I am terrified of storefront windows.
They show a reflection of how I truly walk. They provide evidence that there was a lack of oxygen to my brain during my birth. They remind me that I have Cerebral Palsy.
Cerebral Palsy has provided me with a walk that resembles a drunk person, a fact that being on a college campus, I find myself reminded of regularly on Friday and Saturday evenings.
However, the stigma that I face because of my visible disability are more disabling than any physical limitations that I may have.
I remember standing in the lobby of Carmichael Towers during the beginning of my sophomore at Vanderbilt University and staring at a set of posters. The posters promoted Alternative Spring Break, an opportunity for Vanderbilt …show more content…
It is during times like this that I have to stop and remind myself that I am deserving of the world class education and mentorship that I have received at Vanderbilt, and that I do no not deserve to be compared to a farm animal.
This year, I am leading one of these Alternative Spring Break trips trips and I have chosen to lead a site that focuses on disability because I want to show that there are students with disabilities at Vanderbilt and that we are not just present in service activities.
Over the past year, I have had opportunity to watch Vanderbilt’s campus confront difficult conversations and positive changes occur due to these conversations led by student activists and a receptive administration. These changes include the appointment of the University’s first Chief Diversity Officer, the creation of the Office of Social Justice and Identity, and the Office of the University Chaplain and Religious Life, Office of LGBTQI life, and the Women’s center each hiring additional staff.
However, since arriving on campus in August 2013, the view of disability on campus has remained …show more content…
The location of the office is not only problematic because of its distant location but also because of the historical implications of annexing groups of people to the back - whether on a campus or on a bus, the impact is the same.
Despite the location of the office, the staff that work in that office are passionate about disability and incredibly dedicated to their jobs but because the office is based out of the office for Equal Opportunity Affirmative Action and Disability Services (EAD), the focus is naturally on compliance.
From my experience, Vanderbilt does not have a compliance issue. The challenge that we and many other top institutions face is to recognize disability as a form of diversity and difference. The current arrangement of the student facing aspect of disability services focuses on serving the university and not the students.
This issue was demonstrated in a 2015 press release that announced the University’s creation of an Office of Inclusion Initiatives and Cultural Competence. The first two paragraphs
They show a reflection of how I truly walk. They provide evidence that there was a lack of oxygen to my brain during my birth. They remind me that I have Cerebral Palsy.
Cerebral Palsy has provided me with a walk that resembles a drunk person, a fact that being on a college campus, I find myself reminded of regularly on Friday and Saturday evenings.
However, the stigma that I face because of my visible disability are more disabling than any physical limitations that I may have.
I remember standing in the lobby of Carmichael Towers during the beginning of my sophomore at Vanderbilt University and staring at a set of posters. The posters promoted Alternative Spring Break, an opportunity for Vanderbilt …show more content…
It is during times like this that I have to stop and remind myself that I am deserving of the world class education and mentorship that I have received at Vanderbilt, and that I do no not deserve to be compared to a farm animal.
This year, I am leading one of these Alternative Spring Break trips trips and I have chosen to lead a site that focuses on disability because I want to show that there are students with disabilities at Vanderbilt and that we are not just present in service activities.
Over the past year, I have had opportunity to watch Vanderbilt’s campus confront difficult conversations and positive changes occur due to these conversations led by student activists and a receptive administration. These changes include the appointment of the University’s first Chief Diversity Officer, the creation of the Office of Social Justice and Identity, and the Office of the University Chaplain and Religious Life, Office of LGBTQI life, and the Women’s center each hiring additional staff.
However, since arriving on campus in August 2013, the view of disability on campus has remained …show more content…
The location of the office is not only problematic because of its distant location but also because of the historical implications of annexing groups of people to the back - whether on a campus or on a bus, the impact is the same.
Despite the location of the office, the staff that work in that office are passionate about disability and incredibly dedicated to their jobs but because the office is based out of the office for Equal Opportunity Affirmative Action and Disability Services (EAD), the focus is naturally on compliance.
From my experience, Vanderbilt does not have a compliance issue. The challenge that we and many other top institutions face is to recognize disability as a form of diversity and difference. The current arrangement of the student facing aspect of disability services focuses on serving the university and not the students.
This issue was demonstrated in a 2015 press release that announced the University’s creation of an Office of Inclusion Initiatives and Cultural Competence. The first two paragraphs