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Photo by Thom Ottens |
Disability Services lends a helping hand
Lisa-Jean Mugler
Mesa Legend
“Getting all the instructors here to make the ‘Disability
Announcement’ at the beginning of each semester is one of
the best things we’ve done in my 20-plus years here,”
said Jack Clevenger, coordinator of Disability Resources Office
at MCC.
Beginning with a three person staff when he started in 1981, Clevenger
oversees almost 20 interpreters for the deaf alone.
One of his challenges is to find a little more room for providing
all the services the school offers.
The Disability Office sits on the east side of the central courtyard
of Kirk Center, and sees many people come through the door every
day.
However, Clevenger would like to increase the number.
“First of all, our mission is to help the student become more
independent and self-sufficient, to help them achieve optimum potential,”
Clevenger said.
As evidence of that, MCC offers a wide range of services to those
who are disabled or in need of practical assistance.
General services include the categories of assistance with enrollment,
registration and advisement, seeking financial aid and coordination
with community agencies such as Vocational Rehabilitation.
They also provide physical assistance with getting supplies at the
MCC bookstore.
When it comes to student’s day-to-day life at school, the
Disabilities Office can provide help for almost any difficulty a
student faces.
Support to the students covers a very wide range.
“We do testing accommodations, such as giving more time for
students to take their test. Quite often, it’s because of
a learning disability: ADD, ADHD, or psychological disability, or
some physical disability,” said Clevenger.
If there are special needs, such as a reader, or more time to take
the tests, the office is able to help make those provisions.
“We have about 40 Deaf students at this college,” points
out Clevenger, “and we have almost 20 interpreters working
for us.”
Some students benefit from a lab assistant to help them, because
of the inability to manipulate the tools as needed.
Others use adaptive devices, such as the FM hearing device, screen
magnification, or print enlargers, an adaptive lab and health improvement
classes for the disabled.
For the Blind, there are Braille-writers and screen readers. For
those with difficulty using a keyboard, there is the Dragon Speaking
word-to-text conversion available.
Of all the services offered by the Office of Disability Resources,
the one that could have an impact in any student’s life is
the use of scribes and note-takers. These are paying positions for
civic-minded students desiring to help their disabled classmates.
Any student interested in helping should contact the disabilities
office for information.
“We also provide assistance for the faculty,” Clevenger
said, letting them know the resources available to work with the
student. “Sometimes they say they don’t really know
how to talk with the student, and that’s when we can assist
them.”
For the faculty, the Disability Center provides a Faculty Resource
Guide, instructor notification, and technical information on things
such as how to provide closed-captioning for the deaf and hard of
hearing students.
Clevenger said that his greatest satisfaction is “seeing the
progress of the students.”
The biggest frustration is when a student with potential gives up,
believing that they are unable to achieve their hopes.
“I am saying that to optimize whoever they are, and whatever
they want to be doing, that they have to be realistic. Provided
that they put the work into it,” Clevenger said. “We’ll
be there to help them out with the accommodations.”
Clevenger praised the administration, saying that they help with
the department chairs and instructors and other employees on the
campus.
“One of the neatest things about this college is that the
administration tries very hard to support services for this office.”
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