Stephen Hill, an Environmental Sciences student, finds time in his studies to serve as president of the Lethbridge 
College chapter of Ducks Unlimited.
Indrah Kerrison has begun the Nursing program after academic successes in General Studies.
Linda Entz, who left a Hutterite colony to further her education, is on her way to a diploma through Early Childhood Education.
All three are achievers, but their accomplishments would hardly distinguish them from hundreds of other Lethbridge College students were it not for one element the three share: all have disabilities affecting their learning.
They are among some 120 students on campus this semester who will turn to Disability Services for assistance with their academic journey. There they will find the accompanying technology necessary for them to overcome their individual situations. They will also find Julie Deimert and a world of moral support from her team of professionals.
“It’s a real thrill to see students overcome barriers and succeed despite their disabilities – and in some cases, because of them,” says Deimert, Lethbridge College’s disability counsellor, who has been working with clients like Hill, Kerrison and Entz for dozen years. “When the supports we offer are properly matched to individual needs, the world opens up for them.”
Linda Entz, for instance, has a thirst for working with children. She grew up with a profound hearing loss, finishing school at Grade 8. After spending the next seven years away from any formal education, she knew if she wanted to help children, she would need further education.
She took College and University Preparation to fill in missing high school components, with placement tests that placed her at a Grade 8 level in math, but a Grade 11 level in English.
“My instructors are understanding; they were extremely patient with me at Lethbridge College,” says Entz, who has recently completed a practicum. “And the Disability Services office has been fantastic.”
Entz notes her instructors make an effort to face her when speaking and standing adjacent to her in the classroom. She uses a fellow student as a scribe for note-taking, because she cannot watch the instructors’ lips when she writes. Instructors post their notes on the Internet, which allows her computer access to the material, and tutoring assistance helps her refresh what she’s heard in class.
To meet Stephen Hill, an observer would be hard-pressed to pick up on any learning disabilities. Hill, from Calgary, is a well-spoken young man finishing a diploma in Renewable Resource Management to add to a Lethbridge College degree in Conservation Enforcement. He hopes to find a public relations/spokesperson position with a major federal or provincial park or with Alberta Fish and Wildlife.
But while he has little trouble understanding his course work, and has a well-developed vocabulary and reading skills, he has difficulty expressing his thoughts in writing. Concepts such as punctuation and grammar are hard for him to follow, as is spelling words not obviously phonetic.
Hill, considered a learning-disabled/gifted student, is using various software to assist in his written work. While his final year will consist mostly of field work, there are written reports to be submitted and that can pose a challenge. He is exploring other writing tools with Lana Caldwell, an assistive technology specialist who works with Deimert.
“In high school, teachers had no time to give me extra help, but at Lethbridge College, you get to know your instructors almost as friends and colleagues,” says Hill. “I came out of my shell here. I use my strengths to help me stay away from my weaknesses.
“My instructors see that I have a high interest in the course work; they understand I’m trying my hardest and that I’m putting in the effort. They keep giving me a chance to show them what I know. Even if my written work isn’t 100 per cent, they know I can get to the final point.”
In high school, Indrah Kerrison took advanced courses and excelled at any work involving projects. She is well-spoken and has a high vocabulary. Her learning disability primarily affects reading comprehension, which makes tests difficult because, although she knows the course material, she can’t understand the written questions. Reading, she says, takes literally hours of effort.
Kerrison uses the help of educational assistants who read test questions aloud. She is improving her essay work with Caldwell’s help, while Amber Skoog, another of Deimert’s crew who handles alternate formatting, scans her texts to create MP3 files so she can hear the material on her iPod.
“A post-secondary education was always something I wanted,” says Kerrison. “Coming to Lethbridge College and succeeding has been huge for my confidence. It’s been a long road, but well worth it.
“The tutors help me piece together the concepts in my mind so I don’t have to struggle with them in class. They are the most important element to my success. I wouldn’t be able to be here without the services I have. I would have become discouraged and dropped out long ago.”
During the last academic year, almost 90 per cent of the students formally identified as learning disabled who used Deimert’s services in their first term continued into their second, a rate of success of which she is proud.
“Lethbridge College has a good reputation for comprehensive support,” says Deimert. “We are hearing good things from parents and receive positive word of mouth from our students, several of whom transfer from the University of Lethbridge.”
Of the 122 clients using the service last year, the majority had some form of learning disability. Others included students with hearing and sight loss, brain injuries, mobility issues, attention deficit problems, chronic medical conditions and psychiatric difficulties.
They were provided assistance with exams, note taking, assessments, training, learning strategies, alternate formatting (text to audio) and more than 1,100 hours of tutoring, often by fellow students who also serve as note-takers and are carefully matched with each client. The student tutors are selected for their academic success and are paid for their assistance.
Caldwell and Skoog, as part of a provincial pilot project, will soon have their credentials as adaptive technologists in training and support, bolstering the office’s work. They, like Deimert, receive their rewards when students drop by to express their thanks.
Skoog says the services the team provides have the potential to change the course of students’ lives.
“What a great gift it is to be able to provide the tools to help these students succeed, not only in their educational goals but in their lives,” she says. “For me the bigger reward is seeing the students grow as people. As the year goes by you can see their self confidence blossom as they realize they can do it.”
Caldwell concurs.
“Helping these students find out their learning strengths and how to use those strengths to overcome their areas of weakness is exciting for them and for myself,” she says. “Their academic success and the stories related to their success is always a gift to me from them.”
