UW-Whitewater fashions itself as a destination campus for students with disabilities

From the Wisconsin State Journal. In the picture, UW-Whitewater student Jason Corning, who is deafblind, works on a group project with fellow students at the university's library. Interpreter Jodi Landowski signs to Corning, who can see at close distances, while his guide dog, Spencer, sits patiently under the table.

University of Wisconsin-Whitewater student Jason Corning pressed his eyes, covered by sporty sunglasses, up to his computer screen to make out the images.

"Someone will have to help me identify who is who," Corning gestured in American Sign Language to interpreter Jodi Landowski, who relayed the message to a small group of his classmates gathered at the college's library.

The group's homework was to watch and analyze the film Fight Club, a dream assignment for some students, but a difficult task for Corning, who is deaf and nearly blind, a relatively rare disability known as deafblind.

Such scenes are not uncommon at UW-Whitewater, where one might also see a guide dog trotting through the library or pass several students navigating campus in a wheelchair. That's because the school has a select mission from the UW System
to provide supportive programs and services for students with disabilities.

This year, UW-Whitewater moved to strengthen its claim as a draw for students with disabilities, a varied population that includes not only students who have physical disorders, but those who have autism and attention deficit disorder, among other disabilities.

The university broke ground on a new dorm that will far exceed legal mandates for disability access and, for the first time, created a women's wheelchair basketball team to match the popular men's team.

UW-Whitewater is one of roughly five universities nationwide that has made working with students with complex physical disabilities a priority. It has had that directive from the state for more than 30 years.

"We do things kind of in a bigger way," said Elizabeth Watson, director of the Center for Students with Disabilities.

The number of students with disabilities at UW-Whitewater has been increasing in recent years. About 4 percent of UW-Whitewater students used services at the center during the last academic year, out of a total of about 12,500 students.

That compares to around 2 percent at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and 2.5 percent at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, both much larger campuses.

Because students must self-identify as having a disability, Watson said there are many more students on campus with disabilities who are not included in the count. She estimates the actual number of disabled students at UW-Whitewater is around 11 percent.

The palatial stairs to higher education at UW-Whitewater are really more of a low-grade ramp. The designers of the campus abide by a concept of "zero entry," meaning entrances into buildings are relatively flat and don't have stairs.

Students with disabilities are upheld to the same academic rigor as other students when admitted to the university, Watson said. But once there, efforts are made to "level the playing field," she said, so that all students are granted equal access to master the material and demonstrate knowledge.

The university is also seeing more students with Asperger's syndrome, part of the autism spectrum. These are typically students with average to high IQ but who struggle with social skills or interactions. In the 2001-2002 academic year, there were no students who said they had autism. Last year, 17 students self-identified as having autism.

Because it's a relatively new diagnosis at the postsecondary level, it may be that students in the past struggled with Asperger's but weren't identified, Watson said.

A new dorm on campus, the first in 40 years, will be the Rolls-Royce of accessible buildings. In the $36 million building, hallways and doorways will be wider and service desks lower. There will be roll-in showers with stools, braille and unique colors on walls and automatic door openers.

Nineteen of the 109 suites will be wheelchair accessible, twice what is required by the Americans with Disabilities Act. For the first time, students with disabilities will be able to room together.

UW-Whitewater has long been known for its successful men's wheelchair basketball team. Members of the team traveled to the Paralympic Games, the equivalent of the Olympics for people with disabilities, this summer.

This year, there is a women's team to complement the men's and, like that team, it will hopefully serve as a draw to women in wheelchairs.

Peter Lohr, who has cerebral palsy and has trouble with fine motor skills, transferred to UW-Whitewater this year from Madison Area Technical College.

"The fact that there is such a large population, the school is very accepting," he said. "Here it's like, you have a disability, so what?"

Corning, who is deafblind, takes part in daily classwork with key tools: such as his guide dog Spencer, interpreters, and computers with enlarged text. He can see near distances, enough to sit less than a foot from an interpreter and make out her hand signs.

"I really wanted to go to a good public school to show them I can do it just the same as other students," he gestured to Landowski, who interpreted the American Sign Language for an interview. "I know I request a lot of accommodations. It's not easy to be deafblind."

Corning, a senior from Beloit who is studying information technology, said he can tell some fellow students feel uncomfortable around him, but Spencer, who wears a sign that says "Don't pet me, I'm working," can be of help in those moments. When it's time to turn in homework, some professors ask him for Spencer's paper.

"Did you eat it?" they ask, turning the dog-ate-my homework gag on its head.

A new cochlear implant makes it possible for him to have a conversation with someone he knows well, but he has trouble communicating with strangers. He speaks aloud as he signs, some words enunciated more clearly than others.

He doesn't let his disability hold him back from the full student experience. He is a peer mentor for freshmen and interned in Washington, D.C., for the Transportation Security Administration, working on disability access.

But small things can be a challenge. There are times he can't get an interpreter when he wants one or the equipment he needs. Eating at the all-you-can-eat cafeteria is daunting without help because he can't see the different kinds of food.

"Sometimes I'm afraid to ask people if they'll help me with things like that because I just feel like I'm asking too much," he said. "But sometimes I feel like, you know what? I can do it myself, I don't need all the help."