Campus Life

UF plans to increase Disability Resource Center staff and resources in Cypress Hall

The University of Florida announced today that it will increase resources for the Disability Resource Center and Cypress Hall.

The commitment came from discussions over the last year regarding the growing need for accommodation support and enhanced space for students with disabilities.

The university’s commitment includes outfitting four additional rooms in Cypress Hall for students with significant mobility impairments, enhancing the space in Cypress Hall for personal care assistants for the residents living there, and adding a learning specialist and graduate assistant to the Disability Resource Center, or DRC, staff.

Additionally, through reorganization and re-allocation of resources, the center will add another learning specialist beginning July 1. These investments will help decrease the student/staff ratio in the DRC from 620-to-1 to 442-to-1.

In recent years, the number of students using the Disability Resource Center has increased significantly. Approximately 3,100 students are registered with the center, and more than 11,000 tests were accommodated last year.

“Support and care for all our students is vitally important,” said Dave Parrott, vice president for student affairs. “I’m thankful to the provost and the university for continuing these conversations on how to enhance our students’ experiences and contribute to their success at UF.”

Specifically, UF will spend $384,030 outfitting four rooms in Cypress Hall with assistive equipment and enhancing the space for the residents’ personal care assistants. The additional learning specialist and graduate assistant will cost $90,896 annually.

Opened in 2015, Cypress Hall offers enhanced rooms for students with significant mobility impairments. These rooms include lift systems to transport students throughout their residence hall rooms, flexible restroom configurations, adequate floor space to accommodate students who utilize mobility equipment and/or who require personal care assistance, and a state-of-the-art system for controlling access to the residence hall room, lift system, window blinds, etc. As the first residence hall of its kind in the Southeast, Cypress currently has 11 rooms outfitted with assistive equipment for students with the potential to go up to 35 rooms. The additional support from the university will raise the number to15 outfitted rooms.

The Disability Resource Center celebrates disability identity as a valued aspect of diversity. The center champions a universally-accessible campus community that supports the holistic advancement of individuals with disabilities.

More information about the Disability Resource Center is available at https://drc.dso.ufl.edu

More information about Cypress Hall is available at https://www.housing.ufl.edu/housing/cypress-hall/

Margot Winick Author
April 12, 2018