DREAM Weekly: April 8-14, 2018

​DREAM Weekly on Disability and Higher Education in the News: April 8-14, 2018

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)
 
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Disability and higher education in the news (in no particular order):
                                                                                                                     
* 30 years ago, students at Gallaudet’s massive Deaf President Now protest demanded a Deaf president for the world’s only university focused on Deaf people, but it was also a “watershed moment” for Deaf, disability, and civil rights in the U.S.: https://psmag.com/education/how-deaf-president-now-changed-america
 
* What is it like to study medicine with a disability?  WHYY public radio in Pennsylvania explores the issue, including perspectives of medical professors, students, and residents with disabilities: https://whyy.org/segments/those-with-disabilities-push-for-culture-change-in-medicine/
 
* More than 400 campuses have contacted Congress with concerns about planned changes to TRIO programs in the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act (called the PROSPER Act); TRIO programs are designed for students with “disadvantaged backgrounds,” including students with disabilities: http://diverseeducation.com/article/114207/
 
* An editorial at Columbia University says that with all the discussion of mental health, there also needs to be a conversation about grief, and why students experiencing grief are not eligible for disability accommodations unless they accept a different diagnosis: https://www.columbiaspectator.com/opinion/2018/04/12/its-time-to-talk-about-grief/
                                                                          
* Campuses having success with service dogs and emotional support animals are now starting to open up residence halls to pets, which may end up also supporting students who need animals as accommodations: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/animalia/wp/2018/04/11/animal-house-more-colleges-are-saying-yes-to-dogs-and-cats-in-dorms/?utm_term=.f1306d653e54
 
* Universities in the Philippines are working to improve mental health services for students: http://cnnphilippines.com/life/culture/2018/04/10/mental-health-issues-university.html
 
* Empty disability parking spaces at Princeton inspired an Inside Higher Education article calling for higher education to higher more faculty members with disabilities by improving hiring processes: https://www.insidehighered.com/views/2018/04/09/higher-ed-needs-new-approaches-hiring-faculty-members-disabilities-opinion?utm_source=Inside+Higher+Ed&utm_campaign=be8cea5aaa-DNU20180111&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_1fcbc04421-be8cea5aaa-197632649&mc_cid=be8cea5aaa&mc_eid=380f80e351

* A veteran is calling out the University of North Carolina Wilmington for requiring campus disability parking permits even when people already have state permits, noting that this policy places an extra burden on people with disabilities (video has captions but no audio description): http://www.wect.com/story/37942956/disabled-vet-calls-uncw-parking-policy-burdensome-for-the-handicapped
                                                                                                                                
* Students from Disability Empowerment for Yale (DEFY) set up a line of posters on wheelchairs to protest the lack of wheelchair access at Yale University: https://yaledailynews.com/blog/2018/04/12/students-call-for-ramps/
 
* The Chronicle of Higher Education published an article about women and sexual violence in higher education, but they left out disability, so Jillian Weise wrote an article to address the topic, including a #MeToo Disability Reading List: https://medium.com/@krgpryal/awakening-to-the-intersection-of-disability-and-gender-violence-b72f56b0a75f
 
* Deej, a film about an autistic non-speaking student at Oberlin College, has been nominated for a Peabody Award: http://peabodyawards.com/stories/story/highlighting-the-best-storytelling-of-2017
 
* Landmark College students can now complete a four-year degree at nearby Castleton University if they completed their associate’s degree at Landmark with at least a 3.0 GPA: https://www.vermontbiz.com/news/2018/april/11/castleton-collaborates-landmark-college-degree-success
 
* The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater’s wheelchair basketball teams have won a combined nine national titles since 2009, attracting students and coaches from across the country: https://www.gjsentinel.com/sports/high_schools/fruita-s-dehart-signs-to-play-wheelchair-basketball-at-wisconsin/article_f9acf3c0-3e13-11e8-8024-10604b9ffe60.html
 
* Research suggests that the more committed full-time faculty are to their campuses, the more likely they will experience high levels of stress, depression, and anxiety, so faculty need strategies to prevent burnout: https://www.chronicle.com/article/4-Ideas-for-Avoiding-Faculty/243010?cid=at&utm_source=at&utm_medium=en&elqTrackId=d01de20923a34ae8b3f0e706db38b432&elq=1eb285af06df42de852cd83c2cae652c&elqaid=18534&elqat=1&elqCampaignId=8329
 
* Syracuse University student Dee Katovitch will travel to the University of Iceland as a Fulbright specialist working on inclusive higher education for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities: https://news.syr.edu/2018/04/taishoff-center-assistant-director-dee-katovitch-named-fulbright-specialist/
 
* “Culinary medicine” is a new field combining nutrition and cooking classes for healthcare professionals, to help physicians help their patients and themselves; Southern Illinois University and Lincoln Land Community College have partnered to offer the program: http://www.sj-r.com/entertainmentlife/20180410/epicuriosity-101-culinary-medicine-is-new-trend
 
