SGA member asks administration, ÎAre you willing?â
Dear Editor,
Metroâs mission statement says that the institution is dedicated to all of its students. Yet over the past several months concerned administrators, faculty, staff and students at Metro have been meeting to address several ongoing issues affecting disabled students. These meetings began after the vice president of Leadership Education and Advocacy with Direction, Brenda Mosby, approached Student Government Assembly about these issues and asked us for help.
After meeting with Mosby, members of LEAD, concerned administrators, faculty and staff, I was impressed with their positive and patient attempts to have their needs met.
During these meetings, I became appalled and saddened by some of the disabled studentsâ stories and Metroâs responses. Some faculty on this campus refuse to accommodate studentsâ special needs, while others routinely do not include clauses in their syllabi, mentioning the Americans with Disabilities Act. This clause reminds students with special needs to contact the instructor to discuss their needs.
These acts are unacceptable! These are not the acts of a diverse, inclusive, urban college campus!
After several emotional meetings, a memo was drawn up specifying the issues and concerns surrounding Metroâs disabled students. In order to seek remedies to these issues and concerns, a memo expressing LEADâs concerns was given to Metro President Sheila Kaplan and her staff. LEAD has asked for a written reply from administration concerning their plans by Sept. 8.
The following includes several items on that list includes:
1. The implementation of an interim handbook for students with disabilities and a handbook that faculty and staff can reference.
2. A completed self-evaluation plan as outlined in the Title II of ADA by a knowledgeable committee comprised of faculty, staff and students.
3. The announcement of a permanent ADA coordinator who will be responsible for training, producing informational brochures and employing student help. The memo also asked that the position have some monies allocated for student accommodations.
4. The announcement of a new, accessible location for the Tutoring Center so that all students have access.
5. A tentative training schedule and plan to educate the faculty, staff and students on disability issues.
6. The formation of a disability task force created through the presidentâs office to address disability issues, develop creative procedures, establish a stronger relationship with the Disabled Service Office and resolve conflicts between students, faculty and staff, etc.
LEADâs requests to the administration do not seem too difficult to me. The power to address and change the climate toward disabled students on this campus is in the hands of the administration.
Before her death from breast cancer, the great poet/activist Audre Lorde asked every one of us, ãAre you willing to use the power that you have in the service of what you say you believe in?ä Well, Metro administration, are you willing?
Teresa Harper
SGA vice president of Diversity
