ADA task force instituted
By Andrew Tillman
Contributing Reporter

In order to improve the university’s compliance to the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, Ken Zick, the vice president of student life and instructional resources, and John Anderson, the vice president of finance and administration, initiated the Americans with Disabilities Task Force in May of 2001.

The ADA protects people with disabilities from exclusion and discrimination in the public activities or programs in which they are qualified to participate. It also calls for specific guidelines when constructing or altering buildings such as accessible entrances, parking spaces and restroom facilities so that people with physical disabilities have easy access available.

The task force, which is compromised of representatives from the faculty, medical school, facilities management and student body, is focusing its efforts on making campus life easier for physically disabled employees, students and visitors by examining the physical aspects of the university and seeing what construction developments can be done in order to better comply with ADA guidelines.

“The initial goal is to do an assessment of the facilities of the Reynolda Campus and this is near completion. A private architectural firm that specializes in ADA architectural compliance is helping with this,” said Van Westervelt, the co-chairman of the task force and the director of the Learning Assistance Center.

The task force will use this survey as the basis for the development of a five-year plan that will address three key issues.

“First, it is necessary to have an accessible entrance into buildings, including parking, sidewalks and pathways,” Westervelt said. “Second, once they are in the buildings, they must be able to gain access to any programs or services offered in the building. The third priority is modifying a restroom in each building so that it will be accessible on the first floor.”

According to Connie Carson, the co-chair of the task force and the director of Residence Life and Housing, educating the campus about people with physical disabilities is also a goal of the task force.

“The task force is trying to educate students, faculty and staff about the ADA in general so they can be more sensitive and responsive to a range of problems and so they can be more helpful to those with such things as visual and hearing impairments,” Westervelt said.

“The professors have been wonderful and willing to work with me by providing such things as closed captioning,” said senior Hillary Heard, who is a member of the task force and who has a hearing impairment. “The Learning Assistance Center has also provided note takers.”

All of these present and future developments are building upon such past developments as the construction of ramps and curb cuts. The task force accomplished these developments by examining past students with mobility problems and “looking at the patterns they took from their dorms to classes and other activities,” Westervelt said.
According to Westervelt, a fair amount of work still needs to be done, but it cannot be determined for sure until the survey is completed.

Heard said, “There is always improvement to be made by making the campus accessible to all disabilities even if they are not visible.”

The task force, however, does feel positive about where they are headed.“Compared to other universities, the administration is very cooperative and ready to hear the results (of the survey),” Westervelt said.