It’s Time to See Us

By Lindsay Arthurs

A Letter To: The University of Vermont Administration 

Some disabilities in theory should be easy to accommodate. If someone is in a wheelchair, build a ramp to the building. Others might need extra time on tests or a note-taker. However, some disabilities need accommodations that are not so obvious. How do you help someone join a group conversation? How do you accommodate a person who can’t handle the hustle and bustle of campus and just sitting in a college lecture can be overwhelming let alone trying to learn the material. 

Hi, my name is Lindsay. I am a senior at UVM. Despite being a senior, it will take me much more than a year to graduate. I am also a student at Think College (a program at UVM that supports students with intellectual and developmental disabilities)  and I am on the autism spectrum and have learning differences. Throughout my college experience I have noticed that, despite UVM, being overall a good school that tries to make accommodations and is open to people with differences, it still has its shortfalls. I am writing this in hopes of opening your eyes to things that people may not have noticed before.

Throughout my college experience, partially due to Covid, I have taken about a third of my classes online. Having online courses reduces the harsh sensory input I experience when entering a classroom. Such as bright lights, and the professor’s voice can hurt my head. I get visually overstimulated easily. I don’t always understand how to join a group conversation or how to get my point across. I have trouble navigating the campus at times and almost run into people without meaning to. I have a helpful service dog. However, I still experience sensory overload often at UVM. During online classes, I experience less sensory overload however, I also don’t get as much social interaction and I don’t have much of a college experience. I wish there was a way to make classes more sensory-friendly for all involved. 

My experience with UVM has been mixed. I have difficulty joining conversations and have trouble with some social cues which makes joining difficult. There have been plenty of times when I’ve gone to events only to stand there the entire time and not sure how to get into a conversation. How do you accommodate somebody like this? Although the university isn’t responsible for this, I would say it’s up to the university to create an environment that promotes inclusivity which includes that to those with disabilities. 

I have tried doing events with the Outing Club only to have the waiting list fill up quickly. People with autism are automatically at a disadvantage when it comes to things like clubs because networking is harder for us. I don’t understand cliques or the point of them. I wish I had a good social life at UVM, but I honestly do not. I am part of the program off-campus called Mansfield Hall that supports college students with disabilities at UVM, Champlain College, CCV, and Saint Michael’s. However, programs like Mansfield Hall are very expensive and have a cost on top of the tuition for UVM. Mansfield Hall and Think College have made going to UVM  possible for me. 

If I did not have programs like this, I do not think I would have much of a social life at all.

Programs like Mansfield Hall and Think College are great, but I wish we didn’t need them. I wish I didn’t have to pay an extra $40,000 a year on top of tuition to be part of a program that helps me.

College is supposed to be accessible to everyone they admit. UVM often is known as a place that is inclusive towards those in the LGBTQ community. I wish UVM also celebrated those in the disabled community with the same triumph. I would love to see UVM  make more of an effort to include people with disabilities. I’d love to see a Unified Special Olympics team. I’d like to see such clubs such as the ski and snowboard club host sensory-friendly events and outings geared towards those with disabilities. I’d love to see the Outing Club be more inclusive to those with disabilities as well. Have a weekend that is geared towards those with neurodivergent or physical disabilities. Better train the Career Center to help students navigate disclosure in the workplace and how to find workplaces that are disability friendly. 

College can be hard for everyone. If you have a disability it adds complex layers to an already difficult time. You often have to think about whether you want to disclose and be seen as possibly less than or or hide part of who you are. I am a very literal person and in my courses, people often laugh at my statements and questions. I know they are probably not doing this to make fun of me, but at the same time, I don’t always understand why. The truth is there weren’t that many autistic students in college recently. Developmentally I am all over the map and it can be hard to meet the expectations that people have of those my age as my skills are either beyond them or below them.

I’d love to see more awareness on campus about different disabilities. I often see racial and sexual diversity mentioned, but rarely do I see people bring up disability. I feel like it’s the hidden “D” in diversity. I want UVM to recruit students with disabilities with the same enthusiasm they recruit other students. I’d love to see UVM come up with a residential program to help support students with disabilities as well similar to that of Mansfield Hall. 

That being said, there are some things UVM does well. I’ve had a good experience with their Student Accessibility Services. I have also heard of the UVM Disabled Student Union Club, which helps advocate for disabled students’ rights. These are a great start to improving campus culture around disability. Despite this, I often feel invisible at UVM and it’s time to see us.

