{"id":76697,"date":"2021-05-31T13:07:42","date_gmt":"2021-05-31T17:07:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsroom.carleton.ca\/?post_type=cu_story&#038;p=76697"},"modified":"2025-10-10T10:18:58","modified_gmt":"2025-10-10T14:18:58","slug":"trailblazing-accessibility-centre","status":"publish","type":"cu_story","link":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/story\/trailblazing-accessibility-centre\/","title":{"rendered":"The People at the Heart of Carleton&#8217;s Trailblazing Accessibility Centre"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<section class=\"w-screen px-6 cu-section cu-section--white ml-offset-center md:px-8 lg:px-14\">\n    <div class=\"space-y-6 cu-max-w-child-max  md:space-y-10 cu-prose-first-last\">\n\n        \n                    \n                    \n            \n    <div class=\"cu-wideimage relative flex items-center justify-center mx-auto px-8 overflow-hidden md:px-16 rounded-xl not-prose  my-6 md:my-12 first:mt-0 bg-opacity-50 bg-cover bg-cu-black-50 pt-24 pb-32 md:pt-28 md:pb-44 lg:pt-36 lg:pb-60 xl:pt-48 xl:pb-72\" style=\"background-image: url(https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/162\/inarticulate-speech-1200w-1.jpg); background-position: 50% 50%;\">\n\n                    <div class=\"absolute top-0 w-full h-screen\" style=\"background-color:rgba(0,0,0,0.600);\"><\/div>\n        \n        <div class=\"relative z-[2] max-w-4xl w-full flex flex-col items-center gap-2 cu-wideimage-image cu-zero-first-last\">\n            <header class=\"mx-auto mb-6 text-center text-white cu-pageheader cu-component-updated cu-pageheader--center md:mb-12\">\n\n                                    <h1 class=\"cu-prose-first-last font-semibold mb-2 text-3xl md:text-4xl lg:text-5xl lg:leading-[3.5rem] cu-pageheader--center text-center mx-auto after:left-px\">\n                        The People at the Heart of Carleton&#039;s Trailblazing Accessibility Centre\n                    <\/h1>\n                \n                            <\/header>\n        <\/div>\n\n                    <svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"absolute bottom-0 w-full z-[1]\" fill=\"none\" viewbox=\"0 0 1280 312\">\n                <path fill=\"#fff\" d=\"M26.412 315.608c-.602-.268-6.655-2.412-13.524-4.769a1943.84 1943.84 0 0 1-14.682-5.144l-2.276-.858v-5.358c0-4.876.086-5.358.773-5.09 1.674.643 21.38 5.84 34.646 9.109 14.682 3.59 28.935 6.858 45.936 10.449l9.874 2.089H57.322c-16.4 0-30.31-.16-30.91-.428ZM460.019 315.233c42.974-10.074 75.602-19.88 132.443-39.867 76.16-26.791 152.063-57.709 222.385-90.663 16.7-7.823 21.336-10.074 44.262-21.273 85.004-41.688 134.719-64.193 195.291-88.413 66.55-26.577 145.2-53.584 194.27-66.765C1258.5 5.626 1281.34 0 1282.24 0c.17 0 .34 27.596.34 61.3v61.299l-2.23.375c-84.7 13.718-165.93 35.955-310.736 84.931-46.494 15.753-65.427 22.076-96.166 32.15-9.102 3-24.814 8.198-34.989 11.574-107.543 35.954-153.008 50.422-196.626 62.639l-6.74 1.876-89.126-.054c-78.135-.054-88.782-.161-85.948-.857ZM729.628 312.875c33.229-10.985 69.248-23.523 127.506-44.207 118.705-42.223 164.596-57.709 217.446-73.302 2.62-.75 8.29-2.465 12.67-3.751 56.19-16.772 126.94-33.597 184.17-43.671 5.07-.91 9.66-1.768 10.22-1.875l.94-.161v170.236l-281.28-.054H719.968l9.66-3.215ZM246.864 313.411c-65.041-2.251-143.047-12.11-208.432-26.256-18.375-3.965-41.73-9.538-42.202-10.074-.171-.214-.257-21.38-.214-47.046l.129-46.618 6.654 3.697c57.313 32.043 118.491 56.531 197.699 79.143 40.313 11.521 83.459 18.058 138.669 21.059 15.584.857 65.685.857 81.14 0 33.744-1.876 61.306-4.93 88.396-9.806 6.396-1.126 11.634-1.983 11.722-1.929.255.375-20.48 7.769-30.999 11.038-28.592 8.948-59.288 15.646-91.873 20.147-26.36 3.59-50.015 5.627-78.35 6.698-15.584.59-55.209.59-72.339-.053Z\"><\/path>\n                <path fill=\"#fff\" d=\"M-3.066 295.067 32.06 304.1v9.033H-3.066v-18.066Z\"><\/path>\n            <\/svg>\n            <\/div>\n\n    \n\n    <\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n<p>Last year, amid all the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, a significant milestone slipped by quietly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Carleton University\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/pmc\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Paul Menton Centre for Students with Disabilities<\/a> (PMC)\u2014the root of Carleton\u2019s reputation as the most accessible university in Canada and possibly the world\u2014celebrated its 30<sup>th<\/sup> anniversary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Love Made Visible - 30 Years of PMC (FINAL Director&#039;s Version)\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/blvRnN7n2io?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Paul Menton, the centre\u2019s namesake, was a quadriplegic Carleton graduate who, in 1981, took on a half-time disability co-ordinator role at the university, the first paid position on campus that addressed the need for additional services and improved accessibility for people with disabilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A year later, Menton asked his friend <a href=\"https:\/\/www.larrymccloskeywriter.com\/about\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Larry McCloskey<\/a> to take over the job. Menton passed away of liver cancer at age 37 in May 1989, and eight months later the PMC opened, with McCloskey serving as its founding director, a role he still holds with a portfolio that has grown to include an array of accessibility and academic support services and programs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This brief chronology barely skims the surface of what the PMC is and does, and it doesn\u2019t delve into the complex and surprising lives of the people who have passed through its doors. That\u2019s one of the reasons McCloskey, who has master\u2019s degrees in Social Work and Canadian Studies from Carleton and is an accomplished author, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/dp\/B094DTSCZL\/ref=cm_sw_r_em_api_glt_25S6APV7WFZ45BSJY2DT\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">published his eighth book this spring<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"200\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/newsroom.carleton.