----- Original Message -----
From: "Jacob Joehl" <[log in to unmask]>
To: "Thelma Williams" <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Monday, March 17, 2003 11:42 AM
Subject: Re: Re: Student deemed 'too disabled,' sues College
I wish Mr. Hopkins the best of luck pursuing this ADA claim. My parents and
I were going to file a claim when I was attending a Jesuit college several
years ago, because they refused to let me live on campus with my reader not
being available when I was. I had to commute all the way there and back,
about an hour and a half each way, four out of five days a week. And their
excuse? I didn't have enough credit hours, and since I was seeing a
learning-disabilities specialist at the college, I couldn't live there also.
The only reason we didn't file a claim, despite the presence of a Section
504 officer, was that my time at the college had ended. But I recently
heard through a friend that the college was taken over by DePaul University
in Chicago.
Jake
----- Original Message -----
From: "Thelma Williams" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Monday, March 17, 2003 9:13 AM
Subject: Re: Student deemed 'too disabled,' sues College
Hi Kelly;
My name is Thelma J. Williams who live in Philadelphia. I filed a complaint
with ADA because a Christian College here in Philadelphia humiliated me in
every way possible because I am severely legally blind. They did absolutely
nothing for me. I was a 4.0 student almost finished with a BA degree in
Human Services. Now I have to attent another college in order to finish
earning my degree.
I hope this gentleman has better luck that I because I had none with ADA!
Thelma
----- Original Message -----
From: "Kelly Pierce" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Sunday, March 16, 2003 10:59 PM
Subject: Student deemed 'too disabled,' sues College
> A lawsuit alleges that Louisiana State University asked Kenneth
> Hopkins to leave its Computer Rehabilitation Program, saying the
> 38-year-old blind student was 'too disabled' for the program that teaches
> technological skills to disabled students. There is a photo of Kenneth
> in the article which can be accessed at the url at the end of the
> article.
>
> Kelly
>
>
> [Baton Rouge] Advocate
>
> March 14, 2003
>
>
> Student deemed 'too disabled,' sues LSU
>
>
> By PENNY BROWN ROBERTS
> Advocate staff writer
>
> An 'A' student who ranked in the top of his class, Kenneth Hopkins
> thought a year in the LSU Computer Rehabilitation Program would finally
> secure him a place in the working world.
>
> Instead, the university suddenly booted the 38-year-old blind
> student from the technology training program for the disabled -- for
> being, according to documents filed in federal court, "too disabled."
>
> Hopkins is suing LSU, alleging violations of the Americans With
> Disabilities Act. Earlier this month, 19th Judicial District Court Judge
> Curtis Calloway granted a temporary restraining order against the
> university, ordering it to reinstate Hopkins to the program.
>
> The matter is now pending in U.S. District Court. LSU officials have
> declined to comment on the litigation.
>
> "It was an amazing shock, particularly since this is a program set
> up for the disabled," said Hopkins, whose suit seeks his permanent
> reinstatement to the program. "This was just plain wrong."
>
> The Americans with Disabilities Act provides civil rights
> protections to individuals with disabilities. It guarantees equal
> opportunity in public accommodations, employment, transportation, state
> and local government services, and telecommunications.
>
> This year, LSU received $178,972 in federal and state funding
> through Louisiana Rehabilitation Services to provide training through
> the Computer Rehabilitation Training program.
>
> Thinking a certificate from LSU would impress potential employers,
> Hopkins -- rendered blind three years ago by childhood diabetes -- moved
> to Louisiana from Colorado last fall and applied to the Computer
> Rehabilitation Program. After a rigorous screening by a committee that
> included the same faculty who would eventually eject him, LSU admitted
> the former radio disc jockey to the program.
>
> A software program called JAWS, which reads each keystroke aloud,
> allowed Hopkins to hear the lecture notes the rest of the class viewed
> on a projector, as well as complete his programming. His class projects
> included a Web site as well as various scripting programs.
