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Response to Student
I am writing in response to a recent letter to the editor ("One Man's Cause," Feb. 4 University Chronicle) regarding accessibility on the St. Cloud State University campus.
I have been the person responsible for the facilities on this campus for the last several years. During that time I have worked with students, faculty, and staff on a variety of important issues concerning our facilities. These have included accessibility, certainly, but also safety, air quality, adequate electrical service, heating and cooling, sufficient space for instruction, student housing, food service and other activities, and provision for technology. To optimize these various needs, we have planned for careful application of our resources, raised additional resources, and lobbied for more. I do believe every effort was made to provide the greatest benefit to students.
In many cases the issues are complex. One case in point is the location of Student Disability Services. The service office has been on the same level as the Theater Lounge since before I arrived at the university in 1987. The director's office has always been separate from the service office and was formerly only accessible by stairs. In planning the 1994 remodeling of the Atwood Center, there was much discussion with students and staff about accessibility in general and the location of SDS in particular. It was decided that it was imperative that the director's office and the service office be in accessible locations. It was also deemed necessary that the service office be in Atwood Center rather than in an academic building, as most other academic support programs are, because it needed to be convenient for volunteer note takers to drop off notes in a timely fashion. The service office also required a quiet location to accommodate those students that need test taking assistance.
In balancing all of these requirements, we determined that maintaining the current SDS office configuration was the best solution. This involved reconstruction of the ramp to the lounge. While this current ramp configuration in fact meets the code, I agree it can be a difficult traverse.
I welcome constructive suggestions on improvements to our facilities. I regret the writer felt he had received a "run around." I am certain we do share an expectation that the facilities at SCSU will continuously be improved by all our best efforts.
Steve Ludwig
SCSU Vice President
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