LIT'S Foster Care Liaison

• Coordinator of Special Populations
  Eagles Nest 129
    (409) 247-0046
    specialpopulations@lit.edu

• Foster Care Transition Toolkit (published by US Department of Education)
  Download

• Foster youth currently or formerly under the conservatorship of the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) and those adopted from DFPS to pursue a higher education in Texas by providing eligible students free tuition at state-supported colleges or universities. To find out whether you are eligible for this tuition exemption, contact the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services and request Form 1810: DFPS Verification of the State College Tuition and Fee Waiver. For further information please click here

• If you need help finding your Adoption Waiver, please click this link: dfps.texas.gov/Child_Protection/Adoption

Catholic Charities of Southeast Texas

•   (409) 924-4400
•   (855) 924-4400
• catholiccharitiesbmt.org

Women's Advocacy Project

•   (800) 777-3247

SMORE - Single Moms-Overjoyed, Rejuvenated, Empowered!

•   (409) 718-0285
  Gail Cawley Showalter

Texas Childcare Solutions

• texaschildcaresolutions.org/financial-assistance-for-child-care/

Under Section 51.982 of the Texas Education Code, Title 3. Higher Education, Subtitle A. Higher Education in General, Chapter 51. Provisions Generally Applicable to Higher Education, Subchapter Z. Miscellaneous Provisions, LIT will "provide reasonable accommodations to a pregnant student, including accommodations that:

• would be provided to a student with a temporary medical condition; or
• are related to the health and safety of the student and the student's unborn child, such as allowing the student to maintain a safe distance from substances, areas, and activities known to be hazardous to pregnant women or unborn children."

Lamar Institute of Technology is committed to supporting you through your pregnancy and parenting. Here's what you need to know:

• Accommodations - If you have a pregnancy-related impairment that is considered a disability under The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) you are entitled to reasonable support measures.
• These support measures may include, but not limited to:
  • More frequent restroom breaks
  • Seating closer to the door
  • Larger Desk
  • Provide a stool
• Please contact our Coordinator of Special Populations for further questions on accommodations.
  •   855 E. Lavaca, Beaumont, TX 77710, Eagles Nest 129
      (409) 247-0046
      specialpopulations@lit.edu
• Leave & Absences - Students must be allowed to take time off of school for pregnancy, childbirth, miscarriage, abortion and/or recovery for as long as their doctor says is medically necessary. That could mean a few absences for necessary medical appointments, or a longer leave of absence for a high-risk pregnancy or childbirth. This rule applies even if taking medically necessary leave would require an absence for longer than the school's leave policy ordinarily allows. Students cannot be penalized for taking leave and must be able to return to school in the same status they held before taking leave.
• Make Up Work - Professors may require you to complete missed assignments or other work to make up for missed participation, but the make-up work should be comparable with the work given to other students, not extra. When setting timelines for make-up or missed work, professors need to treat leave as leave; for example, assignment deadlines should not be the day you return. This means at least the same amount of time as other students, even beyond the semester schedule if necessary.
• Participation Grades/Credits - If a teacher's grading is based in part on class attendance or participation, the student should be allowed to earn the credits she missed so that she can be reinstated to the status she had before the leave.
• Doctor's Note - If your professor requires other students who have “excused” absences to provide a doctor's note, they can ask you to provide one as well. Be sure your doctor clearly states that the absence is/was medically necessary.
• Financial Aid - Taking leave may have an impact on your student loans, depending on your registration status during your time off. Schools cannot terminate or reduce merit or need-based scholarships because of pregnancy.
  
  Be sure to meet with the financial aid office before taking any extended absence and ask about your financial aid status for details about your particular situation.
  •   855 E. Lavaca, Beaumont, TX 77710, Eagles Nest
      (409) 880-2137
      finaidoffice@lit.edu
• Admissions - Schools can't require a pregnant student to produce a doctor's note in order to stay in school or participate in activities, unless the same requirement to obtain a doctor's note applies to all students being treated by a doctor. Schools cannot presume that a pregnant student is unable to attend school or participate in school activities.
  
  Employees, students, or associated third parties cannot discourage your participation in the school's programs.
• Breastfeeding - Lamar Institute of Technology is pleased to provide a Lactation Room in the Eagle's Nest to meet the needs of parents with babies. Lactation Rooms provide a private place to nurse, pump, bottle feed, and change a diaper.
  
  If your class is scheduled when you need to nurse or pump, your absence should be excused, and you should not be penalized for your time away. This means your grade cannot be lowered due to poor attendance, you must be given the ability to make up any work missed, and you must be able to get the information you missed as well. You may need to provide a doctor's note stating that it is medically necessary for you to pump on a certain schedule.
• Report Discrimination - If you've experienced any discrimination due to pregnancy or parenting, you're encouraged to submit a report regardless of whether or not you would like to follow through with the grievance process. Be sure to contact the Title IX Coordinator to report any discrimination.
  •   855 E. Lavaca, Beaumont, TX 77710, Eagles Nest Room 136
      (409) 247-4838
      titleix@lit.edu

Disabled student-veterans or members of the U.S. military are encouraged to meet with the Special Populations Coordinator as soon as he/she feels there is a need.

Accommodations can include enhancing the student's feeling of comfort in a classroom or testing environment by allowing the student to have preferential seating in the back of a room or near an exit door or testing distraction free environment.

Documentation of a disability might be available in a variety of formats and from various sources, including records from the Veterans Administration (VA) physician or medical personnel or a Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor.

Applications for City of Beaumont Bus Passes are available every semester to students who have no transportation. You may pick up an application in the Student Services Office. There is no deadline to apply for a pass but one must be renewed via the Student Services Department each month.

In order to Help enable students who are blind or deaf to attend public colleges or universities in the state of Texas, Texas residents with a vision-related disability (e.g., blindness, significant visual impairment) are determined eligible by Vocational Rehabilitation Services Offices through the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC).

Texas residents with a hearing disability who meet certain criteria are determined eligible by Texas Health and Human Services (HHS).

For More information on both benefits please click here.

ESL (English as a Second Language) classes are provided free of charge to students of all proficiency levels by Region 5 Education Service Center Adult Education and Literacy. For more information, please send an email to region5eslacademy@gmail.com.