The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, December 05, 1983, Page 3, Image 3
Handicapped stu
By Beth Harrison
When she was in high school
Dianne Leary was told that she wouli
never graduate.
She did graduate, however, and als<
u? u?u ~i -J c _
1CLC1VCU IIC1 UdCllCIUI J> UCglCC' IIUII
USC in 1981. She is presently
employed with Duke Power Compan;
in Charlotte, where she has been work
ing successfully with computers for th<
past two years.
Leary, whose handicap confines he
to a wheelchair, faced some unsuppor
? 1 ~ 1 1 *
live pcupic 111 Illgll M.IIUUI, UUl Mil San
she got the support she needed at USC
from Disabled Student Services
Though her high school was not ver;
accessible for handicapped students
USC was.
WHEN SHE applied for jobs, Lear
said she has a number of offers fron
several companies. She said she chos
Duke Power because it supported th
equal opportunity act and made th
work environment 4 * t o t a 11
accessible."
Leary spoke lo a group of about 15
Students For Aeeessibility (SFA
members, state legislators and US<
faculty members and students Thur<
day night at a reception. The receptio
was sponsored by SFA and USC's Ol
fice of the President.
Also guest speakers at the receptior
were S.C. Sen. Heyward McDonal
and Patty Just Long.
Long, who was named outstandin
handicapped person in America 1
May, said her first memory was whe
she became a polio victim at four yeai
of age. Because of her illness, Lon
said, she spent a year living in
medical university's hospital.
UNLIKE LEARY, Long wei
l :
![ ihis year giv<
that keeps or
: We have soi
r for every
W***" *
m >'j.i mrwnT
maamaatii
9:00 AT THE 6(
December 5 Marc
February 6 April
A'
^ P'1
Urn & 2nd P
.wiiuv ^ i r>i
lia riace
1 /<55?\ WftWWJ
f.
Hpnt pnrnnranpQ 5nF/
UUIIi Wl I WM> W Wl I
through an ordeal to get a job after she
, graduated from college. She said she
i met with a great deal of resistance
from interviewers who said she
) couldn't possibly work in broadcasting
1 because she wouldn't be able to get
/ around all the wires and cables. The
y first televsion station she called said
she couldn't work there because they
e didn't have an elevator.
Long, who said she has always been
r interested in broadcasting majored in
business at Francis Marion College so
i she would have "something to fall
r back on" if she couldn't get a job in
broadcasting.
1/ cnirl qIip rpnifmhprc hfino
, "scared to death" during her
freshman year at college because she
had never had to take care of herself
y before. Her handicap didn't hinder her
n college career. "1 breezed right
e through school," she said,
e Long has been employed at South
e Carolina Education Radio for the past
y five years. While she was seeking
employment, Long said the radio sta0
lion's attitude toward her was dif)
fprent than that of other interviewers.
WHILE SHE was interviewing with
n the company, her prospective
employer had her wheel around the
station to control booths. "We can
i, move a shelf here, lower a tape
d machine there...," the interviewer
said. A week later, Long was informed
g that the radio job was hers. "I was
n scared because someone nad given me
n a chance," she said.
s Recently promoted to a producer /
g director position, Long now supervises
a four reporters for a weekend magazine
show. Occasionally she helps with the
educational television station,
it The first television story she did was
nr^
Holiday 53
? w i 1
Book Sale ""
ler Way. STUDEN'
EVERY MO
e the gift j
1 giving. Rice
methine
I KOK
H if 1 a a fall I
Contempi
.. aH..? & The Gc
)LUEN SKUK present
2 Championship
TVie Qa<
Promotional Merchandise hHH
m
Tj7Y / Si^n up In W
fa/ the CPU offiw * jmSU
ijj rtw RufwM Hotiie. RewswUf
impartial and unbiafwi judge! WM*?
may pick you at a wrionar. *
Sfefck chafer Students
^^pBjtt^miBUTIHG Miller
w 4 IHj (*?*)
I members with si
about ballooning. "I wheeled myself
into a hot air balloon," she said with a
smile. "1 love mv work a whole lot,"
she added.
