establishing identity, developing purpose, and developing integrity (see Figure 6.4). Students will all have their own paces
of progress in each vector and each vector may interact with others as the student
moves toward the formation of identity.
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Understanding Learning Disabilities
Figure 6.4 — Chickering and Reisser’s seven vectors (adapted from Chickering &
Reisser, 1993)
Developing
Purpose
Establishing
Identity
Students may face difficulties
with self-acceptance, or incorporating learning difference into
self-image, and reframing selfconcept to include positive
and negative sides of
learning difference
Students may need
additional time to develop
academic skills, which may lead
to slower progress toward career
goals, and social pressure and
discouragement if goals
are shared with
others
Developing
Identity
It may take longer for
students to understand
personal limits and strengths,
and synthesize them so they
feel they’ve reached
their potential
Developing
Mature Interpersonal
Relationships
It may take time for students
to learn appropriate ways to
share information about
their learning
differences
Moving through
Autonomy to
Interdependence
Intellectual
Developing
Competence
Students may face
Interpersonal
difficulty with work
completion, traditional
Receptive and
academic testing, expressive expressive language
and receptive language,
difficulty and
and in developing a
impulsivity may
repertoire of study
cause social
skills
difficulty
Physical
Students may be overdependent
on parents and friends, cut themselves off from parents or supports
Managing
prematurely, have difficulty
Emotions
accepting academic support,
and perfectionism
Students may experience
concerns
lack of confidence, selfesteem issues due to
academic failure, and
difficulty accepting
feedback
Students may experience
spatial and kinesthetic and
grapho-motor difficulties, and
difficulty in maintaining
focus during repetitive
practice
There are a variety of other identity-based models for subpopulations of college and university students. These include Josselson’s model (1987), which discusses pathways to development for women; Cross’s model (1971, 1991) on AfricanAmerican identity development; and Atkinson, Morton, and Sue’s (1983) five-stage
model of minority identity development, both of which discuss the important role
of awareness of cultural background and immersion in one’s cultural group as identity develops. There are also models of gay and lesbian identity development
proposed by D’Augelli (1995) and Cass (1979). These models lead to the questions
regarding the existence of pathways to identity followed by students with learning
differences, pathways which are somewhat different from those described in existing
theory.
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College Student Development Programs and Students with Learning Disabilities
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Environmental Theory
Ecological models include a view of student life that emphasizes students’ interaction with the environment. Banning’s work grows out of an examination of the
behaviors of individual students as they relate to the college, which is viewed as a complex organization (Banning, 1989). Models like this one focus on students as a part of
an ecological system. These models focus on the exchange of energy between individuals and the system they find themselves in. Banning describes a flexible process that
moves from the selection of institutional values through the design and evaluation of
environments. Many of the current living-learning and special interest residential
groups and other types of learning community models have been influenced by
these ideas. Organizational theories, which examine group behavior using sociological
models, have also contributed to student development program designs (Kuh, 1996).
Student Development Theory and Students
with Learning Disabilities and AD/HD
A portion of students with learning disabilities or AD/HD manage to move through
their academic careers without major concern or assistance from institutional support
services. It is particularly important to have an understanding of the path of development followed by most college students. This helps in the process of anticipating their
needs. It also contributes to one’s ability to build support systems for them. Student
development professionals have benefited in recent years from an increasing understanding of the developmental paths followed by students of minority groups. Those
students have also begun to benefit from that understanding. Many, though not all,
students who have been diagnosed with a learning disability or AD/HD follow a different path of development. They face possible concerns in a number of areas, including
self-esteem, the acquisition of social skills, difficulty with dependence issues as they
relate to family, high levels of stress and anxiety, alcohol and substance abuse concerns, depression, and other social/emotional issues. They may also have difficulty
keeping their materials organized and keeping track of time and appointments. Many
of them may come to college accustomed to thinking in ways that are considered
unorthodox by mainstream academics. Understanding the differences in the paths of
development they follow and the issues they typically face helps professionals to
design student life programs that will increase the chances for academic success for
students with learning disorders.
Self-Esteem and Self-Concept
Self-concept is one’s view of oneself, one’s sense of who he or she is. Self-esteem is
the value or worth that goes along with that definition of self. As students experience
higher education, they experience changes in the nature of their own self-concepts and
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Understanding Learning Disabilities
self-worth. They set and achieve and miss and redefine their personal goals. Psychosocial theorists see this sort of change as typical for young adults on the path to solidifying their own identities. Students with learning disabilities may face unique
challenges in this area. Research indicates that they are more likely to have a negative
view of themselves along with low self-esteem (Price, 1993). Coming to a new academic experience with a history that often includes academic failure and disappointment is not a sure footing on which to build college success. This uneven ground may
be compounded by a student’s perception that he or she may be a social failure with no
real friends. Gerber and Reiff (1994) indicate that constantly facing these matters of
confidence may cause young adults to become stressed and frustrated. Their feelings
are then at times turned inward and reinforce further feelings of low self-esteem and
low self-confidence and, in some cases, depression. Even in the face of success, some
students with learning disabilities will hold on to a negative sense of self, because it has
become more comfortable for them than facing change.
