[nfbwatlk] Challenging assumptions, The Daily U 0f W, May 12, 2009

Nightingale, Noel Noel.Nightingale at ed.gov
Tue May 12 17:28:39 UTC 2009


The below is an article from the student newspaper of the University of Washington.

Link:
http://dailyuw.com/2009/5/12/challenging-assumptions/

Text:
Challenging assumptions
By Katie Paff
May 12, 2009

As a community activist, disability studies professor Dennis Lang has worked for disability-related causes since 1995, including his involvement at the UW.

In his perspective, while the UW has made improvements for people with disabilities, he feels the university still has a long way to go before it is truly accessible.

"For the most part, [the] UW meets the letter of the law in terms of disability accommodation," said Lang, who lost the use of his legs from polio as a child and uses a wheelchair. "However, it could do a whole lot better to meet the spirit of it."

The UW's fairly young disability studies program currently offers a minor, with 30 credits required overall, including three core classes: Disability and Society, Disability Law, Policy and the Community, and Civil and Human Rights Law for Disabled People.

Students are also expected to complete a disability studies-related internship, as well as 10 credits from an approved list of other classes.

Lang said he is thankful the UW has a disability studies minor; however, he hopes that in the not-too-distant future, it will become a major. He also hopes that one day there will be an actual disability studies department, with more classes and faculty members.

"It's really important that we become a major one day because there is such a stigma with disabilities, and it stems from lack of awareness and education about it," Lang said. "We're looked upon as being something other than normal, which is wrong. Most people think we'd do anything to change our condition, and we challenge that notion. We're trying to get people to understand that having a disability doesn't mean you'd be better off dead. Quite the contrary; we live very full and enjoyable lives."

Resources for disabled students at the UW have come a long way in the past several years, said Charity Ranger, who graduated in 2005 and founded the Disabled Advocacy Student Alliance (DASA) as extra credit for her introductory class to disability studies. Ranger uses a wheelchair and has Friedrich's Ataxia, an inherited disease that damages the nervous system.

"When I first came to [the] UW, there were no disability groups at all," Ranger said. "I felt isolated, and the only thing I could find was DSS (Disabled Student Services), which has since changed its name to DRS (Disability Resources for Students). I realized that there wasn't somewhere you could just hang out, meet other disabled students and talk to them about issues. So, I decided to do something about it."

Along with friend and classmate Katie Kolan, Ranger asked her professor for permission to start a group for 10 extra points, and was given the go-ahead. Before long, DASA was born. Kolan and Ranger's roles ranged from mentor to counselor, and often involved answering questions students had about various aspects of campus life.

"To give an example, I remember one student was confused about the procedures during fire alarms in the dorms, since they told everyone not to use the elevators and said that we should stay in our rooms," Ranger said. "That made no sense, though, to stay inside when there might be a fire. So, that was one thing we had to clear up."

Ranger and Kolan set out to educate the student body, giving Housing and Food Services-sponsored workshops and tabling on the HUB lawn. Today, Ranger said she thinks DASA is far more organized and equipped than it was in the early days, and that the UW is now a more inclusive place for students with disabilities.

"What we really wanted to do was create a positive place for students with disabilities to have a voice and promote social action and change for the better," she said. "I really think DASA today has come so far since I graduated. It makes me proud."

In addition to disabilities that are physically manifest, many students suffer from invisible ones, such as learning disabilities. Owen Taylor, who minored in disability studies and graduated from the UW in 2008, said people frequently doubt the fact that he has a disability because it is not physically obvious.

"I suffer from dyslexia," Taylor said. "And my entire life, there have always been people who didn't believe me and thought I was faking it."

Taylor said his childhood was marred by bad experiences in educational settings. He was asked to leave his private elementary school because of his disability.

"They said they had tried their best, and there was nothing more they could do to help me," he said.

In high school, Taylor said his principal didn't think students with learning disabilities should be allowed to graduate with honors - something Taylor and his parents strongly disagreed with. His mother filed a complaint with the Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights, after which Taylor was made a full member of his elementary school's honor society, a proud moment of vindication for himself and his family.

After graduating high school with full honors, he was certain that higher education was in his future.

"I was told many times that I would never get to college," he said. "I knew right there that I had to prove them wrong. It was tough, but I made it."

After four years at Edmonds Community College, Taylor arrived at the UW and decided to major in visual arts and graphic design. He said he decided to minor in disability studies in order to better understand himself.

"Most of my life with my disability, I was given the impression that there wasn't much that I could do about it," Taylor said. "However, the program made me realize that it is society's perception of people with disabilities that is wrong, not mine."

Taylor knew he wanted to be an activist and worked with DASA, putting his artistic skills to good use. He designed posters and served off and on as an officer. He soon realized that the best way to get things done was working with the system, instead of fighting it. By the time he attended his last meeting as a student, he felt proud of what he had accomplished.

Now, Taylor is preparing to head to Oregon State University to study for a second bachelor's degree in graphic design. However, he still cares deeply about the UW Disability Studies program, and said he hopes it doesn't get eliminated or have its funding cut for next year.

"Getting rid of the program would be such a major setback for [the] UW," Taylor said. "It is so important that the education continues, so we can be a truly inclusive and friendly campus for students with disabilities."

Reach reporter Katie Paff at features at dailyuw.com.




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