With her award, Long got a trip to
Washington where she met with President
Reagan during the annual
meeting of the president's committee
on employment of the handicapped.
While there, she said she saw about
2,000 handicapped people.
SINCE THEN, Long said she has
learned a lot more about the needs and
concerns of handicanned neonle.
Her advice to handicapped students
is, "Be persistent. Set a goal and go
after it no matter what anybody tells
you." Many handicapped people try to
be too independent, she said. "Work
with and rely on people. Support
groups are also very important."
Harold Davis, a handicapped USC
freshman, has a very reliable support
group. They are SFA members. Davis
was the 1983 recipient of the Allen P.
v. orncu/M7\ imauciai assistance yiaiu
scholarship award.
Davis received a plaque at the reception
and will get a check in the mail
later for about $200. The plaque was
presented by Corbett, a handicapped
professor, after whom the award was
named.
DAVIS, A victim of muscular
dystrophy, is "a hardworking,
diligent student" and "a cheerful person,"
Corbett said.
Sen. McDonald received an award
for outstanding service to the handicapped
and a lifetime honorary
membership to SFA. McDonald was
instrumental in establishing USC's in
termediate care facility in Woodrow
dormitory, which opened January,
1982.
?i ill ? a - ?
ton's
lestaurant
Saluda Ave. 5 Points
799-6303
r special
NnAY NIGHT tbO.lJD
8oz. Sirloin
Salad Bur or Soup !
Pilaf or Baked Potato
Fresh Bread
eservations Required
it or Faculty IL) Required
rt'c kackh
v/ LS 1-/x -fl. wa. # *
orary Sounds
}lden Spur
\
.on of
Vednesday, Dec. 7, 9:00
at The Golden Spur
i-> Pnhlir t/1 w/snnnsor
1 * ~T ' r
Pitchcrs H.so from .8:00-10:00
CONItWORWW f I1IB
jccess story
In 1968, he was involved in coming
up with a barrier-free design bill on
state and federal levels. The bill was
r\ c
accessible to the handicapped.
McDonald is also chairman of a
joint committee to study the problems
of the handicapped. The committee is
charged with protecting handicapped
rights in the state.
THE SENATOR said he and SFA
were "part of the same family"
because, "We're involved in work for
advancing the cause of the handicapped
person." He called USC "a
university sympathetic to handicapped
students and praised it for developing
the intermediate care facility.
Some of the students living at
Woodrow may have been nursing
home-bound all their lives if the facility
hadn't been made available, he said.
USC' has been able to get these
facilities because of it's "progressive
attitude," McDonald said. "USC may
serve as a model for the entire nation."
South Carolina pioneered the architectural
barriers legislation, according
to McDonald. "We've come a
long way baby," he said, "and we
have a long way to go."
REAGAN HAS recently noted and
endorsed the handicapped information
services systems at the Benson School
on the USC campus, which provides
assistance to handicapped persons,
McDonald said.
"I'm proud to be a part of the
university family and the handicapped
folds who work in and outside of the
university for its interests," he said.
Donate Bk
| CAROLINA W<
J CLINIC
ji Pregnancy testing by urine or blood
I Abortion Counseling .ind Services vvitl
All methods ol birth control: Pill. IUD
1* VD. Herpes testing and treatment
Pap test and other female problems
All itriz-rlii m n 11 An n r i iI c
w /\Ii lUlliaV.ld JUIV.U) >.\JlMIUv.l,vm.p . . >_ ^
(2009 Hampton St., Col
803-256-012
ini
Looking for a se
temporary, part-ti
Hnpninns for hard
- - Inquire
at Student Emplo
William H. Close Building i
Pay~$8 per hour
Mon. - Fri.
4 r~ i I.
C. Per weuK
mt benefits
Equal 0/:
MMMMHMWI
A
D
V
E
R
T
I
S
I
N
G
7
7
7
4
2
4
9
trui
DMEN'S I
!i free medications I
, Diaphragm available
arc about you ^
urnbia, S.C. ?
8 |
3
5,
y
<asonal,
me, job? j
workers
yment Office
<BAj 6th Floor
i port unity ? M/F