From CNET and the Associated Press:

The National Federation of the Blind said Wednesday that Syracuse University and the University of Wisconsin-Madison have declined to use Amazon.com’s Kindle DX for textbooks. The reason: the device is not accessible to students who are blind.

Pamela McLaughlin, director of communications and external relations at Syracuse University, said in a statement that her school bought two Kindle DX units to see if it could replace hardcover textbooks and course materials.

Although students are still evaluating the devices, she said, the university has “no plans to purchase any more of these units in light of the fact that they are inaccessible to blind students. If Syracuse University decides to use e-book technology on campus, we will require technology that can be used by all of our students, including those who are blind.”

Theo Emery writes in the New York Times: The Choice Blog that applying to college can pose more hurdles for students with learning disabilities than for their nondisabled peers.

After attending a workshop titled, “Supporting the Transition to College for Students with Learning Disabilities,” at a conference of 5,000 admissions officers and counselors in Baltimore, Emery offers some suggestions for applicants with disabilities including dyslexia, ADHD and Asperger’s Syndrome.

• Decide whether you want to disclose your disability and take advantage of campus disability services. While it is illegal for admissions officers to ask, applicants may benefit if their disability status is known.
• Assess a college based on accommodations it is willing to make, services it will provide, and availability of programs for people with disabilities.
• Be aware of the contents of your transcript and psychoeducational evaluation, and let that information help guide your choice of where to apply.

From the Orlando [FL] Sentinel:

The College Internship Program in Melbourne, Florida, helps students with autism spectrum disorders succeed in college by working on social skills, independent living skills and time management.

The program, which costs between $30,000 and $40,000 a year, was created eight years ago by psychologist Michael MacManmon after he was diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome. “I thought, ‘What would someone with Asperger’s who’s going to college need to be able to function in life?’” said McManmon.

The program is also available in Massachusetts, Indiana and California.

From NBC Nightly News with videos:

Two years after it began, UCLA’s pioneering Pathway Program has produced its first graduating class. The two-year postsecondary program gives students with intellectual disabilities an opportunity to gain independent living skills. At the same time, they experience college life and explore vocations through UCLA Extension.

“I feel like I accomplished a lot during my time here,” said Andrew Kramer, a member of the 12-person graduating class.

Earlier post here.

See also: A special graduation — NBC blog

Pathway’s blog is here.

(Full disclosure: I’m a member of Pathway’s Advisory Council.)

Tyler Cowen, writing in the Chronicle of Higher Education, expresses dismay at the “dehumanizing ideologies” and biases directed by academics toward people with autism. He asks academics to embrace neurodiversity, develop a respectful language for discussing autism, and move beyond defining autism as a problem to be solved. In fact, he says, it can be a competitive advantage. An excerpt:

The more complex reality is that there is a lot more autism in higher education than most of us realize. It’s not just “special needs” students but also our valedictorians, our faculty members, and yes -sometimes -our administrators.

That last sentence is not some kind of cheap laugh line about the many dysfunctional features of higher education. Autism is often described as a disease or a plague, but when it comes to the American college or university, autism is often a competitive advantage rather than a problem to be solved. One reason American academe is so strong is because it mobilizes the strengths and talents of people on the autistic spectrum so effectively. In spite of some of the harmful rhetoric, the on-the-ground reality is that autistics have been very good for colleges, and colleges have been very good for autistics.

Cowen is a professor of economics at George Mason University.

From the Washington Times:

Twenty-three-year-old Melissa Gurman (left) says she “accomplished her college dream” when she graduated in May from George Mason University’s Learning Into Future Environments (LIFE) program, a postsecondary program for students with intellectual disabilities.

Students in the LIFE program learn independent living skills and take courses for basic literacy, math, and other subjects. The program costs $16,000 per year, not including room and board. The 2008 Higher Education Opportunity Act will soon help students with intellectual disabilities offset the costs of postsecondary education with federal loans or scholarships.

Debra Hart of the Institute for Community Inclusion (ICI) at the University of Massachusetts-Boston says some 200 similar programs have sprung up across the nation, most within the past 10 years. She says research suggests that students like Gurman who receive some form of postsecondary education are more likely to find a job and earn higher pay than peers who don’t.

(Washington Times photo)

From U.S. News & World Report:

Brittany Ross (left) is working as a hostess intern at Walt Disney World Orlando after a stint at the College Living Experience (CLE) program and the Community College of Denver. She has a diagnosis of  Asperger’s syndrome

CLE is a private program operating in six cities around the country that helps students with learning disabilities, particularly those with autism and Asperger’s. Students enroll simultaneously in CLE and a college near one of the program’s centers, and work on social skills and independent living as well as academics.

There are presently 187 students enrolled in the nationwide program. The cost is $33,500 per student per year, and can be partially subsidized by some states.

“Comprehensive support is so crucial,” [social coordinator and resident adviser for CLE's Denver program, Kirk Redwine] says. “To think someone with so many issues could do college without this type of multifaceted assistance is setting them up to fail.”

Earlier posts here.

(Photo from U.S. News & World Report)