Editorial: Communication Access, and Expanding Our Horizons
Where We've Been and Where We're Heading
Today, increasing numbers of young adults with disabilities are pursuing higher educational opportunities at our community colleges and universities. While we have a long way to go in assuring access to higher education for youth with disabilities, due in part to the fact that the numbers of youth with disabilities who pursue higher education do so at a rate significantly lower than their peers without disabilities, there are encouraging signs on the horizon that things are changing.
IDEA '97 is discussed in another article in this issue. The emphasis on access to the general education curriculum for students without disabilities and increased accountability for outcomes (including participation in local and statewide assessment) holds great promise that students with disabilities will, through the completion of general education requirements, increasingly be "otherwise qualified" when they complete their high school education.
The U.S. Department of Education's Office of Special Education and Rehabilitation Services has provided resources to institutes of higher education to develop models of support for students with disabilities. Here in Maine two such efforts are underway. At the University of Maine, the Opportunity to Completion project, a collaborative effort of the Center for Community Inclusion & Disability Studies and the TRIO programs is working with five local school districts and faculty and staff to raise the aspirations of youth with disabilities and to provide ongoing support to students who matriculate in four year degree programs on campus. In southern Maine, a collaborative effort with six area colleges and universities, Project PREP, has begun at the University of Southern Maine.
Alan Kurtz and I had the good fortune of attending the "No Time For Silence," conference at Syracuse University last month. While both of us have attended all of the FC conferences they have held over the years, none was as powerful as this year's was for me. This year there were numerous presentations conducted by individuals, families and educators discussing the issues related to going to college! No less than five or six FC speakers shared their college experiences, discussed the accommodations and supports that allowed for their success, and certainly raised the bar regarding what is possible for all of us! Sharisa Kochmeister's and Sue Rubin's experiences are particularly incredible as both women have progressed to typing without physical support. Over the years we have witnessed their growth and learned a great deal about the critical importance of working towards independence. While facilitated communication remains controversial in many arenas despite the research that has validated it (see Biklen & Cardinal, 1997) no one can question the impact that FC has had on Sharisa and Sue's lives.
We certainly only scratched the surface in our project this year but we have witnessed first hand the role that augmentative communication, facilitated communication and assistive technology has played in expanding the horizons of the students we had the pleasure to support. Certainly, much work remains. Thanks to Sharisa and Sue and Troy and Megan and Josh and Zach who are just a few of our "teachers." Their lessons, their influence, and their wisdom will undoubtedly continue to lead us until no one is silent.