I realize that Bowling Green State University has an office dedicated specifically to help individuals who have disabilities on campus. This department and their programs look great on paper but are they really taking the needs of the disabled seriously. I wondered this the other day when I took a stroll around campus and noticed that many handicap accessible utilities were no longer in working order.
When I walk around campus ever since I did the project of being in a wheelchair for a day, I check to make sure there are adequate accessibility standards in all the buildings. What angers me is that Bowling Green State University tries to look good in the publics eye, but when it boils down to it sometimes I do not believe that they truly care about their students. For instance, when I was walking around campus I noticed several doors that did not open when I pushed the handicap accessible button. I filled out a work order form to the university to get these fixed and I waited for several weeks. To this day the handicap door openers do not work which hints to me that this issue is not a big priority to our university.
Another example that I have found on campus and more specifically in the residence halls is that the university does not have an adequate system for handicapped residents to get out of the building during emergencies. I know that last year there were multiple times when a deaf student in our building was left in the hall during fire alarms because they were not able to hear the alarm. In another instance, a student who was confined to a wheelchair could not escape the building without using the elevator during a fire alarm because they were placed on a floor above ground level. These are dangerous situations that our campus should take more care in solving. If Bowling Green State University truly cares about making students lives with disabilities easier and safer maybe they should listen to the students concerns.
I am not an advocate of blaming someone or an institution, but I do believe that there could be many improvements with the current system in place. I believe that the university should sit down with students and map out a plan to make this campus a safer place to live for those people with disabilities. I also believe that if this department truly cares about students safety it should act in a prompt manner to all complaints or concerns. If you have seen any other issues that the university could improve upon on the BGSU campus feel free to respond and I will try to takes these issues up to the disability services department.