Learning Something New

Special education is a big concern. Another issue that often goes unnoticed is where people with disabilities are going to live. Attention as to how the student needs to begin researching their living options should somehow get incorporated in the special education system. Students, like myself, might have difficulty being totally independent as a result of having multiple disabilities, which make their lives quite challenging. I’d like to focus on this as an education issue. At the Illinois School for the Visually impaired, the Independent Living teacher didn’t really focus on the needs of students with multiple challenges. Therefore, she didn’t inform the students that living in an assistive living setting is an option for future living arrangements. Looking back, I think that it is time I explore this issue, along with the special education issue.
In 2001, I transferred to the Illinois School for the Visually Impaired in Jacksonville, Illinois Luckily, my special education needs were somewhat met, and I even got a chance to learn Braille. Unfortunately, ISVI didn’t really prepare me for college, due to the size of the school. Even though I was finishing my high school education at a residential school, I didn’t think that I was getting prepared for college experiences- like living on my own.
There is an issue with funding assistive living facilities. The amount of people with disabilities, who want to be on their own, is the reason more education into housing options should be started in high school. (The cost for care Problem is not unique to Virginia) This article basically focused on the cost of assistive living care for the elderly. It stated that there isn’t a lot of funding for these types of housing programs without the person in need of these programs being on some kind of Health Insurance- such as Medicaid.
Living on campus is also costly. Not only do students have to pay for tuition, but we also have to pay to be able to live on campus. Really, the cost of living on campus each semester ties in with tuition, which is in the thousands of dollars. It seems outrageous to have to pay so much just to be able to live in a dorm. Because I currently don’t have a job, my mom has been helping me pay the tuition costs this year. Living on campus, for students with special needs isn’t just costly because of the expenseof living on campus, it’s also outrageously fatiguing when we face adversities as a result of our physical challenges.
Having multiple disabilities can make living in a college dorm quite difficult. As I have learned this year, it is really hard to be able to function as independently as possible. For students with unique disabilities- or even multiple disabilities that interconnect- living on a college campus isn’t easy. I have seen and witnessed first-hand that there’s a gap in just how ADA-accessible the dorm rooms really are. For me, this has been challenging because my disability limits my ability to get around successfully.
Near the end of spring break my parents and I visited the Mary Bryant Home for the Blind, which is an assistive living facility here in Springfield. The Mary Bryant Home’s philosophy is “At the Mary Bryant Home for the Blind, we believe blindness (being visually disabled) should not be a barrier to enjoying a happy, healthy and productive life style.”(www.marybryanthome.com)
Here’s a bit of background on the history of the Mary Bryant Home. The Mary Bryant Home believes that blindness shouldn’t keep a person from enjoying their life. Like the UIS campus, the Mary Bryant Home offers apartment-like living arrangements. Supportive-living services for married couples. Other services that the Mary Bryant Home offers rooms that are beautiful, and come with a microwaverefrigerator, closet, easy chair, and shower. Helpful staff members are on duty 24 hours a day to help the residents. (www.marybryanthome.com) The Mary Bryant Home has better living accommodations than living on the UIS campus.
Unlike living on the UIS campus, the Mary Bryant Home has a living area that is tailored to the blind residents. “Our 36 newly remodeled, double-occupancy, apartments and three double-occupancy suites are pleasant, private and completely accessible.” (www.marybryanthome.com) For me, this is something that makes me quite happy about thinking of the Mary Bryant Home as a possible place to live in the future.
Another major difference between living on campus and Living at the Mary Bryant Home is the services that are offered to assist residents with cleaning tasks. Living on campus, students are expected to be able to handle all cleaning duties on their own; whereas, the Mary Bryant Home has helpful services to assist the residents with their cleaning routines. The Mary Bryant Home also has facilities within their facility to assist the residents. There is a beauty salon, a barber shop, laundry facilities, in-house store, low-vision store, wireless access, and residents can even take classes through the Hadley School for the Blind.
A beautician is on staff at the Mary Bryant Home, and women can set up weekly appointments to have their hair done. “A professional licensed beautician offers weekly appointments for a nominal fee in the in-house hair care center.” This service would be beneficial for me if I end up living there, since finding accessible transportation is often difficult for me.
The Mary Bryant Home provides transportation for their residents. They have multi-passenger van, and other vehicles. The van and other vehicles can be utilized to get the residents to appointments and activities. The van also takes residents on outings to performing arts and sporting events. “Transportation for residents is provided to and from local medical appointments and one-on-one shopping, when scheduled, at no charge. Transportation to out-of-town venues is available to residents for a nominal fee.” (www.mary bryanthome.com)
In 1869, the first class of students graduated from the Illinois Institute for the Education of the Blind High School. Mary Bryant's name was on the list of graduates for the second class in 1878. The report of the school's superintendent on that class states that Mary Bryant was graduated with credit to her self and honor to the Institution. The report also states, Miss Bryant is prepared to teach music and as such is recommended to the public.
Other than the Mary Bryant Home for the Blind, there aren’t many accessible housing options for people with special needs. According to the article, people with disabilities are found in greater numbers among people who earn a low income than the general population, and we often need assistance with housing. According to the Americans With Disability Act’s housing site, there are several laws that stress the importance of fair housing for people with disabilities. In the Fair Housing Act, “HUD has played a lead role in administering the Fair Housing Act since its adoption in 1968. The 1988 amendments, however, have greatly increased the Department's enforcement role. First, the newly protected classes have proven significant sources of new complaints. Second, HUD's expanded enforcement role took the Department beyond investigation and conciliation into the area of mandatory enforcement” (http://www.hud.gov/offices/fheo/FHLaws/yourrights.cfm).
By doing this research, I hope that I have been able to educate disabled students and educators about the fact that the idea of being able to live on our own shouldn’t just be a dream for special needs students. The more we know about our housing options, the more educated our decision will be in trying to figure out what direction our independence is going.