WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:04.000 My name is Natalia Rivera. I'm a doctoral student. 00:00:04.000 --> 00:00:08.000 And, well, doctoral graduate actually. And in the Department of Hispanic 00:00:08.000 --> 00:00:10.730 Languages and Literature at the University of Pittsburgh. 00:00:10.730 --> 00:00:15.790 I'm also a Spanish Instructor and I specialize in Latin American and 00:00:15.790 --> 00:00:19.400 Italian literature and critical disability studies. 00:00:20.202 --> 00:00:24.602 So my interests, my academic interests are intimately tied to my personal 00:00:24.602 --> 00:00:29.642 experience as a student and now instructor with 00:00:29.901 --> 00:00:33.611 a learning disability and co-occurring anxiety. 00:00:33.691 --> 00:00:38.361 So, the first memory that I remember, just on a personal level, 00:00:38.361 --> 00:00:42.501 recognizing that there was some access issues or some degree of 00:00:44.101 --> 00:00:49.111 especially in the high school level, some degree of 00:00:50.729 --> 00:00:54.619 a lack of knowledge, really, of different types of learning styles 00:00:54.759 --> 00:00:58.559 and different types of processing speeds because of my diagnosis of attention 00:00:58.559 --> 00:01:02.519 deficit disorder. One of the key components of how that, 00:01:02.519 --> 00:01:06.519 you know, how ADD affects me is that I have a slower processing speed. 00:01:06.519 --> 00:01:11.256 So, while my reading comprehension is strong, 00:01:13.002 --> 00:01:16.151 my processing speed affects my writing speed so I'm not always 00:01:16.151 --> 00:01:20.151 able to produce a paragraph in a timely manner. So, we often 00:01:20.151 --> 00:01:24.151 had prompts in English class. This was in tenth grade and 00:01:24.151 --> 00:01:28.651 the expectation was that we would be able to write a paragraph in half-hour. 00:01:28.802 --> 00:01:32.802 And often times I would need double amount of time. I would need an hour. 00:01:32.802 --> 00:01:36.292 And sometimes I wouldn't even be able to finish one simple paragraph 00:01:36.292 --> 00:01:37.492 in an hour. 00:01:38.263 --> 00:01:42.263 And I remember my English instructor, at the time, 00:01:43.023 --> 00:01:45.925 after class when I sort of approached her and said, 00:01:45.925 --> 00:01:49.275 "Umm, hey. Not withstanding the additional time. I wasn't 00:01:49.275 --> 00:01:52.861 really able to finish my paragraph." And I remember she looked at me 00:01:52.861 --> 00:01:57.682 incredulous and said to me, "I mean, if you can't even write a paragraph, 00:01:57.682 --> 00:02:01.682 a simple paragraph in one hour, I don't know what to tell you." 00:02:02.899 --> 00:02:08.449 So, I remember that moment. I also remember later on 00:02:08.449 --> 00:02:12.449 when I was preparing for AP Exams. This also happened in high school. 00:02:12.449 --> 00:02:17.899 This was my junior year. I was taking an AP World History class 00:02:18.864 --> 00:02:23.464 And I remember that I approached my instructor, already knowing on my own 00:02:23.464 --> 00:02:27.334 because I had already had plenty of experience advocating for myself since 00:02:27.334 --> 00:02:31.684 I was a child. I already knew that all standardized testing 00:02:31.738 --> 00:02:35.258 had a process for requesting accommodations. 00:02:35.258 --> 00:02:39.458 So, I remember approaching my AP World History Exam and- 00:02:39.458 --> 00:02:43.548 I meant, my AP World History teacher and explaining to him 00:02:43.548 --> 00:02:49.028 that I was registered with disability resources, that I had a documented 00:02:49.028 --> 00:02:53.028 disability and that these were the particular accommodations I needed 00:02:53.028 --> 00:02:55.568 time and a half. It was a very common accommodation. 