Many students conquer long flights of stairs and rolling hills on campus each day, but for some, getting around campus comes with an added challenge.
Ally MacAulay, a sophomore on USD’s women’s lacrosse team, tore her meniscus in April during a tournament and the injury has kept her on crutches for stretches of the semester. While injured, a termite infestation forced her and her roommates out of their dorm in the Acalá Vista Apartments — commonly referred to as “The Vistas” — and into Pacific Ridge Apartments (PAC). The Vistas don’t have elevators forcing MacAulay to move her items three stories on an injured leg.
“I have a knee injury, can somebody help us out?” MacAulay asked. “And then it was just crickets, no response to that.”
Despite her injury, MacAulay decided to move all items out of her room, into the common area of their dorm. When moving into PAC, MacAulay recalled the struggle of carrying her belongings up and down The Vistas staircases.
In addition to the difficulties with the termite infestation, she also had to handle moving around campus to get to and from class. MacAulay got an accommodation from the Disability and Learning Difference Resource Center (DLDRC) to park in handicap spots on campus, until securing a temporary handicap placard from the Department of Motor Vehicles.
The DLDRC may provide other options for students whose requests aren’t granted, according to USD.
“If a student’s request is denied, they can share their concerns with the DLDRC director who can help identify other potential options for the student,” a university spokesperson said.
USD receives federal funds, requiring the university to comply with federal standards that ensure equal access to education for disabled students.
“It is the student’s responsibility to make his or her handicapping condition known and to request academic adjustments,” the U.S. Department of Education wrote. “A student who requests academic adjustments or auxiliary aids because of a handicapping condition may be requested by the institution to provide documentation of the handicap and the need for the services requested. This may be especially important to an institution attempting to understand the nature and extent of a hidden disability.”
The University of California San Diego, provides special transportation for students with disabilities. Its tram, “Triton Mobility,” operates through an app requiring validation of accessibility eligibility. After validation, users can schedule transportation across the campus in a wheelchair-accessible van or cart. The system provides additional accommodations for students, but there are no regulations that require universities, including USD, to have special transportation for students with accessibility needs.
Noah James, a senior soccer player at USD, struggled to navigate transportation around campus while on crutches with a torn ACL. Beyond trams, which are available to all community members, USD does provide some transportation for students with accessibility needs.
“In addition to campus trams, which are ADA accessible and the primary university-supported transportation service, Public Safety and Parking Services are also available to transport students with disabilities and those with temporary mobility restrictions when possible,” a university spokesperson said. “The university strives to accommodate all requests and works with students individually to develop a plan to help address their transportation needs.”
USD has options for students in need of accommodations; however, some students still struggle with transportation around campus.
“It’s hard to crutch long distances across campus if I don’t have time to wait for the tram,” James said. “Athletics has offered to get me around the athletic facilities, but getting to class is really up to me. There is a kind facilities employee named Santos that offers me a ride when I see him, but other than that no.”
According to the university, accessibility discussions are ongoing.
“At USD, we strive to create a culture of inclusivity which means allowing our community to thrive in all areas of their lives,” a university spokesperson said. “Identifying additional accessibility options for our Torero community is a high priority and discussions surrounding this topic are ongoing not only at our Disability and Learning Difference Resource Center but also across campus.”
Suzanne Stolz, associate professor of special education at USD, uses a power wheelchair. Stolz described struggling with heavy doors around campus, and emphasized that while her power wheelchair makes movement around campus easier, it doesn’t mean that other students don’t struggle.
“It depends on how your body interacts with the environment,” Stolz said. “Being on a hill can be a difficult place for someone who is pushing their manual wheelchair uphill, right? Or someone who is carrying a heavy book bag and managing on crutches. Or someone who maybe has something that we don’t see, maybe has a heart condition.”
Students, faculty and staff all have different needs, which is why policies on campus must be flexible, according to Stolz.
“The difference between compliance and access is that this [federal] policy is kind of a baseline, this is the minimum that [they] expect if [we’re] going to continue operating,” Stolz said. “People’s needs vary. That baseline does not always meet everyone’s needs.”
As USD works to expand its accessibility options, community members navigate the gap between what the baseline laws require and what a campus on a hill demands.
The Acalá Vista Apartments where students do not have access to an elevator. Photo courtesy of University Marketing and Communications/USD Media Gallery
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