DREAM Weekly: April 15-21, 2018

DREAM Weekly on Disability and Higher Education in the News: April 15-21, 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):
                                                                        
* A new bill in the Maryland House would establish a research group to study how college students with chronic illnesses are facing and what campuses can do to improve their college experiences: https://retriever.umbc.edu/chronically-ill-students-deserve-better-accommodations/
 
* Syracuse University has suspended the Theta Tau fraternity for what the Chancellor described as “extremely racist, anti-Semitic, homophobic, sexist” behavior that is also “hostile to people with disabilities,” which the fraternity claims was a joke: https://www.cnn.com/2018/04/19/us/theta-tau-syracuse-university-video/index.html
 
* Training of campus police can be effective in helping them address student mental health crises, but not enough campuses are using proven training methods: https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2018/04/19/campus-police-officers-only-some-cases-equipped-deal-mental-health-crises-experts
 
* Northeastern University did an in-depth profile of disability activist and third-year law student Lydia X. Z. Brown, who identifies as a “gender non-binary, queer disabled person of color”: https://news.northeastern.edu/2018/04/19/the-autistic-non-binary-queer-law-student-fighting-for-disability-justice/
 
* The U.S. Department of Education is moving forward with plans to eliminate student loan debt for eligible disable veterans: https://www.cnbc.com/2018/04/17/trump-moves-to-cancel-student-loan-debt-for-disabled-veterans.html
 
* Want to prevent faculty burnout?  Try universal design at an institutional level, writes a columnist in The Chronicle of Higher Education: https://www.chronicle.com/article/3-Ways-Colleges-Can-Help/243134
                                                                                                     
* Few medical schools accept paraplegic or quadriplegic doctors, but the University of Michigan developed technology for Molly Fausone to give examinations with limited mobility: https://medicalxpress.com/news/2018-04-medical-devices-doctors-disabilities.html
                                                                         
* Johns Hopkins Advocates for Disability Awareness (ADA) student group held a protest on April 12, calling for better disability resources and the reinstatement of the former director of Student Disability Services, Brent Mosser: http://www.jhunewsletter.com/article/2018/04/students-stage-sit-in-to-demand-disability-rights
 
* “Emotionally unfit” students could lose their University of California housing if the vice chancellor of student affairs decided they were not “fit,” said a letter to students in campus housing; this led to anger by students and quick back-tracking by campus, which assured students the rule “will not be enforced:” http://www.dailycal.org/2018/04/17/university-village-residents-receive-notices-evicted-emotionally-unfit/
 
* A new degree program at Arizona State University will combine forensics, clinical psychology and law to address issues that people with disabilities are facing in the court system: http://www.statepress.com/article/2018/04/spcampus-asu-new-college-faculty-striving-for-change-in-law-and-policy
 
* Adelphi University’s College Steps inclusive higher education program is celebrating the graduation of the first student to complete its program – Michael Shiro: https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/local/article/Program-prepares-students-with-autism-for-college-12835307.php
 
* Two countries are working on accessible university transportation issues that are quite different from what students in the U.S. experience:

• In India, all students with disabilities can have free e-rickshaw services at Panjab University, but none of them are using it (http://www.tribuneindia.com/news/chandigarh/now-free-e-rickshaws-for-all-differently-abled-at-varsity/574657.html)
• In Uganda, Tuk Tuks (motorized tricycles) have been breaking down, so Kyambogo University is using pick-up trucks to transport students with disabilities (audio story only available to subscribers, but transcript is available) (https://ugandaradionetwork.com/story/kyambogos-tuk-tuks-grounded-as-disabled-students-suffer)

 
* Santa Barbara City College has set up a new Neurodiversity Club for students, to make campus more inclusive for students with autism, ADHD and learning disabilities: https://www.thechannels.org/features/2018/04/13/new-sbcc-club-works-to-support-neurodiversity-on-campus/
 
* A contractor reached a settlement in a civil rights lawsuit, after allegedly failing to meet federal accessibility standards when building new dorm-like off-campus housing near Central Washington University: http://www.ifiberone.com/columbia_basin/ellensburg-builder-penalized-in-alleged-disability-discriminatory-case/article_d33e3ea4-3f4b-11e8-81c8-1fda8307a301.html
 
* Faye Barrett went to the emergency room with a panic attack, and was then given a letter barring her from returning to her dorm room for safety reasons; she protested and now the university is changing its policies, but Barrett says more is needed: http://www.dbknews.com/2018/04/19/mental-health-resident-life-faye-umd/
 