00:02:57.074 --> 00:03:01.074 And I remember him telling me, "I don't have a problem providing you 00:03:01.074 --> 00:03:05.274 classroom accommodations. I'm just not sure that 00:03:06.644 --> 00:03:10.644 that extended time is provided on the AP Exam." And I was just 00:03:10.644 --> 00:03:14.644 flabbergasted that an instructor would actively misinform me that way 00:03:14.644 --> 00:03:18.644 because even I knew at the tender age of, I don't know, sixteen, 00:03:19.340 --> 00:03:23.340 that ATS always provided a process for requesting 00:03:23.340 --> 00:03:27.340 accommodation. So, I was stunned that an adult felt that he could 00:03:27.340 --> 00:03:31.340 just misinform me that way. And I know 00:03:31.340 --> 00:03:35.340 that misinforming me not necessarily with a negative intent, but he 00:03:35.354 --> 00:03:39.354 genuinely had no notion of the process. And 00:03:40.017 --> 00:03:44.017 yeah. So, it's un-willful misinformation, but 00:03:45.123 --> 00:03:49.123 the effect is similar. Because imagine had he said something like that 00:03:49.123 --> 00:03:53.123 to a student who had no idea how to request accommodations. 00:03:53.337 --> 00:03:58.337 You know, how to attain an evaluation needed to substantiate 00:03:58.337 --> 00:04:02.337 the need for accommodations. So it's just a lot of misinformation 00:04:05.736 --> 00:04:09.346 enabled with ignorance and not so much malice. 00:04:09.346 --> 00:04:13.266 But, just the complete lack of information out there just really compromises 00:04:13.266 --> 00:04:16.376 student's ability to advocate for themselves. 00:04:18.595 --> 00:04:22.595 In my personal work with the disability rights 00:04:22.595 --> 00:04:26.035 community because I worked two and a half years at a disability 00:04:26.035 --> 00:04:28.875 rights organization called Autistic Self Advocacy Network 00:04:29.417 --> 00:04:33.417 and meeting a lot of people my age 00:04:34.693 --> 00:04:38.343 a lot of students don't find out that they have a diagnosis until much later 00:04:38.343 --> 00:04:42.343 in life. Once they start picking up on their own symptoms, they seek 00:04:42.343 --> 00:04:46.343 out individually supports. So I 00:04:46.343 --> 00:04:50.343 certainly, on a personal level, I benefited from my 00:04:50.343 --> 00:04:53.603 mother's knowledge and from her experiences as a parent advocate. 00:04:54.640 --> 00:04:58.955 I think my awareness of a level of discrimination 00:04:59.141 --> 00:05:02.971 even if it was kind of on the level of microaggression, 00:05:02.971 --> 00:05:06.971 I think I had more awareness of discrimination at the high school level 00:05:07.007 --> 00:05:10.831 but, my initial exposure to advocacy really happened when I was young 00:05:10.831 --> 00:05:14.831 and I remember going... There were some days off from school 00:05:14.831 --> 00:05:18.831 and I remember going to the office with my mom. And I remember meeting 00:05:18.831 --> 00:05:22.831 other moms and seeing her work part time at 00:05:22.831 --> 00:05:26.831 this parent advocacy group for parents with disabilities 00:05:26.831 --> 00:05:30.831 so I thank my mother for, you know, introducing me 00:05:30.831 --> 00:05:34.831 to the concept of self advocacy and for empowering me 00:05:34.831 --> 00:05:38.831 to use it in every aspect of my life and at a professional level 00:05:38.831 --> 00:05:42.321 and an academic level, as well. 00:05:42.920 --> 00:05:46.920 So, I don't really remember the day of the Americans with Disabilities Act 00:05:46.920 --> 00:05:50.920 'cause I was just a couple of months old. 00:05:51.651 --> 00:05:55.651 But, the impact on me, basically I sincerely 00:05:55.651 --> 00:05:59.651 doubt had I been born, I don't know, forty years ago 00:05:59.651 --> 00:06:03.261 as opposed to thirty years ago, there's a possibility that I would not have 00:06:03.261 --> 00:06:06.291 attended college. And