Chancellor Kent Syverud,

In response to your recent remarks regarding disability at the University Senate meeting on December 6th — thank you. Disabled students at SU have long been waiting for this moment.

What you say about the two narratives of our university and disabilities is true, but you must understand that these two narratives can exist at the same time. An institution as large as SU will have many varied narratives around disability. Each will represent different truths, but we must focus on the realities of disabled students. We are happy for disabled students who have positive experiences at SU, but we know far too many who do not, who do not survive, who drop out and who disappear. We seek positive experiences for all disabled students.

The new Information and Communication Technology Accessibility Policy moves the university toward equity and inclusion, but it is nothing but meaningless words on the page if not implemented swiftly. We know too many students who continue to fight for basic access to course materials. We know students who lose these fights and drop courses or leave the university. This is an unacceptable reality of being disabled at Syracuse, and we hope you are sincere in your intent to allocate the necessary funds to see this policy practiced without fail across campus.

You say now is the moment to “conduct an evaluation of our disability services and related policies, including for example related to medical leaves, service animals, academic accommodations, student housing and other areas,” and we agree. Nothing but a comprehensive audit of disability services on this campus, conducted by an independent entity, including every stakeholder on campus — students, staff, faculty and administration – will accomplish this.

If you truly mean “nothing about us without us,” now is your moment to prove it.

Signed,

A group of disabled student leaders including members of the Beyond Compliance Coordinating Committee, Disability Law Society, Disability Student Union, and Access Collective

Published on December 14, 2017 at 4:38 pm