Disabled students well served
Members of the Disability Resource Center (Left to right): Shirley Garcia, Janine Colucci, Lisa Hasbrouck, Portia Altman and Chris Whitaker. Story and photo by Sharon Feder '06Located on the second floor of the Student Union Building, the Disability Resource Center (DRC) serves approximately 300 students with documented disabilities at New Paltz. Despite the large number of students registered, Portia Altman, director, said that there are misconceptions of what the department does. "We're here to level the playing field and provide reasonable accommodations to students with disabilities," said Altman. The center's staff includes Altman, Disability Counselor Chris Whitaker, Keyboard Specialist Lisa Hasbrouck, and graduate students Shirley Garcia and Janine Colucci. The department provides services to academically qualified students with permanent or temporary disabilities to ensure equal access to academic programs and activities. Whitaker explained that the office serves as a resource not only for students, but also for faculty and staff on how to accommodate students with disabilities. The DRC also promotes disability awareness throughout the campus by conducting workshops in classes and residence halls. This past October, the DRC held an event showing the documentary, "Murderball," as part of their continuing effort to promote disability awareness. "We had 80 participants show up for the movie and discussion," said Altman. The DRC offers a Peer Mentoring Program for first-year and transfer students registered with the office. With the help of the graduate students, Whitaker has been coordinating this program for four academic years. The program has been expanded to include structured monthly events throughout the year, such as dinners, parties and a creative coffeehouse. The DRC's Accommodated Testing Program serves students who are eligible for testing accommodations based on their documentation. Accommodations typically include extended time for exams, use of computers for essay exams and/or the use of a reader for students with print disabilities. During the 2004- 2005 academic year, the DRC proctored 414 exams totaling 678.5 hours for 62 students. For more information on the DRC, visit www.newpaltz.edu/drc or call x3020. |
 |
|
|
DECEMBER 5, 2005
|
|
News Pulse is published every other week for the faculty and staff of SUNY New Paltz by the Office of Public Affairs. It is printed in-house on recycled paper. To submit information to the newsletter, please complete the online submission form. If you are requesting inclusion in the Dec. 19 issue, your submission must be received by noon on Tuesday, Dec. 14. Contact Eric Gullickson with any questions. Phone: 845-257-3245 | ||||