Who is eligible to audio record as accommodation?

• Under federal law (ADA and Section 504), students with a documented disability who require an audio recording as an auxiliary aid for effective communication and learning are eligible to use this accommodation.
• Eligibility is determined on an individual basis by disability services and this is documented on the Accommodation Letter shared with faculty.

This accommodation serves as an auxiliary aid supporting student's right to access the full educational content and participate equally in the learning process.

Audio Recording

The student may use an audio recorder (laptop or phone) for lectures, labs, or studios. (Recorded material will be used only for successful course completion and not for duplication and distribution; sharing materials without consent may violate the Student Code of Conduct.)

• Students understand that audio-recording of class sessions is for no other use than for their personal studies and note-taking ONLY.
• Students agree that these recorded class sessions must not be distributed to or shared with others, including other students, by any current or available method.
• Students are aware that the information contained in the recordings of classes may be protected under copyright and intellectual property laws.
• Students agree that these recordings must not be copied, posted, distributed, published, or quoted in whole or part without the instructor’s and/or classmates’ written consent and without properly identifying and crediting the speaker.
• Students will consider turning off the recording device when highly sensitive or personal material is being discussed or when requested to do so by an instructor or a classmate during such a class session.
• Students understand that they can continue to record if they believe it is necessary for study purposes.

NOTE-TAKING ASSISTANCE

The student will be given access to the software https://messengerpigeon.habitatlearn.com/. This software allows the student to upload audio recordings of the class, to be transcribed into notes sent directly to the student.

Why would a student need to audio record and/or receive note-taking assistance?

• Note-Taking Assistance: Some students may be dyslexic, have visual impairments, or physical limitations challenging their ability to take comprehensive notes in real-time.
• Processing Information: Some students may process spoken information more slowly than written or visual materials. Recordings allow students to return to the information at another time to clarify or reinforce material without delaying the lecture by asking instructors to repeat information.

What is Messenger Pigeon and how does it work?

CCA uses a 3rd Party service, Messenger Pigeon, specializing in meeting our student's need in a timely manner. Students may use their phone, laptop or other recording device to upload the lecture's audio.

The student receives a voice-to-text transcription and then an option to request notes from a professional, remote note-taker. Most students prefer to use the application as it offers bookmarks and other features supporting their ability to access the information.

How is this data stored/used by the student and then Messenger Pigeon? How long do these recordings exist?

Messenger Pigeon does not use any lecture recordings to train its AI models. Instead, its AI is trained solely on publicly available, curated higher-education content. Lecture recordings are used only to provide services such as note taking, as detailed in our privacy policy.

Recordings are stored securely on US-based AWS servers that meet ISO standards. They are accessible only to the student for playback. Note-takers are granted temporary access through the app solely for the purpose of completing their notes; once notes are returned to the student, that access is revoked.

Recordings are retained only as long as necessary to support the course and the student’s study needs.

Note: Messenger Pigeon is actively developing new features—including AI-generated voice playback (which replaces the original recording to address faculty concerns about long-term storage of their voice) and enhanced tools for organizing or deleting recordings—to provide greater control and flexibility for both administrators and students.

For further details, please refer to the Messenger Pigeon privacy policy or contact access@cca.edu for more information.

How would a faculty member approach a situation where a recording would be inappropriate?

In general, we only advise faculty to ask students to end their recording if they would also ask other students to stop taking handwritten notes.

Here is an example of when this may be appropriate:

• During a course in which students and faculty are discussing personal anecdotes or sensitive information to expand the perspective of other students on a topic, the instructor points out that the discussion will not be something that student's are quizzed on, and that there is no need to take notes on the discussion so students are asked to put their pencils down and end audio recording.

The key to this is that the information is not intended for formal assessment or widespread distribution.

However, it is important for faculty to consider how some students may not be able to fully access the information discussed without this auxiliary aid, so offering a written follow-up of key takeaways from the discussion would be a best practice.

As always, please consult access@cca.edu for support in improving accessibility in your course.

What happens if a student misuses a recording?

This would be a policy violation of the Student Code of Conduct. Any use of the recording beyond personal academic study—such as sharing, posting online, or distributing to peers without consent—is a violation of institutional policy and the Student Code of Conduct. Faculty or other affected parties should report suspected misuse via CCA CARES so that the matter can be addressed promptly.

The consequences would follow the Code of Conduct Process:

1. Investigation: Misuse will be investigated by the Dean of Students office.
2. Sanctions: Depending on the severity and circumstances, sanctions can range from a warning to disciplinary action.
3. Intellectual Property Concerns: Unauthorized use that infringes on faculty intellectual property rights may lead to further legal consequences for a student.

Students without the explicit approval on their accommodation letter are not covered by this policy. If a student is experiencing barriers to their learning that they believe necessitates their need for this accommodation, they should meet with disability services.