NEWS
Page 16 - The University Star
ROADBLOCK: Tuition revenue bonds fail to pass in special session CONTINUED from page 11
rage, which will have 300 new parking spaces added. no other sessions are called, the Nusbaum said Texas State’s university will present the issue Faculty Senate has rejected again during the Legislature’s raising tuition as an option for next regular session in 2007. supplementary funding of the Moore said Derrick Hall will Master Plan. be able to provide many un“In the future, with the dergraduate academic services campus developing more and temporarily once the College of more, we might have to eventuBusiness Administration moves ally consider raising the tuition into its new building; however, again, but for now the costs will he said, that location cannot in- remain the same for the next few definitely meet the demands of years,” Nusbaum said. a permanent “We just undergraduate raised tuition building. last year, so rais“Our plan ing it again is for the Legisout of the queslature is we betion,” she said. lieve we have A tuition a great case,” marketing study Moore said. taken during the “We do a lot Spring 2005 sewith the space mester at Texas we have.” State revealed Moore also opposition to a said the unituition increase. versity is one “The study of the top had a consistent candidates for outcome — that receiving state students are not funding to aid willing to pay — Nancy Nusbaum more to attend in campus exVice president of finance a public univerpansion. Nusbaum and support services and sity at this time,” hopes any adCampus Master Plan Nusbaum said. ditional monRebecca Roproject manager ey that may be driguez, biology needed for the senior, agrees undergraduate with the study’s center’s construction costs once findings. legislative funding has been al“This is my last year at Texas lotted will be obtained by other State, so I do not think my tumeans. ition costs should be raised to “Every university in the state pay for renovations when I will receives an allotted amount of not be here to see and use the funding from the Higher Edu- new facilities,” Rodriguez said. cation Assistance Fund and the An improved Student RecrePermanent University Fund,” ation Center is also included in Nusbaum said. “The school is re- the Master Plan. The student maining optimistic in its ability population approved the SRC to secure external funding.” expansion and upgrade by 91.7 Despite the lack of state fund- percent in a referendum during ing, Nusbaum said an architect the Associated Student Governwill be hired to plan out the con- ment election in the spring sestruction of a new fine arts build- mester. The expansion will be ing in phases. Both Nusbaum paid for by an increase in the and Moore said Phase I of the SRC fee that students pay with fine arts building will be financed their tuition. The rate increases largely by private donors. begin this semester. For the Master Plan’s mainteNusbaum said two proposed nance and infrastructure proj- projects will soon be reviewed ects, Nusbaum said the university by the Texas State University will proceed without state fund- System Board of Regents for ing, using money from bonds it approval of an architect: renowill sell as well as private dona- vations on Pecos Hall and the tions made to meet those bond completion of the fifth floor of sales. Nusbaum said the funds to the Mitte Complex. repay the bonds sold are already Upon approval, the architect in place. will begin working on designing “The Harris chill plant is very and bidding the projects to finalmuch in need of replacement,” ize the construction contract. Nusbaum said. “The university is growing The transformation of Bobcat and still continues to grow evTrail into the planned Concho ery year. It started out from just Green area will move forward, as Old Main and now encompasses will the additions being made to nearly six million square feet,” the Pleasant Street Parking Ga- Nusbaum said.
“T
he university is growing and still continues to grow every year. It started out from just Old Main and now encompasses nearly six million square feet.”
