"Walk in Their Shoes" Gaining Perspective on Disability
"Walk in Their Shoes" Gaining Perspective on Disability
By Christy Andrews NBC NEWS 2
LEE COUNTY, FL -Students at Florida SouthWestern State College got to see things from another perspective Wednesday. The campus is celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act this week. Wednesday they held a "walk in our shoes" event on the Fort Myers campus to raise awareness about the struggles people with disabilities face every day. "I tried looking at my phone and it was pretty hard to see," Luis Perez, a student said. "I barely saw the little touch pad on my keys." Perez was one of several students who lined up to try simulated equipment . Students used things like goggles for sight impairment, headphones for hearing and a wheelchair for physical impairments. They then crossed a bridge on campus. "I struggle getting to class on time," David Acebes, a student said. "I can't imagine going in a wheel chair." Organizers said 37 million Americans have a disability, some of whom are students. "We talk to them about how would it feel to sit in class and not be able to see the professor write those notes on the board," Angela Hartsell, director of adaptive services at Florida SouthWestern State College said. "You can see their little eyes light up and they take it off and I talk to them about the assisted technology that is available," she said. The college provides alternatives for students with disabilities, including sign language interpreters and note takers. Hartsell said those are just some impairments students deal with.
Organizers lined the bridge on campus with ribbons for each disability that affects students at FSW. Some students call it encouraging. "Because if they can do something like that I can do something because I actually have eye sight I have hearing," Perez said.
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