ADA is anything but MIA at Texas State

Elevators: a tasty and plentiful fruit of the ADA

By JONATHAN CHECK

The Americans with Disabilities Act was passed 25 years ago as of 2015, and you’d be hard-pressed to find a place where its effects are more present – or necessary – than Texas State.

Anybody who sets foot on the Texas State campus is likely to notice the relentless, seemingly never-ending hills. When you start asking people about Texas State and the ADA, the first concern that comes up for many is that very terrain.

Victoria Davila (Photo courtesy
of Hannah Hoffmann)

“This campus is already not disability-friendly, especially with wheelchairs,” said Victoria Davila, sophomore chemistry major. “There are too many hills, a bunch of stairs, and some of the ramps are way too narrow.”

Davila softened her criticism by saying that, because of the natural landscape, Texas State has more of an uphill battle to make the campus equally accessible to those with and without disabilities. With that in mind, she feels the university can’t really do much else to improve its accessibility.

Not everyone is as critical when it comes to making the campus equally accessible to everyone. Allison Tagloff, a senior English major, has learned about the positive effects the ADA can have on those who aren’t permanently disabled.

Allison Tagloff (Photo
courtesy of Josie Rasberry)

“I have to wear a boot for the time being, so walking up and down campus was really hard for a little while,” Tagloff said. “I filed an application with the Office of Disability Services and was granted golf cart rides to classes so there wouldn’t be so much strain on my leg.”

Texas State has adapted itself well physically to those with disabilities. However, the process of making sure disabled individuals are given equal treatment and opportunity here is a multidimensional process. Emily Parma, a visually impaired junior majoring in special education, believes there is a new front to fight on for those with disabilities.

Emily Parma (Photo courtesy
of Holly Henrichsen

"I feel like (the university) could help in educating non-disabled students about (the ADA) more because there are so many students who the ADA benefits but a lot of people don't know anything about those disabilities or about the ADA,” Parma said. “I feel like we still have more steps to take to bridge that gap in the stigma.”

Parma shows everyone that the progress still needs to be made beyond the jurisdiction of the ADA. It has done its job of making education at Texas State accessible to all, but now it’s up to everyone to make sure those with disabilities are treated as equals – not as a disabled person, but as a normal person who just happens to have a disability.

Equality is a common topic among many who talk about the ADA – that’s what this is about, making the world equally accessible to all people, whether or not they have a disability. President George H.W. Bush stressed this in his1990 speech that accompanied the ADA’s signing. Twenty-four years later, President Barack Obama reaffirmed this belief in granting equality for those with disabilities.

Brian Guendling, a junior majoring in communication studies and a former football player, has worked with the Texas State Athletics Department to organize a section for the hearing-impaired and those fluent in American Sign Language at Texas State football games this year.

“Now deaf people will feel welcome (at games),” Guendling said to the University Star.

While the section has been created specifically for the hearing-impaired, the goal is to make it as easy as possible for them to enjoy games like any other fan. While not directly caused by the ADA, these actions are taken in the spirit of creating equality for those with disabilities.

Twenty-five years later, the ADA has certainly improved the university. It’s changed physically in order to give those with disabilities more opportunities. What remains now is socially accommodating those with disabilities, and the entire population of Texas State will work together to erase those boundaries. Take away the wheelchair, visual impairment or other disability and people will realize that those with disabilities are just like any other person at Texas State.