DREAM Weekly: September 3-9, 2017

​DREAM Weekly, Disability and Higher Education in the News: September 3-9, 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)
 
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Weekly Update on Issues Related to Disability and Higher Education 

Weeks of September 3-9, 2017
 
** WELCOME BACK FROM SUMMER BREAK!  **
 
** Important announcement! All Florida state universities, colleges, and public schools have closed as Hurricane Irma heads toward Florida (http://www.chronicle.com/article/florida-s-governor-closes/241121?cid=db&elq=0315ef6d12ff489ebc04081765d86786&elqCampaignId=6632&elqTrackId=6a13a11196f94e58a188adc5870e1199&elqaid=15501&elqat=1) – the NCCSD will continually update its resources we developed for Hurricane Harvey at http://www.nccsdonline.org/harveyflood.html.  Please feel free to send us additional resources at [email protected]. **
 
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Disability and higher education in the news (in no particular order):
 
* Having a disability identity and developing a sense of pride may help people with disabilities deal with stigma and with overall well-being, says new research from Oregon State University: https://eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-08/osu-sad082817.php
 
* Bazelon Center has published a new disability rights guide for students called “Campus Mental Health: Frequently Asked Questions”: http://www.prweb.com/releases/2017/08bazcmh/prweb14639842.htm
 
* “…I just don’t think the game is safe for the brain,” says Ed Cunningham, who walked away from ESPN college football coverage because he can no longer profit from a game he says is killing its participants: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/30/sports/espn-ed-cunningham-football-concussions.html
 
* The New York Times profiled InclusiveU, which welcomes students with intellectual and developmental disabilities to Syracuse University, while also preparing them for the work force: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/03/education/edlife/students-developmental-learning-disabilities-college.html?mcubz=0
 
* An unusual court case dragged on this summer, involving a Harvard doctoral student who accused a researcher of misconduct and was then forced to have a psychiatric evaluation, leading to restraining orders, guards at the lab where they both worked, and possible deportation of the student (this article includes a link to the original story): http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2017/07/harvard-extraordinary-court-battle-between-phd-student-and-prominent-researcher-grinds
 
* “Sick Chick” Shira Strogin has a blog and online store for women with chronic illnesses and disabilities, and she’s continuing the work as a freshman at George Washington University: https://www.gwhatchet.com/2017/09/05/sick-chicks-freshmans-blog-aims-to-empower-women-with-disabilities/
 
* “Mental Health on College Campuses: Investments, Accommodations Needed to Address Student Needs” is a new report based on research by the National Council on Disability: https://www.ncd.gov/publications/2017/mental-health-college-campuses-investments-accommodations-needed-address-student
 
* Dakota State University addressed a dramatic increase in students with autism, but in the process they improved the transition to employment for all students and helped faculty recognize when any student may need support: http://www.newbernsj.com/news/20170904/craven-community-college-student-brendon-hildreth-fights-for-disabled
 
* Canadian universities are now required to submit action plans for recruiting diverse researchers, including those with disabilities, with targeted start dates for implementation: http://www.universityaffairs.ca/news/news-article/universities-prepare-new-equity-guidelines-canada-research-chairs/
 
* Ptahra Jeppe helped push through a NY bill to help students with dyslexia, dysgraphia, and dyscalculia while attending Syracuse University’s College of Law: https://news.syr.edu/2017/08/with-help-from-a-college-of-law-student-new-yorks-dyslexia-bill-is-signed-into-law/
 
* Secretary of Education DeVos says Trump administration will replace current system of campus sexual assault enforcement measures, citing problems ranging from a lack of due process for those falsely accused, to problems with appeals re-traumatizing survivors of assault: http://www.chronicle.com/specialreport/A-New-Approach-to-Enforcement/143?cid=db&elqTrackId=db426a68d6da44708726a113ca9d8dd4&elq=0315ef6d12ff489ebc04081765d86786&elqaid=15501&elqat=1&elqCampaignId=6632
 
* In an open letter in Disability Studies Quarterly, three “Radical Disabled Women of Color United” call on White disability studies and higher education institutions to become more intersectional and integral to higher education: http://dsq-sds.org/article/view/5997/4686
 
* Blind since age 12, Jake Olson always wanted to play for the USC Trojan football team, and he finally got his chance after training with the team for two years through a scholarship for athletes with disabilities: http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/article/41149509/blind-american-football-player-makes-winning-debut
 
* Campuses may be working on mental health issues, but they’re overlooking the needs of international students, says the Chronicle of Higher Education: http://www.chronicle.com/article/In-Higher-Ed-s-Mental-Health/240891
 
* Many youth with chronic illnesses are arriving at college unprepared for how realities of college will affect their health, and how to explain their needs to colleges: http://www.delawareonline.com/story/news/health/2017/08/28/adulting-comes-earlier-incoming-college-freshmen-living-chronic-illnesses/589782001/
 
