AUC Caravan

When The American University of Cairo was building its $400 million campus, it considered becoming a more disability-friendly environment. However, despite the university’s step to accommodate the needs of people with disabilities, its student body still lacks the appropriate attitude toward this segment of its community.

Sophomore Abdelghany Barakat is one of the students on campus who is visually impaired and the move to the New Campus has been a hassle to him just like everyone else. Adjusting to his surroundings took some time, however, it was his friends who helped him the most.

“When I first came to the campus I didn’t know the place but now I know my way around and because of my good social skills I had a lot of friends and they help me get around,” said Barakat.

Barakat says that the majority of AUCians are afraid to deal with disabled people.

“Our student body, I find, is divided into three categories,” said Barakat. “There is the first category of people who are afraid of dealing with people with disabilities or people who are blind. They make the blind person feel different. They should know that a disabled person is normal and is part of the community.”

According to Barakat, the second category consists of those who look at people with disabilities as very inspiring, and this annoys him as it makes him feel different as well.

“The second category see people with disabilities as very inspiring and treat them as if they come from another planet. Having a disability doesn’t mean that you are handicapped it means that you are special need, and I could be a special need when I wear glasses, so they should look at a blind person normally that they too could be inspired by others as well as everyone else,” said Barakat.

Counseling and Mentoring Office Consultant, Ahmed Salem, agrees and also is visually impaired.

“We have to make it clear that the term disability is just a legal term. However, it does not mean that someone is unable to do something,” said Salem. “For example I can’t read a book in the same way you do, but I can read it using other ways like Braille or electronic text.”

Finally, Abdelghany talks about a third category that he sees is a consequence to the society being overprotective toward people with disabilities.

“There is a third category that is afraid of depending on the blind person. In a club, for example, they are afraid to have a person with disability to be a head or responsible in executing a project. We are a very protective culture so we are sensitive to give them tasks,” said Barakat. “This again annoys me and is bad for the community. As a community we should depend on all sectors and integrate them. When we do that we will be more civilized.”

Despite this, he explains that he has taken the opportunity to join many on-campus community service clubs and student conferences which have added to his experience and skills and introduced him to more people.

“I travelled to the US on a one year scholarship from the Department of State when I was in high school and I was also president of my school’s SU. This gave me confidence and taught me to go to others and say hello and get to know them even if they were afraid to do so. This expanded my social relations and it got me through the barrier of social loneliness and I got to know more people,” said Barakat.

The Office of Student Counseling, Mentoring and Conduct helps students who have physical or learning disabilities by linking them with University Academic Computing Technologies staff to assist their learning.

“The office here contacts the student’s professors to get hold of the books to be covered in the coming semester and we send them to the UACT department where they have technology to make the text readable for students who are visually impaired,” said Assistant Manager Alexandra Nicolas, of the Office of Student Counseling, Mentoring and Conduct.

When it comes to technology it seems that AUC is doing effort. Barakat works as Assistive Technology Specialist in UACT, where he helps students to use the technology available, described more of the new facilities that AUC is going to have.

“There is assistive technology at AUC, available at the UACT; they have a software called Jaws that is able to read any text on a screen out loud. There are also Braille printers,” said Barakat.

Nicolas further explained that many students with learning disabilities find it difficult to get good grades or understand material because their lack of awareness prevents them from contacting the office to request help.

“When I went to the US, I attended a conference in North California, that talked about how to increase assistive technology in areas that are needed,” said Salem. “When I got the chance to work with UACT, I did research about the new technologies available and I was able to convince the admin of getting new devices, such as the Braille- note display screen.”

Although the new campus does not fully accommodate the needs of students with disabilities, it is more accessible than the old one.

“The university has tried to make the campus more accessible to students with disabilities, for example they have ramps and push doors,” said Nicolas.

Although these new accommodations help students on wheel chairs, visually impaired students find it difficult to get around.

“I thank the university for making a huge effort to make the campus disabled friendly, for example, with people who are on wheel chairs, but in the case of blind students the fountains are a hassle for me for example it takes me a very long time to have to go around them. Further, such fountains are legally against the American Disabled Association’s [standards], so I would ask the university to consider doing something about them,” said Barakat.

The lack of Braille signs on buildings and classroom entrances also are barriers for visually impaired students.

Now, Barakat is concerned with making the community more aware of people with disabilities and know how to treat them.

“I’m hoping that by the time I graduate the community would have the awareness tools to be able to deal and teach others.”

-Reporting by Mennatallah Youssef