Disability Services

The College of William and Mary will reasonably accommodate persons with disabilities throughout the Commencement Weekend.  We just need to know in advance what your needs are in order to provide for you as best we can. Please complete the disability accommodations request form, which is included in the Commencement booklet mailed to families in the spring, and return it by the date indicated. Call our office at 757-221-1236 if you have questions.

Accommodations at the Main Ceremony

All main entrances to William and Mary Hall are located on the concourse level, which means that a substantial number of steps must be negotiated in order to access the doors.  Once inside the building, there can also be a number of steps to reach general seating.  If you or someone in your party has limited mobility, we recommend that you take advantage of the following accommodations:

• Disability Vehicle Access Pass

  Guests who have difficulty with steps may be dropped off at the handicapped ramp at the back of William and Mary Hall.  The road around the Hall (Brooks Street) is made one-way on Commencement Sunday in order to facilitate this.  Drivers need a College-issued Disability Vehicle Access Pass to access this road. Use the disability accommodations request form to request this pass.  Once inside the arena, guests will be directed to the appropriate seating areas. Drivers and other members of the party should park in the William and Mary Hall lot and then enter through the main entrances and sit in general seating.  The College-issued Vehicle Access Pass does not allow you to park in handicapped spaces.

• Handicapped Parking

  Only vehicles with state-issued handicapped license plates or placards may park in handicapped parking spaces. These spaces are located in various parking lots on campus and are available on a first-come first-served basis.  Refer to the handicapped parking map (PDF) to locate areas with accessible parking. Handicapped parking is limited to the spaces designated as such. A number of spaces on Brooks Street have been designated as handicapped parking.  To access Brooks Street, vehicles must display a state-issued handicapped tag or a Disability Vehicle Access Pass, issued by the College (see the paragraph above).  The College-issued Vehicle Access Pass allows access to Brooks Street only for the purpose of dropping guests off at the ramp entrance.  Cars must have a state-issued handicapped plate/tag in order to park in handicapped spaces on Brooks Street.

• Wheelchair & Limited Mobility Seating
  
  

  Wheelchair section: Floor seating is available for those who require the use of a wheelchair. Disability seating tickets are required for this section.  One additional person may accompany a guest in a wheelchair and sit with him/her in this section.  All others in the party should use the main entrances to the Hall and sit in general seating.  Students may request disability seating tickets as part of their regular allotment of Commencement tickets.  Information about disability seating tickets is included in the ticket distribution information sent to all degree candidates in the spring. Please note that the College is unable to provide wheelchairs.
  
  Limited Mobility (non-wheelchair) seating: Guests who use the back ramp to access the Hall will be directed to lower-level seating.  Please note that this section requires the negotiation of approximately 3-10 small steps. No special tickets are required for this section.

• American Sign Language (ASL) Interpretation

  Deaf and hard-of-hearing guests who require ASL interpretation are invited to sit in the ASL seating section. The ramp entrance at the back of William and Mary Hall offers the easiest access to this seating area.  An usher at the ramp entrance can direct guests to the appropriate section.  We ask that other members of your party use the main entrances to the building and sit in the general seating areas so that we may reserve the ASL section for those who need this consideration.  ASL interpretation is also available at the departmental ceremonies upon request.