HIGHER EDUCATION ACCESS FOR ALL E XPAND I N G O P P O RT U N I T I ES A ND T HE C OLLE GE E X P E RIE NC E FO R Y O UNG PE O P L E W I T H I N T E LLE C T UA L DIS A BILIT IE S Matthew Cimitile
Logan Lavery always wanted to go to college. But as one of around 6 to 7 million people living in the United States with an intellectual disability that impacts learning, reasoning and problem solving, it seemed unattainable. Colleges typically did not welcome such students to campus or provide the needed services for them to thrive. That all changed on USF’s St. Petersburg campus when the UMatter program was launched to provide this population the opportunity to experience higher education and campus life. In the fall of 2021, the program welcomed its first cohort of seven students, providing learning and social skill training, along with career development, to assist these young people in navigating the transition from high school to college while becoming competitively employed and living independently. “I wanted a community, a welcoming community,” Lavery said. “And this program
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is so welcoming to new students like me and provides so much help with personal and classroom problems.” Now just a month after welcoming its first cohort, a $1.2 million gift from Andrew and Eileen Hafer will give even more students like Logan the opportunity to experience higher education. The gift, made to the USF Foundation, will name the program after the donors and help fund its operations and year-round initiatives for participating students, including scholarships for tuition, housing, fees and other expenses. “We couldn’t be happier to be part of the USF UMatter program as it pioneers new strides in inclusivity,” said Eileen Hafer. “At its core, UMatter is relational. It helps to remove obstacles that allow division based on human differences. I believe this program promotes a perspective and empathy for all those involved and strengthens the diversity of our USF community overall.”