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Think College Vermont Annual Valentine’s Day Party

Think College Vermont had our annual Valentine’s Day party in the Jost Foundation Room at the Dudley H Davis Center on Thursday, February 15th. Students, peer mentors, alumni, and staff attended the Valentine’s Day Party. We also had fun games, good food, and lots of fun. Everyone enjoyed mingling, socializing, and having fun at the photo booth. Thank you to everyone who attended the party.

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Happy New Year

Happy New Think College Vermont.
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Welcome

Think College Scavenger Hunt

Welcome to the University of Vermont, as we start the Fall semester on August 28, 2023.  We are excited to have new students and new mentors joining Think College. Welcome to Think College Vermont.  Let’s have a fun filled semester!

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A Day in the Life of a former peer-mentor in Think College Vermont

Look at what a Typical Tuesday looked like for this former student who was also a Think College Vermont Peer-Mentor.

https://go.uvm.edu/meogk

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Congratulations to this year’s graduating class


A group photo after graduation

Think College Vermont had our Graduation in the Livak Ballroom at the Dudley H Davis Center on Saturday, May 13. We celebrated these five dedicated students who were excited for the opportunity to attend Think College VT.

Katharine Shepherd the Dean of the College of Education and Social Services (CESS) was at the graduation ceremony along with Jesse Suter the Director of Center on Disability and Community Inclusion (CDCI). On behalf of Think College we want to extend a huge thank you to Dean Shepherd and Jesse Suter for supporting this great program at UVM.

Congratulations to this year’s graduating class: Silas Callison, Olivia LaMothe, Sara McNally, Daeton Orton, and Sophia Robins. We wish you all the best as you enter the next chapter of your lives. It has been a pleasure being part of your journey here at Think College Vermont. 

Have a great summer!!

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Passed my Drivers Test

Sophia is the driver

Here is a picture of me in the driver’s seat. It was weird for me to be in the car by myself!

I went driving in my neighborhood. It was so much fun being by myself in the car!    

In high school, I took Driver’s Ed. We learned a lot of skills that we would use in real life driving. When I was done with high school I graduated and I went to Think College at UVM in Burlington. I took private diving lessons. I had some good teachers and some bad teachers. One of the teachers was good. That was before Covid. Then she retired from teaching. After that I did not have a good teacher. After a long time we found a different teacher. She was an amazing teacher who was so nice and patient with me and explained everything really well.

I took a lot of lessons with her and learned a lot of skills. 

On Monday, April 10, I had my road test. I was very nervous. I had to show a lot of skills on the road test. I had to show that I could handle the car carefully. I took my time and didn’t go fast.

I had to stop at the line at a red light. I  had to stop and start on the hill. I had to choose a place and show I could do parallel parking. Then I drove back. The tester told me I passed! I was so excited! I was surprised and in shock! I called my sister who was at work to tell her I passed.   My mom took me out to lunch. Then later in the evening we went to get an ice cream cake.

The next weekend I went home and went for a drive in my neighborhood!  

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What does a typical day look like for me at Think College as a student?

What a typical day looks like for me at Think College. Going to my classes, doing homework, hanging out with friends and hanging out with my mentors. From Katie Comerford-Joyce.

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Check out this Q & A blog post

What does self-advocacy mean to you as a college student? Self-advocacy means defending yourself and standing up. As a college student, this means you need to stand up in what you believe.  Such as changing your classes. 

Where is your favorite place to go on campus and tell us why? My favorite place to go is on the green in the spring because you can play games with your friends. It’s good to go for a walk on campus.

From Sophia Robins 

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Daeton Reflects on his semester

Daeton doing homework

What I have learned in my class: Art of The essay is how to formulate words and how to create creative essays which involve a topic of eco writing. Aside from this amazing class I have really gotten to enjoy getting out of my own comfort zone so I’m able to meet up with new people and get to try new opportunities which in the previous year I had not undertaken. I really enjoyed how positive I was and how I was able to use it to encourage the others of Think College students and mentors alike to help them succeed in their work and time on the campus. The other things I have vastly enjoyed is getting to do several games with the students in the fishbowl while also having a good daily dose of Feel Good which only helped to further brighten my day.

I feel that also I’ve changed more since the previous year. Like last year I had a good time but I feel like I really allowed myself to channel more positivity into this year and enjoying the new opportunities the campus had given me. Not to mention new friends too.

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