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November 3, 2009

Paralyzed student evicted from college dorm

Talina Turner, CNHI News Service

ADA, Okla. — University housing policies have left a student wondering if he will be homeless at the end of the fall semester.

Joshua Jackson, a 35-year-old junior at East Central University, said after two weeks of living on campus, he was notified he would have to move out due to safety issues connected with his paralysis.

He is a quadriplegic who uses a wheelchair. But he unable to move from his chair into the bed, and vice versa, he said.

ECU’s housing policies stipulate that students in wheelchairs who need assistance to evacuate buildings in emergencies must have an aide or a mechanical lift. University spokeswoman Amy Ford said she could not comment on Jackson’s case.

“The problem I have with securing an assistant to stay with me overnight is purely monetary,” said Jackson. “We figured the cost of having an assistant would be approximately $11,000 per the fall/spring semesters 2009/2010.”

Jackson wondered whether his is a case of discrimination.

"I hesitate to use such a powerful word," he said. "The university claims it is more of a legal liability than anything else."

Jackson said he has other safety concerns.

He uses elevators several times a day and cites a university policy that, in emergencies, all elevators must stop working, "no matter what mode they are in, whether they are occupied or not," he said.

The ECU said he is afraid if he cannot stay on campus, it will end his college career.



Talina Turner writes for the Ada, Okla., Evening News.

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