Landmark College

Landmark College's comprehensive support system is designed and customized for students who learn differently, including students with learning disabilities (such as dyslexia), ADHD, and ASD.

All Landmark College students have access to the comprehensive, LD-focused services of the Centers for Academic Support. These include the Drake Center for Academic Support (DCAS)--providing writing, reading, and study skills support--as well as individual support, provided by LC faculty, for business, computer science, science, and math.

LC also provides Counseling and Health services, a Residential Life support system, academic advising, coaching, a pet therapy program, educational technology, and social pragmatics services for students with ASD. 


In addition to extended time, students benefit from limited distractions, assistive technology, alternative format textbooks and course materials, note-taking support, alternative testing, and other skills and strategies. These options are integrated into the curriculum for all students, without requiring students to go through a process to access them.

To help students understand where they are and where they’d like to be, both academically and as individuals, LC offers targeted strategies and individualized personal development through its academic advising model, helping students to become their own advocates.

Traditional colleges with add-on
learning disability services

Traditional colleges have a disability support office that provides Americans with Disabilities Act accommodations to students. Additional support services are not universally available at all colleges, and some are fee-based.

Data suggest that only 35% of students who receive special education services in high school actually access disability services in college. Use of and access to disability services is entirely up to the student. While most schools provide tutors for specific courses, it is usually up to the student to seek them out, as well as to locate additional tutors outside of the institutional system for support in non-academic areas. Support services may be provided at a location that is not central to classrooms and residence halls, and may be open for limited hours.

Counseling and mental health services are open to all students. Specific programs designed for mental health of students with LD are typically not part of the counseling center services at these institutions. 

Disability services offices are responsible for approving requested accommodations by students. This can be an extensive process and does not always result in the student receiving what he/she requested, or receiving it in a timely manner.

While other colleges provide opportunities for students to develop self-awareness and self-advocacy skills, it is often more of an implicit rather than an explicit process that is actively encouraged.

At Landmark College, students are introduced to a system of low-tech, mid-tech, and high-tech tools and strategies to help them create an individualized learning path and recognize their strengths as a learner. LC is constantly working to employ the next generation of technology tools and strategies to aid students’ learning. 

LC offers Educational Technology support free of charge. Students are exposed to the technologies and resources available, test these options, discern which tools and/or strategies are most effective for their learning style, and get the support needed to ensure they are using their tools effectively. 

For students with learning disabilities, ADHD, or ASD, as well as students who need language skills support, Landmark College provides technology and support for tools and strategies such as text readers, accessible digital text, graphic organizers, time management tools, and speech-to-text software.

Traditional colleges with add-on
learning disability services

At traditional colleges, assistive technology is often neither readily available to students nor integrated into the classroom experience.

Students typically must contact their school’s disability office to inquire about the technology available. Extra costs and fees can come from requesting assistive technology, depending on the college or university. In many cases, the institution doesn’t have the resources to help students acquire the technology they need, and students are responsible for securing such technology themselves. Often, it is several weeks into a semester before the technology is available to the student.

Classroom experiences vary depending on the availability of technological resources and support at traditional schools, making them less customizable than an LD-focused college. These resources may or may not be available, but could include options such as text readers, graphic organizers, time management tools, and/or speech-to-text software.

Landmark College offers students support that begins in the application process and continues beyond graduation. LC’s Office of Transfer, Career, and Internship Services aids students on their journeys beyond Landmark College, helping with résumés, interview preparation, and transfer applications. They also work with students who are looking for summer internships and paid credit opportunities during the academic year. 

By teaching students self-advocacy skills, LC prepares students to enter the workforce or another academic program with the confidence, skills, and self-awareness they’ll need to succeed.

Traditional colleges with add-on
learning disability services

Traditional colleges often offer a wide network for alumni connections, as well as services such as career advising and professional development, but it is rare for a conventional school to offer advice focused on the LD student population. 

