The relevant offices provide the forms and information for making requests for approval of ESAs.
Non-faculty employees
Non-faculty employees who want to bring an ESA into their campus workspace must contact People and Culture’s ADA Specialist (StaffADAHelp@berkeley.edu) and submit the proper forms and information to seek approval.
Faculty
Faculty who want to bring an ESA into their campus workspace must notify their supervisor/manager, contact Be Well at Work - Disability Management (dms@berkeley.edu, 510-643-7921) and submit the proper forms and information to seek approval.
If a student asks a faculty or staff member to bring their ESA into an academic setting but the student does not have a Letter of Approval (LOA) with an ESA accommodation listed, the faculty or staff member should refer the student to the DSP for consultation.
Residents in UC Berkeley Housing
Residents who want to bring an ESA into campus residential housing must contact the Housing Disability Specialist (housingaccommodations@berkeley.edu, 510-642-8772) and submit the proper forms and information to seek approval.
Students in academic settings
ESAs are not recognized by the ADA and therefore are generally not allowed in classrooms or labs. However, if the presence of an ESA will allow a student to participate who otherwise would be unable to participate without the presence of the ESA, the Disabled Students’ Program (DSP) (dsp@berkeley.edu, 510-642-0518)will review the student’s request for the accommodation of an ESA as it would any other request for academic accommodation.
Students must apply for accommodations via the DSP and complete an intake appointment. In making the decision about whether to approve an ESA as an academic accommodation, Disability Specialists consider the following:
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Can the student participate equally without the animal? Have they done so historically? If yes, has anything changed?
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Does the animal’s presence mitigate symptomology directly related to ability to participate meaningfully in a course? If yes, how?
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Is there any other way to reasonably mitigate the student’s symptomology other than the presence of the animal?
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Is the animal under the control of their handler? Is the animal leashed or otherwise always contained?
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What is the species of the animal?
ESAs are allowed in the classroom and other academic settings only if accompanied by a Letter of Accommodation Letter (LOA) from DSP. As with any request for an accommodation, if a student asks a faculty or staff member to bring their ESA into an academic setting but the student does not have a LOA with an ESA accommodation listed, the faculty or staff member should refer the student to the DSP for consultation.
Point of Clarification - Service Dogs
Service Dogs do not require campus approval. The Housing Disability Specialist requires certain information, however, to acknowledge and note the dog in housing records, facilitate its integration into housing, and document who is to take possession of the dog if the user is unable to care for it in some circumstance.
It is recommended that Service Dog users inform their supervisor (or other relevant party) who should be contacted if the dog user is unable to care for it in some circumstance.
Withdrawal of Approval
ESA approvals may be withdrawn where the ESA user fails to ensure their ESA conforms to the requirements of the Dogs/Animals on Campus policy, or the ESA user fails to comply with the policy.