Students entering college must confront a series of decisions that are directly tied
to their self-concepts. They need to cope with the choice of a major and what that
choice says about them as a person. They also are faced with many social decisions—
some of them formal—defining who they are: to join an athletic team or not, to
become involved in student government or not, to work a part-time job or not, to join
a Greek or other social organization or not. Decisions like these come to bear on how
a student sees him or herself.
Cocurricular activities can serve as platforms on which students can test their
abilities. They can also be a venue in which student development professionals can
guide students in their early choices, encouraging activity that is challenging yet holding good chances for a successful experience. Successful participation in these activities
can feed and build self-esteem. Students can make choices with guidance in this area
and work at solving increasingly complex problems with success. These opportunities
may be particularly important to students who are struggling academically or who are
making progress or earning academic credit at a rate slower than desired.
Shifting Relationships with
Family, Peers, and Professionals
One of the most important psychosocial changes faced by an individual as he or
she leaves late adolescence and enters early adulthood is the shift away from the focus
on the family and toward more mature interdependent relationships with others
(Chickering & Reisser, 1993). This shift, although important for all college students,
may be more pronounced for students with learning disabilities and AD/HD. The
role of the family in the student’s education is likely to have been a very active one.
Caring parents frequently become involved in the education of their child with a
learning disability, as the child’s needs in this area are likely to be much greater than
average. Their habits, concerns, and actions may carry over to their student’s career in
higher education. Student development professionals may find themselves serving as
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liaison between parents concerned about their child’s special needs and the college or
university. An orientation program for parents of these students may help to alleviate
parental concerns and to channel parental energy in a positive way.
Research indicates that students with learning disabilities continue to depend on
their parents more than most other first-year college students do (Ryan, 1994). They
may consult frequently with parents regarding decisions they should be making on
their own, or alternatively, in a quest for perceived independence, some students may
stop communicating with their parents completely.
One of the major challenges for all first-year students involves adjustment to life
in the residence hall, and living with a roommate. This challenge offers great opportunities to students. They can broaden their horizons and get to know people from a
more diverse range of geographic areas and value systems than they experienced in
high school. This can be one of the most exciting and lasting experiences in a student’s higher education experience; yet this shift to a new and perhaps more diverse
community can present challenges as well, particularly for students who have had a
history of social difficulty and have had difficulty being accepted because of their
learning disabilities or their AD/HD.
Many of the same issues that make academic progress difficult can make life in
the social realm difficult. However, in college that social difficulty may be magnified
for students separated from the insulation of a caring family that may have buffered
social difficulties in grade school and high school. Often, students with learning disabilities and AD/HD are socially astute as a result of having honed their social skills to
a fine edge in order to cover their academic difficulties. Yet college students who made
their way through high school on their charm may find it difficult to use it with
instructors in a larger university setting. Others manage to continue to use this coping
strategy with success.
Another subgroup of this population may have to cope with an opposite situation. They just never had the opportunity to learn and practice the social skills that are
commonly acquired before entering college. Some of the very things impeding academic progress, such as difficulty processing incoming information at a rapid pace or
impulsivity, may also have prevented the acquisition of social skills and the positive
relationships with peers that follow. Areas of concern can include difficulty reading
facial cues, body language, and other gestures. It may also be difficult to pick up on
tonality shifts and other subtleties that reflect the changing moods of others. Students
may have limited vocabulary or difficulty with word retrieval that make communication difficult. They may have highly developed verbal skills but act and react so impulsively that they put off or turn away peers. They may have difficulty managing and
understanding the passing of time in ways that cause them to miss classes, social meetings, and engagements. This may quickly or gradually ostracize potential friends and
limit social possibilities. They may also be unsure about when it is appropriate to disclose information about their learning disabilities, AD/HD, or other concerns, and may
do so too soon in a relationship, or long after it would have been helpful.
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Understanding Learning Disabilities
All or some of these things may make it difficult to form relationships during this
important developmental period in life, which can be crippling to a healthy process
of identity formation. As one is forging an identity, the people with whom one
associates and the organizations to which one belongs are important factors in that
development.
