[nabs-l] disability services in college
Kaiti Shelton
crazy4clarinet104 at gmail.com
Fri Jan 2 05:47:11 UTC 2015
Hi all,
In addition to what has already been stated, there is the issue of
degree integrity. I wouldn't want to skip out on a degree
requirement, because that deflates the value of a degree and the
education it represents. Don't think of the degree as a piece of
paper you've got to earn by jumping through hoops and biding your time
for four years; it's something valuable to work for, even if like most
people you aren't planning on going to an ivy school.
Whether you're looking into liberal arts colleges or not, you'll
probably have to take at least one math class for general education
requirements. These classes are college-level material in subjects
that all students in the school need to take to demonstrate basic
knowledge. Liberal arts schools may require a greater breadth and
depth of study in things that aren't directly related to your major,
but math is probably a mainstay regardless. I can guarantee that
anyone who doesn't use math in their major probably isn't a fan of the
course, but it's something we've all got to do. There are other
courses besides math ones that you may find you don't like, but gen ed
requirements are the same things that every other college kid takes.
Going back to what Karl said though, I'm in a liberal arschool and
don't use math or hard science at all in my major. I had to take both
a stats course and a general biology lecture, and although they were
harder for me I don't regret taking them. I also don't regret making
the DS office redo diagrams that weren't clear enough for me to read,
or learning from the courses even though I won't do much with this
information later on. But I will have the satisfaction when I
graduate that I've put in the time and effort to do the work like
everyone else.
On 12/31/14, Karl Martin Adam via nabs-l <nabs-l at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> I would definitely suggest talking to dss offices before you
> apply. Maybe if you're thinking about applying to places far
> from where you live it isn't worth it to go through the expense
> of traveling their just for that until you've been accepted, but
> definitely if they're local schools I would do it. As for
> getting exempted from math, I think it's important as a blind
> person to get the same education everyone else does. Employers
> will expect it as will grad school if you intend on going there.
> Partially it's also that I refuse to let people tell me that I
> can't do things because I'm blind when I actually can.
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Vejas Vasiliauskas via nabs-l <nabs-l at nfbnet.org
> To: Kaiti Shelton <crazy4clarinet104 at gmail.com>, National
> Association of Blind Students mailing list <nabs-l at nfbnet.org
> Date sent: Wed, 31 Dec 2014 12:29:10 -0800
> Subject: Re: [nabs-l] disability services in college
>
> Hi,
> Thank you all so much for your answers. I just wanted to clarify
> something.
> Did you wait until you were for sure going to be accepted into
> the
> college before having the meetings? I'm still waiting to see if I
> will
> be accepted.
> Also, Karl, you mentioned that sometimes DSS will exempt someone
> from
> taking a class because they don't want to make the diagrams. Is
> it
> worth fighting for that even if it's a class you don't want to
> take?
> For example, I might have to take math for one year but I want to
> be
> an English major. So is it worth fighting for even if it's just a
> general ed class that you don't care to take anyway? Or should
> you
> still fight for a class that you don't want to take because your
> sighted peers are taking it?
> I would really appreciate oppiinions on this.
> Thanks,
> Vejas
>
>
> On 12/30/14, Kaiti Shelton via nabs-l <nabs-l at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> Hi, Vejas and all,
>
> First off, don't discount private colleges. I toured several
> private
> and public colleges before choosing the school I attend now,
> which is
> private and has a pretty awesome DS office and staff. One thing
> that
> I really like that my DS office does is that it employs students
> to do
> much of the book scanning, edits, and stuff in addition to
> answering
> phones and some basic emails that aren't specifically for a
> staff
> member. This is great, because if I have a simple worksheet or
> a
> packet of information I need to read for class, I can just give
> it to
> a student worker and have them email it to me once they're done
> rather
> than waiting for a DS coordinator to be free from meetings or
> other
> stuff. I would ask if such a system is in place, and if so I
> would
> plan to try to get to know the students who work there a bit. I
> know
> the girl who edits most of my books and she's an English major,
> so in
> addition to being already detail oriented, I think that knowing
> who
> the book is going to might help with making sure that it's
> well-proofread. (She's also been very nice and bumped papers up
> in
> the cue for me if professors give them to me late so I could
> still
> turn work in on time).
