Services help students with both mental and physical disabilities
Disability services is an office on campus that provides a variety of accommodations to students with particular needs or require special attentions. These accommodations range from prolonged test periods to different modes of mobility.
The typical accommodations made for those with ADHD, autism and like disorders is what is titled a ‘504 Plan,’ which refers to Section 504 of the Americans with Disabilities Act. In short, the ‘504 Plan’ says that no child can be excluded from everyday public school activities, as well as mandates public schools give particular accommodations, such as extended time for tests, or a separate test location. This is one such example of the works of disability services.
The office also supplies accommodations for the physically disabled by providing wheelchair ramps, parking spaces close to buildings, aids to assistant students in day to day life and so on. Another aspect of the Americans with Disabilities Act is that every institution must provide such accommodations in order to provide an equal experience for any disabled person. This notion is what the office of Disability Services is for — to provide the services needed to give any disabled person an equal experience to the able-bodied on campus.
However, how well do these accommodations assist students in need and how easy are they to obtain? Students gave their insights.
“I am diagnosed with cerebral palsy that’s based off having a stroke in the womb. But what came out of that is that I have ADHD, which is why I have classroom accommodations,” said one student who requested her name not be used.
Another student, Sydney Best, has an injury that requires accommodations from disability services.
“I tore my ACL and lateral meniscus during a rugby game a few weeks ago, and I just got surgery a few days ago. I am in a full leg cast and will be on crutches for six to eight weeks,” said Best. “I received an elevator pass to my dorm in Dev. I get vouchers from the school when I need to take a cab to Olean General Hospital for my hospital visits. If needed, Safety and Security shuttles me to my classes, if I need that little bit of extra help.”
Students have generally positive comments in regard to their experiences with disability services and the help they’ve received from the office.
“They’ve been really great with me. Honestly, I feel like they’re really good at reaching out to students with disabilities. But, it’s mainly up to the student now that we’re in college to get back to them,” said the student who requested to not be named.
“I guess it has been okay. SBU can only do so much. It would be helpful if some of the buildings were more accessible,” Best said. “It’s such a struggle to have to go to the back of Plassmann just to get on the main floor, and then I have to get in a second elevator to get to the floor where my classes are.”
This is not the first instance where a student has had difficulty with accessibility on campus. Disability services is aware of the problem and has plans to fix it. Adriane Spencer, the director of Disability Services, fully intends to provide better accessibility.
“Accessibility is not ideal on campus. Under the ADA, we meet all of the requirements. I know that part of the master plan, which is university wide, that there are plans to remodel to improve accessibility. I just don’t know the particulars of that,” said Spencer. “But I do know that there are plans to improve accessibility.”
By Anastasia Smith, Staff Writer
smithan18@bonaventure.edu
