Accessibility on campus

While walking through buildings on campus, I realized something odd about nearly every main entrance. Most have two sets of handicap accessible doors, but you have to push the “OPEN DOOR” button each time to go through each door.  

To me, living without a disability, this “one door closes, while another opens” action is a simple hassle. But to someone living with a disability, these doors are only a small part in a variety of everyday occurrences. 

In an interview with UAA professor Kimberly Pace, I asked a few questions regarding accessibility on campus. During our conversation, I soon realized the deeper issues embedded at UAA.

Pace is in an electric wheelchair. She said the challenges among different buildings on campus “have gotten much better, in terms of accessibility,” but I believe there is always room for acknowledgment and improvement. 

The largest standing problem for Pace, and perhaps other UAA faculty and students, is classroom accessibility. Many UAA building entrance doors are handicap accessible with automated buttons, but few classrooms on campus have this same device.

The absence of this device makes it difficult for some individuals to access and leave the classroom. This creates a situation where an individual hopes that someone will eventually pass by and open the door. 

If no one were to pass by, the affected person is simply stuck in or out of the classroom. In Pace’s many experiences of this situation, she says “Frequently, I can’t get out if the door closes, so I am stuck in the classroom. I’ve gotten really good at pounding on the door”.

When such a situation arises, Pace often has to call for UPD. She says “UPD is pretty responsive, so I appreciate that”. 

Pace sighed deeply as she told me that the Wendy Williamson auditorium is the “bane of my existence.” It’s a building she frequents as the model United Nations program director. The auditorium often holds up to 300 participants with little recognition of diverse bodies participating in events.

For those with disabilities, some buildings on campus, like Wendy Williamson, force these individuals to sit on the sidelines, near the door, or in the cold — inhibiting participation in events.

One of the most alarming topics brought up in my interview with Pace was the mention of a yellow whistle. Several years ago in the Social Science Building, where Pace’s office is located, there was a small fire in the building. 

Elevators are shut down in a fire emergency, so Pace was unable to leave the 3rd floor of the building. She waited outside her office and, fortunately, a student passed her and assisted her in exiting the building, to which Pace was very grateful. 

Pace met with administrators and faculty following the event to come up with ways to prevent such a life threatening situation from happening to anyone again. 

It was “several years ago, several Deans ago,” said Pace.

“Their solution was to give me a yellow whistle that I was supposed to blow. So I carried that whistle with me for a long time. Only to realize that if I were to blow the yellow whistle, the exact same thing would happen.”

Whether it be door and room accessibility, emergency preparedness or overall quality of life enhancement, every institution should take into account and think of the diversity in life. 

Without this acknowledgement, those living with disabilities may feel as though they are “the last person on the Titanic. Because it’s just complicated and difficult and challenging,” said Pace.

“If we are going to be an institution that embraces diversity and inclusion and social equity, that includes accessibility. And it is critical that we bring all voices and bodies to the table, whatever that looks like.”

Throughout the interview, Pace often mentioned the appreciation she holds for the kindness of others and the importance of accessibility for other students and staff at UAA. 

Pace said “I am very gracious for the kindness of strangers and for students and people that I know. By and large, people are very gracious. I appreciate that. But, it would be nice if they didn’t have to. But that’s just my story and there are so many other stories about other folks that have different types of challenges than I do, that’s just a little sliver”.

In my curiosity, I wanted to see if there was a solution to these accessibility obstacles. I thought UAA may have a plan in place to make campus more inclusive, then Pace told me about The UAA 2027 Strategic Plan. 

Through further research, I found the Strategic Plan has five aspirations to improve campus quality through inclusion and equity of diversity. A couple of these aspirations, “We accelerate excellence through continuous improvement” and “We create a culture of equity and inclusion by embracing our diversity”, hold a promising future for UAA.

To address the strategic plan and budget concerns I spoke with UAA’s vice chancellor for facilities and campus services, Kimberly Mahoney. 

When I asked Mahoney about gradual installation of individual handicap accessible doors, she said “We target additional ADA buttons based on complaints, so it’s maybe not the best way to address the issues but it does give us a window into where we should prioritize.”

Mahoney said, “We have so many deferred maintenance requirements that already need funding, it wouldn’t be responsible for us to put ADA on every door. You can’t just install an operator, you often have to install a new door and frame. And so it [can] be $20,000 a door.”

This financial restriction is unfortunate, but Mahoney has an obvious passion for easing the lives of those affected, saying “If we have somebody who can’t get to or through critical areas in order to visit their Dean, that’s a concern. And I would want to remove that barrier for anybody who experiences that kind of barrier.”

If you or anyone you know is experiencing any problems here on campus concerning what has been mentioned, please contact someone on campus to voice your concerns.

Regarding evacuation strategies,  Mahoney said, “Most public buildings are designed with an area refuge in the stairwell. The stairwells on campus actually have additional fire protection, to allow emergency personnel to arrive and rescue the people that are in the area of refuge.”

While this area of refuge is a safety net for those who are unable to exit a building in an emergency, I wish there were options other than to wait for help in a burning building. 

In further curiosity, I contacted Statewide Door & Glass, a local door company who installs handicap doors, to get an estimate on the pricing for installation of handicap accessible doors and coinciding buttons.

I was told the rough estimate for the basic operator and button install would be “About $3,500. That does not include power running to the door. But that would probably cover most of it. No power, no new door frame, no electric lock, that’s extra also. There’s a lot of variables,” said Statewide Door & Glass.

While $3,500 or even up to $20,000 is a steep financial allocation, I believe a gradual installment of these doors should be a priority for UAA. 

I believe this installment should be at first prioritized in highly visited areas or important centers, such as the Dean’s office and student support centers.

UAA may not be able to afford instant installation for these accessibility options, but constant consideration and balanced financial allocation would ensure UAA students and staff eventually have unburdened accessibility everywhere on campus, even if it takes a decade. 

One would hope UAA’s aspirations fully take into consideration, not just the basic Americans with Disabilities Act guidelines, but the understanding of going above and beyond to make sure all people feel included. I am ecstatic to see further acknowledgments, accommodations and inclusions for all spectrums of diversity here at UAA.