Support services that specialize in understanding learning differences are almost non-existent in career services offices.

i LC’s financial aid options include

• Medical tax deduction for educational expenses
• An increasing number of scholarships available to LC students
• Financial aid office and advisors with a mandate for customer service and personal attention
• Scholarships and grants
• Financial aid strategies and considerations
• Net price calculator
• Veterans' benefits

Traditional colleges with add-on
learning disability services

The financial aid offerings at traditional colleges include:

• Financial aid office and advisors
• Scholarships and grants
• Financial aid processes that are often generic and prescriptive
• Net price calculator
• Veterans' benefits

The Landmark College Institute for Research and Training (LCIRT) works to discover innovative strategies and practices to improve teaching and learning in the field of LD. LCIRT constantly develops student-centered best practices in learning disability, ADHD, and ASD education. The robust partnership that LCIRT has with Landmark College’s faculty and staff allows LC to implement evidence-based practices in the classroom. 

LCIRT’s funding from the National Science Foundation allows students to work alongside professors and receive course credit or compensation for their work in LCIRT’s laboratories. Students receive firsthand experience transforming an idea into a testable hypothesis during their time working with LCIRT. 

Landmark College also holds webinars and learning sessions for educators in and outside of LC who work with students with LDs, in order to share findings for teaching executive functioning strategies in the classroom and outside of the learning environment.

Traditional colleges with add-on
learning disability services

Other colleges and universities do not have a fully-embedded research enterprise based solely on LD teaching and learning, and tightly integrated into the on-campus student and instructor experience.

LC actively promotes an effective relationship between families and the College community. Our Ask a Parent program connects families of prospective students with parents of current or former students who can provide answers and share common experiences.

LC fosters an environment of open communication among families, the College, and students.

A main focus through Family Orientation and Family Weekend (and LC’s family services in general) is to help parents understand the support, needs, and developmental milestones of successful students in college (vs. high school).

Prospective families can read student stories, schedule a campus visit, and attend admissions counselor advising sessions.

Through Parent Services, families can access resources such as:

• Updates from the Office of Student Affairs
• A detailed Guide for Landmark College Families
• Contact information so that current and prospective families can get their questions answered directly by email or phone
• FAQs about academics, finances, and student life

Traditional colleges with add-on
learning disability services

Parents and students can contact school Admissions (or related) Offices to reach administrative offices and departments with their questions. 

While these answers may be able to fit the general population of students, they may not be enough to address the concerns of parents of students with LD

Parents can refer to resources such as:

• Student Profiles
• Scheduled Visits
• Admissions Counselor Advising Sessions
• FAQ’s

Like most institutions, Landmark College understands that the college experience is shaped by more than just academics. That’s why LC offers a number of engaging activities on and off campus to help build the complete student experience. 

LC offers a residential experience providing small communities in traditional residential halls as well as suites and apartments. Students are supported by easily accessible professional and student mentors (Resident Directors and Resident Assistants).

LC students engage in intramural and recreational athletic teams, extracurricular clubs, and a wide variety of leadership opportunities, including student government, campus employment, and positions as orientation leaders or resident assistants.

Students enjoy movies, musicians, dances, comedians, trips to nearby cities, etc. In addition to on-campus offerings, the local area is rich in the arts.

LC’s southeastern Vermont location provides students with the opportunity to hike, run, bike, rock climb, swim, and of course, ski and snowboard just minutes away from campus. LC is a short drive from Brattleboro, Burlington, Boston, and New York City.

LC’s shuttle service allows students to get around the local area, to and from the airport, and to areas outside the campus. The service runs six days a week throughout the school year and the summer.

Traditional colleges with add-on
learning disability services

Student life at traditional colleges and universities is determined by the school’s mission statement, location, and size.

Traditional schools may offer intramural, recreational, and varsity athletic teams; extracurricular clubs; Greek Life; and leadership positions in school publications, community service, and student government. 

Most colleges have school-sponsored transportation services and/or public transportation.

Access to major cities and towns is dependent on the school’s location.

LC’s average net price is $43,674. The total annual cost for full-time students, including tuition, room, board, and all LD educational services, is $66,010. LC offers a nearly 1:6 faculty-staff to student ratio (unparalleled in higher education).

There are no hidden fees, and no add-on costs for extra services. All of LC’s services are available to all students for the same cost.

Traditional colleges with add-on
learning disability services

In-state public college averages $31,960. The average for a private college stands at $47,831 before room and board. Add-on services to assist students with LD can be as high as $7,400. The average cost of room and board ranges from $10,138 at four-year public colleges and universities to $11,516 at private institutions.

The all-inclusive cost at an in-state public institution for a student with LD could be as high as $41,498, while the average total cost at a private college could be as much as $66,747.