* U.S. Representative Gregg Harper (R-Mississippi) set up an internship with the inclusive higher education program at George Mason University, and he hopes it continues after he leaves Congress: http://www.theeagle.com/news/nation/rep-harper-hopes-disability-internship-program-expands-after-his-departure/article_cc96015d-5500-5961-881e-7a51f788ab28.html
                                    
* Many campuses and high schools have peer counseling, but don’t know that Dr. Beatrix “Betty” Hamburg created the model and she was also the first black women to get a medical degree at Yale; she passed away this week at age 94: https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/beatrix-hamburg-adolescent-psychiatrist-who-advanced-concept-of-peer-counseling-dies-at-94/2018/04/18/f3e20924-4180-11e8-8569-26fda6b404c7_story.html?utm_term=.0d9bade99106
 
* A New Hampshire mom has spent 15 years trying to fully fund services for people with disabilities to get services, and now her son is turning 18 and getting ready for college – without the services he needs: http://www.concordmonitor.com/Developmental-disability-wait-list-16899274
 
* The Yale Daily News looks at how a lack of understanding about mental health conditions and media reporting about the topic may have contributed to greater stigma on campus for students with less-well-known conditions: https://yaledailynews.com/blog/2018/04/20/what-we-dont-talk-about-when-we-talk-about-mental-illness/
 
* Irish disability activists are protesting disabled toilets also become gender-neutral toilets in many public spaces and at universities: https://extra.ie/2018/04/15/news/irish-news/disabled-toilets-gender-neutral
 
* A new $382,000 grant to the University of Texas at Arlington will help undergrads learn to design assistive technology, with a focus on recruiting minority and female students with disabilities: https://dallasinnovates.com/381k-grant-help-develop-uta-assistive-technologies-program/
 
* Penn State freshman Adam Seiff discusses life at college with autism, and ponders how trying to hide his Asperger’s Syndrome may affect his interactions with others (video is captioned but not audio described): https://www.psuunderground.com/2018/04/16/watch-adam-speaks-college-life-with-aspergers-syndrome/
 
* Tufts University struggles with physical access for students with disabilities, illnesses and injuries: https://tuftsdaily.com/investigative/2018/04/13/accessibility-tufts-students-physical-disabilities-hill-far-ideal-campus/
 
* “Talking with me about HIV doesn’t give you HIV,” says Alex Delaney, an HIV+ grad student in nursing at the University of North Carolina: http://www.heraldsun.com/news/local/counties/orange-county/article208598039.html
 
* An Irish university VP for diversity calls on European universities to commit themselves to having more diverse populations of students and employees, including those with disabilities, citing UN Sustainable Development Goals and the European Pillar of Social Rights to support his argument: http://www.universityworldnews.com/article.php?story=20180411071640489
 
* University of Colorado – Colorado Springs’ Terry Boult never shared anything about his dyslexia when he was diagnosed as a freshman, but as an engineering professor, he is a resource for students: http://communique.uccs.edu/?p=31534
 
* Ohio State has formed a new mental health task force after the student newspaper found counseling services was failing to meet international standards for staffing levels: https://www.thelantern.com/2018/04/ccs-fails-to-meet-recommended-number-of-mental-health-professionals/
 
* A math professor talks about her daughter’s diagnosis of autism, and how “pain” and “grief” from that situation has affected her teaching and research, as well as ways it helped her connect to students and colleagues: https://www.chronicle.com/article/How-Trauma-Can-Alter-your/243131?cid=at&utm_source=at&utm_medium=en&elqTrackId=595a68249c654defa93ee8114a46d49e&elq=85a2bc5daa5149bfb84c25dd6945bff8&elqaid=18690&elqat=1&elqCampaignId=8422
 
* Duke University is celebrating Disability Pride Week by sharing 30 activism projects online: https://sites.duke.edu/disabilitypride2018/
 
* “Dialogues on Disability” is celebrating its third anniversary of discussing disability and philosophy by looking back at the series: http://philosophycommons.typepad.com/disability_and_disadvanta/2018/04/dialogues-on-disability-shelley-tremain-with-devonya-havis-and-audrey-yap.html
 
* University of Alabama students share their experiences with mental health diagnoses and how the language and attitudes of others may perpetuate stigma on campus: http://www.cw.ua.edu/article/2018/04/n-mental-health-feature-2018
 
