{"id":7694,"date":"2023-12-05T11:58:24","date_gmt":"2023-12-05T16:58:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/accessibility-institute\/?p=7694"},"modified":"2025-04-21T09:08:59","modified_gmt":"2025-04-21T13:08:59","slug":"from-idea-to-impact-the-champions-of-carletons-dedicated-access-fund","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/accessibility-institute\/2023\/from-idea-to-impact-the-champions-of-carletons-dedicated-access-fund\/","title":{"rendered":"From Idea to Impact: The Champions of Carleton\u2019s Dedicated Access Fund"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\n From Idea to Impact: The Champions of Carleton\u2019s Dedicated Access Fund\n <\/h1>\n \n \n <\/header>\n\n <\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n

Meet Martin, Deborah, and Sean<\/h2>\n\n\n
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We were young, we were noisy, and we didn\u2019t take no for an answer.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

\"A<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the \u201890s, there was no fund for accessibility initiatives at Carleton University.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Martin Anderson recalls, \u201cWhen I arrived at Carleton, I went and bought my books in first year and I realized that the bookstore was not wheelchair accessible.\u201d He also had a roommate who was keen to join in orientation activities, but couldn\u2019t, due to accessibility issues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Martin met fellow student, Sean Wise. \u201cThe university was very accessible but only included the academic definition, and Martin and I were social, not just academic.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Deborah Coghlin, working with Attendant Services, also got involved. \u201cWe would sit down, may or may not have been at Roosters with a beer or two, and discuss how we could make things more accessible.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, funding was an issue, so Martin asked the university, \u201cIf we arrange for that, so that you have the cash, will you make changes, will you give us a voice?\u201d And the university said \u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The university heard their voices and partnered with the students to create a fund dedicated to advancing accessibility at Carleton.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thirty years later, the group shares how it all got started\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Martin\u2019s Story<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"<img<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

My name is Martin Anderson. I graduated from Carleton in 1994 with a commerce degree. I spent five wonderful years being assisted by the what\u2019s now called the Carleton-Algonquin Residence Attendant Services Program. After I finished at Carleton, I went on and I got a law degree from the University of Windsor and now I\u2019m a constitutional lawyer with the Department of Justice in Toronto.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When I was at Carleton, I was focused on the idea that everybody should have an equal opportunity for all university events and its experiences. There\u2019s so much that you learn in the university outside of the regular classroom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Martin encountered barriers getting around campus in his wheelchair. He also had a roommate who was keen to join in orientation activities, but couldn\u2019t, due to accessibility issues.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

That gave me the idea. If we\u2019re making the university accessible, let\u2019s make the events accessible too, even if it means that we have to give people ASL, captioning, and those types of supports.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Martin worked with fellow students, Sean Wise and Deborah Coghlin, launching a campaign that would lead to the Dedicated Access Fund (DAF). To this day, the DAF funds improvements for physical accessibility on campus, as well as supporting access to university events. Inspired by Ghandhi\u2019s \u2018Be the Change,\u2019 Martin shares:<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you think something should be changed, find a way of changing it. Even if it involves working with others, work with others. So many significant things in this country happened when one or two people hooked up and said, \u2018Hey, I don\u2019t like this, I think we can change it, let\u2019s go for it.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n

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When I was at Carleton I was focused on the idea that everybody should have an equal opportunity for all university events and its experiences.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s so much that you learn in the university outside of the regular classroom.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Deborah\u2019s Story<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"A<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019m Deborah Coghlin, Debb, and I\u2019ve been working for the Attendant Services program<\/a> since 1988, fighting alongside a lot of people to get things accessible. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In \u201892 I was the coordinator for the Carleton Disability Awareness Centre (CDAC). I already knew Martin because he was one of our clients at Attendant Services, and I was introduced to Sean, because he was working with the Paul Menton Center. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We thought the two offices should maybe work together on things and we would sit down, it may or may not have been at Roosters with a beer or two, and discussed how we could make things more accessible. And so it just all kind of went from there.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In school, it\u2019s more than just what you learn in the classroom. We always tell the story when we have parents that come saying, listen, if your child wants to enjoy Frosh events or orientation events, you know there will be attendants there. So if you want to go in the jello tank to get prizes, we will get you a life jacket.\u202f<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This year we have some res fellows in one of the houses that <\/span>have disabilities and they\u2019re able to participate, you know with everybody, just like any other res fellow.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I have students living in residence who now can open the door on their own with the proximity r<\/span>eader that opens the door.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