Social organizations may be a place for some students to recognize their need for
further social development. Other students in this population will take the opportunities provided by social activities, athletics, arts, and campus media organizations to
shine, and seize them in order to excel in nonacademic areas since the academic areas
cause inordinate challenges. Many other students with learning disabilities, overwhelmed by their homework, will find it difficult to take the initial step and become
involved in any of these important cocurricular activities. Student development professionals who are aware of the psychosocial support needed by students in this group
can guide them in the selection of activity or involvement at a level that best suits
them depending on their current development and needs. Professionals can also
guide students during their early involvement as they grow accustomed to their new
social role in these organizations. Activities that were appropriate in terms of level or
appeared to be areas of success in high school may still be positive outlets at the collegiate level, but students may have to adjust their self-appraisal and expectations. It
takes a particular kind of caring guidance and mentoring to help a student find his or
her appropriate level of involvement in a student cocurricular system (e.g., intramural
or intercollegiate, residence hall association or departmental).
Greater social tolerance at the college and university level helps many students
who suffered socially in high school. Still, the need for early assistance with cocurricular connections emphasizes the importance of orientation and advising/mentoring
programs for new students with learning disabilities and AD/HD.
Students are greatly affected by faculty and professional staff. Ideally, they interact regularly and develop close relationships during their years in college. Chickering
and Reisser (1993) point out that “after relationships with peers, relationships with
faculty members are most important for students” (p. 316). Faculty and other administrative personnel, particularly those in student development, serve as important role
models for students. Pascarella and Terenzini (1991) feel that the impact of college is
to a great extent reliant on interaction with faculty and peers, and changes in values,
attitudes, aspirations, and intellectual gains are a result of those interactions. Like any
other students, and sometimes more so, those with learning disabilities and AD/HD
need to have contact with professors and other professionals outside the classroom.
They need to perceive that faculty members and student development professionals
care about them and have an understanding of their lives and their experience as students. Faculty and other professionals need to cultivate the ability to spend time listening to students’ concerns about academics and other parts of their life experience.
For students with learning disabilities and AD/HD, it is important that faculty and
other professionals acknowledge and support a range of learning styles and different
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kinds of knowing and understanding. It is also important that they to be able to make
referrals in an appropriate way when necessary.
Emotional Development of College
Students with Learning Disabilities
All students experience emotional strife at one or several points in their college
career. It is safe to say that everyone experiences confusion, uncertainty, fear, frustration, and boredom at some time while enrolled in college. Chickering and Reisser
(1993, pp. 90–91) comment that the kinds of feelings most likely to cause a student
problems as he or she moves toward academic goals include “fear and anxiety, anger,
depression, guilt and shame, and dysfunctional sexual or romantic attraction.” Like
other groups of people, students with learning disabilities and AD/HD are striving
toward and revising goals as they move through life. However, some of the problems
that make learning difficult also cause difficulty in the larger social realm, and contribute to making daily life in college more frustrating and bewildering than it is for the
typical college student.
Students may be entering college with a history of frustration and a general lack
of satisfaction with their high school experience. Some may be less mature than their
counterparts. College may offer them a new start, and it is important for students with
learning disabilities and AD/HD to be aware of this as they begin their postsecondary
careers. Those who plan and implement orientation programs should be aware of this
as they start students off in a new college setting. The concept of a “fresh start,” along
with the building of academic skills and emotional support, can greatly contribute to
achievement of academic goals and avoidance of a negative postsecondary experience
similar to that of secondary school.
Academic and social pressure can place a student under considerable stress,
which can lead to anxiety and depression. Students who are struggling with these difficulties may withdraw emotionally, and the process creates significant academic difficulty if it prevents a student from regularly attending class. When one who is already
facing academic difficulty misses class, avoiding his or her dedicated support system
of professionals and peers, negative outcomes are almost insured. The need for intervention arises, particularly if the student cuts himself or herself off socially. Because
some students in this group already begin with a negative self-concept, concerns
related to depression, and even suicidal ideation, can be great (Bryan, 1989).
Stress levels experienced by students with learning disabilities may also increase
the risk of developing alcohol and substance abuse problems. Almost all colleges
and universities grapple with alcohol and substance abuse issues, which have been a significant part of student culture for years. Students with learning disabilities and AD/HD
may be at greater risk, as they tend to experience a higher level of stress and frustration
overall, and are consequently more likely to self-medicate. Students with AD/HD may
tend toward impulsive behavior, which can contribute to the risk of substance and alcohol abuse and related dangerous behavior. A higher percentage of this group also has
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Understanding Learning Disabilities
access to prescription medications, which may increase the possibilities of abuse. Both
alcohol and substance abuse can exacerbate existing academic and social difficulties
and place the student at greater risk for academic failure.
Lengthy periods of exposure to stress, especially combined with alcohol and substance abuse, may increase the likelihood of depression and other health-related concerns. Prolonged stress weakens the immune system, and many students with medical
problems open themselves to the possibility of illness and the resulting absence from
classes and missed academic work.