* A blind Amherst student asks why the campus is not committed to disability as a part of diversity, and puts the blame on administrators: http://amherststudent.amherst.edu/?q=article/2018/04/19/where-disability-amherst%E2%80%99s-commitment-diversity
 
* South Africa’s University of Cape Town has a new Director of Student Wellness who is rapidly increasing counseling and crisis services: http://varsitynewspaper.co.za/2018/04/17/the-state-of-mental-health-at-uct/
 
* Syracuse University has announced names of the 16 people who will oversee an audit of disability services: http://dailyorange.com/2018/04/committee-oversee-audit-su-disability-services/
 
* Ohio State University freshman Victoria Vastine had difficulty finding a diagnosis that explained her physical, emotional and cognitive symptoms, but her experiences led her to a minor in disability studies: http://www.portsmouth-dailytimes.com/news/27083/toris-story
 
* University of North Carolina’s students talked with a regional newspaper about their depression and using campus counseling services: http://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/education/article208692859.html
 
                                                                                                                     
And a few related items of possible interest to college students:
        
* After 40 years, Canada is eliminating laws that bar immigrants with intellectual and physical disabilities: https://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/after-40-years-federal-government-ending-barriers-to-disabled-immigrants-1.3887123
 
* April 20 is an “unofficial stoner holiday,” but the legalization of medical marijuana is changing as underground celebrations become public: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-nation/wp/2018/04/19/420-cannabis-cup-so-cal-is-denied-marijuana-permit-by-san-bernardino/?utm_term=.f79c6a566a45
 
* Asperger’s syndrome is named after Hans Asperger, who has a very positive and “benevolent” reputation; new research explores his role in the deaths of children with disabilities under the Nazi regime: https://www.disabilityscoop.com/2018/04/20/aspergers-controversial-past-nazis/24998/
 
* Online dating with a disability can be difficult, and every person needs to decide what’s right for them in disclosing information about disabilities: https://www.thedailybeast.com/so-can-you-fck-what-its-like-to-online-date-with-a-disability
 
* Kathy Martinez sat down with Forbes to talk about being a Latina with a disability, access to career opportunities, and what companies can do to hire people with disabilities: https://www.forbes.com/sites/viviannunez/2018/04/20/this-latina-is-using-her-own-lived-experience-with-blindness-to-bring-about-change-in-the-workforce/#1920d31b17ec
 
* New research suggests people with disabilities have many barriers to face when finding work, but are generally satisfied with jobs once they find them: https://medicalxpress.com/news/2018-04-scientists-positive-workplace-americans-disabilities.html
 
* Barbara Bush passed away – an op-ed remembers some of her more important work, including supporting people with AIDS and working to improve literacy after her son Neil was diagnosed with dyslexia: https://www.cnbc.com/2018/04/17/barbara-bush-was-much-more-than-everybodys-grandmother.html
 
* A son reflects on his older blind father’s use of Alexa and his Amazon Echo, realizing that he may have misunderstood his father’s needs and uses for technology: https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2018/05/what-alexa-taught-my-father/556874/
 
* Donald Trump signed a new law giving greater scrutiny to payees who manage Social Security benefits for others: https://www.disabilityscoop.com/2018/04/17/trump-protections-social-security/24983/
 
* The Vatican is holding a week-long course on exorcism, but all exorcists are urged to work closely with doctors and psychologists to rule out medical conditions first: https://pjmedia.com/faith/vatican-exorcism-teacher-says-he-casts-out-demons-by-cellphone/
 
* An Indian doctor with a disability and disability activist visited the Golden Temple (Sri Darbar Sahib) and was frustrated with the lack of disability access, offering recommendations ot improve it: https://www.thequint.com/voices/citizen-q/golden-temple-not-disabled-friendly-persons-with-disabilities-sikh-gurdwara
 
* Medical professionals are still uncertain about what has caused traumatic brain injuries in 34 U.S. and Canadian diplomats who worked in Cuba: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2018/04/17/scientists-cant-explain-why-diplomats-in-cuba-are-suffering-from-traumatic-brain-injury/?utm_term=.58f1a4101d6c
 
* In the age of #MeToo, the Boston Marathon’s “Scream Tunnel” at Wellesley College still offered up kisses and “Kiss Me” signs to runners, but this year one “Kiss Me” sign was from a woman with CP, and one of the disabled marthoners gave a Hershey’s kiss to everyone with a sign: http://bunewsservice.com/wellesley-kissing-tradition-post-metoo/  
 
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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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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.