* Swarthmore College’s newspaper has a multiple-part series focusing on students using counseling services, and how they found their way to the counseling center: http://daily.swarthmore.edu/2018/04/13/stories-from-caps-users-combating-mental-health-stigma-part-i-domestic-students/
 
* Think College has published a new report on employment-related experiences of students with intellectual and developmental disabilities in federally-funded TPSID programs promoting inclusive higher education: https://thinkcollege.net/resource/employment-assessment/year-one-employment-and-career-development-experiences-of-college
                                                                               
* In India, Roshan Jawwad lost both of her legs in an accident, but now she is getting ready to become a doctor, after a fight to qualify despite being “88%” disabled under governmental policies: https://theprint.in/theprint-profile/despite-losing-her-legs-this-mumbai-girl-crossed-hurdles-for-dream-job/47819/
 
* Two decades after creating the cloned Dolly the sheep and starting research into Parkinson’s disease, professor Ian Wilmut announced that he now has Parkinson’s himself: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/12/world/europe/ian-wilmut-parkinsons-dolly-sheep.html
 
* Twin brothers AJ and Isaac Hummer have CP and both just signed letters of intent to play wheelchair basketball through scholarships at the University of Texas-Arlington: http://www.journalgazette.net/sports/high-schools/20180413/brothers-to-play-wheelchair-basketball-in-college
 
* Blue Apple dance company in the UK supports disability and the arts, and they are doing a four-day residency at James Madison University in the U.S. to exchange ideas for more inclusive dance productions: https://augustafreepress.com/jmu-welcomes-blue-apple-for-international-exchange-in-arts-accessibility/
 
* College student Verla Collier is studying art therapy and using her paintings to express her understandings of autism; her work will be on display at The Great Plains Black History Museum this month (video has captions but no audio description): http://www.wowt.com/content/news/Artist-finds-voice-through-paintings-479464203.html?ref=203
 
* The University of Winnipeg Students Association has created an accessible study and community space for students with disabilities: http://www.neads.ca/en/about/media/index.php?id=606
 
* Farmers with disabilities can get supports and equipment for injuries, disabilities, and mental health issues, thanks to a new AgrAbility program between the University of Wisconsin and Easter Seals: http://www.dailycardinal.com/article/2018/04/for-wisconsin-farmers-with-disabilities-agrability-is-a-viable-solution
 
* DePauw University’s annual ethics symposium will focus on “Representing Disability:” https://www.bannergraphic.com/story/2500009.html
 
* An accident forced Gina Marie to give up her dream of dancing professionally, but then she enrolled in Palomar College in California and faculty taught her the dream was still possible: http://youthradio.org/journalism/education/degree-interrupted-a-dancer-rethinks-disability/
 
* Wright State University has launched a new employment program to place recently-graduated autistic students in jobs at nearby Wright-Patterson Air Force Base: https://www.whio.com/news/wright-patt-wright-state-cooperate-autism-work-initiative/FzyJdEi4aC51RtKMcC7t8J/
 
* A new health center is opening at Youngstown State University, and some foresee better mental health services with shorter wait times: http://www.wfmj.com/story/37944713/new-ysu-health-center-could-mean-better-access-to-mental-health-treatment
 
* A U.S. News report describes adulthood with autism like “falling off a services cliff,” with only 36% of autistic adults attending college and only 58% getting a job after high school (rates lower than peers with other disabilities): https://www.usnews.com/news/healthiest-communities/articles/2018-04-12/autism-awareness-services-fall-short-after-childhood
 
* With increasing numbers of students with disabilities, the University of Florida is increasing funding to the Disability Resource Center and doing major renovations to a residence hall to improve access: http://news.ufl.edu/articles/2018/04/uf-plans-to-increase-disability-resource-center-staff-and-resources-in-cypress-hall.php
 
* After one election candidate couldn’t access the stage and there were no ASL interpreters available, the Students’ Association at Carleton University in Ontario is taking a hard look at access to its events: http://charlatan.ca/2018/04/students-criticize-cusa-event-accessibility/
 
* “What is health?” is the central question guiding eight interdisciplinary Arizona State University faculty members, who will present their year-long findings at a symposium this week: https://asunow.asu.edu/20180411-asu-fellows-rethink-health-and-well-being
 
* A commission at the University of Maryland is working to set up a disability studies minor, with the campus already offering 70 undergraduate and graduate courses in the field: http://www.dbknews.com/2018/04/11/disability-studies-minor-umd/
 
* Two campuses announced new programs for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities:

• ROAR is a new program at Washington State University for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities; students will live on campus, take classes, and learn job skills: http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2018/apr/07/wsu-launches-two-year-program-for-students-with-au/
• RAM (Real Achievement Matters) will be starting up this fall as a pilot program for students with intellectual disabilities at West Chester University in Pennsylvania: https://www.wcuquad.com/6010293/news/ram-initiative-invites-students-with-intellectual-disabilities-to-wcu/

