DREAM Weekly: February 10-16, 2019

​DREAM Weekly on Disability and Higher Education in the News: February 10-16, 2019

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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Just a reminder: the DREAM Weekly Email just has highlights from the news – to access the full version:

• Read the attached Word document (with active links)
• Visit our visual and graphic-based version of the news at http://www.nccsdonline.org/news.html
• Read the news online with searchable archives at https://www.dreamcollegedisability.org/this-weeks-news-in-disability-and-higher-education

 
Having trouble accessing an article?  Check with your campus library or reach out to us (NCCSD@ahead.org).
 
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Disability and higher education in the news (in no particular order):
 
* For international students, identifying as disabled and understanding accommodations can all be major barriers with cultural implications: https://www.dailyemerald.com/ethos/our-stories/features/the-struggle-is-real/article_7d22210e-30b6-11e9-a31b-3fa5e97a3112.html
 
* In a survey of over 6,000 community college students, 16% said health and disability were a major challenge to student success, making it one of the top ten challenges students reported: https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2019/02/12/survey-asks-community-college-students-detail-their-challenges?utm_source=Inside+Higher+Ed&utm_campaign=f256f28cd9-DNU_2019_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_1fcbc04421-f256f28cd9-198891893&mc_cid=f256f28cd9&mc_eid=a51c972f65
 
* Arizona State University will have a new disability studies major and minor in the fall: http://www.statepress.com/article/2019/02/sp-community-new-asu-disability-studies-major-and-minor
 
* New research shows that screening tests for depression work well with Black adults, but not youth – including college students: https://tonic.vice.com/en_us/article/vbpdym/depression-screening-not-effective-for-black-youth
 
* Brown University has created a new system that will allow anyone on campus to report accessibility concerns through a Google form, with hopes it will take the reporting burden off of disabled students, faculty, and staff: http://www.browndailyherald.com/2019/02/14/seas-reporting-system-opportunity-equitable-community/
 
* A professor with epilepsy describes “casual ableism” in student evaluations, including “I know she is sick…But this is not what I paid for”: https://chronicallyacademic.blogspot.com/2018/06/not-what-i-paid-for-ableism-evaluations.html
 
* For privacy reasons, Ohio University will no longer provide public access to student Title IX allegations against employees, including disability discrimination cases, but the student newspaper’s editorial board warns that their decision may be illegal: https://www.thepostathens.com/article/2019/02/title-ix-ohio-university-the-post-editorial
 
* Tara Miles shares her experiences as a Black, Deaf professor (video is captioned for non-signers, but not audio described): https://www.facebook.com/nationaldeafcenter/videos/476822549517422/
 
* The Virginia bar exam will no longer require anyone to disclose mental health treatment they sought during law school: https://abovethelaw.com/2019/02/virginia-bar-exam-mental-health/
 
* Washington State University’ Access Center determines attendance accommodations for students with disabilities, so why can professors override those decisions? https://dailyevergreen.com/48663/opinion/access-center-should-set-attendance-not-professors/
 
* The disability student organization at Brooklyn College (SOFEDUP) is complaining about public safety and fire drills with disabled students, including one drill where a blind student was told to stay in a building for an escort who never came:  http://bcexcelsior.com/this-club-is-sofedup-with-campus-public-safety/
 
* Can gap years help students mature and avoid mental health problems in college?  Some universities believe gap years help students, and are making it easier to defer: https://www.psychologytoday.com/ca/blog/college-wellness/201902/is-gap-year-good-your-child-s-mental-health-and-gpa
 
* After students stood up for his employment rights on campus, Krys Méndez wrote an open letter to the University of California, San Diego, saying their disability policies made him sicker: http://triton.news/2019/02/submission-universitys-inadequate-system-handling-disability-made-sicker-open-letter-vice-chancellor-pettit/
 
* Student Michael Penniman is using his University of Iowa experiences to address the university’s access problems and to set up a student group helping new students with disabilities acclimate to campus: https://www.kcrg.com/content/news/Iowa-student-turns-disability-into-accessibility-for-others-505864581.html

* In Canada, high demand for mental health services is forcing universities and community providers to adapt, but at a high cost for students caught in the middle: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-faced-with-long-waits-for-mental-health-care-students-and/; the UK is reporting similar problems, with pressure on NHS to address the need:  https://www.theguardian.com/education/2019/feb/15/universities-and-the-nhs-must-join-forces-to-boost-student-mental-health
 
* More than 200 Jewish communities on six continents celebrated Inclusion Shabbats, including students at Penn State: https://www.thedp.com/article/2019/02/penn-chabad-disability-inclusion-mental-health-awareness-shabbat
 
* Dartmouth’s Special Collections Library created a fellowship for students to learn about the university’s history with diversity and inclusion, and student Samantha Koreman did her project on Dartmouth’s history with disability access: http://www.thedartmouth.com/article/2019/02/alpert-historical-accountability
 
* The editorial board of Binghamton University’s student newspaper says the university should utilize universal design, improve physical access, and streamline the process for getting disability accommodations: https://www.bupipedream.com/opinions/103184/editorial-demanding-accessibility-at-bu/
 
