Individuals with disabilities are a part of our lives. The Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) is designed to provide equal opportunity to individuals with disability without discrimination. Doña Ana Branch Community College is committed to providing students, faculty, staff and employee applicants with disabilities an equal opportunity to work and learn. An individual with a disability decides if he/she chooses to disclose his/her disability; no one may ask another person if that per- son has a disability. Note the phrasing prompted by the ADA: individuals with disabilities. The emphasis is on the individual first.
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The "Administrative Policies and Procedures Manual" of NMSU prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability. Reasonable accommodations to access facilities, programs, events, services and employment are provided, upon request, to qualified students, faculty, staff and employee app- licants with disabilities. Who is a person with a disability? * A person who has a physical or mental impairment (long lasting or permanent) that sub- stantially limits (when compared to other people) one or more major life activities such as learning or working, or * has a record of such an im- pairment, or* is regarded as having such an impairment.

General information on ADA is available from the Doña Ana Branch Community College ADA Coordinator who has the responsibility for co- ordinating Doña Ana Branch Community College ADA compliance activities. The DABCC ADA Coordinator can be reached at Room 117A, DABCC, 527-7545 (Voice), 527-7647 (TTY), 527-7515 (FAX). General information and information on informal and formal ADA-related discrimination grievance procedures is available from the NMSU EEO/ADA and Employee Relations Office. The EEO/ADA and Employee Relations Director can be reached at Room 15 in Hadley Hall, 646-3333 (Voice), 646-7802 (TDD).
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A description of DABCC's procedures for providing services to students with disabilities is located in the Student Services section of the Student Hand- book. Qualified students must request services to have them provided. Documentation should first be provided by submitting the "Petition for Services for Students with Disabilities" form which is available from the Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD) office, Room 117, DABCC, or call 527-7545 (Voice), 527-7647 (TTY). Services for Students with Disabilities has prepared a "Faculty Guide" describing different kinds of disabilities, methods of pro- viding reasonable accommodations to students in the classroom, and a list of resources.
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NMSU's Personnel and Benefits Policy Manual describes policies for employees with disabilities. A copy of the manual is located in the DABCC Library. It is the employee's responsibility to initiate and complete a "Petition for Accommodation" form which is available from the Employee Benefits (646-1741) offices. Doña Ana Branch Community College will then provide appropriate, reasonable accommodation upon request by a qualified employee with disabilities. Transfer and/or job restructuring may be considered on review of the request for accom- modation. The Personnel Office provides assistance with determining essential job functions and appropriateness of transfer or job restructuring. The Personnel Office is located in Room 17, Hadley Hall, 646-2420 (Voice), 646-7826 (TDD).
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The University Architect's office can provide guidance on specific questions about removing or precluding structural or architectural barriers. The ar- chitects' two volume "ADA Self-Evaluation", a detailed summary of NMSU's and DABCC's survey, is on reserve at the New Library reference desk. The Architect's Office and the Physical Plant Department, 646-2101, welcome any additional suggestions. The "Main Campus Accessibility Map", prepared by the Architect's Office, is available from SSD, Personnel, DABCC ADA Coordinator's and main campus EEOC/ADA Director's offices.
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Doña Ana Branch Community College programs include academic and social activities. Services include admissions, registration, federal grant projects and financial aid, library, bookstore, parking, eating places and more. Questions and comments about accessibility can be addressed directly to the program or service provider or to the DABCC ADA Coordinator at 527-7545.
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The purpose of the ADA is to open society to individuals with disabilities and promote access to the economic mainstream of the United States. A goal is to empower individuals with disabilities to become effective students, em- ployees, employers and citizens and provide opportunities to develop indepen- dence from financial or other subsidy programs to the greatest extent possible. It means availing ourselves, as a society, of the talents, skills, creativity, and productiveness of a large population of willing participants. As we work and learn together, surface differences of disabilities diminish and knowledge of the person becomes the focus of interaction.