even if I had attended college, 00:06:06.291 --> 00:06:10.291 I just sort of feel that I would have never considered doing a 00:06:10.291 --> 00:06:14.718 PhD, if it hadn't been for the Americans with Disabilities Act. 00:06:15.197 --> 00:06:19.197 Because graduate school, the level of support at the undergraduate level, 00:06:19.197 --> 00:06:22.727 at least at a liberal arts college, 00:06:22.727 --> 00:06:26.477 that tends to be more supportive is radically different from graduate school 00:06:26.477 --> 00:06:30.477 where the level of support is practically non-existent, I feel 00:06:30.477 --> 00:06:33.187 and I think a lot of graduate students feel the same way. 00:06:33.187 --> 00:06:37.187 So without the ADA, I'm not even sure I would have been fortunate enough 00:06:37.187 --> 00:06:41.187 to attend college so I think that it offered me 00:06:41.187 --> 00:06:45.187 the protections that I needed to go beyond what my 00:06:45.187 --> 00:06:49.187 wildest dreams, right? So I feel like... 00:06:50.595 --> 00:06:54.595 I've had a very privileged life and I'm grateful for my academic 00:06:54.595 --> 00:06:58.368 opportunities that I know there are so many deserving students 00:06:58.595 --> 00:07:02.595 who didn't have the opportunities that I had and I'm not only grateful to my family 00:07:02.595 --> 00:07:06.595 for their unyielding dedication 00:07:06.595 --> 00:07:10.595 to advocacy and also very 00:07:10.595 --> 00:07:14.595 grateful for the ADA as well. I mean, disabilities definitely run in my family 00:07:14.595 --> 00:07:18.505 neuro-developmental disabilities, learning disabilities. I do have a cousin who 00:07:18.505 --> 00:07:22.505 was on the autism spectrum and 00:07:22.505 --> 00:07:26.505 I don't think, by no means, benefited 00:07:28.552 --> 00:07:32.552 by the protections offered by the Americans with Disabilities Act in the 00:07:32.552 --> 00:07:35.809 same degree that I did. I think unfortunately because I think there 00:07:35.809 --> 00:07:38.072 still cultural stigma 00:07:38.722 --> 00:07:42.722 particularly if an autism spectrum disorder 00:07:42.722 --> 00:07:46.722 co-occurs with a intellectual disability, but he 00:07:46.722 --> 00:07:50.722 finished his associate's degree with minimal supports. 00:07:50.722 --> 00:07:54.722 I think because the ADA empowered me, I feel like 00:07:54.722 --> 00:07:58.722 I'm prepared as an instructor to offer support 00:07:58.722 --> 00:08:02.722 to students with other disabilities. I have 00:08:02.722 --> 00:08:06.722 students with documented disabilities and I feel that because 00:08:06.722 --> 00:08:10.722 of my personal experience as a student 00:08:10.722 --> 00:08:14.722 with disability, I feel much more prepared to work with 00:08:14.722 --> 00:08:18.722 a wider range of students who need different needs and I'm prepared 00:08:18.722 --> 00:08:22.722 to be accommodating and I'm prepared to 00:08:23.537 --> 00:08:27.537 at least endeavored to make students feel like they're valuable members of 00:08:27.537 --> 00:08:31.537 my classroom. I'm not a perfect instructor. I still have a lot to learn 00:08:31.585 --> 00:08:35.585 but, I think that level of 00:08:36.187 --> 00:08:41.047 humanity, I think, that speaks to a lot of students and I think that I'm 00:08:41.047 --> 00:08:45.047 better able to connect to connect with my students. So, 00:08:45.047 --> 00:08:49.047 the ADA allowed me to be useful as an instructor, basically. But, I 00:08:49.047 --> 00:08:53.047 remember one interview I did with a student on the 00:08:53.047 --> 00:08:57.047 autism spectrum, who was attending a 00:08:57.047 --> 00:09:01.047 college specifically for students with learning disabilities. 