                                                                                 
* “Personal assistants are my ears, hands and body,” says British college student Nadia Clarke, who is deaf and has cerebral palsy: https://www.theguardian.com/social-care-network/2018/apr/09/living-with-disability-personal-assistants-are-my-ears-hands-and-body
 
* Neurologist Joel Salinas spent most of his medical student and residency years figuring out how to deal with actually feeling his patients’ pain in his body through a condition called “mirror-touch synaesthesia”: http://www.bbc.com/news/stories-43572639
 
* Studying policy at the University of Albany is helping Melanie Hecker consider her journey to becoming a disability advocate, and what she wants to do next: http://www.albanystudentpress.net/overcoming-obstacles-advocate-students-disabilities/
 
* Science students at Humboldt State University share their experiences of stigma and getting a degree with a disability that isn’t always visible to others: https://thelumberjack.org/2018/04/11/seeing-is-not-believing-hidden-disabilities-in-science-students/
 
* Doctoral candidate Sara Acevedo discusses “Living Disability” and identity (podcast includes a transcript): https://www.ciis.edu/public-programs/public-programs-podcast
 
* Community colleges are not mere vocational schools, and 12% of community college students have disabilities, says an editorial in The San Diego Union-Tribune that responds to comments by President Trump:  http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/opinion/commentary/sd-utbg-community-colleges-trump-20180412-story.html
 
* Autistic students in degree programs at Pace University are able to get academic and social support through the OASIS program: https://westfaironline.com/101278/janet-mulvey-pace-university-offers-an-oasis-for-students-on-the-autism-spectrum/
 
* Donny Franklin was sentenced to 28 years in prison for stabbing a University of North Carolina professor to death last year, with his mental illness playing a role in reaching a plea agreement (video has captions but no audio description): https://www.wsoctv.com/news/local/28-years-in-prison-for-man-who-stabbed-uncc-professor-to-death/731717651
 
* An editorial in the Canisius College newspaper asks the campus community to consider their rhetoric about disability and viewing disability as an identity instead of a tragedy: https://canisiusgriffin.wordpress.com/2018/04/13/editorial-viewing-disability-as-identity-rather-than-tragedy/
 
* A new Autism Exercise Certificate will prepare coaches, fitness professionals, and physical therapists to work with people who have autism: https://newswise.com/articles/acsm-unveils-first-autism-exercise-certificate-program,-need-validated-by-new-research
 
* Professionals at North Carolina State University offer tips for college students with anxiety: http://www.technicianonline.com/arts_entertainment/article_ff5c5c44-3de0-11e8-a511-bf5248d5810c.html
 
* Former professor Andrew Kortyna was fired from Lafayette College for harassing students who filed sexual harassment claims against him, and then he filed a disability discrimination suit related to his firing; the courts have now sided with the university in his firing and dismissed his disability discrimination complaint: http://www.pennlive.com/news/2018/04/college_prof_who_harassed_stud.html
 
 
                                                                                                                                             
And a few related items of possible interest to college students:
        
* HR 620, a House bill to roll back ADA protections, is permanently stalled after Senator Tammy Duckworth convinced 43 Democratic Senators to filibuster the measure: https://archpaper.com/2018/04/rollback-americans-with-disabilities-act-stalled/
 
* Mariah Carey was diagnosed with bipolar disorder 17 years ago, but just disclosed it to the public this week: https://www.self.com/story/mariah-carey-diagnosed-with-bipolar-disorder (an article in Moneyish talked about why this matters and how “coming out” about mental illness can help: https://moneyish.com/ish/why-mariah-careys-bipolar-disorder-disclosure-matters-and-how-talking-about-mental-illness-can-help/)
 
* Senator Tammy Duckworth was the first female Senator with a disability, and now she’s the first Senator to give birth while in office: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/09/us/politics/tammy-duckworth-birth.html
        
* T47, F38, B6…ever wondered what all the labels mean in Paralympic games?  Here’s an article that will explain it: http://www.news.com.au/sport/commonwealth-games/sports-life/sm8-t47-f38-what-the-classifications-for-para-athletes-mean/news-story/9291e7e41c94dac07e3e14513b04f646
 
* Democrat Olivia Babis is running for state Senate in Florida, and she is talking about the disability community as part of her platform because she was born without arms and presumed to have an intellectual disability in school: http://www.heraldtribune.com/news/20180412/born-without-arms-sarasota-state-senate-candidate-has-long-fought-for-disability-rights
 
* The U.S. marked Equal Pay Day, but it’s important to include women with disabilities, who earn 72 cents for every dollar earned by men with disabilities; since people with disabilities only make 68 cents for every dollar nondisabled people earn, that’s a significant gap: https://www.bustle.com/p/disabled-womens-equal-pay-struggles-often-go-unheard-but-you-can-help-include-them-8730123
 
* YouTube star Jessie Paege has started a Twitter discussion about social anxiety: http://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-trending-43725406
 
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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 Wendy Harbour ([email protected]).

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