2008 Woodie Awards
Mercy Students With Disabilities
Cinthya Pages
Issue date: 5/15/05 Section: News
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"I went in 15 minutes late for one of my finals, and they wouldn't give it to me. They didn't let me reschedule, so I failed my class," said Luke Gjelaj.
An Occupational Therapy major in his sophomore year, Gjelaj is just one of many students at Mercy with a disability. When asked if he thought it unfair that he was unable to take his final, he told The Impact, "No, because I'm just like the others."
Studies show that more students with disabilities are attending college. Currently, there are approximately 120 students with disabilities at Mercy College campus wide.
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, along with the Americans with the Disabilities Act of 1990, both work to protect students with disabilities from discrimination while enrolled in higher education programs.
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 states, "No otherwise qualified handicapped individual in the United States...shall, solely by reason of handicap, be excluded from participation in, denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance."
The law identifies a "handicapped person" as "Any person who has a physical or mental impairment which substantially limits one or more of such person's major life activities; has a record of such impairment, or is regarded as having such an impairment."
The law protects the rights of all those who are qualified to participate in training programs and who have disabilities.
Some of the disabilities protected under the law include but are not limited to chronic illnesses, such as AIDS, cancer, muscular dystrophy, or psychiatric disorder, visual or hearing impairments, spinal cord or traumatic brain injury, and mental retardation, among other ailments.
Terry Rich, Associate Dean of Student Affairs and Director of Disability services, told The Impact, "Even if you have a disability, you still have to be able to attend school in the same way." Rich went on to state that all students must adhere to campus regulations, and if a student with a disability is acting inappropriately, the school will not dismiss the student, but simply ask that the student be evaluated and return when he or she is feeling better.
An Occupational Therapy major in his sophomore year, Gjelaj is just one of many students at Mercy with a disability. When asked if he thought it unfair that he was unable to take his final, he told The Impact, "No, because I'm just like the others."
Studies show that more students with disabilities are attending college. Currently, there are approximately 120 students with disabilities at Mercy College campus wide.
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, along with the Americans with the Disabilities Act of 1990, both work to protect students with disabilities from discrimination while enrolled in higher education programs.
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 states, "No otherwise qualified handicapped individual in the United States...shall, solely by reason of handicap, be excluded from participation in, denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance."
The law identifies a "handicapped person" as "Any person who has a physical or mental impairment which substantially limits one or more of such person's major life activities; has a record of such impairment, or is regarded as having such an impairment."
The law protects the rights of all those who are qualified to participate in training programs and who have disabilities.
Some of the disabilities protected under the law include but are not limited to chronic illnesses, such as AIDS, cancer, muscular dystrophy, or psychiatric disorder, visual or hearing impairments, spinal cord or traumatic brain injury, and mental retardation, among other ailments.
Terry Rich, Associate Dean of Student Affairs and Director of Disability services, told The Impact, "Even if you have a disability, you still have to be able to attend school in the same way." Rich went on to state that all students must adhere to campus regulations, and if a student with a disability is acting inappropriately, the school will not dismiss the student, but simply ask that the student be evaluated and return when he or she is feeling better.