00:09:03.258 --> 00:09:08.708 And she made a very astute observation about 00:09:10.749 --> 00:09:14.749 learning disabilities under colleges and sort of their 00:09:15.586 --> 00:09:19.986 focus on vocational training as opposed to academic training and 00:09:20.174 --> 00:09:24.174 this was a smart girl who wanted to 00:09:25.263 --> 00:09:29.263 pursue a degree in the humanities and she was doing an Interdisciplinary Liberal 00:09:29.263 --> 00:09:33.263 Arts degree, but she couldn't take philosophy, for instance. Or 00:09:33.263 --> 00:09:37.263 she couldn't do a major in history. And I think the way 00:09:37.263 --> 00:09:41.263 the classes, the course work, the curriculum, 00:09:41.263 --> 00:09:45.263 just how all the academic options were structured in this particular college 00:09:45.903 --> 00:09:49.903 it sort of reinforced this idea that traditional academic 00:09:49.903 --> 00:09:53.903 disciplines are somehow out of reach for a student who 00:09:53.903 --> 00:09:57.903 reads as having an intellectual disability or who reads as having 00:09:59.485 --> 00:10:03.485 potential learning difficulties and she lamented and I 00:10:03.485 --> 00:10:07.485 wholeheartedly agreed with her appraisal. She lamented the fact that she couldn't 00:10:07.922 --> 00:10:11.922 pursue a traditional discipline she would have wanted. She wanted to be a historian. 00:10:14.640 --> 00:10:18.640 So I think that in a way, people wouldn't really read the legislation 00:10:18.640 --> 00:10:22.640 very carefully. I guess in their attempt 00:10:22.640 --> 00:10:27.180 to sort of include people, they're inadvertently limiting the options 00:10:27.180 --> 00:10:31.180 for a lot of students because there are students who may need to 00:10:31.180 --> 00:10:35.180 do- There are students who may want to pursue 00:10:35.679 --> 00:10:39.679 physics, right? But they need a longer timeline to complete 00:10:39.679 --> 00:10:43.679 their coursework, but it's just in a traditional four-year 00:10:44.129 --> 00:10:48.129 college. Those mechanisms just aren't in place to provide 00:10:48.129 --> 00:10:52.129 that support system for a student who needs additional support, but 00:10:52.129 --> 00:10:55.769 who wants to pursue a traditional academic discipline. So, I think in that 00:10:55.769 --> 00:10:59.769 regard, even though the spirit of the ADA, you definitely get the sense 00:10:59.769 --> 00:11:03.769 with the wording of the legislation that I mean it's intended to 00:11:03.769 --> 00:11:07.769 sort of correct that kind of 00:11:08.687 --> 00:11:12.687 societal exclusion and academic exclusion of students who want to pursue traditional 00:11:12.687 --> 00:11:16.687 disciplines, but I think in that regard, the level of 00:11:19.754 --> 00:11:23.754 enforcement I think is still very differential. I think another thing 00:11:23.754 --> 00:11:27.754 that I do want to add, just for my personal 00:11:28.605 --> 00:11:31.345 observations as an instructor, 00:11:32.355 --> 00:11:36.355 the regular enforcement of the 2009 Amendment - 00:11:36.355 --> 00:11:40.355 which was critical in the sense that it sort of broadened the category of 00:11:40.355 --> 00:11:44.355 disability to include vary proteins. And by "protein", I mean, 00:11:45.658 --> 00:11:49.658 very inconsistent disabilities. So, For instance, 00:11:49.658 --> 00:11:53.658 something like cancer or a auto- immune disorder 00:11:54.315 --> 00:11:58.315 finally was incorporated into this broader category of disabilities, so it wasn't 00:11:58.315 --> 00:12:02.315 just- So, that 2009 Amendment was critical because 00:12:02.315 --> 00:12:06.315 it rendered clear that disability did not have to be 00:12:06.315 --> 00:12:10.315 "stable". It did not have to be a "consistent" 00:12:10.315 --> 00:12:14.315 you know, "putatively consistent" physical disability to qualify 00:12:15.138 --> 00:12:19.478 as a disability under the legislation. So, this included you know 00:12:21.469 --> 00:12:25.949 disabilities, whether somatic or cognitive disabilities 00:12:27.805 --> 00:12:32.145 that were either inconsistent in nature or went through periods of 00:12:32.145 --> 00:12:34.795 remission. So, something like bipolar disorder, right? 