Tominey named first director for disability services

Eve Tominey

Eve Tominey Photo: Denise Applewhite

Eve Tominey has been named to the newly created post of director for disability services in the Office of the Provost.

Tominey has taught and worked in student support services roles at several institutions, including Cornell University and the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey.

The position was created upon recommendation of the Priorities Committee of the Council of the Princeton University Community to more effectively meet the needs of faculty, staff, students and visitors with disabilities. In particular, the position was established to respond to the growth in the population of students with special needs -- especially those with learning disabilities -- that is occurring not only at Princeton but at universities nationwide.

The responsibility for disability services at Princeton is spread among several offices, including the dean of undergraduate students, the dean of the college, the dean of the Graduate School, the dean of the faculty and human resources. Tominey is charged with developing a strategic and fiscal plan for coordinating these services and accommodations and with ensuring compliance with federal and state laws.

"Anticipating both a larger undergraduate student body and, according to national trends, an expected increase in the number of students with disabilities who are preparing to attend college, it is increasingly essential that Princeton has adequate resources and the expertise to manage and monitor the increasingly complex interactive approach required for determining reasonable accommodations," said Terri Harris Reed, vice provost for institutional equity and diversity, to whom Tominey reports.

"Eve's references all spoke to her knowledge of the issues and dedication to her work and to the love and respect that students and colleagues alike felt toward her," she continued. "Fruitful relationships are at the heart of any disabilities services initiative, and I am confident that Eve will serve our community well in this regard."

Among Tominey's responsibilities will be handling student requests for accommodations, coordinating the evaluation of diagnostic tests or professional prescriptions, and developing notification and monitoring processes. She also is expected to expand learning disability support services with existing academic support units. In addition, she will provide assistance for other offices involved in determining employee eligibility for services, and she will staff a disability advisory board.

From 2000 to 2005, Tominey served in several capacities at Cornell University. She was a lecturer in the Center for Learning and Teaching, where she taught a critical thinking course to undergraduates and presented numerous workshops on learning strategies to students, faculty and staff. She also served as a faculty academic adviser to student-athletes and had a faculty appointment as the Americans With Disabilities Act training coordinator for the Program on Employment and Disabilities in the School of Industrial Labor Relations.

For the past year, Tominey was a lecturer and counselor in the Center for Student Academic Resources at UMDNJ. She also has taught undergraduate and graduate courses on learning disabilities at Roosevelt University and Northeastern Illinois University.

A graduate of Rutgers University, Tominey holds a master's degree from Marymount University in Arlington, Va. She has completed work toward a Ph.D. at the University of Texas-Austin, where she also served as a student affairs administrator coordinating academic accommodations for students with disabilities.