Students with documented disabilities can request housing accommodations via the Disability Accommodation Request Form for CIA Housing. The documentation process is different than when academic accommodations are requested. The two most common housing accommodations requested as Emotional Support Animals (ESAs) and a single bedroom.

Emotional Support Animals provide necessary emotional support to a student with a mental or psychiatric disability that alleviates one or more identified symptoms of an student's disability so that a student may have full participation in and equal access to CIA's housing.

The process to request an ESA is to:

• Review and complete the attached ESA Policy and Agreement.
• Submit veterinarian records including a letter of good health/visit summary indicating good health and vaccine records.
• Submit documentation via the attached ESA Information Request Form or submit a letter from your licensed health care provider on official letterhead that includes all of the following: 
  • A clear and specific diagnosis.
  • Explanation of the current manifestations or functional limitations of the disability.
  • Indication of an ongoing relationship between the provider and the student (not a single appointment).
  • Recommendation for an ESA, typically includes the current treatment plan.
  • Explanation of what symptoms an ESA will address and indicate how the ESA will address your symptoms.
  • Credentials of the licensed professional providing the diagnosis (no personal relationship with the individual being evaluated).

Once all documents are submitted, they are reviewed. If your request is approved, then we will let Dr. Smith, Director of Student Life & Housing, know. He will contact your roommates to make sure they are okay to live with an ESA. After your roommates confirm to Dr. Smith that they are okay with an ESA, Dr. Smith will notify you that it is okay to bring the ESA to your suite. The process to review documents and conduct the roommate check can take time. You should not plan to bring the ESA to your suite the same day that documents are submitted.

Please note: The letter of good health and vaccine records are required annually and must be submitted before you return to campus with your ESA. 

While CIA does not have any single suites available, students with documented disabilities, can request a single bedroom as an accommodation. This means students would have roommates within the suite but would have a bedroom to themselves.

Here is the process to request a single bedroom:

• Register with Disability Services via the Intake Form.
• Submit a letter from your licensed health care provider on official letterhead and includes your diagnosis, symptoms impacting you, recommendation for a single bedroom, and indicate how the accommodations will address your symptoms.

Once all documents are submitted, they are reviewed. If your request is approved, then we will let Dr. Smith, Director of Student Life & Housing, know. It is best to request this as early as possible. If all of the room placements are made, it is possible that a single bedroom may not be available.