00:12:34.795 --> 00:12:38.795 So, the 2008 Amendment, what was great about it was that it made clear that 00:12:39.220 --> 00:12:43.220 not withstanding the point through which you're sort of going 00:12:44.200 --> 00:12:47.961 sort of like thinking something like bipolar disorder where you're going 00:12:47.961 --> 00:12:51.961 through sort of a manic depressive episode that at a institutional 00:12:51.961 --> 00:12:55.961 level there was still a responsibility to provide adequate supports to that person 00:12:55.961 --> 00:12:59.961 who was experiencing cyclical changes. And what I've noticed 00:12:59.961 --> 00:13:03.961 at the university level, especially with science programs, 00:13:05.859 --> 00:13:09.859 that they include a tidbit that actually seems very almost 00:13:09.859 --> 00:13:13.569 unlawful to me. You look at the 00:13:15.025 --> 00:13:18.705 graduate handbooks and the undergraduate handbooks as well 00:13:18.705 --> 00:13:22.505 they have this very strange policy that you're supposed to 00:13:22.705 --> 00:13:26.705 let your professors know about your disability. That you 00:13:26.705 --> 00:13:30.705 must tell your professors within the first two weeks of the semester 00:13:31.506 --> 00:13:35.506 that you have documented disability. The problem is that a lot of 00:13:35.506 --> 00:13:39.506 disabilities don't work that way. There are moments where you're 00:13:39.506 --> 00:13:43.056 "functional". You know, relatively functional and there are moments where 00:13:43.056 --> 00:13:47.616 you are not functional in sort of socially understood terms, right? 00:13:48.850 --> 00:13:52.850 And especially for students, this is not unusual for students who 00:13:52.850 --> 00:13:56.640 receive a diagnosis later in life when they're just commencing college 00:13:56.640 --> 00:14:00.760 which is a transitional period, so it makes sense that certain symptoms 00:14:00.760 --> 00:14:04.660 that were not disabling in other contexts, suddenly become disabling 00:14:04.660 --> 00:14:08.850 when you enter college. And that policy 00:14:08.850 --> 00:14:10.500 basically 00:14:11.955 --> 00:14:15.955 basically misinforms students into 00:14:15.955 --> 00:14:19.955 thinking that they are not able 00:14:19.955 --> 00:14:23.955 to request supports when they've reached a point where their 00:14:23.955 --> 00:14:27.955 condition has become so disabling that they can't necessarily meet 00:14:27.955 --> 00:14:31.715 requirements in the expected time frame. So, it's almost as if there's like a 00:14:31.715 --> 00:14:35.715 mechanism in place to give the 00:14:35.715 --> 00:14:39.715 false impression that you're not able to receive supports 00:14:39.715 --> 00:14:43.715 later in the semester. So, I think in that sense it's more like 00:14:43.715 --> 00:14:47.715 even if there are protections in place, institutional ignorance 00:14:47.715 --> 00:14:51.715 and the regular enforcement continue to be a problem. So, if I could pick one 00:14:51.715 --> 00:14:55.365 thing that needs to change in terms of access... 00:14:55.963 --> 00:14:59.863 I'm gonna start a little bit abstract and then I'm gonna try to clarify what I mean 00:14:59.863 --> 00:15:03.863 I think we need to sort of overcome this concept of 00:15:03.863 --> 00:15:07.863 autonomy. What do I mean by that? And I think a lot of 00:15:07.863 --> 00:15:11.863 disability rights activists, when we think about advocacy, they do think about 00:15:11.863 --> 00:15:15.863 in terms of no collective grassroots movement, so there is an 00:15:15.863 --> 00:15:19.863 emphasis on relationality, there's an emphasis on mutual support. 