Fall 2003 Disability Services Newsletter

Getting to the Roller Coaster Story
Michael Topel, Student

My name is Mike Topel. I am currently 22 years old, and come from a small town in northern New Jersey. During my sophomore year in high school, I founded and managed a basketball clinic for disabled children. My move to New Jersey put a halt to my involvement with the clinic.

Fortunately, I had the opportunity to re-visit my creation during the winter break of my sophomore year in college. It was there that I met David, a five-year-old boy with Down syndrome. Most of my experience with him went far beyond the game of basketball. He had an undersized stature, similar to myself at his age. I put him on my shoulders and began running around the gym. Of course I couldn’t see it, but his father acknowledged the tremendous smile that lit up his face. He later pulled me aside and thanked me. The appreciation David’s father showed me inspired me to write a short story called The Roller Coaster. This story is a collaboration of my experiences as the clinic’s manager, as well as my time re-visited with David.

Read Mike’s story.

First Deaf Competitor of Survivor TV Show

Christy Smith, the first deaf competitor on Survivor, a reality TV program, is the newest and most visibile Deaf celebrity. She will present Friday, September 12, at 7:00 p.m. at Humanities 1B50. She resides in Basalt, Colorado, and has a bachelor of arts degree in sociology/ criminology. Christy has traveled to Costa Rica and spent 50 days on a wilderness adventure trip in Alaska with Outward Bound. She most recently worked as a children’s adventure guide for the Aspen Camp School for the Deaf.

Christy survived in a hot Brazilian jungle of the Amazon for 33 days before being expelled by the Tribal Council. One of her primary motives for being on Survivor was to promote awareness for the deaf. Her presentation is part of the Deaf Awareness events on Boulder campus. For information, e-mail Karen.Boyd@colorado.edu.

Volunteer Liaison Positions

Beginning in the fall 2003 semester, Disability Services offers students with disabilities the opportunitiy to serve as volunteer liaisons between our office and other departments on campus. Volunteer liaison positions involve forming conversations with other students, faculty, and staff in order to promote a better understanding of the lives of persons with disabilities in a diverse society. For more information about our liaison positions, as well as other student leadership options, contact the DS office at 303-492-8671. Members of the DS staff have been actively participating in improving diversity at CU-Boulder.

From the Director: Cindy Donahue

Welcome students, faculty and staff to the 2003-2004 academic year at the University of Colorado at Boulder. The staff in Disability Services(DS) is ready to greet new students and welcome back returning students. We anticipate an extremely busy year with the 600+ students registered with our office.

Hopefully students, your transition to college has been smooth so far and you include DS among your tools for success. If not, take advantage of the expertise of DS specialists for assistance with your academic pursuits. Ask for a demonstration of the WYNN program to see if it is for you. Best wishes for a successful year.

What A Life!
Rebekah Eskew, 2002 Graduate in Kinesiology

I was in Nepal last fall through the first of the year doing social work. I absolutely loved it, was very good at it, and I definitely plan to incorporate that into my future as I am still in pursuit of medical school. I started work at a hospital, since I had my EMT background, but there was not much activity so eventually I was placed at a school with an orphanage. I ended up fighting greed and corruption of the people, the government, and child welfare organizations. I never learned so much in my entire life! I graduated college with science degrees and law and behold I had so much more in me! I learned how to do budgets and proposals, and ironically, I was begging for money in a third world country. I worked with over 12 organizations throughout my experience, and finished my work by getting the government involved. I worked with some fantastic and fascinating role models who are very brave and smart people; one of them being the prime minister of women and children. A fellow volunteer from Nigera and I immersed ourselves in the work and became completely involved with the orphanage. I have never felt so useful in my entire life. I faced several physical and emotional hardships while I was there: an appendectomy and children dying in my arms of cholera and other preventable diseases. It was an amazing time of my life– shigella, scabies, worms, leeches, and bedbugs. However, I survived and am a much stronger person.

Scholarships

Check Disability Services for scholarships available to students with disabilities. Call the main office at 303-492-8671 for information or talk to your specialist to find out if you qualify.

Accessibility Guideline

Disability Services has updated the accessibility guide to provide you with the most current information about accessible parking, entrances, restrooms, and elevators. TTY information is also listed.

In addition to the DS accessibility guide, the Academic Scheduling Office of the Office of the Registrar publishes information on wheelchair accessible classrooms on campus. Check the information at www.colorado.edu/disabilityservices/accessguide.html.

Let’s Welcome Our New Interpreting Services Coordinator

Disability Services has hired Barbara-Jean Slopey as our interpreting services coordinator. She has worked in this position in the past and we are truly pleased to have her back! Barbara-Jean coordinates both curricular and noncurricular events and the mentoring program for the interpreters on campus.

Prepared Effectively

Below is a list of helpful suggestions for students beginning college.

• Keep receipts of all university transactions/ communcations.
• Check PLUS to see what courses you are actually enrolled in.
• If you will be requesting accommodations, introduce yourself to your professor at the beginning of the semester.
• Study syllabi for dates, expectations, and course objectives.
• Record due dates (exams, pages to read, etc.) on calendar or planner.
• Set short term goals for each course.
• Take notes beginning the first day of classes.
• Be prepared to study 24-36 hours a week.
• Monitor your progress in each course and know your grade.
• See your disability services specialist on a regular or as-needed basis.
• Request a tutor no later than second to third week of the semester.
• Review guidelines for using Disability Services accommodation and services.

Best Attendance Ever at 2002 AT Conference!

The annual assistive technology conference, Accessing Higher Ground: Assistive Technology and Accessible Media in Higher Education, recorded the highest attendance ever. Nearly 200 attendees from across the country enjoyed the conference, which offered more than 35 workshops, several of which were hands-on. In addition, special EASI and NCAM mini-institutes were offered. The keynote speaker was Dr. Ken Rutherford, Cofounder of the Landmine Survivors Network. He spoke about the harm caused by these weapons and his work on the international treaty to ban landmines. Response was enthusiastic!

Disability Services is excited about the sessions being offered for the fall 2003 conference to be held November 11-14 on the Boulder campus. The conference will feature Beth Finke, NPR commentator and author, as the keynote speaker. Hands-on computer workshops, including accessible web design, will again be offered as well as an additional pre-conference day. Other highlights include special EASI track and an NCAM/League for Innovation Workshop. Several exciting new topics are scheduled this year: Achieving Web Accessibility with Section 508, Bookshare. org In and Out of the Classroom, High-tech Solutions for Blind and Visually Impaired, Accessible Web-CT, Delivering Accessible PDF Documents with Adobe, Distance Education and Individuals with Disabilities, and E-Text and Personal Organization Tools Using PDAs for Students with ADD or Learning Disabilities. For information about the upcoming conference, visit our web site at www.colorado.edu/ATconference.

Welcome and Information Session

Students with disabilities, and their parents, were invited to lunch with the staff of Disability Services before classes began. The staff talked about services, accommodations, what is different from high school, how and why to connect with a disability specialist, and tips for being a well-prepared student.

Schedule of Events Is Available Online

Need to know when the disability-related events will be held on campus or in the community? The calendar of Disability Services events is now available on Disability Services’ home page at www.colorado.edu/disabilityservices/index.html. To post an announcement of events on Disability Services’ web site, contact James.Cohn@colorado.edu or 303-492-5602.