{"id":48583,"date":"2023-12-01T15:20:09","date_gmt":"2023-12-01T21:20:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/?p=48583"},"modified":"2023-12-01T16:14:50","modified_gmt":"2023-12-01T22:14:50","slug":"president-hoffman-joins-students-to-explore-campus-as-accessibility-allies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/2023\/12\/01\/president-hoffman-joins-students-to-explore-campus-as-accessibility-allies\/","title":{"rendered":"President Hoffman Joins Students to Explore Campus as Accessibility Allies"},"content":{"rendered":"<div style=\"padding: 56.25% 0 0 0;position: relative\"><iframe style=\"position: absolute;top: 0;left: 0;max-width: 100%;height: 100%\" src=\"https:\/\/player.vimeo.com\/video\/889511791?badge=0&amp;autopause=0&amp;quality_selector=1&amp;player_id=0&amp;app_id=58479\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p>When students in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/directory\/facstaff\/cy8854mm\/\">Sherry Holloway<\/a>&lsquo;s inclusive physical education class approached her with an idea to change their final project, she agreed immediately.<\/p>\n<p>Through conversations with guest speakers and alumni throughout the year, students learned that students and visitors to Bemidji State University who use wheelchairs may have issues accessing certain parts of campus. Their idea for a final project, which they called Accessibility Allies, was to take a wheelchair tour of campus and map locations where they saw potential for improved accessibility.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;These are educators who will be going out into schools and trying to advocate for their own students,&rdquo; Holloway said.<\/p>\n<p>Seeing an opportunity to use the project to raise awareness of accessibility on campus, the students invited BSU President John L. Hoffman and his wife, Joy, to join them on the tour. Reporters from the Bemidji Pioneer and Lakeland Public Television also covered the tour.<\/p>\n<div id='gallery-1' class='gallery galleryid-48583 gallery-size-small-image row row-cols-2 row-cols-md-2 my-4'><figure class='gallery-item text-center col'><a href='https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0239.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"570\" height=\"380\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0239-570x380.jpg\" class=\"in-gallery-1 img-fluid shadow-1\" alt=\"A group of people using wheelchairs, with several people watching from behind\" columns=\"2\" ids=\"48596,48615,48605,48597\" orderby=\"post__in\" include=\"48596,48615,48605,48597\" aria-describedby=\"gallery-1-48596\" data-bp=\"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0239.jpg\" data-caption=\"The Accessible Allies tour moves through the Gillett Wellness Center entrance and prepares to move outdoors\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0239-570x380.jpg 570w, https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0239-767x511.jpg 767w, https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0239-991x661.jpg 991w, https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0239-1365x910.jpg 1365w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 570px) 100vw, 570px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<figcaption class='wp-caption-text gallery-caption visually-hidden' id='gallery-1-48596'>\n\t\t\t\tThe Accessible Allies tour moves through the Gillett Wellness Center entrance and prepares to move outdoors\n\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure><figure class='gallery-item text-center col'><a href='https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0248.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"570\" height=\"380\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0248-570x380.jpg\" class=\"in-gallery-1 img-fluid shadow-1\" alt=\"A group of people using wheelchairs listen to a BSU faculty member\" columns=\"2\" ids=\"48596,48615,48605,48597\" orderby=\"post__in\" include=\"48596,48615,48605,48597\" aria-describedby=\"gallery-1-48615\" data-bp=\"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0248.jpg\" data-caption=\"Dr. Thomas Dirth speaks to the Accessible Allies tour participants \" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0248-570x380.jpg 570w, https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0248-767x511.jpg 767w, https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0248-991x661.jpg 991w, https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0248-1365x910.jpg 1365w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 570px) 100vw, 570px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<figcaption class='wp-caption-text gallery-caption visually-hidden' id='gallery-1-48615'>\n\t\t\t\tDr. Thomas Dirth speaks to the Accessible Allies tour participants \n\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure><figure class='gallery-item text-center col'><a href='https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0246.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"570\" height=\"380\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0246-570x380.jpg\" class=\"in-gallery-1 img-fluid shadow-1\" alt=\"BSU President John L. Hoffman in a wheelchair, joined by several students and his wife, Joy.\" columns=\"2\" ids=\"48596,48615,48605,48597\" orderby=\"post__in\" include=\"48596,48615,48605,48597\" aria-describedby=\"gallery-1-48605\" data-bp=\"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0246.jpg\" data-caption=\"President Hoffman and his wife Joy joined students on the Accessible Allies tour\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0246-570x380.jpg 570w, https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0246-767x511.jpg 767w, https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0246-991x661.jpg 991w, https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0246-1365x910.jpg 1365w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 570px) 100vw, 570px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<figcaption class='wp-caption-text gallery-caption visually-hidden' id='gallery-1-48605'>\n\t\t\t\tPresident Hoffman and his wife Joy joined students on the Accessible Allies tour\n\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure><figure class='gallery-item text-center col'><a href='https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0243.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"570\" height=\"380\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0243-570x380.jpg\" class=\"in-gallery-1 img-fluid shadow-1\" alt=\"BSU faculty member Dr. Thomas Dirth speaks to those participating in the Accessible Allies tour.\" columns=\"2\" ids=\"48596,48615,48605,48597\" orderby=\"post__in\" include=\"48596,48615,48605,48597\" aria-describedby=\"gallery-1-48597\" data-bp=\"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0243.jpg\" data-caption=\"BSU faculty member Dr. Thomas Dirth speaks to those participating in the Accessible Allies tour.\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0243-570x380.jpg 570w, https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0243-767x511.jpg 767w, https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0243-991x661.jpg 991w, https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0243-1365x910.jpg 1365w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 570px) 100vw, 570px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<figcaption class='wp-caption-text gallery-caption visually-hidden' id='gallery-1-48597'>\n\t\t\t\tBSU faculty member Dr. Thomas Dirth speaks to those participating in the Accessible Allies tour.