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OPINIONS
THE CAMPUS APRIL 13, 2021
Safia Hafid, Opinions Editor » thecampus.opinions@gmail.com
Discrimination against studies with disabilities regarding bursary Rebecca Campbell Contributor
Bishop’s University has opened their bursary eligibility to students with disabilities, but they will not tell
you that. For several semesters now, I have been working with the Student Accommodations and Accessibility Services (SAAS) team; the support I have received from them has been integral to managing my disability while enhancing my academic success. Yet, the financial hardship faced by many students during COVID-19, including myself, threatened my ability to return to school. Fortunately, I was awarded a bursary to alleviate some of this financial stress, and I returned to Bishop’s in the fall. For this semester, winter 2021, I decided to take a reduced course load in order to better manage both my disability and my education. Through my province’s student loan program and SAAS, students with disabilities are often eligible to take as few as two courses while still maintaining full-time student status. However, the Bishop’s scholarship program does not recognize the full-time status of students with disabilities. In fact, Bishop’s revoked my financial aid when I registered for under 12 credits in order to prioritize my health. At that point, I realized that Bishop’s University had arranged their financial support program to exclude all students with disabilities who required a reduced course load. This exclusion gives preference to students without disabilities while discriminating against accommodated students pursuing higher education.
Rethinking phone use
I was absolutely furious and indignant at the removal of my funds based on this prejudiced policy. This turn of events marked the beginning of an email chain between Jamie Berwick, the Bursar; Stine Linden-Anderson, the Dean of Student Affairs; and me, regarding this university’s discriminatory policies towards students with disabilities. I was first notified by Berwick that I would be offered half of my original scholarship in recognition of my fulltime status. I accepted this compromise since I was taking fewer courses, but I emphasized to Berwick and LindenAnderson that my exception did not address the school’s financial discrimination against students with disabilities. A four-month correspondence, spanning from December 2020 to March 2021, resulted in the university adapting the application process to include students approved for a reduced course load through SAAS. This alteration is an important and necessary step towards equity and inclusion for the Bishop’s bursary and scholarship program. However, the administration has since done almost nothing to notify new and current students of the change. Furthermore, the website still indicates that eligibility for bursaries is dependent on enrolment in 12 credits, regardless of accommodations. Minimal effort was made by the administration on Feb. 25 to deliver written evidence of this policy change to students. Berwick and Linden-Anderson sent an edited version of a previous email explaining the application process for bursaries and scholarships for returning students. The original email did not include the application for scholarships and bursaries for students with disabilities
and failed to make the adjusted full-time status explicit. This new email, while addressing the new eligibility requirements, left the important additions to the “FAQ Section” of the email, which requires students to thoroughly read through the entire email. Since the financial aid eligibility adjustment only applies to students with accommodations, it seems like an easy solution for the school to have SAAS notify all registered students of this update. Why did the university not put more effort into relaying the new eligibility to students with disabilities? It feels all too intentional that there was not more effort on the school’s behalf to ensure students with disabilities had pertinent information regarding financial support. Financial hardship can be a barrier to education for many, and Bishop’s University owes its students equitable support in the financial aid program, especially during a time like this. It is too common to overlook marginalized groups, and there is a reason that Bishop’s University promotes a commitment to equity, diversity, and inclusion. However, I am forced to ask, is it all smoke and mirrors? Changing the application process to remove the ableist bias will not do any good if no students are informed of the change. You cannot apply for funding you do not know is available. It is essential that students hold Bishop’s accountable for their exclusionary policies and demand that Bishop’s University’s commitment to equity, diversity, and inclusion move beyond their welcome brochure. This all begs the question: is bureaucracy at Bishop’s preventing an equitable, diverse, and inclusive school while maintaining the status quo?
Sydney Wilson Contributor
Since the global pandemic began, my screen time–mainly on my phone–has increased by almost 50 per cent. I grow more and more horrified every Sunday when I receive the notification about how much time I have spent looking at my phone. It becomes even worse when I see that I am spending approximately two hours a day on social media, usually due to procrastination from schoolwork. As much as I appreciate my phone, my laptop, and the technology around me, I find that they cause a lot of damage as well. One of the issues surrounding social media is the content–there is so much of it, which keeps your attention for longer periods of time than intended. I tell myself I will only use my phone for 10 minutes; the next thing I know, an hour has passed. These apps are designed to keep users focused on the content in front of them, after all, trying to keep their attention for as long as possible. Even when I try setting screen time on certain apps that I use the most, I often simply turn it off, drawn to yet another interesting thing. It must be acknowledged that many businesses are now on social media. This can be good and advantageous. I have applied to certain jobs through social media and bought products I have seen from advertisements. Businesses use consumer data to target customers on social media with advertisements they might not realize impact them. Quite honestly, I do not think most consumers realize the social media site they use sells their data to companies in order for them to create targeted ads; the more time people spend on social media, the more available data there is. As a business major who understands the marketing tactics behind these ads, I find it quite interesting. When most people learn this, though, they find it creepy instead. For me, when I take a break from schoolwork–which, due to the pandemic, is almost all on my laptop–I use my phone and scroll through social media. While this is a “break” from my laptop, I am still looking at a screen. Then, I wonder why I am not sleeping well at night. I already know the problem, however; I spend too much time in front of a screen during the day and limited time away from technology. Personally, I cannot wait for in-person classes again, seeing as I will be able to participate in human interaction rather than just talking to people on my screen. Overall,
I use technology a lot; it is a large part of my life, as it is for most people. Still, I feel like this much screen time is beginning to exhaust me. The answer is clear: I need to start taking more breaks away from technology and rethink my phone use.
Courtesy of Sydney Wilson
