[nabs-l] public versus private universities

Thu Jan 16 04:32:57 UTC 2014

Hi Sophie,

I agree with what has been said before.  I went to a private liberal
arts college for my undergrad, and I had to fight to get Braille music
and some other things I needed.  The budget just wasn't there.  They
also weren't willing to support me when I was having trouble in my
senior year with some professors refusing to accomidate and type
casting me because of my blindness.  It's a long story, but not
receiving support them at the time was difficult for me.

On the flip side, I built a very close relationship with the
university's assistive tech person.  She made it her mission to be my
advocate, textbook scanner, and professor go to person for questions
about accomidations.  She went above and beyond for me because she
cared, and the office was small enough that we could interact on a
nearly daily basis.  It is a wonderful thing to build close
relationships with people in positions like this, and that is
definitely more possible at a smaller school.

I currently attend a large university(Mizzou anyone?).  The DS office
is much larger, and their process is much more streamlined.  This is
different, somewhat obnoxious at times, but I haven't found the people
anything less than friendly and supportive.  They have not faught me
when I asked for course work in Braille and have even created things
in Braille without me even asking twice.  They let me direct my
accomidations, and cost doesn't seem to be a factor.  It helps that
they are huuuuuuuge advocates of Braille.

But things are busier, and the process is more strict.  I don't mind
these things, but if you are looking for a place where you can drop in
and visit when you need something, a public university may not be it.

Sorry for the novel.  If you have any more questions, feel free to
ask.  I don't know everything though, and I agree that you should not
choose a school based on its disability services.  You never know.
The office may seem small and poor, but the people may be excited
about helping you get the accomidations you need.  Sometimes it takes
that one supportive person to help you get what you need and influence
the rest.  I would encourage you to visit schools, get the vibes from
the visits, and make your decisions from there.