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Disability Services urges students who are struggling to visit office ODS says half at Texas State with learning disabilities are undiagnosed By Becky Stich Special to The Star The Office of Disability Services staff has a message for new and returning students: If you are having difficulty in classes, don’t wait to utilize the services they provide. Approximately 50 percent of Texas State students who have a learning disability were undiagnosed until they began to struggle academically and sought help at the office, said Tina Schultz, director of the ODS. Schultz said students often have mixed reactions upon hearing about a learning disability. “I try and have an open dialogue with a student,” Schultz said. “If you are a student who has not been diagnosed before, it can be a hard door to walk through. But I ask them, ‘Is this what you thought?’ And most say ‘yes’ because they knew something was not quite right.” Schultz has worked with many different types of disabilities, but some of the most prevalent are acquired brain injury, general disability, psychological disability, specific learning disabilities and attention deficit disorder. “Of the 702 students we serve at Texas State, 59.7 percent are identified learning disabled or ADD,” Schultz said. “Our fastest-growing group, though, is a psychological disability. We served 111 students in this category last year.” Some students enter Texas State with no prior history of a learning or attention disability but find it difficult to pass classes even though they are working hard. They are often referred to the ODS by an adviser or faculty member. “Some signs that you may have an undiagnosed learning problem are taking courses in a specific area, such as math and English, repeatedly and failing or studying twice as hard and
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taking advantage of available Bruce Coonce, the ODS’s help such as tutoring and still general disability and visual not performing well.” Schultz imparity specialist, has known said. of students who were reluctant Students who suspect they to come into the office to seek may have a specific learning help until they are about to be disability can call the ODS and put on academic probation. set up a 15-minute consulta“Sometimes students want tion. The appointment is free to come to college and shed and may be conducted over the the special-education label,” phone or in person. Coonce said. “And because a “The consultation will help learning disability is invisible, us determine if it would be ap- they might not feel they need propriate for a student to have ODS support. But the sooner further screening,” Schultz you seek help, the better.” said. “If we ODS has 30 feel there days to review is a need documentation for further once testing is evaluation, complete. The we will student meets make an with staff memappointbers to review ment with the results. them.” “I have found The free that a diagnosis screening answers a lot of process questions for takes about the student,” an hour. Schultz said. Staff mem“The testing bers collect shows the stu— Bruce Coonce informadent’s strengths ODS staff member and how they tion about the stulearn.” dent’s backIf disability ground, qualifications educational history, distract- are met, staff members will sit ibility, concentration and then down with the student to write review the student’s self-re- a plan to accommodate the port. If the screening shows student’s particular learning a need for more testing, staff acquisition needs. members consult with the stu“The purpose of accommodent about various options. dations is to level the playing “We check to see if the stu- field,” Schultz said. “Accommodent has insurance,” Schultz dations are not to give students said. “If they do, we give them an advantage but to give them a list of examiners that work equal access.” with us. If they do not have Common accommodations insurance, we will try to meet are extended time on tests and their testing needs another measures to reduce distractions way.” while taking exams, which can In order to qualify for the be given at the ODS. Other acdiagnosis of learning disabil- commodations are made on an ity, a student must show a individual basis. discrepancy of at least 15 stanA student will try the plan dard score points between the before meeting and reporting IQ and achievement scores. In to ODS staff members on its other words, if the IQ is aver- effectiveness. ODS then genage or above average, the stu- erates a letter the student will dent should be able to perform take to instructors. typically in a subject area but is “The student is responsible struggling instead. to educate their instructor.” “Students with a learning Schultz said. “We will work as disability are bright and in- a liaison between students and telligent,” Schultz said. “Most faculty if a problem arises.” of them have been getting An instructor can legally through school with their own refuse to provide the accombuilt-in strategies, but the modation but must be able to more demanding expectations offer a comparable option that at college make their strategies is acceptable to the student. less effective.” “If, for example, an instruc-
ecause a “B learning disability is
invisible, they might not feel they need ODS support. But the sooner you seek help, the better.”
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tor did not like to have lectures taped and that was a student’s accommodation, then the instructor could provide a detailed copy of lecture notes or come up with a hand signal that told the student when they would like the tape player turned off,” Schultz said. ODS has worked to educate the faculty on disability equity and to encourage the staff to put accommodation statements on syllabi. There is also a proposal to increase funding from $50,000 to $75,000 to finance 88 increased accessibility projects. Schultz noted that even though the proposal requests increased allocation of funds, the university has the opportunity to increase accessibility through the new buildings and building renovations included in the 2006-2015 Campus Master Plan. ODS performs more services than addressing accessibility matters, however. “The ODS talks with faculty over individual concerns at new staff orientation and if a department invites us, we will talk to their staff,” Coonce said. “I feel we are having fewer problems with the faculty over disability issues due in part to Ms. Schultz working with the faculty.” Coonce said a common concern among students is confidentiality. All documentation and information about a student with a disability is confidential and is not reported in a student’s academic record. Even instructors do not know a student’s disability unless he or she informs them, Coonce said. “The letter that students take to their instructor is a generic,” Coonce said. “It does not state the student’s disability. If an instructor calls wanting to know the disability, we cannot tell them unless the student gives us permission.” A goal of ODS, as expressed in the office’s vision statement, is to develop a society in which individuals with disabilities thrive and participate fully. “I would like to believe that our office is open and welcoming and visible,” Schultz said. For more information on the ODS, visit www.ods.txstate. edu, or call (512) 245-3451. The office is located in the LBJ Student Center, Suite 5-5.1.
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