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Handic Ed. Note: This is the final part of a series looking into the problems of handicapped students at USC. This week--exactly what is being done for them. BY VIVIAN DAVIS Of The Gamecock staff The University and several state agencies are now working together to help handicapped students solve most of the problems they face on campus. "Our office provides initial help with them," Mary Parrott, assistant dean bf residence life, said. "Our purpose is to refer them to the right people." PAtROTT SAID IT takes time to arrange facilities for handicapped students. She said Al Menard, chairman of a committee studying needs of handicapped students, was more familiar with their problems. The advisory committee he chairs was formed in 1973 by Dean Charles Witten. It includes members of the Counseling bureau, Residence Life, Housing, Health Services, faculty and student body. The committee was formed as the result of petitions from handicapped students on campus. Menard said the committee has made recommendations to the administration and has seen results on several matters. Donald A. Swanson and the Counseling Bureau have set up a resource center for the visually han dicapped with the help of the South Carolina Commission for the Blind. "Housing now suggests certain dorms that are more convenient for the handicapped," Menard said. He said the visually han dicapped would be more likely to stay in the Towers since the OPEN MON. T Seconm PABST 6-PACK CASE $1.49 $5.95 PAl Kilbourne or apped resource room is in the lobby of Baker. Another recommendation that has been made is the installation of a buzzer light at Blossom and Sumter streets so the visually handicapped students in the Towers may cross that intersection more easily, Menard said. "ONE TIING WE'VE done is tried to identify the handicapped on this campus. No one knows who they are," Menard said. "We define handicapped as having a severe mobility or visual 'The idea is to get them used to the campus.' disability." Menard said that last year there were 18 visually handicapped and 35 mobily handicapped students on campus. "It's hard to find them," he said. "There must be more than 50 handicapped students in South Carolina who are qualified to go to college." Menard said that in a letter to Dean Witten dated Nov. 26, 1974, Harold Brunton, vice-president in charge of operations, said $4.5 million would be needed to renovate the old buildings to make them accessible for the han dicapped. Menard said the committee requests $100,000 to start making the campus barrier free. He had been told by Brunton and Dr. Jay Allen of the College of Education, that the best way to get the money was to petition the JIM GR Your One - Sto Discount WinE FIUR S. 10-10pm, F RI. a I Anniversa BUD and SCHLITZ 6-PACK CASE $1.69 $6.70 iscount on All RTY AND BAR SUP ICE id Rosewood Dr. Being. I legislature. The comr4ittee had been able to start getting curbs cut for wheelchair students. Menard said. MENARD SAID TIlE committee tours the campus to see what changes need to be made in the buildings. "Any new building is required to be accessible. When renovations are done on old buildings, it's also required," he said. The advisory committee has also helped students with class schedules. "If someone's iden tified as handicapped, we can get the location of a class changed before registration. "One goal that will come out is the establishment of a full-time person for handicapped affairs. This person would be an ad ministrator," Menard said. This fall the committee will outline goals and start with the priority list of buildings that need renovating. Menard also teaches University 101 and tries to have a Han dicapped Awareness Day in the course. Students blindfold themselves or ride around in wheelchairs to experience being handicapped on this campus. BILL BRICKLE a counselor for blind and low-vision students and director of the Resourse Room for these students. "1 talked with blind students on campus about their problems. We decided we needed two programs at USC--one for new college students and one for on-going students," Brickle said. The program is staffed by Karen Byce, who teaches the use of the cane, and Wayne Casasanta, who teaches use of equipment such as TV's, cassettes and variable speech machines. The variable speech machine can make recorded speech slower and slower for easier studying, he explained. Brickle said the purpose of the ADY'S NAILS p Party Center and, Beer nad SA T. 10-11pm ry Sale HAMMS 6-PACK CASE $1.69 $6.60 Wine PLIES - 782-5397 elped program was for a sfudent to do as well as possible in a few academic courses and to make personal and social adjustment. "The handicapped students I advise tend to have better grades as a group than the non handicapped students I advise," Brickle said. He said that some may study more to compensate for their blindness. Helping with registration is also one of Brickle's jobs. "We try to get the blind and low-vision students into registration early so they can plan a schedule allowing plenty of time to get to classes," he said. Brickle said he is proud of the resource room in the Baker lobby. It has equipment such as a closed circuit television, a place to read to people as well a- nther equipment. TEXTBOOKS IN BRAILLE must be purchased from a foun dation that makes them, but Brickle says students are now giving their old textbooks to the Resource Room. He hopes that they will soon have a library of basic textbooks, such as the ones 'We've tried to identify the handicapped on this campus.' used for English 101. Brickle explained that there is a classic conflict with the visually handicapped. "We're doing things to make them independent. You have to ask yourself if you are helping too much. The one thing you don't want is for the student to become dependent on you," he said. "The problem for blind students is finding the barrier. Finding it is the problem. Once you've learned the location, you're free," he said. A torn-up campus is an obstacle because the students lose the landmarks on which he taps his cane, he said. Another service to the han dicapped is a full-time Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor at the University. Phil Grubbs works jointly with the Counseling Bureau and the Vocational Rehabilitation Department. GRUBBS IS PLANNING an easier way for students in wheelchairs to get through registration. "We're going to get them in before the crowd gets there," he said. There are also plans for a summer orientation program for mobily handicapped similar to the one for the visually handicapped, Grubbs, said. Only new students or ones coming back to school after a long time will be eligible for the program, eh said. "The idea is to get them used to the campus. So that adjustment won't be their major problem in the fall," he said. "This is the only chance to get these students together for discussion of their problems,"~ Grubbs said. "I'll be here to help with schedules, to be the go-between of staff and faculty and student," he said. The only totally accessible college in the state is the Baptist College of Charlestob, Grubbs said. The federal government gave the college money to make the campus accessible. The University started late with changing the campus for the handicapped, he said. "The poeple at the University have been cooperative and willing to change. I haven't run into any un cooperative people yet." he said. Handicapped students have also had problems with parking. There are approximately 16 parking places for the handicapped ac cording to Lt. Joe Green of the Department of Motor Vehicle Registration. GREEN SAID ABOUT 30 stickers have been issued to handicapped students, but any car with one of these stickers can be parked in a faculty or staff place if all the handicapped places are filled. Jiliann Thrift of the om budsman's office has worked with several students who have had problems with class locations. "In most cases, there's a way to solve the problem." Thrift said. "We want to solve the problem in the simplest way." The fi t step is to try to'4et the class moved to the first floor or to another building, she said. In one case, a student had to take Art 100. but special audio-visual equipment 'The problem for blind students is finding the barrier. Finding it is the problem.' was set up in a certain room, Thrift said.* Arrangements have been made for her to take an in dependent study, but this will require a graduate student to supervise. "NOT TOO MANY handicapped stuaents come to the om budsman," Thrift laid. "A lot of handicapped students may be afraid to." Dr. Serena Riser Clark. an M.D. at the infirmary, worked with Menard on the committee. One of Clark's ideas was that there be attending care av-ailable for the severely handicapped. Clark said she wanted the University to begin an outreach program to encourage students to come to USC. In addition. there should be two systems of tran sportht ion for USC's handicapped students, she said. One system would help off-campus students ge~e to school every day. and the othr would help students liv-ing4 camnpum get tn their cles.e