Day in and day out, ETSU Disability Services are working tirelessly to accommodate students with disabilities here at ETSU and increase the value of their experiences on campus.
Housed in room 390 of the Culp Center, Disability Services (DS) aids in creating a comfortable environment of self-expression, self-awareness and self-determination on and off-campus by providing resources and advocacy for students with disabilities.
Through this self-awareness, Disability Services is aimed at highlighting disability issues here at ETSU and allowing these issues to dissolve through hard work, progression and attentive listening and understanding. When students or staff identify a need through the service, Disability Services listens to accommodate the area of necessity- that’s why the Assistive Technology Lab was created in Room 310 of the Culp Center.
“The need was identified in our everyday work with students while having conversations about disability and how they are specifically impacted,” says Laura Singleton, Assistant Director of Disability Services. There has historically been an assistive technology lab within Disability Service, but the setup has changed throughout the past several years.
“Many students with disabilities utilize specific software that is not always found on computers across campus,” said Singleton, “Not only does the lab have the accessible software, but it is a place that is quiet in nature which helps students who struggle with focusing and distractibility.”
The department hopes to bring an atmosphere to students that allows for increased productivity away from large groups of people, where they can “a space where our students can feel comfortable working on coursework and not worrying about navigating technology for access,” says Singleton and colleagues Mary Little, Director, and Matthew Gilbert, Accessibility Coordinator of Disability Services.
With the implementation of the new Accessibility Lab, these computers give students the ability to access software like JAWS, Zoom Text, NVDA, Natural Reader with and without Dyslexic font, Amazon Kindle, and Tactiq, along with individual magnifiers. Monday through Friday, all students registered through Disability Services are free to use the lab for any services or technology needs they may possess.
While the lab is just one extension of Disability Services, the inclusion of adaptive software is a step in the direction of the program’s lined goal of “universal design and accessibility across the campus,” says Singleton. To register with Disability Services, students are encouraged to come by the office in person, call, email or access the registration online to begin the process. For more information on Disability Service or to access the registration form, please visit etsu.edu/students/ds.
