Category Archives: Uncategorized

May 31 Listen to Dis’ Online Event: There Is No Justice Without Access

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Listen to Dis’ and Saskatchewan Arts Alliance invite you to Pajama Party Politics: There is no justice without access

Disability is often perceived through the lens of those observing and exploiting disabled people. The art sector is no exception. The barriers to exist and the injustice within our arts spaces are insidious in Saskatchewan.

TOMORROW, Listen to Dis’ (LTD’) and the Saskatchewan Arts Alliance (SAA) invite you to take part in an online cultural conversation on May 31 from 10am to 12pm CST Sask time about why it’s important we all, as artists and cultural workers, both independently and as part of organizations, do the work to catch up and keep up with the current understanding of access and accommodation with and for the Deaf and disabled communities.

The event will feature three local crip cultural leaders (Traci Foster, John Loeppky, and Carla Harris) who have taken their broken heart and made art as a way of belonging and also feature Guest Artist interruptions (Lindsay Scott, Fatima Nafisa, and Vuyo Ginindza).

Everyone is welcome and we invite you to come as you are – just as you are – whether in pajamas on the couch, or comfy in your office.

To find out more or to register: https://form.jotform.com/221284370562251 or register via email: info@artsalliance.sk.ca.

(ASL Interpretation Available from Saskatchewan Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services.)

Listen to Dis’ Workshop ~ Puppetry for Storytelling ~ May 19/22

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This May 19th, 2022 from 6pm until 8pm CST Saskatchewan time, Listen to Dis’ Community Arts Organization will be hosting as part of our Visiting Artist Series an online puppetry workshop.

“Puppetry for Storytelling” with Crispi Lord.

How can puppetry serve your work? How can your work reach more people through puppetry? Come and learn the basics of puppetry and how to incorporate it into your work as a theatre artist in this FREE digital workshop! Bring the inanimate to life and speak volumes through movement and gesture. Reach deeper into our humanity through the exploration of the inhuman.

**ASL Interpretation Provided by the Saskatchewan Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services (SDHHS).**

Thank you to our funders, Community Initiatives Fund, The City of Saskatoon, and Sask Lotteries.

Without you, there is no us!

To register click on this URL: https://forms.gle/AcEeB3YDcuDxncfy8

Or

email Shelby at this email address: shelby.lowe@listentodis.com.

Zoom links will be sent out in the morning on the day of the workshop.

Crispi Lord Poster*Listen to Dis Community Arts Organization Inc. is a non-profit charitable organization that equips and enables people with disabilities to create and participate in art, for the betterment of their health, for recreation, and for the development of themselves as emerging and professional artists.

Crispi Lord Poster

International Day of Disabled Persons Event ~ Listen to Dis’ Community Arts Organization

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Listen to Dis’ Community Arts Organization invites you to celebrate

UN DAY: International Day of Disabled Persons

with us on December 3rd, 2021 at 6pm CST Saskatchewan time. LTD’ will be presenting a free casual script read of Seatbelt by LTD’ artist Natasha Urkow over Zoom. Join us!

Seatbelt is a dramatic cautionary tale written in autobiographical form from the true-life journey of a young woman who sustains a spinal cord injury from a violent car crash.
Entering the world of “other”, it emphasizes the social- and psychological anxieties that the transformation creates for her and her family.

The event will be ASL interpreted thanks to Saskatchewan Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services.

Registration Link:
https://forms.gle/AjQwXhzoyPktUaHQ8
Or email:
shelby.lowe@listentodis.com

*Listen to Dis Community Arts Organization Inc. is a non-profit charitable organization that equips and enables people with disabilities to create and participate in art, for the betterment of their health, for recreation, and for the development of themselves as emerging and professional artists.*

The poster image for this event

Request your Q4/T2 final exam accommodations by August 4!

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If you have a final exam in your Q4, T2, or T1/2 class, this blog post is for you!

The University’s final exam schedule for the last final exam session of the summer has been fed into the AES system. This means that you can request accommodations for the last of your summer finals NOW!