On 1/15/14, Arielle Silverman <arielle71 at gmail.com> wrote:
> Hi Sophie,
>
> I would recommend judging colleges based on factors like how good the
> curriculum is and how friendly people are at the school, and to put
> disability services lower on your list of criteria for judging
> schools. Some schools will have more disability resources than others,
> but sometimes, a school with less resources may be more open-minded
> and flexible when working with you as an individual student, while
> some schools with big disability offices may be more rigid about how
> they treat blind students and less willing to work with you as an
> individual. I attended a large public university with a well-staffed
> disability office, and while this had its advantages, I also found
> that the staff at the disability office wanted to do everything a
> certain way, were somewhat custodial, and gave me little opportunity
> to negotiate with individual professors. I have talked with blind
> students who attended schools with no disability office at all or just
> a small one, and who had excellent experiences arranging their own
> accommodations, using readers and publicly available services like
> BookShare, Learning Ally etc. They felt more in control of their
> accommodations and, as a bonus, got really accustomed to advocating
> for themselves early on, which is important for employment. It's a
> little like how sometimes, the teachers who have never had a blind
> student in their class before are better to work with than the ones
> who have had someone blind in the past, because the former teachers
> will listen to how you want them to do things, while sometimes the
> latter will tend to compare you with other blind students or assume
> you have the same preferences and limitations that they had.
> So I would encourage you to pick a school that's the best fit for your
> career goals, and worry about the disability accommodation stuff
> later. No matter where you go, there are resources that you will be
> able to use to get access to your materials.
>
> Best,
> Arielle
>
> On 1/15/14, minh ha <minh.ha927 at gmail.com> wrote:
>> Sophie,
>>
>> It honestly does depend on the university and the kind of resources
>> they have. I go to a private Catholic college in Boston and even
>> though they are not very knowledgeable about what a visually impaired
>> student might need, they are extremely accommodating when I tell them
>> exactly what I require in order to be successful. Visit the colleges
>> you are interested in and talk to the disability services office; 9
>> times out of 10, you can get a realistic feel for what they can and
>> cannot offer you in terms of accommodations. Honestly, I don't think
>> we as blind students should base our college decisions entirely on the
>> support we might get from the university. Yes, it's a factor we need
>> to consider because it can make or break our academic experience, but
>> it shouldn't be the only reason that we pick the school. I know when I
>> was searching for colleges, I fell in love with my college and I knew
>> it was the school I would be attending way before I met with the
>> disability services office. If you want to go to a school but the DSO
>> is less than stellar, then it's another opportunity for you to
>> advocate for yourself and your needs.
>>
>> Cheers,
>> Minh
>>
>> On 1/15/14, Lillie Pennington <lilliepennington at fuse.net> wrote:
>>> Also, you may be able to general feel for the ds office when you go.
>>> That
>>> may determine if you think it is the right fit.
>>>
>>> Sent from my iPhone
>>>
>>>> On Jan 15, 2014, at 10:19 PM, "Ashley Bramlett"
>>>> <bookwormahb at earthlink.net> wrote:
>>>>
>>>> Sophie,
>>>> No there Is no resource to rank support services. I think you should
>>>> visit
>>>> schools you are interested like anyone else would. Visit the disability
>>>> office and see what they offer. Sometimes if you voice a need, they
>>>> might
>>>> be able to do it, even if they have not before.
>>>>
>>>> It is generally true that private schools have smaller disability
>>>> service,
>>>> ds, offices. They have less staff, but also they have less students to
>>>> serve.
>>>> They may be less aware of disabled student needs but that's where
>>>> advocacy
>>>> comes in.
>>>>
>>>> Just go and visit the schools you want; loyola and tulane are great
>>>> schools.
>>>> I wouldn't prejudge  services too much. Don't be discourage what one
>>>> professor said.
>>>>
>>>> I went to  a private catholic school, btw. I transferred out of george
>>>> mason university, GMU. GMU is public.
>>>> I liked the private school more because of smaller classes, small
>>>> campus,
>>>> upholding my religious values, no not  catholic but do agree with some
>>>> principles they have, the atmosphere, and religious activities.
>>>> Oh, and the quality was excellent of instruction since you get
>>>> professors,
>>>> not grad students teaching your classes. Universities will have grad
>>>> students teach some classes.
>>>>
>>>> Good luck with your decision.
>>>> Ashley
>>>>
>>>> -----Original Message----- From: Sophie Trist
>>>> Sent: Wednesday, January 15, 2014 9:42 PM
>>>> To: nabs
>>>> Subject: [nabs-l] public versus private universities
>>>>
>>>> Greetings,
>>>>
>>>> I'm a junior in high school, and as such, I'm beginning to look
>>>> for a college. The other day, a blind friend and I were talking
>>>> about which colleges we were checking out, and I mentioned
>>>> Loyola, which is a private Catholic university in New Orleans. My
>>>> friend, whose mother is a professor at Tulane, another private
>>>> New Orleans school, said that it was very difficult for blind
>>>> people to attend private colleges because they weren't as good as
>>>> protecting textbooks and other necessary materials. He said in
>>>> general that private universities' disability services weren't as
>>>> great as those of public universities. I know this is true for
>>>> post-secondary public schools--they're more able to provide
>>>> braille and technology than are private schools--so I was
>>>> wondering if it was the same with colleges. Also, is there a list
>>>> that ranks colleges' disability support? I know that whenever we
>>>> visit a college, we visit the DS office, but I also know that
>>>> those people are often trying to sell their school. So I was
>>>> wondering if there was any concrete resource I could use for this
>>>> information. Any info or comments would be super helpful and
>>>> appreciated!
>>>>
>>>> Yours sincerely,
>>>> Sophie Trist
>>>>
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>>
>>
>> --
>> "All men dream, but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty
>> recesses of their minds, wake in the day to find that it was vanity:
>> but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act on
>> their dreams with open eyes, to make them possible." T. E. Lawrence
>>
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>
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-- 
Julie McG
National Association of Guide dog Users board member,  National
Federation of the Blind performing arts division secretary,
Missouri Association of Guide dog Users President,
and Guiding Eyes for the Blind graduate 2008
"For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that
everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal
life."
John 3:16