One student from Japan was so excited that he could open the door for his father. That\u2019s something he had never been able to do.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

So little things like that were made possible because of the Dedicated Access Fund.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n

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I think some of the things that are still a problem are the \u2018I can\u2019t.\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

And it\u2019s not other people. It\u2019s the students with disabilities saying, \u2018I can\u2019t do that\u2019 because they\u2019ve been told in high school or their parents or whatnot that they can\u2019t do that.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

And I\u2019m kind of the person that\u2019s like, \u2018What do you mean you can\u2019t? Why not? Just go do it.\u2019 <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

And then they go do it and they\u2019re like, \u2018Oh, well, that was really easy.\u2019 <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

And then they\u2019re off on their own. It\u2019s awesome.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Sean\u2019s Story<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"A<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

My name is Doctor Sean Wise. I\u2019m a professor of entrepreneurship and innovation at the Ted Rogers School of Management at Toronto Metropolitan University formerly known as Ryerson.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I am a proud Carleton graduate. I\u2019m a proud alumni of the Paul Menton Center.<\/span> When I was at Carleton, I worked very hard to expand the definitions and conceptual frameworks around what is a disability. In particular, to highlight that non-visible disabilities are still in need of accommodation. And more importantly, that the university education doesn\u2019t only take place in the classroom.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Martin and I were social, not just academic. And we didn\u2019t feel that everyone was getting the same rights, the same opportunities. And I don\u2019t mean an opportunity to take Psych 100. I mean an opportunity to join a club, an opportunity to see a concert, an opportunity to go to a fraternity house, to go to a house party and whatever is part of a holistic education.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Martin and I and the members of the committee just saw that the disabled student experience ended. It ended at the classroom door. And so we initially asked for support for finances, for a broader definition. And Martin and I and others waged a campaign to illustrate the issue.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I was greatly surprised, not by the ignorance of the masses, but when we brought it to their attention, when we allowed them to experience it, to change perspectives, people didn\u2019t take it well. People wanted students to have those opportunities. And people joined with that campaign. And then Martin and myself and Debb and other people just didn\u2019t let it go. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

And it was really that we started this long journey to ensure not just physical accessibilities, not just classroom accessibilities, but so every student could go to Carleton and could choose from the wide variety of experiences available.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It wasn\u2019t for us to decide which events are cool and which events are appropriate and which events we should support. It\u2019s everything. Everything. So that everyone sees that with slight accommodations, with an investment of compassion, everyone can become their best self, not just those who can jump in the jello.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n

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Up until that point, I had only been the victim, the person who was the subject matter. And this opportunity shifted that so I could be the advocate, not just for myself, but for people who weren\u2019t blessed with a loud voice and a desire to express it. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

And so none of that would have happened if I kept thinking of myself as a victim and not shifting as an advocate. None of that would have happened if Martin didn\u2019t give me the confidence to open my mouth and speak my truth.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Note: The Humans of Accessibility stories represent personal experiences and views.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Meet Martin, Deborah, and Sean We were young, we were noisy, and we didn\u2019t take no for an answer. In the \u201890s, there was no fund for accessibility initiatives at Carleton University. Martin Anderson recalls, \u201cWhen I arrived at Carleton, I went and bought my books in first year and I realized that the bookstore […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[86],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7694","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-humans-of-accessibility"],"acf":{"cu_post_thumbnail":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/accessibility-institute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7694","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/accessibility-institute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/accessibility-institute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/accessibility-institute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/accessibility-institute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7694"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/accessibility-institute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7694\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8603,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/accessibility-institute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7694\/revisions\/8603"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/accessibility-institute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7694"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/accessibility-institute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7694"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/accessibility-institute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7694"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}