Berkeley Disabled Students

As UC Berkeley continues to see an increase in students enrolled in the Disabled Students’ Program, DSP must change and provide genuine support for the ever-growing population of disabled UC Berkeley students it claims to serve but currently fails to adequately.

Amid the flurry of hellos exchanged by students and instructors is a general misconception about disability, according to campus graduate student Rosa Enriquez.

Amid national labor market disruptions and employee departures, DSP is experiencing a shortage of specialist staff resulting in accommodation delays for students.

In a time of unknowns and uncertainties, many students with disabilities desire hybrid instruction, not as an accommodation, but rather as a matter of ensuring public health.

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.

Nestled behind the popular Golden Bear Cafe is the office of the Disabled Students’ Program, or DSP. Its unassuming exterior belies a program that is both the product of a rich history of disability activism and a reminder that the work is far from done.

At least 15 students in the Disabled Students’ Program, or DSP, have encountered problems with the disbursements of their fall 2017 technology grants — funds which enable them to purchase assistive technology — according to Berkeley Disabled Students, or BDS, founder Lisa Albertson.

With the new school semester already underway, some students in the Disabled Students Program, or DSP, have been unable to get to their classes in Wheeler Hall.

Sarah Funes and Lisa Albertson, co-chairs of activist group Berkeley Disabled Students, alleged that the campus has been counting students who never applied as participants in the TRiO at Disabled Students' Program, or TRiO, to meet federal guidelines, misreporting the number of students being serviced. Albertson alleged she was involuntarily a part of the program from 2009-14.

A former UC Berkeley student filed a lawsuit against the UC Board of Regents on Friday after allegedly being thrown off the backseat of a golf cart while riding the Loop.