A Student Perspective on the Disabled Student Life at EMU

By: Autumn Persinger

My name is Autumn Persinger, and I’m currently a freshman studying Social Work at EMU. I had the privilege of presenting at the Flipping the Script conference hosted on December 1st at the Student Center.  My presentation, “Insights and Perspectives on the Disabled Student Life,” was centered around education regarding disability topics, especially in the classroom and campus environment. This presentation was focused primarily around the Disability Resource Center (DRC) and their support, general education about the Americans with Disabilities Act, and my own personal experiences with the classroom and campus environment regarding accessibility and advocacy, all while tying these topics into how it can impact classroom engagement. 

Allow me to highlight some of the things I discussed in my presentation. I began by providing general statistics and facts about EMU’s disabled population and what disability may look like. For example, about 1 in 4 people have a disability, which would extrapolate to over 3000 students on EMU’s campus. From there, I talked about EMU’s DRC, where I explained how they provide services to students with disabilities and stressed the importance of faculty following a Letter of Accommodation. I provided examples of what accommodations may look like from my personal experience. To wrap up that section, I highlighted for faculty that these accommodations provide accessibility for a full, inclusive classroom environment, enhancing classroom engagement. 

Next, I discussed my advocacy journey throughout campus. My current advocacy project is working on implementing an emergency evacuation plan with EMU’s Department of Public Safety and the DRC, the Ypsilanti Fire Department, and Huron Valley Ambulance. There is no general emergency evacuation plan for individuals in wheelchairs. This is concerning especially if I have a class on the 4th floor of an academic building without an accessible exit. 

Also, in my dorm, I need physical assistance moving my body from bed to wheelchair. Because there is no extra help, I am always the last one out of the building. This past semester, I have been working on voicing my concerns without accepting “they’ll check on us if they remember” as an answer. I’m hoping not only to change this for myself, but for other future disabled students as well. I also talked about examples of accessibility challenges around campus (vans randomly blocking curb ramps, major sidewalk cracks, no wheelchair accessible table in The Commons, etc.) that impact my day-to-day activities around campus.   

After sharing my experiences, I emphasized to the faculty in attendance that it is important to have others help fight for what is right. Having a support network to help advocate is much better than doing it all by yourself. When someone describes a disabled person, one’s word choice can impact their self-esteem and self-confidence. So, I closed my presentation by explaining how certain language can have positive versus negative connotations when referring to disabled individuals. Some examples include wheelchair user (positive/enabling) vs. wheelchair bound/confined (negative/limiting) and disabled (positive/preferred) vs. handicapped (negative/outdated term). All in all, I wanted to share and discuss these topics because they are so underrepresented and not talked about enough. I’m hoping that my presentation gave faculty the opportunity to learn and expand their knowledge surrounding disability.  

It was such an exhilarating experience presenting to faculty at this conference because I was able to take this opportunity to shine a light on what is often not talked about. I took this opportunity not only to educate others, but to bring awareness to what I experience as a disabled student on a-day-to-day basis, which thoroughly impacts class engagement and daily campus life in ways many might not realize. I hope my presentation provided faculty insight on what it is like to be disabled on campus and, by using that newfound insight, it will improve academic teaching and perspectives. 

It meant a lot to me that faculty members attended my presentation, which showed that they are supportive in my college journey.  Having faculty listen to first-hand stories from people with disabilities is so valuable because it allows an avenue to open up and gives us a chance to use our voices so others can understand our perspective.   For the most part, non-disabled people can only imagine what might be “accessible” by definition or by code, but hearing from a disabled person’s perspective of what is accessible, in reality, hopefully sheds a light on disabled persons’ unique challenges.  It validates our experiences as a whole and gives others the opportunity to be able to help improve the college experience for future disabled students.

Educating others on disability topics is something I have always been passionate about and has been part of my advocacy work. Education on disability topics and disabled experiences is the first step towards making a better, more accessible educational environment. Through that education, the faculty will now be able to implement a more inclusive, accessible, adaptive environment for all students.  So, I am beyond honored and thankful to have been given the opportunity to share my experiences, perspectives, and insights as an EMU student.

For anyone interested in learning more, my slides can be found here.  I am also happy to speak more with faculty and interested others if people wish. The best way to reach me is by email apersing@emich.edu. Thank you!