By Michael GsovskiThe Daily Northwestern
Music freshman Stacey Kurtz is always looking for new ways to share what she learned when she broke her leg on Northwestern’s campus.
After experiencing trouble getting around campus and into buildings, Kurtz co-founded the Facebook.com group “Handicap Accessibility at Northwestern SUCKS.” The group alleges that many campus locations are inaccessible to those with limited mobility. The group’s profile notes that as a private university, NU is not legally obligated to provide access to buildings constructed before the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act in 1990. Group members said NU’s status allows the university to move slower than it should in improving accessibility.
“Our highest goal would be to have a policy that says ‘all learning sites have to be in handicapped-accessible buildings,'” said Alex Knell, Communication freshman and the group’s co-founder.
Kurtz said some buildings that the university lists as accessible only appear as such, citing the Music Administration Building.
“There’s a nice little ramp, leading up to some handicapped accessible doors,” Kurtz said. “Then you’re stuck in a tiny spot in front of two huge oak doors that are not accessible. So (the ramp) gets you into one door, but not the actual building.”
Group member Patrick Dawson said he joined the group spontaneously.
“(Facebook) said that 17 of my friends were in this group, so I clicked (the link),” the Weinberg freshman said. “I read what was there and I thought about the buildings I go to for class.” Dawson did not recall seeing any handicap-accessible entrances there or anywhere else. Dawson said he intends to use his position as ASG senator for Rainbow Alliance to improve handicap accessibility. Among the plans he and the group discussed was a resolution that requests greater administrative action on the matter and legislation that mandates all groups receiving money from the Student Activities Fee hold their events in accessible locations.
He said he believes that by heightening awareness of the issue among student organizations, more can be achieved toward making learning sites accessible.
“There might be some opposition from student groups,” he said. “They might say, ‘this is really hard’, but I think that this would just highlight the difficulties for students that have disabilities.”
Earlier charges of inadequate measures to ensure handicap accessibility prompted the administration in 1998 to commit $5 million over 10 years to improve access. A handicap accessibility committee, consisting of faculty and staff, meets at least once a quarter to discuss the current state of accessibility and possible improvements to be made across campus.
Committee member and coordinator of services for students with disabilities Margie Roe said accessibility is “steadily increasing,” citing the committee’s most recent decision.
“One of the things discussed was replacing the outside lifts with ramps,” Roe said. “The lifts have a tendency to break down. A ramp will be there forever.”
Brian Kittle, committee member and a project manager for facilities management, said the committee’s actions might not be visible because many of the group’s decisions are carried out during the summer for ease of construction.
Kittle said he was open to the idea of a new student group because he believes in the necessity of better communication on the matter.
“The more we’re aware of it, the more we can do,” he said. “Oftentimes, we hear at the last minute, or don’t hear at all.”
Reach Michael Gsovski at [email protected].
