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Handicap accessibility should be a top priority for schools and government buildings. And while many USD 214 buildings have handicap accessibility signage, some of the buildings can be a challenge for individuals using wheelchairs or walkers.
Nancy Borthwick made a presentation to the USD 214 Board of Trustees May 12, proposing an adult changing station in the restrooms at the Ulysses High School gym. Borthwick has a 17-year-old nephew who was born with Polymicrogyria (PMG), which is a developmental brain malformation characterized by an excessive number of small, abnormal gyri (surface folds) in the cerebral cortex.
This malformation results in a thickened cortex and can affect various regions of the brain. PMG is often associated with developmental delays, seizures, and other neurological issues.
“He was not expected to live past 7, so we’re blessed to have him every day” Borthwick said.
While he is non-verbal, he is smart, can hunt, and holds a job in his hometown in Iowa. He is unable to care for himself, and Borthwick said it is difficult for his mother to lift him from his wheelchair to the floor, where she must change him when he uses the restroom. When they travel, she is forced to lay him on the floor of a convenience store or restaurant.
“There are people in this community who we love that don’t come to events, because it’s difficult or impossible to change their britches, and no one wants to sit in their own soil,” Borthwick said. “What I’m asking is for a breastfeeding/dignity room at the Ulysses High School.”
She said it would be easier to use a “family” bathroom, which UHS does not have. The room could be used for individuals who breastfeed or those in situations similar to Borthwick’s nephew.
“We would be able to utilize the family bathroom where we could lock the door and use the amenities, that would be the best,” Borthwick said. “The best practice would be to have a table that raises and lowers.”
Borthwick said now, if someone with similar disabilities needs to use the facilities, they must be transferred to a vehicle, taken to the hospital or convenience store, do their business, and return to the school.
“You’ve missed commencement, you’ve missed the basketball game, you’ve missed the wrestling match, or anything else that could be important or imperative for you to be there in the first place,” Borthwick said.
Borthwick presented the board with cheaper alternatives to the tables.
“There’s some local agencies here in Ulysses that are willing to fund this type of project,” Borthwick said. “The Local Health Equity Action Team (L-HEAT) is willing to put some money towards it, also, Women of Purpose is also willing to fund part of this process. As an L-HEAT lead, I can’t pay for construction, but I can pay for a table.”
Borthwick asked if the school board could take care of construction at the high school in order to accommodate the process.
“We are in desperate need of this in this community,” Borthwick said. “I’m trying to make this community more inclusive; we’re hoping to do a lot of all-inclusive equipment at Barb Dye Park, we’re trying to do some of the things to be able to let people in wheelchairs enjoy this community just like everyone else.”
Only one such table exists in Kansas, Borthwick said, so such a restroom would put Ulysses on the map.
“My intention is to have the community of Ulysses and the high school be inclusive to anyone who wants to attend activities at the high school, such as basketball, wrestling, and commencement,” Borthwick added. “And not have them miss because they have to go home or to the hospital.”
Superintendent Corey Burton said they would have to walk the high school, “Because right now, in the building, I don’t think we have a family restroom,” Burton said, adding that such a restroom, as well as a breastfeeding area, would need to be where people typically gather.
The football stadium does have family restrooms.
Trustee Chad McCormick asked if such a table could be in a nurse’s office, or on the high school side of the gym, on the opposite side of the current bathrooms.
The trustees believe it’s needed, and Burton said he would dig into it a little more.
In other business:
•The trustees approved resignations of Ag teacher/FFA Advisor Meagan Rice; head track coach Jillian Scott; Daycare Director Diana Monziviaz; UHS Head Musical Director Misti Becker; Band Assistant Rocky Franco; Kepley Middle School basketball coach Jason Rodriguez; Zane Anderson with Grounds and Maintenance, and USD 214 Nurse Abigail Sanchez.
•The trustees approved contracts for Edeka Hauser as the new varsity girls basketball coach; a new Kepley math teacher by the name of Castilla (first name not verbalized in the meeting); new assistant high school girls basketball coach Gina Ballesteros; Kepley P.E. teacher Zach Anderson; Sullivan Elementary teacher Rocio Perez; Reile Meile transferred from Sullivan Elementary third grade to be the new UHS Ag teacher.
•The trustees decided to keep the board with six members, with Kasey Kreuger’s resignation, and wait until the next election to fill the position.
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