* Kennedi Barnett talks about her experiences with anxiety as a student at Ball State, including how a prof told her panic attacks aren’t a good excuse to leave class, and that she should disclose her disability to everyone in the course: https://www.ballstatedailynews.com/article/2019/02/opinion-anxiety
 
* An athlete struggles with being gay and autistic in college: https://www.mensxp.com/sports/other-sports/50295-here-s-the-story-of-an-autistic-athlete-who-overcame-the-fear-of-lsquo-being-gay-rsquo.html
 
* A Special Olympics athlete and supermarket clerk owes over $2,000 in student aid after someone stole his identity to get a college student loan, and the government is threatening to garnish his wages: https://www.clickorlando.com/news/identity-thief-obtains-student-loan-in-name-of-man-with-disability-mom-says
 
* Wright State University faculty went on strike during the frigid polar vortex and have a tentative contract; one of the key issues was health care: https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2019/02/13/what-lessons-can-be-learned-wright-state-faculty-strike?utm_source=Inside+Higher+Ed&utm_campaign=10bf830632-DNU_2019_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_1fcbc04421-10bf830632-225808461&mc_cid=10bf830632&mc_eid=d5645fe552
 
* Two students with diabetes at the University of North Texas share their experiences with the rising cost of insulin and diabetes-related equipment: https://www.ntdaily.com/students-with-diabetes-share-experiences-about-rising-insulin-prices/
 
* With input from students, Dickinson College moved its Office of Disability Services and changed its name to Access and Disability Services (ADS): https://thedickinsonian.com/news/2019/02/14/name-location-change-for-ods/
 
* An event at Purdue discussed the book Have Dog, Will Travel by blind professor Steve Kuusisto, and how everyone focused on him being as normal as possible -- until he got a guide dog and everyone focused on his blindness: https://www.purdueexponent.org/campus/article_c1c4d06b-3ec6-56f7-9c58-b1b0ad381475.html
 
* Lock Haven University now allows pets in a dorm, and students are saying it helps with their mental health: http://www.lockhaven.com/news/local-news/2019/02/new-lock-haven-university-policy-allows-pets-on-campus/
 
* At Saint Louis University, physical accessibility is a problem that gets even worse with snow and ice: https://unewsonline.com/2019/02/13/slus-campus-lacks-disability-accommodations/
 
 
A Few Other Items of Possible Interest:
 
* Happy Valentine’s Day (a day late) – here’s some disability-oriented takes on all things Valentine-ish:

• Learn to sign “I Love You” in 60 different sign languages (video is captioned but not audio described): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4UwLUnvcK8w
• Disability justice is just another form of love - #AccessisLove: https://rootedinrights.org/on-valentines-day-lets-recognize-why-accessislove/
• College students talk about how their disabilities affect friendships and relationships: http://www.collegiatetimes.com/news/students-describe-how-their-disabilities-affect-their-relationships/article_2df032b4-2d6f-11e9-a2e7-135bf84951ce.html

 
* Here’s some simple tips to make your social media more accessible to people with disabilities: https://www.shondaland.com/act/a26294966/make-your-social-media-more-accessible/
 
* At Heathrow airport in London, 98 wheelchair users pulled a 127.6 ton plane over 106 meters, breaking a Guinness world record and raising money for accessible airline initiatives (videos are captioned but not audio described): http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/news/commercial/2019/2/record-breaking-wheelchair-team-pulls-plane-at-heathrow-to-help-disabled-flying-c-558769
 
* Barbie dolls will now have physical disabilities, using wheelchairs or prosthetics: https://www.disabilityscoop.com/2019/02/12/barbie-dolls-disabilities/26025/
 
* How are symbols of disability created, and what impact do they have? A discussion of everything from emojis to international symbols for disability: https://www.curbed.com/2019/2/12/18220734/new-emoji-2019-disability-wheelchair
 
* Learn about suffragettes in the UK who were queer, disabled, or women of color: https://broadly.vice.com/en_us/article/9kz54p/uk-suffrage-centenary-anniversary-women-color-queer-disabled-activists
 
* Last year in the U.S. 2/3 of bankruptcy filings were due to medical bills: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6700185/Medical-expenses-contributed-TWO-THIRDS-bankruptcy-filings.html
 
* Meet The Shalva Band and listen to their music – it’s an Israeli group of people with disabilities (videos are not captioned or audio described): https://www.kveller.com/you-need-to-know-this-israeli-band-of-young-musicians-with-disabilities/?utm_content=bufferc182c&utm_medium=social&utm_source=mjlfacebook&utm_campaign=buffer
 

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For more information about DREAM or AHEAD contact Wendy Harbour (wendy@ahead.org).
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By the way, please don't presume DREAM, the National Center for College Students with Disabilities (NCCSD), AHEAD, or the U.S. Department of Education agree with or support everything in these links we send out - we're just passing along the information so you can form your own opinions.  Thanks.
 
DREAM and the NCCSD are funded by a grant to AHEAD from the U.S. Department of Education (P116D150005).