Among the many changes that students may need to cope with are those that
involve literally finding their way around. Some students with learning disabilities and
AD/HD also face many practical difficulties, such as visual-spatial perception; this can
make it difficult to find one’s way around any new environment, including an unfamiliar campus. Spatial disorientation can cause difficulty as students make their way to
academic or social meetings. Those who design new-student orientation should take
this into consideration, as should those who ask students to meet with them. Students
may also have difficulty organizing and monitoring the passing of time and/or allocating time for things they need to get done. Problems in the academic or social realm can
result from these concerns, especially if they are compounded by distractibility and
impulsivity. In short, for many of these students, just getting where they need to be
when they need to be there is a challenge. For many, the primary antidote for these difficulties is structure and routine. Use of these two elements can help students to feel in
control, and this feeling can reduce levels of stress and anxiety.
In spite of the many difficulties faced by this group of students, many have a
strong-willed tenacity. Some say that they persist in the face of adversity because of
their learning disability or AD/HD. Others have finely honed social skills they use to
their advantage appropriately. Many are able to leverage these skills into leadership
positions on campus, which pay dividends upon graduation as they enter into a world
of work in careers that allow them to play to their strengths. Some students exhibit a
great deal of creativity and prove to be strong assets to visual and dramatic arts organizations on campus.
Meeting the Needs of Students with
Learning Disabilities and AD/HD
As the entry into college life is a significant life transition, the first few days of the
semester for new students are filled with excitement, concern, and, for some, anxiety.
Every fall, students arrive at their new campuses with this mix of emotions. Students
with a difficult academic and/or social past, who are planning a new start, enter their
new environment, separate from parents, and meet and get to know the people they
will be living and learning with during their first semester. Student development professionals know the importance of these first impressions.
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Orientations for parents of students with learning disabilities and AD/HD provide a particularly important opportunity. Informing them of policies and expectations that will affect students and of the available support for students is critical. They
need to feel that they are still important partners in their child’s education, even
though their new role will be a very different one.
Orientation is also a critical time for the students. More than parents, they need
to have a clear understanding of policies and expectations, as well as an understanding of who the sources of academic and social emotional support are. They need to
make connections and begin to build alliances early. Students who arrive with a plan
for when and how to disclose their learning differences and a repertoire of strategies
for academic success are at an advantage.
The semesterly orientation events almost always include or are closely followed
by an activities fair. Students shop for the kind of cocurricular activities and involvements that they might enjoy. In some ways, students with learning disabilities and
AD/HD may need that extension of college life more than others. As mentioned earlier, the decision to join a special interest group, service organization, or athletic team
says a great deal about a person’s identity. In the long term, membership in an organization may provide important opportunities to use strengths when academic concerns cause stress and damage to self-esteem. It may provide a positive way for a
student to unwind when stressed. At these times, it is important to have an area of
competence and peers and role models who provide support and encouragement.
Contact with supportive friends, staff, and faculty can also be an essential ingredient for student success when academic challenges prove to be difficult. These connections are critical to high-risk students in this population. In terms of student retention,
the students with connections are more likely than others to be referred to the professionals with the most helpful and appropriate skills and resources at the time when they
need specialized assistance. Because higher education is not always tolerant of those
who learn differently, these early social connections the student makes might grow into
very necessary trusting and comfortable relationships. It is particularly important for
students to feel accepted before a time of crisis or difficulty. These connections will serve
to increase the chances of academic success, and are likely to be remembered by students long after the pressures of academic exams and papers have subsided.
Possible Roles for Student Development Professionals
On any student development team, a group of professionals with a variety of
skills and different types of expertise come together. Members of each department can
contribute to meeting the needs of students with learning disabilities and AD/HD.
Each department will have strengths students can draw on.
The role counselors play in the lives of students is discussed in detail elsewhere in
this book. Counseling is mentioned briefly here because in many institutions members of the counseling staff frequently serve as “point persons” for other student
development professionals and faculty members when they are trying to figure out
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how to help the student who learns differently. It is of the utmost importance for student development personnel and faculty advisors to student organizations to know
who the “experts” on campus are, as most educators cannot be expected to work with
issues like depression and extreme anxiety, for example, in the same way that counselors and others who are trained to do so might.
All professionals on the student development team need to know how and when
to refer to counselors or other specialized offices that are identified as central places
for helping students with learning disabilities and AD/HD. Counselors are often called
upon to provide training to others about the general concerns of this student group
and the best and most appropriate ways to make referrals.
College health center personnel also should have a good understanding of the needs
and profiles of students with learning disabilities and AD/HD. These students are
more likely than others to make contact with a health center, for a number of reasons.
They may experience higher levels of stress, which result in more stress-related illnesses. Also, health center professionals may be required to answer questions related
to prescription medication used by students with AD/HD. They will see students with
concerns related to conditions that are commonly comorbid in students with learning
disabilities and AD/HD, including depression and eating disorders.
It is important for health educators to be aware of some of the teaching strategies
discussed later in this chapter. It may be useful, for example, to ask students to reverbalize any complex instructions. This will allow health care workers to be sure that
students understand directions related to important health care issues.