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/inarticulate-speech-200w-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-76701\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/castlequaybooks.com\/index.php?main_page=product_info&amp;products_id=143\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em>Inarticulate Speech of the Heart<\/em><\/a> is both a memoir and a de facto oral history of the PMC, introducing readers to several of the women and men McCloskey has worked with and been inspired by over the years.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"not-prose cu-quote cu-component-spacing\">\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>\u201cI know it\u2019s a clich\u00e9 to say that I get more than I give, but I absolutely feel that way,\u201d McCloskey says about his three-plus decades at the PMC.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>\u201cWhen I was a grad student, I needed a job and got a part-time gig as an orderly in the spinal cord of a rehabilitation centre. That job became my vocation and the Paul Menton Centre became my home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThere are a lot of misunderstandings about people with disabilities,\u201d he adds. \u201cWriting this book is one of the ways that I could try to show the truth.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignfull wp-image-76709 size-full w-screen ml-offset-center cu-max-w-child-max px-4 md:px-6 lg:px-12\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"680\" src=\"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/162\/inarticulate-speech-1200w-3.jpg\" alt=\"Larry McCloskey\" class=\"wp-image-76709\" srcset=\"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/162\/inarticulate-speech-1200w-3.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/162\/inarticulate-speech-1200w-3-400x227.jpg 400w, https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/162\/inarticulate-speech-1200w-3-300x170.jpg 300w, https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/162\/inarticulate-speech-1200w-3-768x435.jpg 768w, https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/162\/inarticulate-speech-1200w-3-700x397.jpg 700w, https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/162\/inarticulate-speech-1200w-3-200x113.jpg 200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n<h2 id=\"celebrating-the-spirit-of-paul-menton\" class=\"wp-block-heading\">Celebrating the Spirit of Paul Menton<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Each chapter in <em>Inarticulate<\/em> <em>Speech of the Heart<\/em>, whose title was taken from the Van Morrison album of the same name, revolves around a few of the people McCloskey got to know through the PMC and Carleton.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Like Paul Menton, many of them died young.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>By writing about his relationships with them, McCloskey is providing context, so readers get a deeper sense of the myriad dimensions of their lives\u2014and of his own attempt to find meaning in the swirl of experiences and emotions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full wp-image-76706\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"680\" src=\"https:\/\/newsroom.carleton.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/inarticulate-speech-1200w-2.jpg\" alt=\"Larry McCloskey\" class=\"wp-image-76706\" srcset=\"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/162\/inarticulate-speech-1200w-2.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/162\/inarticulate-speech-1200w-2-1024x580.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/162\/inarticulate-speech-1200w-2-300x170.jpg 300w, https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/162\/inarticulate-speech-1200w-2-400x227.jpg 400w, https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/162\/inarticulate-speech-1200w-2-768x435.jpg 768w, https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/162\/inarticulate-speech-1200w-2-700x397.jpg 700w, https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/162\/inarticulate-speech-1200w-2-200x113.jpg 200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Larry McCloskey<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>One chapter in the book, which won the 2020 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.familyfiction.com\/word-guild-announces-2020-award-winners\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Best New Canadian Unpublished Manuscript Award<\/a> from the Word Guild, focuses on Menton.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>McCloskey details a rollicking road trip that Menton took with his two brothers in 1976: a six-week drive from Ottawa to the Pacific Ocean and back, his wheelchair crammed into a decrepit Volkswagen van with all their sleeping gear. The brothers stopped to swim in icy rivers, took the occasional shower in motel rooms, and worried their mother sick until returning home. A photo from that trip is on the book\u2019s cover.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Beyond celebrating Menton\u2019s spirit, McCloskey also shows how Menton helped others, such as the time Menton took it upon himself to travel to and set up camp at the psychological low point 20 miles into a difficult marathon that McCloskey was running, so Menton could cheer on his friend as he briefly passed by.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full wp-image-76716\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"457\" src=\"https:\/\/newsroom.carleton.