About Us

Address

Office of Accessible Education
563 Salvatierra Walk
Stanford, CA 94305

Phone: 650-723-1066
oae-getinfo@stanford.edu
Campus Map

Open Hours: Monday through Friday, 9am - 5pm

Office of Accessible Education

The Office of Accessible Education (OAE) is the campus office designated to work with Stanford students with disabilities, at both the undergraduate and graduate levels (including the professional schools). The OAE provides a wide array of support services, accommodations, and programs to remove barriers to full participation in the life of the University.

In reaching its determinations about appropriate accommodations, the OAE considers factors such as the documentation from professionals specializing in the area of the student’s diagnosed disability, the student’s functional limitations, and the student’s input and accommodation history in regard to particular needs and limitations. The OAE then works with the student and relevant faculty and staff through an interactive process designed to achieve an accommodation that meets the needs of all parties.

The Schwab Learning Center

Through a generous endowment from Charles and Helen Schwab, the Schwab Learning Center (SLC) at Stanford University opened its doors to academically gifted students with Learning Disabilities and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) during the 2001-2002 academic year.  From its inception, the SLC was designed to be a supportive learning environment offering comprehensive, innovative programs and services enabling students to not only succeed but also to flourish at the University. The goal of the program is to provide services that in many cases go above and beyond those required by law.

Mr. Schwab received both his undergraduate degree and MBA at Stanford before going on to found the nation’s first and largest discount brokerage firm. Growing up in the Sacramento Valley, Mr. Schwab was unaware that he is dyslexic (a language-related learning disability that makes reading difficult).  He relied on Classic Comic Books to struggle through reading assignments in elementary school.  College courses in English and French were extremely challenging but Mr. Schwab excelled in math, science, economics and athletics. It was only as an adult that Mr. Schwab learned that he is dyslexic and finally understood the reason for his reading and writing difficulties.

Current and future generations of Stanford students who have learning and/or attention disorders are fortunate to benefit directly from Mr. Schwab’s acknowledgement publicly of his personal experience with dyslexia along with his affiliation with the University.  The creation of the Schwab Learning Center, along with a need-based scholarship program, is an enduring gift to ensure that talented students with learning differences enjoy a successful, rewarding educational experience at Stanford.