Both student activities professionals and faculty members who advise student groups
are in a very good position to interact with students with learning disabilities and
AD/HD. They meet students on nonacademic grounds, where many students may
have a higher level of comfort. Students consider these professional contacts to be
very valuable. Advisors need to be able to find roles in the organizations they work
with for all students who have an interest. The roles should provide challenge yet
offer a good chance for success with guidance. For this to happen, students must be
met at their level of cognitive and psychosocial development. The theories discussed
earlier in the chapter provide a framework for this process. Advisors can use information about how a student learns in a manner similar to the way they would use the
same information in the classroom.
Advisors to student organizations can be diagnostic in their approach. Before
assigning students to projects, they can check in on the different skill levels and talents
of their students, and match students who need to develop skills with others who possess the skills they need to develop. Advisors can also use techniques that have been
used with success by classroom teachers, such as providing a clear agenda in meetings
and sticking to it, micro-uniting (creating discrete, incremental steps for) complex sets
of instruction, discussing process, and asking students to reverbalize complex instructions to insure that there is a clear level of understanding.
Frequently the most energetic and dedicated members of a student development
team are the professionals found living and working with students in the area of
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residential life. Residence hall directors are often seen as very approachable; they are
often among the first to respond to academic and social concerns of students, and
they can serve as a very positive influence on students with learning disabilities and
AD/HD. Many of the needs students have for structure and support can be met
through the creative use of residence hall resources. Students who need study space
with fewer distractions can frequently benefit from creative use of space and creative
community-building engineered by residence hall staff.
Residence life professionals, many of whom are young and relatively inexperienced resident assistants, see student life up close and frequently develop skills in helping students resolve issues related to the changes they are experiencing in their lives.
They are situated in a position where they can spot concerns before they become serious problems for students. For example, they are more likely than others to see a student who is having difficulty organizing his or her materials, and may be able to
intervene and help the student to stay organized before the disorganization becomes
an academic liability. They can assist students with planning and help them to
develop skills that will allow them to use their time in an optimum way. Residence life
staffers are also likely to notice students who have difficulty with roommates or other
students and may offer strategies that will be helpful in the attempt to resolve differences. Some level of resident assistant training both in adolescent development and in
basic theory and strategies for helping students with learning disabilities and/or
AD/HD will be of great assistance in clarifying student needs and suggesting practical
approaches to resolution of individual student difficulties for the dedicated studentprofessionals who are so often on the front lines of academic or social intervention.
It is important for residence hall professionals to be able to interact with students’ academic advisors and others involved in academic support, so that all
involved will have a broader view of students’ lives. That broader view will encompass
the social side of a student’s life as well as the academic side. When concerns surface
in the residence hall or in a student’s social life, it is likely that there will be an influence on academic progress. Professionals can engage in problem solving with students
to help them change specific behaviors that slow academic progress.
Participation in athletics and outdoor recreation programs can prove to be a great
outlet for many college students. It allows them to develop their physical abilities in a
comfortable environment. They can use these activities to refocus their energy and
unwind. They may make strong social connections with teammates and coaches while
taking part in regular physical activities that promote health and reduce stress. As students with learning disabilities and AD/HD shift from secondary school to college, they
may need assistance as they find their place at the appropriate level of competition. As
these students learn new techniques and skills, coaches may encounter the same issues
that cause concerns in the classroom, problems with memory, sequencing, focus of
attention, and directionality. Coaches should consider use of proven classroom techniques, such as micro-uniting and modeling. Students with major commitments to
intercollegiate sports will have greater time management concerns than others do.
They are likely to need more support in the planning and follow-through of activities
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when the press of academics and the demands of athletics collide. However, student
life staff should not feel that they need to provide this support directly in every case;
knowledge of campus resources, especially if there is a good learning center on campus
that can provide one-to-one assistance for struggling students, can simultaneously
widen the student support network and ease the (sometimes inappropriate) burden on
residence life staffers.
Students with learning disabilities and AD/HD may surface in the disciplinary
process more frequently than other subgroups of the student population. Having a learning disability or an attention disorder in no way excuses behavior that is an infraction of
a college’s published code of conduct. Impulsive tendencies on the part of some may
cause more frequent appearance by members of this group, but attention disorders are
different from diagnoses related to oppositional defiant disorder, which is characterized
by a negative and provocative attitude. When students with AD/HD find themselves in
difficulty, it is usually the result of impulsivity, misunderstanding, or the misreading of a
social situation, or some combination of the three. Still, the consequences any other students would face in the same situation are usually in order. However, since disciplinary
hearings can be very important learning experiences, professionals involved may want
to make use of techniques that insure information is conveyed and understood.
A student may have difficulty sequencing events or remembering details of an
event. This can be problematic during the information-gathering phase of a hearing.