Because of the compressed nature of summer classes, and the timing around the release of the final exam schedule, AES deadlines are quite tight in the summer. You have only a few days to get your requests in, so if you need accommodations for a final in August, please get your request in now.

HOW TO REQUEST ACCOMMODATIONS FOR FINAL EXAMS

Log into PAWS –> Go to the AES channel –> Click on “Exam Service” –> Click on the “Final Exam” link –> Fill out the form(s)

WHAT TO DO IF YOUR FINAL EXAM ISN’T LISTED

If your final exam does not show up when you work through the above steps, it is not in the University’s final exam schedule. This commonly happens with lab finals and any exam outside of the final exam period (such as on the last day of classes).

If your final exam does not show up when you use the final exam link, use the non-final exam link instead. You will need to ask your instructor for the date and time of your final exam before you can fill out the non-final form. Make sure to get this all done before the AES deadline passes.

DO NOT FILL OUT A REQUEST IF:

  • Your final exam is being held in person. Although there are a handful of classes that are being held in person this term, AES staff is not allowed on campus and cannot set up in-person accommodations. If you have an in-person final exam, talk to your instructor.
  • Your class is not based at the Saskatoon campus. In that case, contact the student services staff at the home campus to discuss your accommodation needs.

NOTES ABOUT EXAM TIMING

  • AES only supports date and/or time changes for accommodation-related reasons. We will not support a time/date change for personal reasons such as work or family obligations.
  • If you need to change the date or time of an exam, you must talk to your instructor BEFORE you submit your request. This includes situations where students have accommodations such as “no morning exams.” Keep in mind that your instructor is the one who is managing exam times in this online environment, so it is crucial to have this discussion.
  • While we work remotely, instructors set up your timing accommodations. Especially for evening exams, it’s crucial to talk to your instructors at some point before the exam to confirm your actual start time.

DO YOU REQUIRE ACCOMMODATIONS FOR RELIGIOUS REASONS?

If you need to change an exam date or time for religious reasons, visit this link: https://students.usask.ca/academics/exams.php#ReschedulingExams

DO YOU HAVE QUESTIONS?

Ask us! Since we’re working remotely, it’s easiest to reach us by emailing this address: aesexams@usask.ca

Usask ADHD Education Group ~ Weekly February through March 8

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Confused and Curious about Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)?

About this Event

WHAT: This group will offer information, strategies, and support for improved academics, relationships, and life. Learn to manage your symptoms and turn the “deficit” into “advantage”.

WHO: University of Saskatchewan students who have, or are in the process of exploring, a diagnosis of ADHD. You must be a registered student currently residing in Canada to attend.

Sessions build on each other. Consider registering for and attending all 5 sessions.

WHERE: Virtually. The web invitation will be provided to you before the event starts.

WHEN: Sessions run each Monday (except Feb 15th) from February 1 to March 8, 2021 from 11:30am – 1pm.

  • Session 1 – Feb 1: Biological Component – diagnosis and medical therapy
  • Session 2 – Feb 8: Supports on Campus – review of Access and Equity Services (AES)

No Session Feb 15

  • Session 3 – Feb 22: Psychological Component – how ADHD relates to depression, anxiety and how to manage
  • Session 4 – Mar 1: Lifestyle Component – how nutrition does (and doesn’t) play a role
  • Session 5 – Mar 8: Social Component – thoughts, emotions and behaviors, increasing awareness and empowerment

Student Wellness Centre, Student Affairs and Outreach, and Access and Equity Services have joined forces to offer this service. Facilitators include a physician, mental health nurse, registered dietitian, and registered social workers.

We look forward to having you!

NOTE: Registration will close 3 hours before each session.

Questions?

Contact the Student Wellness Centre

FAQs about accommodations for December 2020 finals

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This December, final exams are going to be different. We know you have questions about how your accommodations will work.