* Pepperdine’s Disabilities Services Office will be the Office of Student Accessibility (http://pepperdine-graphic.com/dso-changes-name-to-office-of-student-accessibility/), and the “Disability Services Office” at Emerson University will now be called the “Student Accessibility Services” to reflect a more social model of disability (http://www.berkeleybeacon.com/news/2017/9/7/disability-services-office-renamed-to-reflect-changes), following a trend at other campuses including Tufts, CUNY, Suffolk University, and Merrimack College
 
* The UK is now reporting the highest suicide rate ever recorded for college students, and some are seeing a direct connection to government policies and financial concerns of students: http://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2017/09/02/533814/Suicide-rates-for-UK-university-students-rise-significantly-Report
 
* An opinion piece in the Boston College campus newspaper suggests that although counseling and other services are important, spiritual supports may be overlooked as important options for students’ well-being: http://bcheights.com/2017/09/04/spirituality-mental-health/
 
* The first ever tennis festival for blind and visually impaired people will be occurring at Loughborough University in Great Britain: http://www.loughboroughecho.net/sport/other-sport/loughborough-uni-host-tennis-festival-13546222
 
* Happy 70th birthday to Temple Grandin, as Colorado State University celebrated Grandin’s work as an animal behaviorist and “pioneering advocate for autism awareness” (video is captioned but not audio described): https://agsci.source.colostate.edu/celebrating-70-years-extraordinary-temple-grandin/
 
* More college athletes are getting insurance, and in the process they have to figure out how much their bodies are worth (video is captioned but not audio described): http://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/20592832/how-college-football-players-get-insurance
 
* Non-white students are more likely to feel overwhelmed and stressed, but less likely to ask for help or seek out counseling, and this could be affecting their persistence to graduation: http://hechingerreport.org/nonwhite-students-slow-seek-mental-health-counseling-theyre-need/
 
* Professor Victoria Pitts-Taylor won the Robert K. Merton Award from the American Sociological Association for her work on how the brain adapts to experiences with race, gender, disability, and other social experiences: http://wesleyanargus.com/2017/08/31/professor-pitts-taylor-wins-academic-prize/
 
* As new students arrive on campus, choices about food and stresses of college can trigger unhealthy eating patterns that can lead to eating disorders: http://www.dailycardinal.com/article/2017/09/where-eating-gets-complicated
 
* Kyle Gunn is a student with cerebral palsy wrapping up his media studies at Clyde College in Scotland – he recently learned he can’t graduate because the college he can’t fulfill the college’s requirement for learning shorthand: http://www.carbonated.tv/news/disabled-student-told-hell-fail-course-because-of-his-disability
 
* Josh Bailey is “autistic and proud” and succeeding in academics and football at Mount St. Joseph University: http://www.wcpo.com/news/local-news/hamilton-county/delhi-township/autism-doesnt-stop-college-football-player-from-his-dreams
 
* Captioning videos for courses helps 99% of students, and 71% of students without any hearing loss use them, says a new national study of 2124 students from 15 campuses in the U.S.: http://www.3playmedia.com/resources/industry-studies/student-uses-of-closed-captions-and-transcripts/
 
* A new study found that young adults with chronic illnesses are three times more likely to attempt suicide, especially after being diagnosed: http://www.health24.com/Mental-Health/News/this-is-how-diabetes-asthma-can-lead-to-suicide-20170906
 
* The NCAA has proposed a settlement related to concussion litigation, but one former women’s lacrosse player is objecting, saying the settlement doesn’t cover women lacrosse players who may sustain head injuries: http://georgetownvoice.com/2017/08/30/disregarding-disability/
 
* Rider University professor Sheena Howard, graduate of Howard University, has collaborated with Marvel comics to produce “Superb,” a comic book series featuring a teenage boy with Down syndrome and his African American friend struggling with racism: http://www.theridernews.com/2017/09/06/professor-breaks-barriers-in-the-comic-book-world/ 
 
* In India, a college student was denied admission for having a blood disorder, and despite a court order, the university still has not allowed the student to register, which the court noted is part of systemic discrimination against students with disabilities: https://thewire.in/172668/despite-clear-guidelines-university-denies-medical-course-admission-student-disability/
 
* In Newfoundland, Memorial University’s student union executive committee is in chaos, with directors trading accusations of harassment, racism, and ableism: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/munsu-resignation-citing-harassment-1.4274053
 
* Traveling around the world to work on disability rights and international disability higher education issues, Syracuse University Professor Arlene Kanter will spend the next year abroad in Israel, Kenya, Nairobi, and being a visiting scholar at Harvard Law School: http://www.law.syr.edu/academics/centers-institutes/disability-law-and-policy-program/professor-kanters-scholarly-travels
 
* The governor of North Carolina appointed Craven Community College student Brendon Hildreth to the NC Council on Developmental Disabilities: http://www.newbernsj.com/news/20170904/craven-community-college-student-brendon-hildreth-fights-for-disabled

