News
Higher Education Assistive Technology Lending Program
As the spring semester gets underway, a new program can help students with disabilities who attend Pennsylvania’s colleges to get the equipment they need. Students with disabilities can now borrow assistive technology (AT) including vision aids, assistive listening devices, note taking devices, “speech to text” software, and “talking” scientific calculators.
The Higher Education Assistive Technology Lending Program (HEAT), a program of the Institute on Disabilities at Temple University, is an enhancement to Pennsylvania’s Assistive Technology Lending Library, a short term AT device loan program that enables Pennsylvanians with disabilities the chance to “try before you buy”.
The HEAT program, funded by a grant from the PA Department of Education, enables students in post-secondary programs – colleges, universities and vocational training schools – to borrow the equipment they need for up to one semester (16 weeks).
Any part-time or full-time student who attends a post-secondary program in Pennsylvania and has a disability that requires AT to meet academic demands is eligible for the program. The student must be enrolled with the office that serves students with disabilities at their school and that office is responsible for providing continued access to the device should the student need it for more than one semester.
The HEAT program can help a student make a decision about which device will best serve their need or can serve as a resource for temporary replacement of a student’s device that needs repair.
A complete list of devices can be viewed on the Lending Library web page.
The Assistive Technology Resource Center at United Cerebral Palsy of Northeastern Pennsylvania can assist students in accessing the HEAT program and other AT services. The ATRC at UCP serves Bradford, Lackawanna, Pike, Susquehanna, Wayne and Wyoming Counties. Contact Linda Mesavage at 570-347-3357 (voice); 570-347-3117 (TTY); toll-free at 1-877-UCP-TECH; or email
View a Printer-Friendly Version
Go back to top