By Ashley Springer
According to officials of the university’s Center for Persons with Disabilities, one of the main focuses in implementing the act is bringing awareness. Sue Reeves, the public relations specialist at the CPD, would like people to start seeing individuals with disabilities “as people rather than the disability.”
“It’s a good start, but the kinds of discrimination that you saw in 1990 still are occurring today for people with disabilities,” Reeves said. “They still have issues with accessibility and discrimination and employment. Even though it’s not supposed to be there, it still occurs in practice.”
The act is still constantly being put into place in various ways such as by putting in curve cuts and automatic doors.
“All five titles have areas in them that haven’t been implemented,” said Gordon Richins, the consumer liason at the CPD, “or if they have, just in select areas.”
Logan has made changes and improvements but it is still working toward better implementing the act. According to Richins, Logan is an older city and has older buildings which makes it harder to make everything accessible.
“The newer facilities is where you see the biggest change,” Richins said, “because the architects that put the buildings together understand the ADA and the requirements and codes.”
Richins fell and broke his neck, becoming paralyzed, just before the act was put into place. “Myself and friends that I know with disability, if they can’t get in the business, store etc. they’ll go to a newer facility in the community that they can get into to spend their hard-earned money,” he said.
Shane Johnson, the associate director of development at the CPD, hopes “not only that the original law stays preserved but that we actually add to it.”
The university is trying to do better serve those with disabilities. One newer program the CPD is continually working on is WebAIM, which focuses on making websites more accessible to those with disabilities.
“You don’t always think about what needs changed on that so that somebody can access that,” said Marla Nef, the program coordinator of Up to 3 at the CPD, “but there are things that need to be accessible so that people can view it and all those things there.”
Another new way the university is implementing the law is through its Aggies Elevated program — an inclusive campus experience for young adults with intellectual disabilities who otherwise would not be able to attend college. The program is in its second year and the CPD just received a federal grant last week allowing for a five year extension of the program.
“By that time we’ll be able to show outcomes and hopefully get the funding that we need to keep it going,” Reeves said.
Various organizations on campus are continually striving to better implement the law.
“The Center for Persons with Disabilities, the Disability Resource Center, the special education department, groups like… communication disorders in the college of education, all these groups are always working with people with disabilities and have new programs all the time that are expanding the services and number of people they serve,” Johnson said.
One of the main goals of the act is to improve the lives of all those affected.
“I’ve been able to see some of the quality of life improvements that the ADA provides,” Richins said, “such as camping at an accessible campground and other activities in daily life we Americans enjoy.”
“It’s a group anybody can join at any time,” Johnson said. “Aging comes with a host of disabilities… so we really consider that the things the ADA covers to benefit everybody universally.”
The act is “not just for people with disabilities,” Nef said. “We all will need some kind of accommodation at some point.”
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