* Morgan Johnston is at Oklahoma University studying nursing, hoping to work with people who have diabetes, sharing her experiences as a diabetic with a service dog who detects life-threatening changes to her blood sugar levels: http://www.normantranscript.com/news/university_of_oklahoma/ou-nursing-student-service-dog-hope-to-educate-others-about/article_5373f4ef-fd04-52de-a0a9-1ba04a11c2f4.html
 
* Students getting accommodations get unfair advantages, wrote Canadian Professor Bruce Pardy – but the editorial board of Queen’s University responded by explaining that hard-won accommodations aren’t advantages, and professors like Pardy just increase stigma about disability: http://www.queensjournal.ca/story/2017-09-07/editorials/academic-accommodations-arent-academic-advantages/  
 
* The Office of Disability Services at Youngstown State University was supposed to move into a new location, but the move has been delayed twice and now the move-in date is unknown, frustrating students, staff, and faculty: http://www.thejambar.com/disability-services-relocation-date-remains-uncertain/
 
* Website “Online College Plan” has created rankings of their top 20 campuses with specialized programming for students with autism, with the University of Connecticut ranking at #1; programs ranged from Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) and psychiatric treatments to academic supports and peer mentoring [DREAM notes that some of the medical approaches are not endorsed by autistic advocacy groups]: https://www.onlinecollegeplan.com/best-online-colleges-autism/
 
* Faculty and staff often struggle to understand the Family and Medical Leave Act, and smaller
departments often struggle when employees are on leave, so the American Association of University Professors-American Federation of Teachers (AAUP-AFT) at Rutgers University is working on both issues: http://www.dailytargum.com/article/2017/09/rutgers-faculty-union-works-to-negotiate-more-extensive-family-leave-for-employees
 
* Could campus hate speech policies discriminate against people with disabilities or disproportionately affect them?  One professor from the University of Mexico thinks that might be the case: https://pjmedia.com/trending/2017/08/28/college-students-aspergers-sue-hate-speech-policies-says-professor/
 
* A new “Animals on Campus” policy at the University of Connecticut defines “controlled spaces” and “public spaces,” as well as differences between service animals and emotional support animals: http://dailycampus.com/stories/2017/8/29/uconn-new-policy-for-service-animals-on-campus
 
* Student Brian “Chris” Fuller is suing Lemoyne-Owen College in Memphis for not having adequate security and working security cameras in a gated parking lot behind a campus dorm; he is now paralyzed after being shot during an attempted robbery (video has captions but not audio description): http://www.fox13memphis.com/top-stories/paralyzed-shooting-victim-says-lemoyne-owen-college-failed-to-keep-campus-safe/603050420
                                  
* Misericordia University’s Autism Center has launched a new Autism Lifelong Learning (ALL) program to provide vocational and community living skills to adults diagnosed with autism or autism and intellecutual disabilities: http://www.misericordia.edu/page.cfm?newsid=2947&p=500
 
* The College of the Canyons is preparing to start a “Uniquely Abled Academy” in 2018 for college students with autism, built on a business model to develop vocation skills while “getting rid of the term ‘disabled’ because it discourages hiring”: http://www.hometownstation.com/santa-clarita-news/education/college-of-the-canyons/uniquely-abled-academy-at-coc-looks-to-pilot-opportunities-for-those-on-autism-spectrum-203809
 
 
And a few related items of possible interest to college students:
 
* There’s a lot on the line for “Dreamers” with disabilities who have a Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) permit: https://www.circa.com/story/2017/09/01/nation/for-dreamers-with-disabilities-its-more-than-a-daca-work-permit-on-the-line
 
* Meet some STEM scientists, engineers, and mathematicians with disabilities, including a blind astronomer and a biologist with autoimmune disease (heads up: some of the language in this article talks about disabilities as obstacles or challenges to overcome): https://www.sciencenewsforstudents.org/article/disabilities-dont-stop-these-experts-science-and-tech
 
* Advice for journalists about how to move beyond charity, pity, and inspiration porn when writing about disability: https://www.cjr.org/the_feature/journalism-disability-beat.php
 
* The New York Times continued its series on disability during the summer, with articles about topic ranging from financial costs of disability to finding community among people with disabilities: https://www.nytimes.com/column/disability
* Type “Clinical Depression” into Google and it will automatically offer a screening questionnaire for depression: https://www.cnbc.com/2017/08/24/there-is-now-a-google-test-for-depression-and-mental-ill-health.html
 
* When one employee’s disability accommodations worsen a colleague’s disabilities, then what does the law require?  It might not be a question of law, but instead an issue of creativity in figuring out solutions: http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/business/economy/sd-fi-eaton-0904-story.html
 
* Will Accomable be the new Airbnb for travelers with disabilities? https://www.disabilityscoop.com/2017/09/08/accomable-accessible-airbnb/24137/
 
* At least 16 U.S. citizens working at the embassy in Cuba have became ill with deafness, traumatic brain injuries, headaches, and other illnesses that may stem from targeted sonic attacks: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/24/us/politics/health-attack-us-embassy-havana.html?mcubz=0
 
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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.