Spartan Echo

Section: Student Life

"It's important to make an incredible difference," the class chanted on several occasions.

Jacqueline Smith-Eley, an adjunct professor for the Health Physical Education and Exercise Department at Norfolk State University, has an enormous amount of compassion for her students.
For a number of years, she was employed as an instructor in the field of special education. At Norfolk State, she instructs a class called, Activities for the Handicapped. The academic goals of the class are to: increase awareness, promote understanding, teach respect, promote acceptance and inclusion, inspire disabled students to achieve goals, to feel a sense of pride, encourage peer support, and teach patience.

On Oct. 16, the students attending her class were assigned the task of creating t- shirts simulating what it would be like to be an individual with a disability. The students expressed much excitement in their creations, featuring images, wording, and bright colors. A vast majority used the common wheelchair to symbolize a disability. The class took time to discuss an overview of the types of disabilities, including: Autism, Emotional and Developmental, Hearing and Visual Impairments, Speech/Language Impairment, and several others.

One individual in the class, Sanika Botts, was the guest speaker for the night. He is 27, completely blind, and was diagnosed at the age of ten years old. His blindness is degenerative, and as of now, he has four eye conditions. Growing up with his condition was hard, but he has grown accustomed to it. In fact, just like any other individual, he was able to drive.
"I was able to drive for six months, until they took my license away," Botts told the class. "The hardest part of becoming blind was when they took my license," he joked. The class laughed in response.

Being serious, Botts said the hardest part of not having sight would be the inability to see small things, such as, colors and details. Although he is blind, he can still see forms of objects when there is light, but at night, he is completely blind. Botts gets around through listening, and almost never has a problem getting around campus.

"He even shows others how to get someplace from time to time," said Eley. "He is always matching too."

"That's right, I will always be matching. I can't come out looking a mess," said Botts. When all was said and done for the night, the message of the class was still apparent to all. October is Disability Awareness Month. "It's important to make an incredible difference. "

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