FOCUS: PART II OPENING THE DOORS

College freshman Neil Aaronson moved into his friend Dave's room at the beginning of the semester when Dave's roommate had to move home because of illness. College freshman David Cohen is deaf. The University made special renovations to his room before he arrived. It has a button, resembling a doorbell, that turns on a light when someone is at the door or when the fire alarm sounds. Aaronson moved in because he and Cohen are good friends and he thought he could help with phone conversations since Cohen communicates by reading lips. "Other than [talking on] the phone, he is completely normal," Aaronson said. "I didn't move in to cater to his needs, I just wanted to live with him." Others describe a less pleasant rooming situation, where one person is partially or completely responsible for the well-being of his or her disabled roommate. Some volunteered to assist, while others say they were assigned to room with a disabled person without any notification. College freshman Worley said he was never told that his roommate used a wheelchair until he talked to his Resident Advisor a few days before he arrived at the University. "I had no idea [my roommate would be disabled]," he said. "I think they should have written me a letter." Worley said his roommate, College freshman Lawrence Zuckerman pays four people to assist him, but added that when they are not there the responsibility falls to his roommates. "He can't pick up magazines, turn on lights, little things like that," Worley said. Debbie Cermele, a 1991 College graduate, said that when she volunteered to live with a woman with spinal muscular atrophy for 18 months, and she got much more than she bargained for. Cermele said she agreed to help out in response to a letter sent to every woman in the freshman class, but was never told the degree of assistance needed. Her responsibility as primary caretaker was a full-time job. While Cermele's roommate could drive herself around and feed herself, she could not get dressed for classes, bathe or brush her own hair, and she needed assistance several times throughout the night. "Every two hours or so, since she can't move, she would wake up all cramped," she said. "I would have to spend several minutes moving her." "This was not outlined at all for us," Cermele said. "It was not mentioned in letters or conversations." Cermele described a traumatic experience when there was a fire on the floor above their High Rise room and her roommate got frightened. Cermele had to carry her down 12 flights of stairs. "There was no good system in place and everyone panicked," she said. Now when there is a fire alarm in a dormitory, students with disabilities can call the front desk to find out if there is a real fire. The front desks have lists of people who might need assistance in the case of an emergency. The University made special arrangements so Cermele's roommate could gain access to the Towne Building and to her dormitory room, Cermele said. "The University did huge remodelling," she said. "They put in a [special] sink to wash her hair." "Living with someone who is disabled could be a good learning experience, but it would be better if I were not so directly involved," she added. · In her experiences at the University, Greenberg has found that students, faculty, and administrators are accepting and helpful. "Basically, I haven't had bad experiences," Greenberg said. "Any negative comments I get are from people who are closed-minded." Barrasso also said most people at the University are understanding, but he said they are sometimes unsure of how and when to offer assistance. "Not many people come up to me [to offer help]," he said. "I have to ask for help even in the classroom setting." Barrasso said people seem to harbor misconceptions about how to react to blind people. "People are not afraid to help, they just don't know how to go about it," he said. "Everybody thinks the [guide] dog knows when to cross [the street] and where I want to go."