The most common questions (and answers!) are below. Hopefully, this will help you out. If not, send us an email at aesexams@usask.ca

Q. Yikes! I missed the deadline! Now what?

Unfortunately, the November 19 deadline is firm. Now that it has passed, you need to contact your instructors to see if they can provide accommodations without AES being involved.

Some instructors may be unwilling or unable to assist students who didn’t submit their requests through us. If they are unable to help you, you will need to write your exam(s) without accommodations.

Q. I submitted my requests a long time ago and they’re still “In Progress”! What gives?

“In Progress” means that we’re waiting to get information about your exam from your instructor.

Ten days before your exam date, our system will send an automated message to your instructor, telling them that a student requested accommodations and that we need information about the exam.

Once the instructor replies to that email, we insert the information they provided into your exam record and change the status to “Scheduled.”

We can’t change the status of your exam until we hear from your instructor. Some instructors are super prompt and we will be able to change the status 8-10 days prior to the exam date. Some instructors don’t reply to that first email, so we send a follow up about 3 days before the exam. Some don’t reply to that one either! If we don’t get a reply at all, we will make a note of that in your notebox, and change it to “Scheduled” anyway.

Because you followed the correct procedures, your accommodations are guaranteed to be provided. Do NOT worry if the status stays as “In Progress.” It just means that we don’t have information about the exam yet.

Q. What time does my evening exam start? I have two. My AES Exam Service tab says that one starts at 5:00pm and the other starts at 7:00pm. Is this really true?

The start time for evening exams in your AES Exam Service channel is just an arbitrary time chosen by our system. It is not necessarily correct.

If you have a 7:00pm exam, talk to your instructor about the start time NOW.

Some instructors might start the exams at 7:00pm, which means students with time and a half will have until 11:30pm to finish. Other instructors might start the exam early, so that they don’t have to monitor their email or WebEx room until late at night.

AES won’t necessarily get the start time from instructors, and even if we do, we might not get it until a day or two prior to the exam. It’s best to ask your instructor for this information well before the exam date.

Q. If I have a question while writing my exam, who can help me?

If your question is related to technology or to the exam material, reach out to your instructor by whatever means they offered. If your computer crashes, if you’re having trouble downloading your exam, if the timer doesn’t seem correct, or if you don’t understand a question, ask your prof during the exam. Do not wait until after the exam is handed in.

If your question is related to disability issues or temporary illness, email us at aesexams@usask.ca Our email will be monitored from 8:00am to 10:00pm beginning Monday, December 7 through Saturday, December 19 (excluding Sunday, December 13). We will reply ASAP after receiving your email; if you seem to be in distress, we will offer to open a WebEx room to facilitate an easier chat.

Q. I requested a reader and/or a scribe for my final exam. How will that work?

The reader and/or scribe accommodation is provided via WebEx.

The staff person scheduled to work with you will set up the WebEx room a few days in advance of the exam. They will also email you to introduce themselves.

The staff person is scheduled to open the WebEx room 15 minutes prior to the exam time. We encourage you to arrive a little early yourself, to introduce yourself to the staff person and discuss how to work on the exam. The exam itself should not begin earlier than the actual start time.

Q. I  have a question that isn’t answered here.

Email us at aesexams@usask.ca Our phone lines are not monitored while we work remotely.

Please keep in mind that our workload is very heavy during final exam periods. We work as quickly as we can but we do need to prioritize tasks. We will reply to your email as soon as we are able.

Good luck on your exams! Stay safe and enjoy the holiday break after your exams wrap up!

 

 

 

 

AES Exam Accommodations in an Online Learning Environment – Information for Instructors

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When the U of S closed its campus in March 2020, the AES Exam Service team had very little time to adapt. Approximately 2500 exam requests had been submitted for April. There wasn’t time to contact each instructor regarding exam delivery and accommodations in the new online learning environment. As a result, we asked students to email their instructors directly, since in most cases, timing accommodations would need to be handled by instructors and other accommodations would need to be managed by the students at home.

What we found, in retrospect, is that most instructors prefer that AES stay involved in the accommodation process. AES is able to act as a gatekeeper, ensuring that all documents and communications are “official.” We also found that many students prefer that we stay involved since students aren’t always comfortable discussing their accommodation needs with their instructors.

Two other themes that emerged were:

  • Students were often unclear about how their timing accommodations would be implemented, which resulted in several in retroactive complaints.
  • Instructors are feeling overwhelmed with email.

To address these issues, the role of the AES Exam Service team was reconfigured and we worked with our IT support team to minimize the number of emails our system sends automatically to instructors. To ensure that students understood the changes, we sent monthly emails and also posted communications to our blog, PAWS channel, and website.

As of September 2020, the exam accommodation process ideally follows these steps:

  • Students request their Letters to Professors at the beginning of the term (or ASAP after registering) and send them to their instructors for informational purposes.
  • Students request accommodations for any sort of test by filling out the online AES request form.
  • The AES system automatically generates an email (with an attachment) for instructors 10 days before the exam date. The attachment:
    • Explains the role of AES in the accommodation process.
    • Asks for information about the exam (such as format and time).
    • Includes a list of ALL students writing the same exam on a specific date.
  • Instructors should fill out the exam information sheet using Acrobat Pro by Adobe or other means and email it back to AES.
  • AES transfers relevant information about the exam to the student’s online exam record, so that the student understands what to expect when they arrive at the exam.
  • The instructor adjusts the timer for timed online exams, as required.
  • AES arranges any accommodations that the students cannot manage themselves, specifically readers and scribes.

We do understand that instructors have had to make a lot of changes and adaptations, and that they have a lot on their plates. The form we are asking you to fill out and return is indeed one more thing. However, we are hoping that our new processes help by:

  • streamlining all requests for a single exam on a specific date into one email;
  • removing the need for instructors to keep track of the Letters to Professors and/or communicate with individual students regarding the accommodations for each exam;
  • requesting a very small amount of information; and
  • diminishing the number of student issues that need to be addressed retroactively.

We’ve had positive feedback from some instructors about these changes thus far. We’ve also seen a noticeable decrease in the number of retroactive student complaints. These processes do promise to improve things for everyone. Please take the short time required to complete and send back our exam information form.

If you ever have questions or concerns about the AES Exam process, please contact us. Our phones are not monitored while we work remotely. It’s best to reach out by email to this address: aesexams@usask.ca

Automated email – message body

Exam Information attachment

NEADS Accessibility Resilience Program – Emergency Support for Students with Disabilities in Response to COVID-19

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Purpose:

COVID-19 has placed an undue burden on post-secondary students with disabilities (undergraduate university, graduate university, college, cégep, and high school students entering a post-secondary institution) who were already facing immense socio-cultural and operational accessibility challenges before the pandemic. Particular challenges include rising tuition fees and a lack of transitional support for online learning such as assistive technologies, devices, and software. To do our part to help address these challenges, the National Educational Association of Disabled Students (NEADS) has put in place the Accessibility Resilience Program, with generous support from the Government of Canada’s Supports for Student Learning Program through a contribution agreement, to deliver $157,000 in disabled student emergency financial assistance.

There are two key components to this funding program:

Emergency Relief Awards: a minimum of $30,000 to increase the number of awards offered to disabled college and university students through the 2020 NEADS Student Awards Program. All applicants who applied to the 2020 program will be eligible and no further action is required.

Emergency Relief Grants: A maximum of $127,000 to college and university students with disabilities to facilitate recovery and account for any unforeseen costs related to rising tuition fees and the transition to online/remote learning. Application details below.

Emergency Relief Grants

The Emergency Relief Grants will be given to 87 deserving post-secondary students with disabilities to help them recover and account for any unforeseen costs related to the transition to online/remote learning resulting from COVID-19. Grant types include:

77 grants with a maximum claim of $1000.
10 grants with a maximum claim of $5000.

