Pregnant & Parenting Students

Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (“Title IX”), 20 U.S.C. §1681 et seq., is a Federal civil rights law that prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex—including pregnancy and parental status—in educational programs and activities.

According to guidance received from the Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights (“OCR”), under Title IX, colleges must not exclude a pregnant student from participating in any part of an educational program. York Technical College is committed to ensuring that pregnant students receive reasonable accommodations to ensure access to our educational programs. You do not have to drop out of your classes or academic program or change your educational plans due to your pregnancy. 

A student should advise the Counseling and Support Services (CASS) Office of a potential need for accommodations as soon as they know they are pregnant. It is extremely important that communication between the student, instructors, and the Student Accessibility Specialist begin as soon as possible. Each situation is unique and will be addressed individually.

Title IX accommodations DO NOT apply to Financial Aid. Financial Aid regulations do not give the College any discretion in terms of Financial Aid eligibility. Any impact on a student’s Financial Aid due to absences related to pregnancy or childbirth is dictated by Financial Aid regulations, not the college. Therefore, if the student believes the pregnancy may affect Financial Aid eligibility, the student should contact the Financial Aid Office for additional information as soon as possible. Certain educational programs may have strict certification requirements or requirements mandated by outside regulatory agencies. Therefore, in some programs, the application of Title IX accommodations may be limited.

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Requesting Pregnancy Accommodations

In order to receive accommodations, a student who is pregnant or has recently given birth must complete the Title IX Pregnant and Child Birth Support /Accommodations Request Form. The student should complete the form as soon as the student knows that they are pregnant. Once submitted, the completed form will automatically be routed to the College’s student accessibility specialist. The student accessibility specialist will then meet with the student to discuss request and will relay information to the student’s instructor(s).

Speaking with your instructor is not the same as setting up accommodations with the student accessibility specialist. Once the student accessibility specialist has notified your instructor(s), ongoing communication between student and instructor is critical.

After the student has returned from a pregnancy-related absence, the instructor(s) shall communicate to the student all coursework required to be completed, a preferred method for making up this work, and a time frame for work to be completed. Regular communication from the student is critical to ensure that appropriate faculty and staff are aware of her needs so that appropriate accommodations can be made.

If the student wishes a grade of “Incomplete” to be recorded for a course, they must complete any process and documentation that is required by the academic program and instructor. The time to complete course work must be consistent with the College Academic Policy related to an “Incomplete” in place at the time the request is made.

See our Pregnancy & Childbirth Support/Accommodations: Student Instructions & Information to learn more about the steps you need to take to access support.

Refunds for classes are NOT part of Title IX accommodations.