00:15:20.666 --> 00:15:24.666 And I think traditionally in just 00:15:24.666 --> 00:15:27.546 Occidental culture, in Western culture, 00:15:28.598 --> 00:15:32.598 the responsibility for seeking social accommodations for disabilities, 00:15:32.598 --> 00:15:36.598 largely incumbent upon the individual and not society. 00:15:37.391 --> 00:15:41.231 I think the ADA certainly 00:15:41.231 --> 00:15:45.231 gives the impression right? That social 00:15:45.231 --> 00:15:49.231 accommodation is in fact, what the terms or the phrase suggests, right? 00:15:49.231 --> 00:15:53.231 "A social responsibility", but in practice it's not treated like a 00:15:53.231 --> 00:15:57.231 collective responsibility and I see this a lot in the university in administration 00:15:57.231 --> 00:16:01.231 level. So when a student begins 00:16:01.231 --> 00:16:05.726 college, not only are you responsible for time management, 00:16:05.726 --> 00:16:09.726 for learning how to live independently for the first time, if that's the case, 00:16:09.726 --> 00:16:13.726 learning to live with roommates, which may not actually be accessible for you 00:16:13.726 --> 00:16:17.726 if you're a student with a disability. You are also responsible for coordinating your 00:16:17.726 --> 00:16:21.726 own accommodations and depending on the kinds of 00:16:21.726 --> 00:16:25.726 accommodations that you need, I think at the undergraduate level - in my case - 00:16:26.146 --> 00:16:30.146 it wasn't so overwhelming, I could still manage it, but at the graduate level 00:16:30.146 --> 00:16:34.146 to try to request new accommodations, based on the new needs that you 00:16:34.146 --> 00:16:38.146 develop because of the shifting levels of work and 00:16:40.500 --> 00:16:44.500 sort of in the overall. It's just your coursework is just more demanding 00:16:44.500 --> 00:16:46.090 at the graduate level. 00:16:46.730 --> 00:16:50.730 There needs to be a way for social accommodation, 00:16:50.730 --> 00:16:53.970 academic accommodations to be- 00:16:55.722 --> 00:16:59.302 it needs to be re-thought of as a collective responsibility, but at the 00:16:59.302 --> 00:17:02.832 administrative level there is a responsibility at the administrative level 00:17:02.832 --> 00:17:06.832 for the student to succeed and that it is not merely 00:17:06.832 --> 00:17:10.832 an autonomous burden, it is a collective responsibility. 00:17:10.832 --> 00:17:13.482 It is a collective duty. 00:17:13.482 --> 00:17:17.482 I do think that we as community members can take on the 00:17:17.482 --> 00:17:21.482 responsibility to sort of identify those disabilities rights organizations that 00:17:21.482 --> 00:17:25.482 are actively working towards providing 00:17:25.482 --> 00:17:28.392 supports and services 00:17:29.834 --> 00:17:34.024 and not focusing on the cure aspect because the cure aspect is not 00:17:34.828 --> 00:17:38.828 allowing us to address the immediate societal needs. 00:17:39.984 --> 00:17:43.984 So, I think organizations like the 00:17:43.984 --> 00:17:47.984 Autistic Self Advocacy Network, the one that I worked for, 00:17:48.525 --> 00:17:53.349 they have these wonderful advocacy center programs. They really work on 00:17:55.081 --> 00:17:59.081 providing cognitively accessible resources for political 00:17:59.081 --> 00:18:03.081 advocacy, for instance. And they empower 00:18:03.081 --> 00:18:07.081 students to think of ways 00:18:07.081 --> 00:18:11.081 for advocating for supports on college campuses. 00:18:12.486 --> 00:18:16.486 So, looking at organizations that 00:18:16.486 --> 00:18:20.486 empower people to advocate for themselves with the skills that they 00:18:20.486 --> 00:18:24.486 have to feel that their lives are worth 00:18:24.486 --> 00:18:25.963 living as they are.