\n\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/directory\/facstaff\/wf7894nh\/\">Dr. Thomas Dirth<\/a>, an associate professor of psychology at BSU who uses a wheelchair, also participated in the tour to share his perspective and experiences with the students.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m excited that you are all experiencing campus using a wheelchair,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;We have to keep in mind that human beings are immensely adaptable. So if it feels very hard for you to be using the wheelchair and going up hills, things like that, keep in mind that you develop upper body strength as someone who uses a wheelchair. The wheelchair is very liberating for people to use.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Rather than focusing on obstacles faced by people who use wheelchairs, Dirth encouraged the students to instead view the tour as an opportunity to examine the advantages and choices available to those who are able.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Our society is not where we need to be, but we&rsquo;re getting better,&rdquo; Holloway said.<\/p>\n<p>Addressing the students, she added, &ldquo;You&rsquo;re going to work in spaces that are more diverse in terms of various sets of abilities than I have, or than previous generations have. As you think about your future job skills, you have to be prepared to live, work and learn from colleagues in these spaces. This is your future.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<div id='gallery-2' class='gallery galleryid-48583 gallery-size-small-image row row-cols-2 row-cols-md-2 my-4'><figure class='gallery-item text-center col'><a href='https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0218.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"570\" height=\"380\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0218-570x380.jpg\" class=\"in-gallery-2 img-fluid shadow-1\" alt=\"A paper sign which reads &quot;PEHD4500-01 Inclusive Physical Education Access Allies Project BSU DAPE&quot;\" columns=\"2\" ids=\"48587,48586,48585,48584\" orderby=\"post__in\" include=\"48587,48586,48585,48584\" data-bp=\"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0218.jpg\" data-caption=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0218-570x380.jpg 570w, https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0218-767x511.jpg 767w, https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0218-991x661.jpg 991w, https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0218-1365x910.jpg 1365w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 570px) 100vw, 570px\" \/><\/a><\/figure><figure class='gallery-item text-center col'><a href='https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0217.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"570\" height=\"380\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0217-570x380.jpg\" class=\"in-gallery-2 img-fluid shadow-1\" alt=\"Lanyards and three piles of stickers on a table as giveaways to participants in the Access Allies tour\" columns=\"2\" ids=\"48587,48586,48585,48584\" orderby=\"post__in\" include=\"48587,48586,48585,48584\" data-bp=\"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0217.jpg\" data-caption=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0217-570x380.jpg 570w, https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0217-767x511.jpg 767w, https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0217-991x661.jpg 991w, https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0217-1365x910.jpg 1365w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 570px) 100vw, 570px\" \/><\/a><\/figure><figure class='gallery-item text-center col'><a href='https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0207.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"570\" height=\"380\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0207-570x380.jpg\" class=\"in-gallery-2 img-fluid shadow-1\" alt=\"A map of campus with a red line showing the route that the access allies tour would take\" columns=\"2\" ids=\"48587,48586,48585,48584\" orderby=\"post__in\" include=\"48587,48586,48585,48584\" data-bp=\"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0207.jpg\" data-caption=\"A map of campus showing the route used by the access allies tour.\" aria-describedby=\"gallery-2-48585\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0207-570x380.jpg 570w, https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0207-767x511.jpg 767w, https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0207-991x661.jpg 991w, https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0207-1365x910.jpg 1365w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 570px) 100vw, 570px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<figcaption class='wp-caption-text gallery-caption visually-hidden' id='gallery-2-48585'>\n\t\t\t\tA map of campus showing the route used by the access allies tour.\n\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure><figure class='gallery-item text-center col'><a href='https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0205.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"570\" height=\"380\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0205-570x380.jpg\" class=\"in-gallery-2 img-fluid shadow-1\" alt=\"Students gather in the lower level of the BSU Gymnasium before the Access Allies tour began.\" columns=\"2\" ids=\"48587,48586,48585,48584\" orderby=\"post__in\" include=\"48587,48586,48585,48584\" data-bp=\"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0205.jpg\" data-caption=\"Students gather in the lower level of the BSU Gymnasium before the Access Allies tour began.\" aria-describedby=\"gallery-2-48584\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0205-570x380.jpg 570w, https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0205-767x511.jpg 767w, https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0205-991x661.jpg 991w, https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/12\/20231128-Accessibility-Project-0205-1365x910.jpg 1365w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 570px) 100vw, 570px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<figcaption class='wp-caption-text gallery-caption visually-hidden' id='gallery-2-48584'>\n\t\t\t\tStudents gather in the lower level of the BSU Gymnasium before the Access Allies tour began.\n\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>BSU students from Sherry Holloway&#8217;s inclusive physical education course raise awareness for wheelchair accessibility.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":48615,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[3,872,950,20],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-48583","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-academics","category-homepage","category-landing-page","category-top-story"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48583","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=48583"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48583\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":48628,"href":"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48583\/revisions\/48628"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/48615"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=48583"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=48583"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bemidjistate.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=48583"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}