DREAM Weekly News on Disability and Higher Education: January 14-21, 2017

DREAM Weekly Email, Disability and Higher Education in the News: January 14 - 21, 2017
From DREAM: Disability Rights, Education, Activism, and Mentoring
Sponsored by the National Center for College Students with Disabilities and the Association on Higher Education And Disability (AHEAD)
-------------------------------
Weekly Email Update on Issues Related to Disability and Higher Education
Week of January 14 - 21, 2017
-------------------------------

Disability and higher education in the news (in no particular order):

* Dialogues on Disability: Shelley Tremain Interviews Jake Jackson, PhD student in Philosophy at Temple University. The series provides a public venue for discussion with disabled philosophers about a range of topics, including their philosophical work on disability; the place of philosophy of disability vis-à-vis the discipline and profession; their experiences of institutional discrimination and personal prejudice in philosophy, in particular, and in academia, more generally; resistance to ableism; accessibility; and anti-oppressive pedagogy. http://philosophycommons.typepad.com/disability_and_disadvanta/2017/01/dialogues-on-disability-shelley-tremain-interviews-jake-jackson.html

* Accessing Higher Ground: The 2016 Accessing Higher Ground Accessible Media, Web and Technology conference in Denver, CO featured more than 120 different workshops focusing on the implementation and benefits of accessible media, universal design and assistive technology in the university, business and public sectors. This video by Accessible Media Inc. provides some highlights of the conference.
http://www.ami.ca/category/ami-inside-business-and-technology/media/ami-inside-accessing-higher-ground

* Where does Department of Education nominee, DeVos, stand on higher education? Policy experts, academics, advocates and college administrators asked questions they hoped to see answered in the confirmation hearing for Betsy DeVos, the Trump administration’s education secretary nominee on Jan. 17, 2017. https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2017/01/17/experts-offer-questions-they-hope-see-asked-trumps-education-secretary-pick

* Temple University faculty with disabilities - Temple professor starts Committee on Faculty Disabilities Concerns. The committee is responsible for working to improve inclusivity for faculty members with disabilities and help faculty members make classrooms more comprehensive for students with disabilities.
http://temple-news.com/lifestyle/professor-starts-committee-faculty-disabilities/

* Student with CP discrimination suit at Pacific University in Oregon - A former Pacific University doctoral student is suing the university, saying professors discriminated against her because she has disabilities. She filed a lawsuit in federal court on Jan. 9, alleging the private university discriminated against her because she has cerebral palsy.
http://pamplinmedia.com/ht/117-hillsboro-tribune-news/340385-220688-doctoral-student-sues-pacific-university-for-discrimination

* Kiosk provides a mental health check for college students - Device asks Oakland college students how they are feeling. The touch screen's response to a fingertip begins with a question about depression, the disorder most linked to suicidal thoughts. It goes on to ask about anxiety, bipolar disorder, various types of substance abuse including binge drinking, and other disorders.
http://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/oakland/2017/01/18/oakland-university-mental-health-device/96687536

* Missing: Capital’s Disability Community - a student’s experience published in the Chimes student newspaper. She highlights many challenges and ADA violations that she encountered.
http://cuchimes.com/01/2017/missing-capitals-disability-community/

* The DOJ’s Civil Rights Division is determining whether the practices at Northern Michigan University that have included threats of expulsion for students who are “suspected of self-destructive thoughts” result in illegal disability discrimination under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
http://www.wnd.com/2016/12/government-investigating-universitys-crackdown-on-thought/#R5iEUUJzZJ4Aqcga.99

* The Jim & Juli Boeheim Foundation and Life is Washable, Inc., are teaming up to bring Friendly Access Sensory Safety Kits™ to the Carrier Dome at Syracuse University.  Individuals with Autism, Dementia, Traumatic Brain Injury and various sensory challenges will now be able to enjoy all Dome events with the complimentary use of the Friendly Access kits. http://cuse.com/news/2017/1/12/SensoryKits11217.aspx?path=mbasket

* Ed Roberts day is this Monday, January 23rd! Yolanda Vargas reflects on the impact of Ed Roberts and mentoring in her and others' lives and shares some great tips for being a mentor or mentee: https://medium.com/disabilitymentors/ed-roberts-and-me-mentoring-for-change-321a4b4a6826#.n9k91zh7l. Yolanda's organization - YO! Disabled & Proud​ - has a fab page of activities and resources to celebrate Ed Roberts Day, inluding an Ed Roberts Trivia board game: http://yodisabledproud.org/ed-roberts-day/. Members of DREAM plan to join @YoDisabledProud and @Youth_Fellow at the National Council on Independent Living​ (NCIL) for their national Twitter chat on mentoring and youth from 3-4 p.m. Eastern Time / noon-1 p.m. Pacific Time. Hope you can join us to add your thoughts on mentoring, disability, and higher ed. #EdRobertsDay17 #MyMentorEd #DisabilityMentors #MentorIRL


And a few related items of possible interest to college students:

* TED Talk by Judith Heumann: Our fight for disability rights and why we're not done yet | Judith Heumann | TEDxMidAtlantic Jan. 10, 2017 (including transcript)
Special Advisor for International Disability Rights, Judith Heumann talks about the advancement of rights of people with disabilities.
https://www.humanrights.gov/dyn/12/tedx-talk-stronger-together-advancing-the-rights-of-people-with-disabilities/

* Virtual march makes Women's March more accessible to people with disabilities: For people who might not have the physical ability or stamina to join Saturday's massive public protest, disability activists created the Disability March — an online movement that allows people with disabilities and chronic illnesses to participate virtually in the event.
http://mashable.com/2017/01/18/disability-march-womens-march-on-washington/#Loa2JiHhWmqU

