College Seeks to Empower the Disabled

Seven years ago, when Harvard created its Student Disabilities Resource Center (SDRC), about 40 Harvard students were registered with disabilities.

Today, that number is close to 200. "It's a booming business," says Associate Registrar Thurston A. Smith.

Disabilities experts say that changes in public perceptions of disabilities, coupled with improvements in technology, have enabled more disabled students to pursue higher education at institutions such as Harvard. But increasing numbers of students are developing new disabilities such as repetitive stress injury (RSI) and carpal tunnel syndrome after they arrive at Harvard.

But even as it expands its resources for disabled students, Harvard is finding it increasingly difficult to accommodate the students' needs.

"We are short-staffed," Smith says. "We can't always do what [disabled] students want [when] their expectations exceed what is required by law."

The Rise in Disabilities

Public awareness of the rights of disabled people culminated in the Americans with Disabilities Act, which became law in 1990, the same year that the SDRC was formed. As a result, many students with disabilities who once would have been resigned to "special schools" are now finding arrangements that allow them to attend, and succeed, in regular secondary schools.

"People with more serious disabilities are [increasingly] entering mainstream institutions," Smith says. "Students in high school are getting accommodations and therefore becoming qualified to come to Harvard."

Smith cites the example of Brooke M. Ellison '00, who is a quadriplegic.

Ellison uses a voice-activated computer for assignments.

"Brooke couldn't have come to college 10 years ago," Smith says.

At the same time, Marie A. Trottier, coordinator of the programs for persons with disabilities, attributes some of the rise in disability cases to "new disabilities," such as environmental illness, multiple chemical syndrome and RSI.

"The definition of a disability has not changed," says Trottier, who directs the University's regulatory compliance office. "It's how [that definition is] applied that has [changed]."

Learning Disabilities

Of the many categories of impairment recognized by educators, learning disabilities have been the most controversial. Some educators have been unwilling to make accommodations for learning disabilities because they are not often outwardly visible.

"Nobody has a problem with building a ramp to the entrance of Adams House," says Smith, nothing that people are much more willing to make accommodations for people with physical disabilities.

In 1995, Boston University (B.U.) President Jon Westling publicly asserted that hundreds of thousands of students are improperly diagnosed with learning disabilities because the students and their parents fail to accept their inferior performance.

Last year, 10 learning disabled students sued B.U., alleging that the school's policies for disabled students discriminated against them and that Westling's remarks created a hostile environment for them. A judge awarded the students modest settlements totaling about $60,000.

At Harvard, Smith says, learning disabilities have a specific meaning. "These are high achievers who learn in alternate ways," he says.

The SDRC refers students with learning disabilities to the Bureau of Study Counsel (BSC), which in turn arranges for testing and works with students to "level the playing field," according to Smith.

Learning-disabled students are often provided with resources such as recorded textbooks, laptop computers for note-taking and exams and additional time on exams.

"There has been a huge step forward in public awareness that people with learning disabilities are not retarded and they can come up with the same results" as other students do, Smith says.

Technology and Resources

Two of the most visible academic resources for disabled students are the Adaptive Technology Laboratory (ATL) and the Lamont Library Reader Service.

The ATL, located on the first floor of the Science Center, has large print monitors and Braille and voice-output computers for visually disabled students. The lab also has voice recognition software to assist students with RSI.

Students with visual and learning disabilities can have materials read to them or recorded for them by the Lamont Library Reader Service, in the basement of Lamont Library. The service also loans recorded books from the National Library Service for the Blind.

While technology has assisted many students the increasing use of computers in courses has also contributed to students' RSI. Commonly associated with excessive typing, RSI is the fastest-growing disability at Harvard.

According to Mary Megson of the Registrar's Office, there are about 35 students registered with RSI disabilities. Many of the students benefit from "drag-and-dictate" software, which allows them to compose assignments on a computer without typing. And some receive typing help and extra time on exams to rest their hands and arms.

Disability specialists at Harvard say they help make accommodations for students, but that it is up to the students to specify what arrangements they need. "We don't work for students," Smith says.