Questioner: Anonymous
Question posed to Sheri Shuman, VP of Administration and Finance
I’m not sure if you’re aware of a recent letter published in the Spinnaker regarding the university’s failure to provide effective accommodations for disabled students, including veterans. In one of my classes, a desk that was set up for a disabled student was repeatedly moved from its place at the back of the lecture hall to a different location, despite signs posted stating that it should not be moved. On numerous occasions I’ve had to ask other students in the class to carry it to the back of the room so that the student in question had a space to work in. In another class, the promised desk did not arrive from the DRC until several weeks into the semester, and then mysteriously disappeared from the room over spring break. It still has not reappeared. Though the DRC does the best it can it seems that there continue to be issues in this area, and perhaps there needs to be some discussion about making additional resources available to address the problem.
Answered by Pamela Chally, Interim Provost and VP of Academic Affairs
Dr. Chally responded: Ms. Shuman prefers to answer this question in writing.
Answered by Shari Shuman and John Hale, VP of Administration and Finance; Associated VP of Administration and Finance
Physical Facilities works closely with the DRC prior to the start of each semester to ensure that desks needed to fulfill accommodation requests are in place. All accommodation requests should be submitted to the DRC as early as possible prior to the start of the next term to ensure timely placement. Additionally, they now maintain an inventory of spare desks in case furniture is damaged or is removed. If there are issues with damaged or missing furniture after the start of the semester please contact Physical Facilities. Physical Facilities collects the furniture at the end of each semester to be inventoried and redeployed again as requested.
