What Can I Do to Help?

We have collected personal statements from students and alumni (as well as others involved in the BYU community) about their experiences with disability at BYU. You can read about their experiences here. Using these statements as a guide we have identified simple ways that students, faculty, members of the BYU/Provo community, and other individuals can help us advocate for all students to have equal access to education and a positive college experience. You can be an advocate for fairness in all aspects of life.

STUDENTS

Advocate for accessibility in student housing and other student spaces. If you notice an elevator or automatic door opener that doesn’t work in your building or anywhere else on campus see if there’s something that can be done about it.  These things are a slight inconvenience for you when they don’t work but they can prevent disabled people from accessing housing complexes or other student spaces entirely.

Challenge the Narrative. Get to know disabled students. Be willing to do things that are uncomfortable in order to break through your own biases about disability. Listen to disabled students and realize that they are vital, contributing members of society. Don’t make assumptions about what people with disabilities can or cannot do, and don’t do things for disabled students that they are capable of doing themselves. Recognize that each individual is more than a diagnosis or condition. Learning the science behind a person’s disability helps you become more aware of the environment around you.

Stay home when you’re sick. We understand the pressure that students face when they’re not feeling well to come to class. However, many disabled students have weak immune systems and can become dangerously ill if they catch the cold that makes you feel miserable for a day or so. By staying home when you have a fever or other cold/flu-like symptoms you can help yourself get better faster and protect students for whom your bug could be much worse. (Faculty: consider making attendance policies that allow for students to miss class when they’re sick without penalty.)

Study History. Disability Rights come from a rich background of many different perspectives. No student or faculty member is an autonomous being, they all are made of various societal processes and norms that have molded them into what they are today. Realize this, and learn about the history that has a huge impact on disabled lives today.  

Volunteer to be a notetaker. The University Accessibility Center arranges notetakers for many students who need one because of disabilities that make taking notes during lecture difficult or impossible. We encourage students (particularly those who pride themselves on their notetaking skills) to volunteer for this whenever possible. However, the UAC does not provide formalized accommodations for lecture notes for students who miss class because of a disability. We encourage students who know of classmates who have to miss class because of a disability to offer to share their lecture notes informally as well.

Help Reform. Be aware and recognize when a disabled student feels like a burden. Help others change their thinking by standing up for disabled students who are being treated unfairly by someone else.

FACULTY

Research to find out for yourself. The Commission has provided a comprehensive overview of current state of disabled students and recommendations that could improve access for future students. Read the student statements and the academic research to gain a better idea of how you can help listen to disabled students. Research for yourself and see what you can learn from disability rights.

Contact and express your insights. We are so appreciative when faculty stands up for equal access and gives their experiences to the University Accessibility Center, administration, or other applicable organizations that want to know what resources to give students from many perspectives.

Write a Statement of Support. Faculty may not be directly affected by unequal access, but they can express their views on the value of diversity and inclusion in education. Email us your view on the importance of education for all at BYUEqualAccess@gmail.com

Avoid classroom policies that unfairly disadvantage disabled students. Many attendance and late work policies include the words “no exceptions”. Some faculty mean this, and others don’t, but it’s impossible for your students to tell. This can make approaching faculty for extensions or about attendance difficulties related to disability incredibly intimidating.

Challenge the Narrative. Get to know your disabled students. Be willing to do things that are uncomfortable in order to break through your own biases about disability. Listen to disabled students on campus and see them as vital, contributing members of society. Learning the science behind a person’s disability helps you become more aware of the environment around you.

Believe students about their disabilities & accommodations. When students bring you University Accessibility Center (UAC) accommodation letters don’t question the legitimacy or validity of their disability or accommodations. They have already documented their disability and a need for these accommodations with the UAC and they are not required to the same for every professor and instructor they have. We also encourage you to be generous by helping students who ask for help without formalized UAC accommodations. For some students - such as those with short term or new disabilities or limitations - getting the proper documentation can be difficult. If a student has come to you asking for accommodations because of a health issue or disability we encourage you to believe that they know what they need to succeed and help them whenever possible.

Provide information to your students about the resources available to BYU students. Be sure that your syllabus includes information about resources available to students on campus including  BYU Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS), BYU Multicultural Services, the Student Health Center, the University Accessibility Center (UAC), and Women’s Services & Resources. Even better, tell your students about them in class. Few struggling students will look to the boilerplate language at the end of your syllabus for this information unless you’ve made it clear that it’s there. Teaching your students about these services can help them manage difficult circumstances that interfere with their education.

Study History. Disability Rights come from a rich background of many different perspectives. No student or faculty member is an autonomous being, they all are made of various societal processes and norms that have molded them into what they are today. Realize this, and learn about the history that has a huge impact on disabled lives today.  

Help Reform. Be aware and recognize when a disabled student feels like a burden. Help others change their thinking by standing up for disabled students who are being treated unfairly by someone else.

Community Members

Listen to disabled members of your community. Your disabled friends and neighbors are the experts on what challenges they face in your community. Listen to them when they tell you something is inaccessible and do what you can to address the problem.

Advocate for accessibility on and around campus. If you notice an elevator or automatic door opener that doesn’t work on campus or around Provo see if there’s something that can be done about it. These things are a slight inconvenience for you when they don’t work but they can prevent disabled people from accessing buildings or rooms entirely.

Research everything. The Commission has provided a comprehensive overview of current state of disabled students and recommendations that could improve access for future students. Read the student statements and the academic research to gain a better idea of how you can help listen to disabled students.

Contact and express your insights. We are so appreciative when individuals give their experiences to the University Accessibility Center, administration, or other applicable organizations that want to know what resources to give students from many perspectives. Your ideas are so helpful!

Write a Statement of Support. Individuals may not seem to be directly affected by unequal access, but if one minority is hurt we all suffer. You can express your views on the value of diversity and inclusion in education. Email us your view on the importance of education for all at BYUEqualAccess@gmail.com

Never park illegally in disability parking stalls. There is a shortage of accessible parking on campus as well as in many areas around BYU and there is never a good enough reason to illegally use disability parking stalls. A close parking spot may be convenient for a quick stop somewhere for you but many disabled members of the community rely on these spots to be able to go there at all. (On this note: never park illegally in the striped access aisle next to disability parking stalls. These spaces are designated van accessible spots which require this extra space to allow wheelchair users to get into/out of their wheelchair accessible vehicle. Parking in this space means that you are trapping a wheelchair user in or out of their vehicle.)

Ways to Support the Commission: