by Lisa Haglund
Contributing Writer

Students at Shoreline Community College may notice the large number of students who are disabled to some degree on campus. What is not so visible is the extraordinary program that allows them to do this, the Community Integration Program.

According to CIP Program Coordinator Barb Fiske, all community colleges must have some services for students with disabilities, but at Shoreline those services extend far beyond what most schools offer. The scope of SCC’s Community Integration Program is unprecedented. No other community college in the nation has a program so wide-ranging in its services.

The CIP is arguably the best program in the nation for college students who live with severe disabilities. Staff and work-study students help with personal (bathing, eating, etc.) and academic tasks, using individually-tailored systems and equipment in their well-outfitted lab.

The story of the CIP’s development begins with the residents of a local United Cerebral Palsy House in the 1980’s.

Residents would get bored with being cooped up, and look for a more stimulating environment. They would drive to SCC with their motorized wheelchairs to people-watch or use the library, while enjoying the active environment.

Campus administrators noticed their presence, and learned of their interest in attending college classes. In 1982, counselor Nancy Field and former Vice President of Student Services Bill Demetre, helped write the grant that launched the Cerebral Palsy Program, later renamed the CIP to better reflect the variety of students in the program.

With additional funding from the King County Developmental Disabilities Division in 1983, Shoreline faculty member John Elmer helped pioneer the CIP Lab, a state-of-the-art lab of adaptive equipment designed for students unable to work with conventional equipment.

The Snohomish County DDD provided further funding in 1993. The CIP was able to purchase special tools like Dragon Naturally Speaking software, and Kurzweiler Reader. Students who have trouble reading are able to listen to their textbooks, or scan documents to be read to them via the Kurzweiler Reader.

There are currently 21 students in the CIP. Most have cerebral palsy (see box). Others have autism spectrum disorder or seizure disorders. CIP students are enrolled in regular classes, as well as CIP classes, and special presentations are given at the CIP by various Shoreline teachers in their fields of expertise.

Despite what some may think, Fiske says CIP students are not getting a “free ride.” They are responsible for paying their own tuition like any other Shoreline student. The CIP mission is to provide the best possible support to them while they’re attending classes, but does not use the grant money received to fund any student’s education. Instead they are constantly at work updating and obtaining new tools for the program as new students with new needs enroll.

To enroll in the CIP, students must work with their DDD case managers and the program directors to ensure a good fit. K-12 education, or some Adult Basic Education is mandatory. Some of the younger students have found out about the CIP from their high school college counselors.

Current and former students in the CIP have not only been able to attend college classes, but have also found they are able to take part in all sorts of campus activities. Monica Shuman is a CIP student who is involved in the Self Awareness Club, and the Black Student Union. Norm Rogers, another CIP student served on the Student Body Association Senate and traveled with the SBA Government to Washington D.C. in 2002.

Photo by Lindsay Ginn/Ebbtide
Monica Shuman is working towards her goal of becoming a counselor with the help of he CIP.

What is cerebral palsy?

Despite the myriad of physical disability suffered by individuals with cerebral palsy, the disease leaves most people totally cognizant. Virtually all CP is from birth, though it may go unnoticed until walking begins. It is caused by injury to the parts of our brains which affect all parts of the body’s physical abilities. CP can range from a mild case, in which a child is clumsy or has poor motor skills, to the more severe forms of the disease requiring the use of wheelchairs and possibly additional adaptive equipment. In addition to physical disability, CP can also cause learning problems, problems with eyesight and hearing, and sometimes varying degrees of mental retardation. Usually, CP is diagnosed before the age of three, with the more severe forms associated with greater injury to the brain. Although many people with CP are cognitively fine, the physical manifestations of CP are so wide-ranging and different for each person that often each wheelchair you see is tailor-made for that individual.

History lesson

Before specialized programs like SCC’s CIP, there was no real future for the severely disabled in the area of higher learning. Most colleges and universities weren’t able or willing to spend the money needed to provide the assistance for severely disabled students, many of whom suffer from diseases like cerebral palsy.