>
> Desperate to return to the work force, Hopkins often followed his
> eight hours of class work with another eight hours of work at home.
>
> "I had a paper route when I was 12, and I've been working ever
> since," he says. "I'm not ready to give up and take charity. I want to
> get back into the work force and contribute again."
>
> On the first day of class, according to an affidavit filed with the
> court, Community Rehabilitation Training Program Director Ray LePine and
> Teaching Associate Kim Seeger told Hopkins that LSU considered him "too
> disabled" to continue and suggested he leave the program.
>
> After returning from Christmas break, the two told him the
> university had terminated his enrollment.
>
> "Due to . the projected difficulties you would experience in the
> coming months with the software programs," LePine and Seeger wrote in a
> letter stating their position, "we believe it would be in your best
> interest to leave the CRT program effective January 24."
>
> The missive also cites 14 absences by Hopkins during the first five
> months of the program, saying it "indicates a possible concern with
> stamina and dependability" to prospective employers. Hopkins says he
> missed only eight days -- all of which were for dialysis treatments he
> requires for complications from his diabetes.
>
> "Ken is asking for no special treatment at all," his attorney, Karl
> Koch, said. "He just wants a chance. This is the first time I've heard
> of flunking someone out of a course before you even let them try. It
> really was a sad day for LSU when they sent him home, but I have to
> believe the university is going to see the light and let him try."
>
> Doreen Maxcy, assistant dean of the Division of Continuing
> Education, which oversees the program, said university attorneys advised
> her not to comment on why Hopkins was asked to leave the program.
> LePine, Seeger and LSU spokeswoman Holly Houk also declined to comment.
>
> LSU Attorney Vicki M. Crochet did not return several calls to her
> office Thursday.
>
> Jackie Gonzaque, communications director for the Louisiana
> Department of Social Services, said the program is designed to ensure
> that all students ultimately succeed. To that end, Louisiana
> Rehabilitation Services provides each one with the latest technology for
> the disabled to aid them in completing the course.
>
> She declined to discuss Hopkins specifically, citing client
> confidentiality. She did note, however, that blind students receive
> hardware and software that reads the contents of a computer screen as
> well as keystrokes, thus allowing them to overcome their visual
> impairment.
>
> Said Gonzaque: "We provide all of that to ensure that the students
> can hold up their end of the program. We want them to succeed."
>
> Until now, the Computer Rehabilitation Program -- part of a
> nationwide network of similar initiatives -- has enjoyed a positive
> reputation in the community. In its nearly 23 years, hundreds of its
> graduates have found employment in Louisiana and other states.
>
> Said Laura Bracken, executive director of the Louisiana Office of
> Disability Affairs and a member of the program's Business Advisory
> Council: "It's really a good opportunity for people with disabilities to
> return to the work force."
>
> Until the courts resolve the issue, Hopkins continues to attend
> classes on a judge's order. Success will be felt, he muses, only if it
> prevents more disabled students from experiencing the same fate.
>
> "We're not masochists," Hopkins says. "If we had known this was
> going to happen, we would have done something else. I just want the
> education I was promised. And whether it's from LSU or not, I'm going to
> get it."
>
>
> http://www.theadvocate.com/stories/031403/new_student001.shtml
>
>
> VICUG-L is the Visually Impaired Computer User Group List.
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>
VICUG-L is the Visually Impaired Computer User Group List.
To join or leave the list, send a message to
[log in to unmask] In the body of the message, simply type
"subscribe vicug-l" or "unsubscribe vicug-l" without the quotations.
VICUG-L is archived on the World Wide Web at
http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/vicug-l.html
VICUG-L is the Visually Impaired Computer User Group List.
To join or leave the list, send a message to
[log in to unmask] In the body of the message, simply type
"subscribe vicug-l" or "unsubscribe vicug-l" without the quotations.
VICUG-L is archived on the World Wide Web at
http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/vicug-l.html
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