Disability Awareness Week: Encouraging empowerment

By Janee Mitchell - Feature Writer

The theme of the eighth annual disability awareness week is empowerment. Karla Carwile, director of the Office of Disability Services, said students with disabilities “gain the empowerment that they are people to…they are people first, they're people with disabilities...I think that if it doesn't do anything else the one thing I would hope for it to do is to empower all people, especially people with disabilities because we are highlighting their wonderful abilities.”

In highlighting the abilities of the disabled, ODS designed a disability awareness week schedule to include events to highlight the abilities and the technology used to accommodate students with disabilities, thus achieving their dual goal of empowering disabled persons and non-disabled persons.

Carwile said, “in the past we haven't outlined the exact services…and the technology as much as we have this year, this year we're really highlighting technology because really we're a technologically literate campus, with technologically advanced…We are not only advanced with respect to our other students but with respect to our disabled students as well…I think that is empowering to see that the types of programs that are can also be adapted for our students as well.”

Disability Awareness Week began Monday, April 4 with a series of informational sessions on the adaptive technologies and services available for the disabled. Different sessions were held every hour from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The sessions included a hardware and software overview of adaptive technologies, ABBY Fine Reader OCR scanning software, dictation software, learning disabilities software, magnification and screen reading software and video relay for deaf/HOH persons.

Tuesday continued with a minifair in the PAC concourse. The minifair included many organizations from community organizations and the services available here on campus. The WUIS radio station held an informational table during the minifair highlighting the various magazines visually impaired individuals could listen to over the airwaves.

Active Minds, a student organization focusing on mental health, also attended the minifair. Their table displayed information on illnesses of the minds, various ways to get involved and information about the origins of active minds. There were a variety of disability topics highlighted with tables displaying information on each. Some forms of adaptive technology were also displayed.

There were quite a few tables in the minifair ran by disabled persons who proudly distributed the information and discussed its meanings. UIS alumni Ms. Wheelchair Illinois 2004, Kim Pate, proudly displayed information on the Ms. Wheelchair Illinois competition and described the process to interested individuals. Pate said, “[Ms. Wheelchair] travels through Illinois speaking on issues like the Disability Pride Parade and the difficulties of transitioning into employment.”

On Tuesday, ODS also hosted an audio conference in conference room in the PAC. The conference, titled “Accommodating Students with Disabilities with Off-Campus Placements: Who and How,” described the difficulties and proper methods in securing an off-campus placement for a disabled student. The conference, given via audio phone, was presented through Thompson Interactive, with topics ranging from the legal issues surrounding placements, disclosure and the institution's role in the process.

Disability Awareness week continued through April 8 with various technology packed events and programs that highlighted the adaptive technology and abilities of disabled persons. The week entailed a brown bag presentation on the accommodation of students with disabilities, “Who wants to be a millionaire?” group style, a movie showing -- “The Hours”-- and other events designed to emphasize the ability of the disabled.

2005 Verbal Arts Festival: Alchemist Review Makes its Debut

By Janee Mitchell - Feature Writer

Fiction, drama, poetry and other creative writings travel across the educational lines, as students, faculty and even staff have embarked on the journey to becoming a writer. Here at UIS the members of the UIS community submit their artistic works to be showcased in the annual Alchemist Review.

The Alchemist Review always makes its debut in April. During the week of its arrival the contributing writers of the Alchemist Review, along with other writers, celebrate their work through the Verbal Arts Festival.

The Verbal Arts Festival, as its name suggests, celebrates the arts, primarily ‘verbal arts' as most of the events feature spoken word. The festival is always held in conjunction with the release of the Alchemist Review, featuring a cast of speakers, poets, and instructors doubling as writers.

The writers who made the final cut, after submitting their works and having them reviewed by the peer review panel, were given the pleasure of reading their works amongst their peers and lovers of the art at the various events of the Verbal Arts Festival.

The festival began on Wednesday, April 6 with a presentation by Jackie Jackson, emeritus professor of English and creative writer. Jackson has a line of creative works one of which, Phantom Lake Turtles, can be seen in the Alchemist Review.

The festival continued Thursday with a reception celebrating the works and contributors to the Alchemist Review. According to a press release the reception served as a place for the writers to read selections from their work in the 2005 Alchemist Review.

The verbal expression and interpretation of literary works continued throughout the week with an open mic night, Poets, Poets, Poets, and conversation pieces. Dr. Donald Platt was the speaker of the evening in the poetry open mic night, opening with tips and techniques for writing poetry and other creative works. Platt encouraged the writers to "let as much of what is around you come into your work.” In his poem Viva la Vida, Platt said, “After God created food coloring. He put a little bit in the sky- red and blue for sunrise.” As can be seen by this verse and the poetry he read at the open mic night, Platt absorbs these around him and they are reflected in his work, this is what he encouraged writers to be unafraid to do.

The 2005 Annual Verbal Arts Festival continued in the tradition of the previous years, debuting the Alchemist Review in a week surrounded by various celebrations of verbal and written arts. The festival enlisted the attention of the entire UIS community with works being read by students and faculty members. The 4-day long festival featured monologues, poetry readings, short plays, presentations and learning experiences for writers and others seeking perfection in their writing.

Disability Awareness Week

2005 Verbal Arts Festival: Alchemist Review Makes its Debut