Baccalaureates or Burdens? Complicating "Reasonable Accommodations" for American College Students with Disabilities

Abstract

This paper examines the controversy surrounding American college students' use of disability accommodations, a process many find unfair or undue, in two ways: (1) by critically unpacking the processes for obtaining accommodations to highlight intersectional issues of who has—or is barred from—access to such services; and (2) by using a rhetorical lens to analyze how the term "accommodation" influences perceptions of disabled students. By combining these processual and rhetorical approaches, this work uncovers significant issues regarding how university students with disabilities are treated on college campuses. Such research is important because disabled individuals are less than half as likely as their nondisabled peers to earn college degrees. Thus, despite ADA laws and pushes for inclusivity and diversity on college campuses, the American higher education system continues to fail a significant part of the nation's population.

The Role of Bus Stop Features in Facilitating Accessibility

“…Seen in this light, bus stop features are not amenities but critical elements of infrastructure and should be treated as central to a transit system's function as more traditional elements. Given language's key role in defining and establishing intellectual concepts in general (Nuyts & Pederson, 1997) and with respect to disability studies in particular (Linton, 2006;Krebs, 2019), the research team elected to consciously avoid amenities in favor of the more neutral term features.…”

‘It’s not About Success, it’s About Access’: Narratives of Post-Secondary Students Labelled with Invisible Intellectual Disabilities Seeking Accommodations

“…Subsequently, these barriers have made it nearly impossible for students encountering financial disparities to reach their academic endeavors. Many other students and I experience systemic injustices entrenched in colonization ideologies, resulting in a greater risk of feeling less than others, perpetuated by the colonizer (Krebs, 2019). Therefore, I am hopeful my story and the stories of the students I interview, will bring clarity and understanding to academia and the dominant individuals in power.…”

“…The systemic challenges experienced stem from the positivist perspective and the dominance of the medical model (Grenier, 2007;Krebs, 2019). Drawing from the social model of disability, researchers argue that what causes disabilities is "living in a society that does not account for a person's needs" (Krebs, 2019, p. 4).…”

“…The research I examined supports the notion that in order to successfully navigate post-secondary schooling, students must have "knowledge of one's own disability and needs as well as access to what resources may be available at the institution" (Cawthon & Cole, 2010, p. 112). Students labelled with IID's are often treated as 'mental health' consumers first as academic accommodations centres often use frameworks not only based on the medical model but has also adapted and influenced by neoliberalism (Grenier, 2007;Krebs, 2019). However, research on 'what is available' is scarce as is research guided by students living with intellectual disabilities.…”

Strategies for Supporting Learners With Disabilities in Postsecondary Education

“…Both racial minorities and individuals with disabilities experience greater obstacles in navigating college campuses and institutional bureaucracies that require additional time and resources (Brown et al, 2021; Cox et al, 2018; Hollins & Foley, 2013). Both racial minorities and learners with disabilities are often viewed as lazy, prone to cheating, or lacking in effort within educational settings (Cox et al, 2018; Denhart, 2008; Krebs, 2019), and their experiences as marginalized members of society can lead to feelings of inadequacy and imposter syndrome (Cox et al, 2018; Jackson, 2022; Nori et al, 2020). Institutional systems can disproportionately disadvantage minority, disabled, and low-socio-economic status students (Brown et al, 2021; Cox et al, 2018; Hollins & Foley, 2013; Miller & Orsillo, 2020), yet it “is not simply about bringing together these markers but [one must] consider how each supports or unsettles the constitution of one another” (Goodley, 2013, p. 638).…”