On Dec. 3, the campus accessibility team at the UW hosted a virtual panel discussion with members of the university.  Representatives from all three areas of the UW community participated in the panel. Carrol Hulls is a course instructor within the engineering faculty, Emily Brant, inclusive communications manager, and Jenna Porter, a UW student. This event was facilitated by Samantha Fowler, a PhD student studying English literature. 

This panel event was held in observance of International Persons With Disabilities Day (IDPD), which the United Nations started in 1992. The overall goal and aim of creating IDPD was to promote awareness and action to support the rights, dignity and well-being of persons with disabilities, included in this aim is to foster inclusion in all areas of society and development. For a more detailed understanding of IDPD, and how the UN goes about achieving these goals, click here.

In attending this event, participants discussed many interesting plans of action and comments addressing campus accessibility and those dealing with disabilities. 

For starters, the question was posed to all panel members, “What does accessibility mean to you?” Emily Brant opened up by sharing, “Accessibility is about mindfulness at every stage,” This means transportation, parking, and building designs and continued with multiple examples, the point being that, to her, accessibility in its truest sense means catering to everyone and their specific needs. Hulls added, “not only is it about meeting everyone’s needs, but it is also about respectfully meeting those needs.” She noted that not all disabilities are easy to spot, and some may not be as willing to share that they struggle with this, addressing the stigma around disabilities.

Another question was posed to the panel: “What barriers to accessibility still exist on campus?” Porter jumped in on this, one sharing that in her own experiences: “Sometimes there is a stigma associated with seeking the correct accommodations,” to the point that many think it is “easier for [them].” She followed up by noting these accommodations simply level the playing field with all other students. Hull took an interesting spin on this question, sharing that professors need better support when it comes to providing these accommodations effectively to students. She noted that although professors in some cases are willing to provide these accommodations, they are unsure how to do that with the same learning goal in mind as what was planned for other students. 

The next question was: “How can we advance accessibility across campus?” Brant and Hulls made interesting comments along the lines of leveraging technology to assist with these disabilities. They both shared examples of using AI across communicative platforms to ensure all individuals can interact with the message being shared effectively. Brant mentioned something similar to what most major airports have in the form of moving walkways to assist students with physical disabilities in getting around UW’s large campus. Porter made the point of integrating more disability awareness in the forms of course offerings. 

Moving toward the end of the discussion, the question was posed: “What do you want your peers to understand about disability and accessibility?” Porter continued to emphasize that just because someone receives accommodations, it does not mean it’s an unfair advantage – it simply levels the playing field with others. She added if someone suffers from a disability it does not make them weak or mean that they deserve to be treated with pity. Hulls made an interesting point that as a society we need to remove ourselves from the thought that only perfection is acceptable – it’s completely normal to need more help and beyond important to ask. 

The last question was: “What advice would you give someone with disabilities?” All three panel guests had very similar answers along the lines of having a disability does not make you less than. Use available resources and accept whatever your disability may be. Halls and Jenna Brant made comments on finding peers or allies who will stand by you and support you through dealing with this disability. Finally, the main point to be made in this question is that as a society, we need to remove the negative stigma that is associated with living with a disability.