Having an advisor or someone else on hand who is familiar with the student’s cognitive style can be very helpful to all involved. That person can help the student to
reconstruct events and also help him or her to understand the hearing process. This
sort of assistance is particularly important in emotionally loaded situations.
The use of contracts has been very effective in changing student behavior. A clear
sequence of specific consequences for specific behaviors can be a powerful tool for students who may need additional reinforcement as they build their understanding of
cause and effect relationships. Asking students to reverbalize the outcomes of a hearing can also be helpful. If students are required to explain in their own words the
main ideas identified in the hearing, one can be certain that the student has an understanding of the expectations and outcomes.
Major life changes cause stress for just about everyone. Just as some of the anxieties that accompany beginning college can be addressed by a well-planned orientation program, career planning and placement counselors can ease the transition for
students as they prepare for graduation and entry into a career or further studies.
Transition concerns and even fears may be greater for students with learning disabilities and AD/HD. If students are finishing a successful academic stretch and they have
gained a high level of comfort and confidence with college, leaving can be even more
difficult. This may be particularly true if they are entering the completion of one of
their first real periods of success. The period prior to leaving is a time for students to
reconsider how strategies related to disclosure of their learning differences may or
may not apply to the workplace or graduate school. For one thing, students must generally sharpen their self-advocacy skills.
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The period of time before leaving college is also a time in which students may
need more support than usual. Preparations are taking place in an emotional environment; students are involved in the usual assignments and exams, and they may be
facing additional pressures from parents and those in other close relationships that
have been formed since they left home. Career counselors can be most helpful by providing students with opportunities to inventory their self-understanding, strengths,
and strategies, and by providing support as the students prepare to leave the comfort
of the educational environment to which they have grown accustomed.
It is important for all student development professionals to be aware of how
learning disabilities and AD/HD affect students as they participate in cocurricular life.
Diplomatic questions when learning differences seem likely can yield a great deal of
information as to how students function and learn best in a variety of social situations. Knowing whom to turn to for advice on how to best assist students, and knowing where to steer students for assistance, are invaluable.
All student development professionals and paraprofessionals should have some
rudimentary knowledge about learning disabilities and AD/HD. All should know how
to put students in touch with the office or point person designated to work with this
group of students.
Case Descriptions
Students with learning disabilities and AD/HD have to grapple with the same developmental issues other college students do. They may face additional concerns. They may
have social and emotional concerns that are greater than others’, and they may need
additional time, support, assistance, and structure in their lives as they work through
their concerns.
Jane
Jane entered college in the September following her graduation from high
school. She was diagnosed with dyslexia when she was in the third grade. School in
general was a struggle for her, and high school was exceptionally hard. She had always
experienced considerable academic difficulty in mainstream classrooms. She also
struggled socially and had few friends. However, she experienced some success as a
member of the school band, and her few friends were people she played in the band
with. She also did well in art classes in high school. She entered college looking forward to a fresh start and a change.
Jane was a quiet and shy person by nature. Occasionally, she felt very depressed
about the way her life was going. Fortunately, she developed strong rapport with her
first roommate at college. When she began to experience academic difficulty and a
feeling of being overwhelmed during the third and fourth week of her first semester,
her roommate brought her to talk with the residence hall director in her building. As a
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result of that connection, and a successful referral, Jane had a few meetings with one
of the counselors from the college counseling center. She also was able to work out a
study schedule and find a study space at the college skills center. Working at the skills
center allowed her to access a tutor who could help her with her English 101 essays
and the term paper she had to write for her Western civilization course. Though writing caused her a great deal of anxiety, with the structure of a study schedule and some
support from a tutor at the campus learning center, she completed her assignments
with passing grades.
The resident assistant on Jane’s floor was a member of the college marching
band. After learning that Jane played the trumpet, she persuaded her to get involved
with the band, and the connection allowed her to make some social contacts which
developed into close friendships over the next few years. Jane continued to be
involved with the band, and at the end of her second year, she became a design major.
She continued to earn passing grades and excelled in some of her design courses. She
occasionally checked in with a counselor when things got difficult and maintained a
few of the friendships she had developed during her first year. With support from the
skills center, she passed all her general degree requirements. She completed her major
courses and graduated.
Discussion
Jane did not identify herself as a student who desired or needed special services
from the college. However, her fortuitous meeting with a student and with residential
staff allowed her to make the connections she needed to be successful. This case
description illustrates the importance of residential staff, counselors, activities professionals, and academic support staff who are ready to identify needs and work together
in a team approach to insure the success of students who would otherwise be at risk.
Jane’s story also illustrates the need for students to build on their strengths in a supportive environment.
