Pregnant Students and Students Parenting Newborns

Compliance with New Jersey Law

This policy addresses the requirements of NJSA 18A:3B-74 et seq. to provide certain accommodations for students who are pregnant or post-partum, as well as to allow leaves of absence for students who are parents of newborns. The law ensures equal rights and opportunities for pregnant students.

Accommodations

The reasonable accommodations provided to pregnant and post-partum students shall be no less than those provided to students with temporary medical conditions. Students needing assistance may request temporary accommodations and are required to follow Thomas Edison State University’s procedures for review and approval for accommodations found on the University’s Disability Support Services webpage.

A pregnant or post-partum student in good standing is permitted to select either of the two following options:

• Withdraw from her course(s) AND request a no-cost Catalog Year Extension for up to one year in length. Students who return to the University immediately following a one-year Catalog Year Extension or at any time during their Catalog Year Extension, shall remain in their initial catalog year. Students electing a Catalog Year Extension must resolve courses in their current term by either completing the course(s) or withdrawing from the course(s). Students electing to withdraw from a course shall be subject to all University withdrawal and refund policies. It is crucial that students refer to the University’s Course Withdrawals and Refunds webpage to ensure they understand implications for withdrawing.
• A pregnant or post-partum student in good standing is permitted to request and be approved for up to two course extensions at no cost. (Students opting for this accommodation will not be excused from completing Discussion Forums in online courses during the original term.)

A student in good standing, who is not the birth parent, but has received notification of the birth or placement of their child is permitted the following:

• A no-cost Catalog Year Extension up to one year in length. Students who return to the University immediately following a Catalog Year Extension or at any time during their Catalog Year Extension, shall remain in their initial catalog year. Students electing a Catalog Year Extension must resolve courses in their current term by either completing the course(s) or withdrawing from the course(s). Students electing to withdraw from a course shall be subject to all University withdrawal and refund policies. It is crucial that students refer to the University’s Course Withdrawals and Refunds information to ensure they understand implications for withdrawing.

Communication and Documentation

All requested accommodations must be done under the guidance of the University’s Center for Disability Services and in accordance with the University’s ADA approval procedure, which can be found on the University’s Disability Support Services webpage. Students requesting accommodations are encouraged to contact the Center for Disability Services and provide required documentation (Disclosure of Disability and Verification of Disability as early as possible, so that necessary arrangements can take place. If the original documentation is incomplete or inadequate to determine the extent of the disability, the University’s Center for Disability Support Services has the discretion to require additional documentation.

Complaints

A discrimination complaint concerning pregnancy, or any complaint about the implementation of this Policy, should be submitted to the Title IX Coordinator for the University:

Heather Brooks
hbrooks@tesu.edu
(609) 984-1114, ext. 4140