[nabs-l] professors and disability services

Fri Dec 5 14:37:50 UTC 2008

Ashley,

thank you for your advice, and I agree with what you said about
freshmen year being a learning experience.  My english issue was
resolved, and I'm not going to fail the class after all. YAY ME!

anyway, my psych professor, from what i understand, likes to go by the
book when it come to disabilities services, and I've heard some
professors are anal about having students go through DSS.

However, i did not want to go through DSS at all, and if i had to, i
wanted it to be a bare minimum, which is what i told him in the first
email that i wrote him.

But since the past is the past, and i don't know if i can do anything
about it now: (this question goes for anyone), is there a way to get
around DSS when your professor says that you have to go through them
in order to get acomidations?

thank you, and, for the record, i checked my spelling. i was in a
hurry when last i wrote that email, so sorry to all the spelling fans.

On 12/4/08, Hope Paulos <hope.paulos at maine.edu> wrote:
> Serena.  I also agree with you.  On a number of occations I've
> had to ask for extensions and in all cases have received them.
> One time it had to do with the health of my guide  dog and I
> needed to concentrate on her at the time.  Another time it was
> because my computer stopped working.  Other times it's because I
> didn't have particular material needed (from disability services
> office) and the professor actually got it for me.  She read it
> aloud for me because it was Spanish and none of the disability
> services staff spoke it.  Professors can be very devoted to their
> students if they want to be.  This is what makes a good teacher
> or professor.  You need to really care about your students and
> what you teach.  Another thing professors need to understand is
> that life intrudes.  Yes, we're in school to learn, but life
> intrudes.  Things happen that prevents us from producing things
> at certain times, like  Sickness, family emmergencies, etc.  A
> professort understands this is a good professor.  A professor
> that doesn't is obviously jgoing through the motionsof teaching
> and  cares more about the actual performance and production of
> the student  than how much the student learns.  Just my opinion.
> Hope and Beignet
>
>> ----- Original Message -----
>>From: "Serena" <serenacucco at verizon.net
>>To: "National Association of Blind Students mailing list"
> <nabs-l at nfbnet.org
>>Date sent: Thu, 4 Dec 2008 20:05:11 -0500
>>Subject: Re: [nabs-l] professors and disability services
>
>>I don't exactly agree with Jamie about the prof.'s not giving
> extra time.
>>First, it can be hard to find readers to proofread papers for
> formatting.
>>Second, whether you're blind or sighted, you can ask for an
> extention in
>>college, maybe, even easier than in high school.  You're being
> sick has
>>nothing to do with blindness and, because of the barrier of
> needing someone
>>to proofread the paper, you deserve the extra time.  It's not
> like you were
>>asking for a month to finish the paper!  You had it done the day
> you said
>>you would.
>
>>Serena
>
>
>>----- Original Message -----
>>From: "Jamie Rhoads" <jrhoads284 at gmail.com
>>To: "National Association of Blind Students mailing list"
>><nabs-l at nfbnet.org
>>Sent: Tuesday, December 02, 2008 5:42 PM
>>Subject: Re: [nabs-l] professors and disability services
>
>
>>> Hey Valorie
>>>   First thing, wellcome to the list, and glad you have come
> seaking help.
>>>   Now to your issues.  As far as the DSS office not getting the
> papers to
>>> you on time.  What you probably should have done and should do
> next time
>>> is make sure to call them every couple days to see if the paper
> is ready.
>>> I noticed you said that they usually call you when something is
> ready.
>>> That is good, but keep in mind they probably have many other
> students to
>>> keep track of, and it isn't their responsibility to let you know
> when
>>> something is ready to be picked up even if they say they will.
> You need
>>> to remember you are not in high school anymore, and you need to
> take these
>>> kinds of issues into your own hands.  This will probably impress
> your DSS
>>> office as well if you put an active effort into getting your
> materials no
>>> matter what they may be.  As for not getting your outline, keep
> on your
>>> professor.  If need be, get someone from your DSS office to
> contact
>>> him/her.  Just remember that old saying *the squeeky wheel gets
> the
>>> greace*  It is hard sometimes to do these types of things, but
> while I was
>>> in school, it was one of the things I needed to learn in order
> to get
>>> things accomplished in an orderly fashion and when I wanted to.
>>>     Secondly about your english professor, this is just one of
> those
>>> things we as blind people need to accept and honestly we