* Supreme Court and FAPE (K-12): SCOTUS to consider meaning of Free Appropriate Public Education for students with disabilities in a new case Endrew F. v. Douglas County School Board. The question at hand: What level of educational benefit must school districts provide to students with disabilities in order for them to receive that free, appropriate public education under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act?
http://www.smartbrief.com/s/2017/01/scotus-consider-meaning-fape-students-disabilities-0

* Health Law’s Repeal Could Sharply Increase Uninsured and Raise Costs, New Report Says. Eighteen million people could lose their insurance within a year and individual insurance premiums would shoot upward if Congress repealed major provisions of the Affordable Care Act while leaving other parts in place, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said. https://nyti.ms/2k1dMVp

* Google Maps adds details on accessibility. Alongside information about a business’s hours, telephone number and address, the search giant is now including details about whether or not the location has a wheelchair-accessible entrance.
https://www.disabilityscoop.com/2017/01/17/google-adds-details-accessibility/23185/

* Students in Cambridge, MA Innovate and Create Tools for the Blind. A group of students from the NuVu Studio, a full-time innovation school in Cambridge, MA, learned on a field trip to the Perkins School for the Blind that blindness can become more difficult by the accompaniment of other conditions. They learned that many of the 200 Perkins pupils faced other barriers such as cerebral palsy, which affects their motor skills.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/586fdc74e4b0eb9e49bfbaea?timestamp=1483726843462

* Law enforcement and developmental disabilities - Justice Department Pushes Law Enforcement On ADA Compliance. Federal officials are highlighting the responsibilities of everyone from police to courts and attorneys in ensuring that people with developmental disabilities are treated fairly.
https://www.disabilityscoop.com/2017/01/17/justice-department-ada-compliance/23195/

* The Non-Politics of Disability - Jay Ruckelshaus reflects that political use of Trump’s mocking of Times reporter Serge Kovaleski is unproductive. Instead, the disability community must be willing to politicize disability by confronting others with our political and public policy priorities. By fully engaging in debate, constructive compromise and progress can be made.
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/18/opinion/denouncing-trump-wont-help-disability-rights.html

* Celebrate Video Description with #Describeathon17 on January 26. Thursday, January 26, YouDescribe will be hosting Describeathon17, a day- long event where amateur and professional describers from all over the world are invited to describe as many YouTube videos as they can. https://www.facebook.com/notes/youdescribe/celebrate-video-description-with-describeathon17-on-january-26/1892426430995229

* Kenya: Disabled activist recognized by Kenyan President. The chairman of the National Council for Persons with Disabilities (NCPWD) in Kenya has survived assassination attempts and lived in exile but he continues to fight for a barrier free Kenya.
https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/evewoman/article/2000229981/the-government-punished-me-for-telling-them-the-truth

* 13 People With Disabilities Talk About Life Post-Election. Thirteen people share their feelings on the Affordable Care Act’s possible repeal, and other issues that will impact their lives over the next four years.
https://www.buzzfeed.com/norawhelan/people-with-disabilities-post-election?utm_term=.fjDla6AEY#.ikBy9W0Kv

* Host the Brilliant & Resilient photo exhibition: Available to tour national and international galleries and cultural spaces, the Brilliant & Resilient exhibition is an opportunity to bring together women leaders with and without disabilities, government officials, NGO development actors and other agents of social change.
http://www.miusa.org/resource/booksjournals/host-photo-exhibit

* This Woman Wants To Educate You About Ableism: Artist and intersectional activist Michele Kaplan launched a new site as a resource to educate non-disabled people about ableism and to provide resources for people with disabilities.
https://www.buzzfeed.com/norawhelan/what-is-ableism-michele-kaplan?utm_term=.eo6v8wM7x#.umx5o6kBV

* We Can’t Breathe: The Deaf & Disabled Margin of Police Brutality Project includes a video and toolkit that can be utilized for educational training for disability organizations and agencies. The We Can’t Breathe Toolkit addresses how state violence affects people with disabilities who are also women, people of color, and LGBTQ+. This training intentionally utilizes an intersectionality framework to combat the racism, sexism, homophobia and transphobia that pervade disability organizations and agencies.
http://www.ncil.org/we-cant-breathe-the-deaf-disabled-margin-of-police-brutality-project/

* Irish Asylums - "We have always found ways to lock up mentally ill people" The disturbing history of Irish asylums. The author of the book on the topic, Hearing Voices: The History of Psychiatry in Ireland, is Brendan Kelly, Professor of Psychiatry at Trinity College Dublin. He looks back at psychiatry in Ireland from the earliest times to the present day, showing how it reflected the social changes in the country – and busting the myth that Irish people are more prone to mental illness than other people.
http://www.thejournal.ie/history-of-psychiatry-ireland-book-brendan-kelly-3177461-Jan2017/

* #CripTheVote Disability Identity & Activism Survey. An online survey to gather stories on disability identity and activism. Everyone's journey is different and #CripTheVote hopes to show a wide range of lived experiences. They hope to learn more about how people come to disability activism, in order to help more disabled people do the same.
http://cripthevote.blogspot.com/2017/01/cripthevote-disability-identity.html?spref=tw

-------------------------------
This week’s issue of the DREAM weekly e-mail is available at the DREAM website, with archived back issues available, as well (http://www.dreamcollegedisability.org).  For more information about DREAM or AHEAD contact Richard Allegra (richard@ahead.org).

To subscribe or unsubscribe, please go to http://ahead-listserve.org/mailman/listinfo/dream_ahead-listserve.org.  Richard Allegra can also handle requests to subscribe or unsubscribe.  

By the way, please don't presume DREAM, the National Center for College Students with Disabilities, or AHEAD agree with everything in these links we send out - we're just passing along the information so you can form your own opinions.  Thanks.

*****