>
> As mentioned, you'll probably not get a lot in braille. So far
> I've
> only gotten my math stuff and some science diagrams in braille,
> and
> everything else has been electronic. I'm a stickler for braille
> as
> much as the next guy, but having almost everything electronic
> really
> helps, and cuts down on your load. If you thought carrying a
> bunch of
> books was hard in high school, you certainly won't want to lug
> braille
> volumes around a college campus.
>
> I'd ask to see a testing room if you can, and to meet some of
> the
> other staff members. Your meetings will probably consist
> largely of
> your DS coordinator reciting some basic shpeel about
> accommodations,
> the ADA, etc, but it's the questions you ask and the other
> people you
> meet who will help you decide which DS office is the best fit
> for you.
>
> Additional Questions:
> 1. Do you have an assistive technology specialist on staff? If
> so,
> can I meet them? If not, are there any plans to bring one on
> staff in
> the foreseeable future?
> 2. Are there any assistive technologies I can loan/borrow for
> academic or assistive purposes should I need them? (My college
> does
> this, and just requires me to sign a release stating that I'll
> pay for
> any damage or loss to the device if something happens while I
> have it.
> I also have to return it by an agreed deadline, but borrowing a
> Focus
> 40 sure beats having to buy one).
> 3. Do you offer any training on assistive technology devices?
> (Again
> with the focus 40, I was able to get a quick half hour session
> with
> the assistive technology specialist without leaving campus).
> 4. What are the standard accommodations a blind person would
> receive?
> Just see what they tell you at a glance. You should at the
> least be
> guaranteed extended time on tests (usually double time),
> assistive
> technology on tests and for use in the classroom, text
> descriptions of
> pictures or videos shown in class, volunteer notetaker (if you
> want
> it), a reader (if needed), distraction-reduced environments for
> test,
> alternative formats for books and class materials (including
> books),
> and a scribe for tests (if needed). I would also see if they
> have a
> policy about electronic submissions. Most colleges don't, but
> it
> might be something to ask about. I had a professor who did not
> want
> to accept assignments attached to emails, and I was able to get
> electronic submission to be a reasonable accommodation because
> print
> papers create organizational nightmares for me.
> 5. See if you can find other disabled students on campus to
> talk to,
> preferably blind ones but any should be able to provide some
> insight
> into how good or bad the DS office is with response to problems,
> working with professors, etc.
>
> Remember that a lot of the advocacy is going to come from you
> first.
> I know you've probably heard it a million times, but the DSS
> rarely
> gets involved unless the professor goes to them directly to sort
> out
> an issue, or there is some problem and after unsuccessfully
> advocating
> for yourself you ask them to step in and back you up.
>
> Some DS offices are awesome; mine has really gone above and
> beyond for
> me, and while I don't use them often aside from getting my books
> and
> materials they've always been willing to help read something, or
> help
> me find something on campus if it's a location I've never had to
> go to
> before but need to for a class. The nice thing about student
> workers
> in a DS department is that they are often able to do these
> things
> because there are enough of them working at a time that work
> doesn't
> stop.
>
> On 12/30/14, Suzanne Germano via nabs-l <nabs-l at nfbnet.org>
> wrote:
> I go to Arizona State and they have computers with JAWS, MAGic
> in several
> labs, libraries and in the high tech center in disabled student
> services.
> The will make tactile diagrams of things if needed. They offered
> to make
> me
> some for Circuits. They also have a braille printer and braille
> displays
> on
> some computers. So it seems there are really various levels of
> what is
> available and what is provided. They have an entire alternative
> format
> department to handle text books. I get electronic and if
> requested I can
> get large print. I prefer they get the pdf's from the publisher
> because
> they are better quality than scanned for reading with zoomtext.
>
> On Tue, Dec 30, 2014 at 4:08 PM, Karl Martin Adam via nabs-l <
> nabs-l at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>
> These are some good additional questions. The only other thing
> I think
> is
> important is to find out how they get your books. Do they
> request
> publisher files? If publisher files are not available--they
> aren't for
> trade books, which is most of what you'll be reading in upper
> level
> classes
> and in things like English classes--does the office scan books
> for you?
> Do
> they have someone proofread the things they scan if they scan
> them? By
> the
> way, you almost certainly won't be getting books in braille at
> all, and
> if
> you do they'll be embossed. Almost all colleges will give them
> to you
> electronically, which actually is more efficient. Neither of
> the
> schools
> I've gone to (they were both public) had the capability to
> produce
> things
> in braille. As for adaptive technology, most schools will have
> a
> computer
> in the library with Jaws and maybe one or two more, but of
> course you'll
> have to provide your own personal computer and notetaker etc.
