Residence halls make accommodations for students with disabilities
Jennifer Joyner
Issue date: 10/3/08 Section: News
University Housing at the UA is in charge of making residence halls accessible to students with disabilities.
"Well, obviously there are [Americans with Disabilities Act] codes that we must follow," said Randy Alexander, executive director of University Housing, "and we always satisfy the requirements."
The Center for Educational Access does not need to be that involved with new housing projects because "the leadership in residential life is so keenly aware of disability issues," said CEA Director Annie Jannarone. "They really get it."
The CEA is more involved in fulfilling students' requests for certain rooms and working on how to renovate older residence halls, she said.
It's always harder to make older buildings comply, but newer residence halls are more accessible to students with disabilities, Alexander said.
The newer residence halls, such as Maple Hill and the Northwest Quad, have "state-of -the-art" facilities meant to accommodate disabilities, Jannarone said.
The UA opened 1,100 beds in the Maple Hill complex in the last two years, and the residence hall offers two types of accessible showers.
"There is one option where, if you are in a wheelchair, you can roll your chair into the shower and there is another where the shower contains a chair. Also, there are residence halls, which contain bed shakers and strobe [fire] alarms for the hearing impaired," Alexander said.
The Northwest Quad was built in 2004, and there is accessible space for people with disabilities in most of the building, he said.
The leaders at University Housing "really go above and beyond what is required of them," to ensure accessibility, Jannarone said.
There are different accommodations, depending on what the students' needs are. "There are a certain number of rooms designated ADA," she said.
In certain rooms, for example, there are wider doors, sinks and mirrors of different heights, and grab bars for moving from a wheelchair, she said.
There are also roll-in showers for students in wheelchairs who cannot get over the ledge of the shower, and these ADA rooms have large, open spaces, so that someone in a wheelchair does not feel cramped, she said.
Some older buildings have been renovated to accommodate disabilities, such as Holcolm Hall, which now features larger showers and an elevator, Alexander said.
Other older buildings like Gregson Hall and Gibson Hall are more difficult to update, Alexander said.
"It's difficult to modify a really, really old space without significant changes in the building," Jannarone said. Some of them are really close together, so it would be impossible to add, for example, an outdoor elevator shaft, if needed.
Students in the past have had special requests, such as to have a hospital bed in their dorm room. The CEA will ensure that the request is fulfilled and help them move the bed in, Jannarone said.
"Well, obviously there are [Americans with Disabilities Act] codes that we must follow," said Randy Alexander, executive director of University Housing, "and we always satisfy the requirements."
The Center for Educational Access does not need to be that involved with new housing projects because "the leadership in residential life is so keenly aware of disability issues," said CEA Director Annie Jannarone. "They really get it."
The CEA is more involved in fulfilling students' requests for certain rooms and working on how to renovate older residence halls, she said.
It's always harder to make older buildings comply, but newer residence halls are more accessible to students with disabilities, Alexander said.
The newer residence halls, such as Maple Hill and the Northwest Quad, have "state-of -the-art" facilities meant to accommodate disabilities, Jannarone said.
The UA opened 1,100 beds in the Maple Hill complex in the last two years, and the residence hall offers two types of accessible showers.
"There is one option where, if you are in a wheelchair, you can roll your chair into the shower and there is another where the shower contains a chair. Also, there are residence halls, which contain bed shakers and strobe [fire] alarms for the hearing impaired," Alexander said.
The Northwest Quad was built in 2004, and there is accessible space for people with disabilities in most of the building, he said.
The leaders at University Housing "really go above and beyond what is required of them," to ensure accessibility, Jannarone said.
There are different accommodations, depending on what the students' needs are. "There are a certain number of rooms designated ADA," she said.
In certain rooms, for example, there are wider doors, sinks and mirrors of different heights, and grab bars for moving from a wheelchair, she said.
There are also roll-in showers for students in wheelchairs who cannot get over the ledge of the shower, and these ADA rooms have large, open spaces, so that someone in a wheelchair does not feel cramped, she said.
Some older buildings have been renovated to accommodate disabilities, such as Holcolm Hall, which now features larger showers and an elevator, Alexander said.
Other older buildings like Gregson Hall and Gibson Hall are more difficult to update, Alexander said.
"It's difficult to modify a really, really old space without significant changes in the building," Jannarone said. Some of them are really close together, so it would be impossible to add, for example, an outdoor elevator shaft, if needed.
Students in the past have had special requests, such as to have a hospital bed in their dorm room. The CEA will ensure that the request is fulfilled and help them move the bed in, Jannarone said.
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