Photo by Adrienne J. Romero / SOC Images.
As the weather improves and more people are out and about in Hudson County, stop and notice how accessible is it for everyone?
Recent changes in our community have significantly impacted how many people with disabilities navigate their surroundings. Orders from the federal government have impacted on how people can get to their appointments, fund for their medical bills and ensure buildings are accessible for everyone.
In New Jersey, Peg Kinsell, policy director at the SPAN Parent Advocacy Network, has voiced concerns about the uncertainty surrounding efforts to dismantle the Department of Education, as well as recent changes in the Department of Health and Human Services that affect disability programs.
This organization works on disability, special health care and the needs of children across the board. In addition, they collaborate with parents to form a training and information center (PTI) that is designated by the federal program under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.
In New Jersey, SPAN is the designated parent center that focuses on students who have disabilities or special health care needs, such as accessing services, receiving appropriate public education and having training with parents and being able to empower families to support the students.
“The issue around the Department of Education and the gutting of the Civil Rights Office there, as well as their office of general counsel, which helps protect families of students with disabilities and their civil rights… All of those are issues, first and foremost, in the minds of a lot of the families that we deal with,” Kinsell, who is also the director of a project supporting military-connected children and youth with disabilities and special health care needs at Joint Base New Jersey, told Slice of Culture.
“There are certainly issues around funding and financing, and what might be a retribution for not necessarily agreeing with the position of some of the federal government departments.”
One of the biggest worries for families would be the potential cuts to Medicaid, which is a joint federal and state program that can help cover medical costs for low-income people and those with limited resources. This can include benefits such as nursing home care and personal care services.
This may represent undocumented families, many of whom are afraid to go to the hospital or school.
Rebecca Martin, a project manager at Inclusive Healthy Communities, told Slice of Culture that she has worked on different projects throughout the state and has found what people fell lacks in New Jersey counties.
Her position includes guiding inside the Disability Services, access to nature, healthcare systems and college preparedness.
With the threats to Medicaid, Martin expressed how one of the main concerns are the transportation options for people who need to get to places.
“There’s a lot of ways that you can make things better for people with disabilities, just by being more thoughtful about, when you have a meeting, have you done all of the things you can to make it as accessible as possible, like just things that don’t really require a lot of financial investment, but it requires intentionality that can really impact people’s lives.”
Rebecca Martin told Slice of Culture
People with disabilities are often only included in research that specifically focuses on disability, but they’re frequently left out of everyday research across other fields.
Martin emphasized that people with disabilities live full, complex lives like anyone else, making it essential to ensure research and practices are accessible and inclusive.
In New Jersey, about 10.9% of residents have a disability; in Hudson County, the rate is 10%.
Having things accessible from the get go can help make a difference with people in their communities, even as little as sending presentations in advance can go a long way.
With the rise of AI there are opportunities for people to get access to information that can include making alternative versions of documents.
Accessibility work often frames people with disabilities as service recipients or end users, rather than the creators and decision-makers behind those services. Companies design tools and systems without including people with disabilities in the process of making them accessible in the first place mentioned by Martin.
“And [accessibility work] often demonstrates what people’s latent concept of what a person with disabilities is, rather than it being like somebody who can be a vital part of the process. It’s just a passive user,” Martin mentioned.
What Accessibility Looks Like In School
For educators like Jeanette Lopez Fernandez, a braille literacy instructor at St. Joseph’s School for the Blind (SJSB) in Jersey City, changes are especially significant. The school initially focused on serving students with visual impairments, but over time it expanded its mission to support individuals with multiple disabilities, including an adult program for those over the age of 21.
The teachers have special education and certification in Braille, which is a system of tactile reading and writing. They learn about orientation and mobility in how students who are blind or visually impaired use white canes to travel and navigate independently throughout their communities.
Many students need things modified, such as tactile graphics with different sensory components that can allow them to receive and understand information better.
Being the only school for the blind in New Jersey, they have many students from all counties.
“Accessibility is important for our students. You know, those that are visually impaired and multiply disabled [like] being able to give opportunities such as employment, [or] social opportunities for people with disabilities… So a lot of times we see that a lot of schools have different after-school programs, maybe having programs that are inclusive to students with disabilities, and I think there’s a lack of that too,” Fernandez said.
Working with people around communities and making sure that everyone is included, even with simple matters like having Braille menus, can go a long way for accessibility. SJSB has also worked with various schools in the past to give presentations on different materials they use, such as Braille writers. These collaborations have included teaching students in mainstream public schools how to read and use Braille.
In addition to those efforts, they also partner with the New Jersey Commission for the Blind, particularly to support students in the transition period when finishing high school. They offer weekend programs that provide students with social opportunities and engaging activities. However, they believe there is a need for expansion beyond what the Commission offers. Specifically, there’s a strong need for local cities to develop programs and opportunities that allow students to engage socially and work within their communities.
What More Can Be Done?
Having access to buildings, especially in a bigger city, can be difficult, more so when the buildings have a historical designation. Prioritizing budgets to redo roads and door openings, and access to doorways, can make many places accessible for people.
While the Americans with Disabilities (ADA) requires accessibility to the “extent as possible” there isn’t a dedicated agency that regularly inspects buildings. Instead enforcement relies on individuals filing complaints.
Martin gave an example about hotel rooms and how some people with disabilities have tried to test if hotels are actually accessible by booking a room and then filing a complaint that the room had no accommodations. But in some cases, the courts have thrown these out, saying the person wasn’t harmed because they didn’t physically stay at the hotel.
“I think we could have done a lot better on transportation and access for people with disabilities. I still think we have a long way to go to help people with disabilities actually live in the community and not be stuck in institutional, you know, living arrangements, but it’s all a heavy lift. It takes strong advocacy efforts across the board, and it takes money and resources. So in the climate right now, it’s even, scarier about not only what we’re not moving forward with, but what we might be losing,” Kinsell added.
Ultimately, bridging these two gaps can help unite communities and provide essential support for individuals who need greater accessibility in various aspects of community life. Organizations like SPAN offer numerous volunteer opportunities, including parent training and participation in advocacy support.
Having programs and partnerships such as the ones mentioned, have given people around the communities chances to experience everyday normal tasks.
Martin pointed to the Pinelands Preservation Alliance, which started the Access to Nature initiative. It began in South Jersey and has expanded across the state, which has allowed access to nature.
The initiative has made a lot of progress in breaking down barriers in natural spaces, and has embraced the importance of inclusion. With that in mind, Martin emphasizes how important it is to involve people with disabilities as leaders and decision makers from the very beginning of any project.
Accessibility isn’t a one-time fix, but it’s an ongoing commitment to support everyone in our communities.
As New Jersey continues to grow and change, advocates voice how crucial it is to ensure that people with disabilities are not only seen, but also have space to participate, lead and thrive.