> You might
> also want to talk to them and try to figure out indirectly if
> dss tries
> to
> control the classes disabled students take. I've heard horror
> stories
> from
> friends at some schools where dss basically exempts blind
> students from
> taking certain classes, such as basic math, because they don't
> want to
> provide the accommodations that would be necessary. You
> probably also
> want
> to talk about how accommodations for lab science classes work.
>
> Best,
> Karl
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: NMPBRAT--- via nabs-l <nabs-l at nfbnet.org
> To: alpineimagination at gmail.com, nabs-l at nfbnet.org
> Date sent: Mon, 29 Dec 2014 18:03:32 -0500
> Subject: Re: [nabs-l] disability services in college
>
> Vejas,
> Here are a few other suggestions for questions:
> 1) How many people work for the DSS?
> 2) What days and hours are the DSS open?
> 3) What accommodations are available to me, including testing
> accommodations? What is the process for requesting those
> accommodations?
> 4) How willing do professors seem to be when working with the
> DSS
> office?
> (note: if you know what degree you are majoring in, you can be
> specific
> to
> that particular group of professors)
> 5) Who do I talk to and what is the process in dealing with
> issues that
> arise in a particular class or with a particular professor?
> 6) What percentage of students that your office services are
> blind or
> visually impaired?
> 7) What resources, if any, do you work with outside of your
> office?
>
> Just some thoughts! Good luck!
>
> Nicole
>
>
> In a message dated 12/29/2014 5:51:16 P.M. Eastern Standard
> Time,
> nabs-l at nfbnet.org writes:
>
> Hi All,
> I am going to be meeting soon with the disability services of my
> schools and have some questions/want some insight.
> How do you know how good a DSS program is? (Of my three
> colleges,
> one is a Cal State and two are private, so the privates may not
> have very good services).
> If the DSS is poor but you like the college for all other
> reasons, is this a big enough reason not to attend that
> college?
> Also, I'd really like your ideas on questions I could ask DSS.
> I
> already have 5, which I'll paste below my name, and I would
> really appreciate if you could add some more or change any of
> the
> above.
> Thanks.
> Vejas
> Questions to Ask DSS
> 1. How quickly is the turnaround time for Braille materials?
> 2. Is there a Braille transcriber/braillist on campus, or is
> everything just going to be embossed?
> 3. Is there anyone on campus who can create raised diagrams
> for
> subjects such as chemistry and mathematics?
> 4. What kind of adaptive technology is offered at the school?
> 5. Should anything go wrong with my hearing aids, is there
> anyone who can help with them?
>
> _______________________________________________
> nabs-l mailing list
> nabs-l at nfbnet.org
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nabs-l_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account
> info for
> nabs-l:
>
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nabs-l_nfbnet.org/nmpbrat%40aol
> .com
>
> _______________________________________________
> nabs-l mailing list
> nabs-l at nfbnet.org
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nabs-l_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account
> info for
> nabs-l:
>
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nabs-l_nfbnet.org/kmaent1%40gma
> il.com
>
> _______________________________________________
> nabs-l mailing list
> nabs-l at nfbnet.org
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nabs-l_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account
> info for
> nabs-l:
>
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nabs-l_nfbnet.org/sgermano%40as
> u.edu
>
> _______________________________________________
> nabs-l mailing list
> nabs-l at nfbnet.org
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nabs-l_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account
> info for
> nabs-l:
>
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nabs-l_nfbnet.org/crazy4clarine
> t104%40gmail.com
>
>
>
> --
> Kaiti
>
> _______________________________________________
> nabs-l mailing list
> nabs-l at nfbnet.org
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nabs-l_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account
> info for
> nabs-l:
>
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nabs-l_nfbnet.org/alpineimagina
> tion%40gmail.com
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> nabs-l mailing list
> nabs-l at nfbnet.org
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nabs-l_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info
> for nabs-l:
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nabs-l_nfbnet.org/kmaent1%40gma
> il.com
>
> _______________________________________________
> nabs-l mailing list
> nabs-l at nfbnet.org
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nabs-l_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
> nabs-l:
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nabs-l_nfbnet.org/crazy4clarinet104%40gmail.com
>
--
Kaiti
More information about the NABS-L
mailing list