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/paul-menton-800w-1.jpg\" alt=\"Paul Norman Menton\" class=\"wp-image-76716\" srcset=\"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/162\/paul-menton-800w-1.jpg 800w, https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/162\/paul-menton-800w-1-400x229.jpg 400w, https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/162\/paul-menton-800w-1-300x171.jpg 300w, https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/162\/paul-menton-800w-1-768x439.jpg 768w, https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/162\/paul-menton-800w-1-700x400.jpg 700w, https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/162\/paul-menton-800w-1-200x114.jpg 200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Paul Norman Menton<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIn counselling psychology, that sweet spot optimal for best outcomes is dependent upon the establishment of a therapeutic alliance,\u201d McCloskey writes.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"not-prose cu-quote cu-component-spacing\">\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>\u201cThat alliance is primarily a one-way benefit from therapist to client. Occasionally\u2014and yes, shockingly even between guys\u2014it is possible to create a two-way therapeutic alliance, that is real friendship, support and deep mutual understanding.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>The cast of characters we meet in <em>Inarticulate<\/em> <em>Speech of the Heart<\/em> includes blind Canadian musician Jeff Healy, champion freestyle skier Mike Nemesvary (who broke his neck in a trampoline training accident and then became the first quadriplegic <a href=\"https:\/\/roundtheworldchallenge.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">to drive around the world<\/a>), a long list of Carleton students, and longtime PMC staff member Janice Elliott, who <a href=\"https:\/\/newsroom.carleton.ca\/archives\/2016\/04\/12\/carleton-provides-community-wedding-for-a-very-special-couple\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">got married in a moving ceremony on campus<\/a> not long before dying of cancer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>McCloskey\u2019s voice is the thread that ties their stories together.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"not-prose cu-quote cu-component-spacing\">\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>\u201cLife is how you meet who you greet along your path,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>\u201cFor all of the complexities wrapped up in how we spend our days, there\u2019s a simplicity that can changes things: when you pass by somebody on the street who might be struggling, don\u2019t disparage them\u2014picture yourself there. We\u2019re all kind of messed up, trying to remake ourselves and seek redemption. You get a little peace of mind and a sense of purpose by helping others.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignfull wp-image-76710 size-full w-screen ml-offset-center cu-max-w-child-max px-4 md:px-6 lg:px-12\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"680\" src=\"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/162\/inarticulate-speech-1200w-4.jpg\" alt=\"Larry McCloskey\" class=\"wp-image-76710\" srcset=\"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/162\/inarticulate-speech-1200w-4.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/162\/inarticulate-speech-1200w-4-400x227.jpg 400w, https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/162\/inarticulate-speech-1200w-4-300x170.jpg 300w, https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/162\/inarticulate-speech-1200w-4-768x435.jpg 768w, https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/162\/inarticulate-speech-1200w-4-700x397.jpg 700w, https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/162\/inarticulate-speech-1200w-4-200x113.jpg 200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n<p>&#8212;<br>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/newsroom.carleton.ca\/our-stories\/\">More Stories<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Last year, amid all the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, a significant milestone slipped by quietly. Carleton University\u2019s Paul Menton Centre for Students with Disabilities (PMC)\u2014the root of Carleton\u2019s reputation as the most accessible university in Canada and possibly the world\u2014celebrated its 30th anniversary. Paul Menton, the centre\u2019s namesake, was a quadriplegic Carleton graduate who, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":410,"featured_media":76706,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"cu_story_type":[1931],"cu_story_tag":[1930],"class_list":["post-76697","cu_story","type-cu_story","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","cu_story_type-social-innovation","cu_story_tag-equity-diversity-and-inclusion"],"acf":{"cu_post_thumbnail":"blueprint"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cu_story\/76697","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cu_story"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/cu_story"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/410"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cu_story\/76697\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":97972,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cu_story\/76697\/revisions\/97972"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/76706"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=76697"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"cu_story_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cu_story_type?post=76697"},{"taxonomy":"cu_story_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cu_story_tag?post=76697"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}