CabrhtiCollege Radnor, P'A19087
photos by Justine DiFilippo
Many physical obstacles are faced daily on our campus by those with disabilities. Lett: Sophomores April Caldwell and Tina Shelley approach the path to the houses. Above: Caldwell is barred from visiting first-year student Amanda Snow by the steps to Woodcrest.
Access not denied but certainly limited by Amy Gassenand Renee Tomcanln
in, unobserved by the pro-
sports editor and assistant news editor
Beep, beep, beep, beep. The alarm on your nightstand goes off incessantly at 9:30 a.m. In one sweeping motion, you throw on shoes, collect your books and check your breath. With one minute to spare, you make a mad dash to the third floor of Founders Hall for a 9:35 literature class. You manage to sneak
fessor. Rewind to the beginning of this scenario. Imagine not being able to jump out of bed at 9:30. Instead of being able to throw on clothes and sprint up the many stairs to your classroom, you have to go around Founders, down to the first floor, wait for the elevator and then try to get yourself and your wheelchair in before the door closes. And if you have to use the bathroom before
you leave your dorm room, you have to make sure that the only accessible bathroom in the building is not in use. If you are late, everyone watches as you struggle to open the door. For sophomore April Caldwell, among others, this is a typical routine. Caldwell has cerebral palsy and uses a wheelchair to get around. She faces and overcomes daily obstacles outside of the standard roadblocks faced by the average college stu-
dent. Although Caldwell cannot get around campus by the same paths frequently taken by the average student, she breezes through the day by taking paths less traveled by. "My first week of freshman year," Caldwell said, "I didn't know how I was going to be able to get up the hills." Caldwell came to Cabrini armed with a manual wheelchair. "I didn't know it was going to be this hilly," Caldwell said. She has since borrowed an
What's up on Campus
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22 • Junior Preregistration for Summer/Fall 2001 • Bingo, 9 p.m., Food Court
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electric cherry red wheelchair, which when turned to the top, "rabbit," speed helps her to fly up and down the curvaceous landscape. As part of her daily ritual, Caldwell must keep 15 minutes before each class clear because that is how long it takes her to maneuver her wheelchair through the hilly terrain to reach her classes in Founders Hall. continued on pg. 3
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• Sophomore Preregistration for Summer/Fall 2001
• Philadelphia Teacher Job Fair, 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m., Fort Washington Expo Center
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• SearchVIll Retreat
• Search VIII Retreat
• Search VIII Retreat
• Scholarship Dinner, 6 p.m., Mansion
• "Feeling Good About Growing Older: Fun, Fitnessand Finances" sponsored by the Continuing Education Advisory Board and the social work department, 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.
• Mass, 7 p.m., Brockmann Chapel of St. Joseph
• Sophomore Preregistration for Summer/Fall 2001 • lmprov Show, lOp.m. •Women's Awareness Week
• Mass, 4:45 p.m., Brockmann Chapel of St Joseph •Women's Awareness Week
• Women's Awareness Week