Instructors have the option to require that students recording their classes fill out, sign, and follow the guidelines in the above written agreement. Please click the blue link to open and download the form. Recording such meetings or conversations without the consent of all parties involved may constitute a violation of the UMBC Student Code of Conduct, and/or Maryland’s law requiring the consent of all parties to any communication prior to recording.
Contents of the Recording Agreement:
Background
Under Subpart E of Section 504 of the 1973 Rehabilitation Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act
(ADA), institutions of higher education must provide auxiliary aids and services to students with
documented disabilities. Institutions are prohibited from denying equal access to the institution’s
programs, courses and activities. For many reasons, some students are not able to take adequate
handwritten or typed notes during class. Audio recorders are a legitimate auxiliary aid to supplement
or substitute note taking for some students with disabilities. Thus, audio recordings are generally
considered a reasonable accommodation for students whose disability documentation calls for this
accommodation and have been approved for it by the Office of Student Disability Services.
Faculty have the option and right, (e.g., intellectual property rights), to require a student who uses
any such recording device to record faculty lectures/course discussions to sign an agreement setting
forth the terms under which the recording may be used and the length of time the recording may be
kept prior to disposal. However, permission to make recordings cannot be withheld if such
recordings are reasonably necessary to accommodate a student’s disability as defined by law.
In light of faculty rights and in accordance with a student’s approved disability accommodation,
students are required to notify their instructor(s) before using any recording devices to record class
lectures, discussions, etc. The resulting recordings nor any form of copies of transcripts of the
recordings may not be used for any other purpose than as a replacement for notes taken in class.
This agreement does not cover the recording of any individual meetings or conversations outside of
the classroom lectures or discussions where consent to record an individual should be obtained prior
to recording.
I, ________________ _, agree to the following terms for making recordings:
__ I understand that as a Section 504 accommodation I have been approved to produce audio
recordings of class lectures for my personal study use only, and no other purpose.
__ I understand that I am responsible for providing and operating the recording device.
__ I understand that I may not share the audio recordings with anyone else or profit financially
from these recordings or their content.
__ I understand that information contained in the audio-recorded lectures is protected under
federal and international copyright law, and may not be published, posted , or quoted without
the Instructor’s explicit written consent and without properly identifying and crediting the
lecturer. No rights to create derivative works are granted.
__ I understand that in some cases recording may be prohibited, during portions of classes, at the
discretion of the Instructor when the content involves personal discussion and/or self
disclosure. In these cases, the student will work with the instructor to obtain alternative
notetaking assistance to supplement these sections of the course, or note taking by all
students may be prohibited.
__ I agree to delete the recordings at the conclusion of the semester.
Violating this agreement may result in the withdrawal of the authorization to record in
the course, as well as to a review of this accommodation or similar services in the
future.
I hereby certify that I have read and agree to follow the terms of this audio recording
agreement in accordance with the spirit of the agreement.
- Course and Instructor’s Name
- Semester
- Student’s Printed Name
- Student’s ID
- Student’s Signature
- Date Signed
For questions, concerns, or challenges with implementation of this accommodation, please contact a disability specialist in the Office of Student Disability Services via phone at (410) 455-2459, via email at disAbility@umbc.edu, or in-person in the Math/Psychology Building Room 212.