Dan
Dan decided to enroll in a smaller college because he felt that he needed a second
chance. He left a large state university after an unsuccessful year; he had failed his
courses miserably and had felt socially disconnected. He had difficulty making friends
and just didn’t feel happy there. He spoke with his high school counselor after his disappointing experience at the university. The counselor had referred Dan to a psychologist for an evaluation, and Dan was diagnosed with AD/HD, inattentive type. The
evaluation written by the psychologist recommended a smaller academic environment and “coaching support.”
Dan found a smaller college that would accept him, and he enrolled in four
classes during his first semester. They were much smaller than the ones he was used
to at the larger school, and he found that he could easily ask questions in class and
meet and talk with his professors. He became friends with a few of the students on
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his residence hall corridor who were in his classes. Toward the end of the semester,
when student government elections came around, he was elected to be his section
representative and became an active member of the campus activity board. He earned
very good grades for his first semester courses.
Dan registered for a full load of five courses the following semester. The courses
he selected for his second semester were a little more difficult, and about four weeks
into the semester, he felt that he was hopelessly behind, and he had failed his first two
important quarterly exams. The faculty advisor to the student government group
noticed that he had missed two consecutive meetings. The student activities director
who worked with the activities board also noticed that Dan had not been around
much and had not turned up to help out with a recent campus event that he had
made a commitment to work on. The faculty advisor to student governance contacted
Dan, who shared some of the difficulty he was having. The advisor introduced Dan to
a tutor at the college skills center, who worked with him two or three times a week to
help him keep his materials and his schedule organized. Dan found that he needed to
drop out of some of his activity board commitments, but he was able to successfully
complete all his course work in his second semester and hold his seat in the student
government group.
When Dan returned for his second year of studies, he continued to carry a full
load of courses and to work with the tutor at the skills center who had helped him to
stay organized. He also continued his involvement with the student government
organization and the campus activities board. He became an active member of the
outing club, and found that getting into the outdoors with other students was a great
way for him to relax.
One of the primary tasks of the student government group was to allocate funds
to different student groups. When a new student group came to student government
for funding, Dan expressed great concern. The political and philosophical ideas of the
group requesting funding were very different from the ideas he grew up with. He was
raised in a religious environment, and some of the basic tenets of the group applying
for funds seemed opposed to the basic beliefs that were instilled in him when he was
younger. Although at first he was sure that he should vote against funding this group,
he eventually became puzzled. After listening to basic proposals offered in meetings
and talking informally with some members of the new group, he felt that some of
their ideas had merit but were confusing to him, as he felt that they were in conflict
with his basic beliefs. He talked with other student government representatives on
both sides of the issue, and he spent some time talking with the faculty advisor and
the activities director about his dilemma. He gradually came to understand his role in
the government association as one that took into consideration the needs of all the
students on campus. He eventually was able to support the needs of students who
were different than he was. The experience widened his world view, and over time he
came to get along well with some students on the governance board that he disagreed
with politically and philosophically. He had moved from a position from which he
could not even examine possibilities to a position from which he could see something
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positive in the ideas offered from different viewpoints and understand the context
within which they existed.
With support to stay organized, Dan finished his studies and gained a great deal
of experience in decision making as a member of the student government group. In
his senior year, he served as treasurer. He also gained valuable experience planning
events as a member of the activities board, took the opportunity to develop leadership
skills, and enjoyed some wonderful trips as a member of the outing club.
Discussion
Dan’s second start was a good one in that he identified the source of his problems
with school and selected an environment that offered increased chances for success.
An astute advisor to the student governance organization, along with a cooperative
student activities director, facilitated contact with other academic professionals who
were able to help him in very specific and appropriate ways. The student government
advisor’s awareness of this student’s developing ability to wrestle with difficult choices
and to handle complex abstract issues proved to be an important catalyst for Dan’s
growth. Student leaders in student government, residence life, and conduct board positions all have to work through difficult philosophical and moral decisions that can
have a real impact on the lives of other students. Support and training from understanding professionals and fellow students is often imperative if they are to be successful in their student leadership roles.
Strategies, Techniques, and Suggestions
for Student Development Personnel
Perhaps the greatest benefit to students who become active in the student development programs sponsored by a college or university is that they get the chance to use
what they are learning in real-life situations. As they progress through their years of
study at an institution, they will face increasingly complex cognitive and social issues,
which are very real—but ideally they are faced in an environment that surrounds students with supportive, understanding people who are concerned about their growth
and development as well as the needs of the larger academic community.
In working with students with learning disabilities and AD/HD, there are several
strategies that can be used to help students. Some have a cognitive focus, others are more
psychosocial or environmental. Approaches include a variety of teaching techniques
that have already been referred to. They have proven to be effective in the classroom and
can be applied in many student development settings. Several are outlined below.
1. Be overt and explicit
Frequently, it is best to be straightforward with a student, telling him or her
exactly what the expectations for a situation are. It is better not to assume previous
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knowledge or the ability to pick up nuances or subtleties. Work at the student’s level
of understanding. Look for ways to be sure the student understands the situation, perhaps by having the student restate the basics in his or her own words. Also, be very
clear about deadlines and look for ways to remind students about them as they
approach. Encourage students to use daily planners in the same way they would for a
class, to keep track of meetings and deadlines for projects.