Eligible costs would include, but are not limited to: tuition fees, devices, cables, assistive technology software, internet bills, ergonomic desk equipment, or any other costs related to accessing education online as a result of COVID-19.

For all eligible costs, excluding tuition fees, recipients are responsible for invoicing NEADS with their receipt of purchase and would be reimbursed for costs incurred. Tuition fees would not be reimbursed but instead be applied directly to your student account.

DISCLAIMER: Applicants must wait to receive confirmation from NEADS that they are an Emergency Relief Grant recipient, including the specified value of the grant so that they can purchase their item(s) for reimbursement. If an applicant purchases an item without receiving confirmation that they have been selected as a recipient, NEADS is not liable to cover these costs.

Eligibility

Applicant must be a Canadian citizen
Applicant must have a permanent disability
Currently enrolled in or accepted into a post-secondary institution
Applicants must demonstrate COVID-19 impacts on their education
Applicant must demonstrate they have not had their needs met by other funding     available from federal or provincial sources

Selection Process

Once your application has been submitted, it will be reviewed for completeness and adherence to the above guidelines. Assuming all guidelines are met, selection committees will review applications based on the selection criteria described above. Due to the volume of applications received, only those selected to receive an award will be contacted. Recipients will be contacted by mid-January 2021.

For any inquiries pertaining to the application process please contact Lauren Gravis, Director of NEADS Student Awards at: etes@neads.ca or our National Office.

Deadline: December 1, 2020.

Apply now here: https://www.neads.ca/asas/arp-en/

 

 

Request accommodations for your December exams NOW

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The AES Exam Request form for December finals is LIVE!

If you require accommodations for any exams in December 2020, please request those now. 11:59pm on November 19 is the deadline to request accommodations for any exams on December 3 or later.

HOW TO REQUEST ACCOMMODATIONS FOR FINAL EXAMS

Log into PAWS –> Go to the AES channel –> Click on “Exam Service” –> Click on the “Final Exam” link –> Fill out the form(s)

If your final exam does not show up when you work through those steps, it is not in the University’s final exam schedule. This commonly happens with lab finals and any exam outside of the final exam period (such as on the last day of classes). If your final exam does not show up when you use the final exam link, use the non-final exam link instead.

IMPORTANT NOTES ABOUT REQUESTING ACCOMMODATIONS

  • Even if your exam is online, fill out an AES request form if you require any accommodations at all.
  • AES only supports date and/or time changes for accommodation-related reasons. We will not change an exam date or time for personal reasons (such as travel, work, or family obligations).
  • If you need to change the date or time of an exam, you must get permission from your instructor BEFORE you submit your request. This includes situations where students have accommodations such as “no morning exams.” Even if you have an accommodation supporting a time change, you still have to talk to your instructor about it.
  • Please make arrangements with your your lab instructor/coordinator if you require accommodations for a lab exam.
  • If you need to change an exam date or time for religious reasons, visit this link: https://students.usask.ca/academics/exams.php#ReschedulingExams
  • AES staff is required to work remotely and cannot set up accommodations for on-campus exams in 2020. If you have an on-campus exam, please speak to your college regarding accommodations.

HOW AES IS SUPPORTING STUDENTS DURING FINAL EXAMS 

While the University is closed due to the pandemic, the AES Exam Program is functioning mainly as a liaison between students and instructors. Our goal is to streamline the process and minimize email communications between instructors and students.

  1. A student submits a request for accommodations using the AES PAWS form.
  2. The AES system creates an automated email for the instructor, asking for details about the exam format.
  3. Once the instructor sends those details, AES inserts them into the student’s exam request record.
  4. The student checks their AES Exam Service channel for the exam details, which will be posted ASAP after being received from the instructor (usually 1-3 days prior to the exam date).

In addition to assisting with information flow, we will set up scribes and/or readers via the WebEx conference app, if required.

Questions? Ask us! Since we’re working remotely, it’s easiest to reach us by emailing this address: aesexams@usask.ca