> shouldn't be mad
>>> about it.  Yes, we have other opsticals to overcome and yes it
> seems very
>>> unfair, but in the end we want to be treated just like any other
> student
>>> would, so we need to accept and understand why sometimes
> professors won't
>>> give us that extra time or help.  We can't go around saying we
> want to be
>>> equally treated, but then want extra time on something such as
> when we are
>>> sick.  Now, if she were giving her sighted students extra time
> if they were
>>> sick, that's a different issue.  You need to step back and see
> this as the
>>> professor is probably only trying to treat you as the same as
> she does her
>>> sighted students.
>>>     One last thing, I don't see why you have a problem with
> using DSS.  I
>>> used them all the way through school and it made things much
> easier.  I
>>> got my books in formats that I needed, a letter to give to all
> my
>>> professors explaining my disability and the accommodations i
> would need,
>>> and many other things that helped school go a lot more smoothe.
> We want
>>> to be independent and that is fine, but if we need the help from
> the DSS
>>> office that is also fine because that is what they are there
> for.
>>> I hope this helps.  Please don't take this as i'm being mean.
> These are
>>> things that I either have had said to me at one point, or things
> I truly
>>> believe.  It isn't anything against you personally.
>
>>> Jamie
>
>>> ----- Original Message -----
>>> From: "Valerie Gibson" <valandkayla at gmail.com
>>> To: <nabs-l at nfbnet.org
>>> Sent: Tuesday, December 02, 2008 5:11 PM
>>> Subject: [nabs-l] professors and disability services
>
>
>>>> Hi,
>>>> my name's Valerie.  don't really post here much, but looking for
>>>> feeback on two situations i've got going on, which as you prob
> know:
>>>> situations before finals is never good.  anyway...
>
>>>> one issue, i probably should have worked out sooner, but here it
> is:
>>>> when first regestering for my first year of psych, yes i'm a
> freshmen
>>>> btw, I emailed my professor and asked hi if he could send me any
> notes
>>>> and things that he shows the clas via email.  He's one of those
>>>> teachers who teaches in a large auditorium, and projects an
> outline
>>>> for the class to cpy and fill out based on his lectures.  Well,
>>>> natureally i don't see the outline, so i asked this
> accomidation.
>
>>>> "No." was his responce.  he said that he needed to see a paper
> from
>>>> disability services (DSS), if he was going to provide that.
>
>>>> I didn't want to fight, and what harm could there be in going to
> DSS
>>>> to get the paper so long as i passsed the class, i thought.  so
> i did.
>
>>>> Well, the paper was a letter of accomidation where i had to
> write down
>>>> any accomidations i may need, and take each paper to my
> professors.
>>>> they would sign off on it, and i'd bring it back to DSS.  Well,
> after
>>>> filling out the paper DSS told me to ome back in a few days to
> pick up
>>>> the copies to give to my professors.  Normally, they'd call my
> cell
>>>> when i needed to come by, and it wasn't until three weeks later
> that i
>>>> finally got the paper, and even after my psych professor's
> signature,
>>>> i've still not gotten my outline.
>
>>>> Second issue:  my english professor was probably the most open
>>>> professor i've gotten this year.  she was open to working with
> me, even
>>>> when i didn't want to work with DSS, and emailed anything she
> gave the
>>>> class to me.
>
>>>> We have four projects that we have to write by the end of the
>>>> semester, and we can revise as many times as she wants.   My
> first
>>>> project got a good grade, but she pulled me aside on the second
>>>> project, and told me that it earned an "unsatisfactory", the
> lowest
>>>> grade, based on the formatting.  natureally i understood that i
> should
>>>> have worked on finding someone to check the formatting.  So i
> had to
>>>> revise.
>
>>>> The papers were due yesterday, and unfortuneately, i was sick
> over the
>>>> holidays, and wasn't in school.  I emailed my professor and
> asked her
>>>> if i could email her the papers that day, and give her the
> physical
>>>> papers the next day, to which she rudely told me that i could.
>
>>>> If anyone knows my household, i don't get that much support with
>>>> little things, like having a sighted person check to see if my
> lines
>>>> are double spaced and things, so the next day, i got back to
> campus, i
>>>> ran by the writing center just to ask them if my formating was
> okay,
>>>> before running to my english teacher's office and turning it
> in...and
>>>> now, she's "having to think on wether she will even take it".
>
>>>> and if she doesn't, i will fail.  and i'm already failing psych
> due to
>>>> the information provided above...any thought?
>
>>>> Val
>
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