2. Discuss process
In the design and implementation of a program or project, explain all steps in
the process. Do not assume the student has an understanding of the process or that he
or she is able to deduce the next step. Have the student explain the process that leads
up to the final outcome or project.
3. Be aware of the student’s skill level and of his or her way of thinking and
knowing
Cognitive theories discuss different levels and kinds of thinking and different
ways of knowing and understanding. It is important to try to assess the level the student is at and meet him or her there. This should be done before assigning specific
tasks to the student. Ask the student if he or she has a plan for the completion of the
project and what the project “will look like” when it is completed. Provide explicit
instruction and strategies as needed.
4. Be aware of learning style
When teaching a skill or discussing a concept, it is valuable to consider the way
the student learns best. Should the skill or concept be modeled? Should the student
verbalize his or her understanding? Is there a way to develop a visual depiction of
an abstract concept? Could the concept be acted out? Explain concepts in more than
one way.
5. Create supportive living-learning structures and routines
Students need a certain amount of structure and routine in their lives. Structured
time should support students as they build study and work routines. Find ways to
build structures and routines into the student’s life early in the student’s academic
career. Make it part of a plan rather than a reaction to a crisis. Have the student be a
partner to the plan. If concern about a student’s progress develops, consider the kind
of change needed. Does the individual need to change, or is there something in the
environment that needs changing? Support both options as necessary. Allow for structure and flexibility in the residence hall environment.
6. Help the student to use organization to enhance memory
Model organization when conducting meetings. Always use a clear written
agenda. Encourage students to write down important concepts and ideas. Micro-unit
complex processes. Explain concepts in small, digestible chunks. Explain specific steps
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necessary to achieve completion. Offer students clear goals, and provide markers
along the way so they are able to measure success as they move toward their goals.
Point out milestones of success as students move toward the completion of a project.
7. Clarify needs and expectations
Require participation in an orientation program. Take possible concerns related
to spatial processing into consideration as students are familiarized with the geography of the campus. Be sure students understand the most important institutional
academic and social expectations and values. This means that primary rules and
guidelines should be explicitly explained. Orient parents, be sure they understand
what is expected of the students, and let parents know they play an important role in
their child’s education, and that the role they will soon play may be very different
than it has been in the past.
8. Intentionally foster alliances
Help students to make connections with other students and professionals. Help a
student in a student organization or residence hall setting to find a working partner
for student activities projects or study who has strengths that complement his or her
weaknesses and who can benefit from his or her strengths.
9. Provide students with tasks in a variety of areas that are challenging but
achievable
Have some institutional mechanism that allows students to define their areas of
strength, as well as an avenue that will allow students to work in those areas. This
should be done early in the student’s academic career. Resulting achievements can
engender a feeling of self-confidence when other challenges become overwhelming.
10. Provide discussions about stress and healthy ways to manage stress
Health educators and residence hall directors can play an influential role in this
area. Students can be made aware of opportunities for positive ways of releasing stress,
including courses related to specific stress reduction techniques and recreation activities and sports.
11. Help students to learn when and how to disclose information about their
learning difference
Let students know if the information they are sharing is appropriate for the setting they are in. Assist them to find tactful ways to share information about the ways
they think and learn best. Help them learn to judge and select appropriate times and
places for disclosing information about a learning difference or diagnosis.
12. Use contracts
Contracts are useful tools in the disciplinary process, in counseling, in academic
advising, and in dealing with attendance and academic progress concerns. They can
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promote clear understanding of situations and outcomes and can serve as tools that
students can use to measure success.
13. Help students to reframe the way they see themselves in relation to their
AD/HD or learning disability
As student development professionals get to know students over time, students
will share some of the difficulties they experience. Help them to understand that taking extra time and working harder on educational tasks will, to some degree, help
them to avoid frustration. Students who are able to reframe the way they see themselves in relation to their own learning differences are more likely to be able to accept
the structure and support that they need to be successful.
Conclusion
Student development professionals have the challenging role of fostering a sense of
community on our college and university campuses. They are frequently called upon
to strike a balance between the needs of individual students and the needs of the larger
college community. Having an understanding of the paths of development students
usually follow, and the variations in those paths for specific portions of the student
population, will make the challenge faced by professionals who design and implement
the cocurriculum a little bit easier. Understanding and using some of the proven techniques in a caring way may help to bring some of those students who find it difficult to
achieve their college goals a little closer to the aspirations that are so important to
them. It will also allow professionals to bring these students to a more meaningful
involvement with the larger college community. The college community will only benefit from the high level of energy, creativity, and leadership potential held by many students with learning disabilities and AD/HD.
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