Alena Morales

UC Berkeley opened its new Disability Cultural Community Center, or DCC, on Tuesday in the Hearst Field Annex, becoming one of the first college campuses to create a center dedicated solely to the disabled community. 

At its regular meeting Wednesday, ASUC officials discussed office updates, heard reports from council and commission chairs and passed several bills.

The ASUC Disabled Students Commission, or DSC, met Friday through Zoom to discuss topics including issues in accommodation requests, redefining basic needs and emergency backup power for students with disabilities.

The ASUC Disabled Students Ad Hoc Committee, or DSC, was established as an ASUC commission Oct. 14, granting it a larger platform to advocate for UC Berkeley students with disabilities.

UC Berkeley is known as the home of the disability rights movement due to a rich history of student activism and advocacy.

UC Berkeley student advocates Katie Savin and Alena Morales recently reflected on their work and progress toward making campus accessible and welcoming for students with disabilities.

As the COVID-19 pandemic persists and remote learning continues, campus organizations have been working to remotely support students with disabilities and plan for their return to campus.

In alignment with this year’s admission of the most ethnically diverse class in more than 30 years, one of the largest minority groups on UC Berkeley's campus, namely students with disabilities, has also seen an increase in admission rates.

Underrepresented student groups and organizations, including the community of students with disabilities and Indigenous student organizations, have faced long-standing challenges in their fight for allocated spaces on campus. 

After years of student advocacy, UC Berkeley allocated a space for a disability cultural center June 18. The disability cultural center will be in the Hearst Field Annex and will provide a myriad services such as serving as a central hub for disabled students, faculty, staff and local community members.