On Friday, April 5, a crowd of around 10 people, consisting of both students and faculty, made theirwaytogatherinfront of Bedford Hall to show their support for the second annual WalkandRoll,aneventthat was organized by the Office of DisabilityResourcesinhonor of the month of April being Disability Awareness Month.
Lindsay Farrar, director of the Office of Disability Resources, talkedabouttheinspiration behind the first annual Walk and Roll that took place last year, saying,“Initially,[Walkand Roll] was developed just to be a physical representation of our support of the accessibility of this campus.”
Members of the Longwood community who participated in the Walk and Roll event traveled to the end of Brock Commons and then turned around to travel back to where they started. Last year's event started at Stubbs Hall, while this year's event began at Bedford Hall.
After the event concluded, information was offered to those who participated that described the ways in which organizations could make their events more accessible.Waysinwhich accessibility can be accomplished include reaching out to people withdisabilities,captioning films and slide shows whenever possible,understandingthat while people may have the same disability, they may not have identical needs in terms of access and also understanding that not all disabilities are immediately apparent.
WhenaskedwhethertheOffice of Disability Resources planned to continue the Walk and Roll event in the future, Farrar replied, “Absolutely. I would like to even see it turn into maybe a 5K race, kind of doing it to maybe raise some awareness as well as some money here on campus. That’s my goal.”
However, in order for there to be a 5K race and for any significantfinancialgaintobe made, the number of Lancers that participate would need to rise.
Farrar stated that she felt the Office of Disability Resources was doing a better job at getting the word out about their events, such as the Walk and Roll. She said, “I think we are trying to do a better job of that [in terms] of advertisingeventsandletting students know that."
For any additional questions about the Walk and Roll event, how to make your organization’s events more accessible, to recommend a potential event or programtotheOfficeofDisability Resources or to sign the Office of Diversity Resources' Inclusive Environment Pledge, contact the Office of Disability Resources at disabilityresources@longwood. edu or you can call the office at (434) 395-2391.
