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A Guide to Requesting Disability Accommodations in College
As spring approaches, millions of high school seniors get one step closer to their career and to becoming the person they have dreamed about growing into since they were children. Receiving college acceptance letters is one of the most profound experiences in a young adult’s life. Moving out of your childhood home and stepping into the real world is a majorly exhilarating life event.
Image of author of this post, Sarah Kim, dressed in her college graduation gown
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A Trip Down the Memory Lane of Traveling: Part Two
Welcome to the second part of my travel series! In the previous post, I wrote about how I found my love for traveling through my trip to Madrid and Paris. Looking back, not only do I realize that these trips took place during very different phases of my adult life, but they also mark the different phases of my CP in recent years. Although CP is the result of a non-progressive brain injury, many folks experience a decline in their physical abilities in their adult years — the inevitable effect of aging, not just for those with disabilities, but for everyone.
"A Trip Down the Memory Lane of Traveling: Part Two" in text above image of writer, Sarah Kim, in front of Jackson Square in New Orlean's French Quarter
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A Trip Down the Memory Lane of Travel: Part Three
My cousin, Reeva, had recently moved to Kyoto, Japan to learn Japanese for a year, and she convinced me to visit her there. I didn’t know anyone else living in Japan and Reeva was going to be there short term, so I couldn’t possibly pass up going! I was admittedly pretty nervous about traveling all the way across the world— a 24-hour long plane trip, including a layover— especially to a country that uses a language that isn’t remotely like anything I was used to. But, again, I wasn’t going to miss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
"A Trip Down the Memory Lane of Travel: Part Three" written in text above an image of writer, Sarah Kim, in front of a river in Japan
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Head Over Wheels: Her Story
Growing up with Cerebral Palsy I often wondered if I would ever experience my happily ever after. The fairytales my mom read me always followed the life of a beautiful princess falling in love with a handsome prince. You never read about a prince and princess in wheelchairs or with any type of disability for that matter.
Shelby, a dark haired woman wearing a white dress sitting in a wheelchair next to David who is wear in Blue shirt and khaki pants sitting in his wheelchair.
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Mental Wellness Among Adults with Cerebral Palsy
Mental health care should be included at the outset, as part of discussions around physical, occupational, and speech therapies. I’ve seen studies on cerebral palsy’s effect on caregiver mental health — and that is important. Caregivers are part of the cerebral palsy community, too. It’s an interdependent one. There’s not enough about the nuance around how having cerebral palsy affects mental health.”
Drawing of the profile of a person with a heart in the center of the brain
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How to Get Quality Sleep with CP and/or Chronic Pain
I suppose there has to be one silver lining that comes out of being sheltered in place for months on end (due to Covid-19): I’ve finally been catching up on sleep. The recommended nightly hours of sleep is between 7 and 9 hours . For me, getting a good night’s sleep has been the best way to regain a sense of control and ease during such unnerving times. Not only does sleep improve mood and
Text: How to Get Quality Sleep with CP and/or Chronic Pain, black and white photo of a woman in a wheelchair looking out a window.
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My Journey of Finding Accessible Apartments
As an undergraduate student in a major metropolitan city like NYC, the thought of finding a place to live after graduation was very daunting. I didn’t have many options for accessible dorms on campus, so I could only wonder how much more difficult it’d be to find a “real-life adult” apartment that I could afford as a 20-something-year-old. My apartment search began one year earlier than
Words "My Journey of Finding Accessible Apartments" with a picture of an apartment building with a magnifying glass over it.
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30th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act
The historic Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was signed into law on July 26, 1990, by President George H.W. Bush — marking this month its 30th anniversary. The ADA was the country’s first-ever comprehensive civil rights law for people with disabilities, offering protection against discrimination and imposing accessibility requirements in workplaces and the public. The passage of this law was
Text: 30th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act
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Will the “Post-Pandemic” Workplace Be More Inclusive of Employees with Disabilities?
As cities and states across the countries are lifting the COVID-19 lockdown orders, people are returning to work at their offices. However, since the virus is still very much going around, employers must be vigilant about keeping their workplaces as safe as possible. Although we might be seeing a sense of “normalcy,” there’s still a long way to go before reaching the pre-pandemic normalcy—if we
Sarah Kim sitting at a desk doing work. Text is article title Will the “Post-Pandemic” Workplace Be More Inclusive of Employees with Disabilities?
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People with Disabilities Also Have Diverse Sexualities and Gender Identities
A year ago, I wrote in my Forbes column about the decades-long pattern of Pride Month celebrations excluding people with disabilities. The underlying reason why Pride events were (and still are) mostly inaccessible for people with disabilities, both in terms of physical spaces and social acceptance, is that mainstream media and public don’t see them having identities outside of their disabilities.
"People with Disabilities Also Have Diverse Sexualities and Gender Identities" is written in text above a representation of different people, some using wheelchairs, some using crutches, some standing without assistance. The representations of people are all in different colors reminiscent of the pride flag
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Mastery Motivation
There are a couple of key things to think about in helping children and adolescents make the transition into young adulthood and independence. One of those things is called mastery motivation and we can see mastery motivation early in life. It's the ability to persist in the face of challenge. If you're growing up with a disability, it can be harder to do things. If you are not challenged, if the environment is not set up correctly, or if you don't have the resources, then you start to feel that you can't master certain kinds of tasks.
Representation of a parent cheering on their child with a text bubble above them that reads "You can do it!", while the child who uses a walker prepares to go up the stairs
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The Complexity of Acceptance
When you use alternate means of communication it can be really frustrating to go out in community. It is hard to know whether people are understanding you and whether they will take the time to listen. A lot of times it's hard for people to admit that they're not always comfortable with a device or a wheelchair or person who does things differently. So the more we can expose and educate people the better off we all will be. When we talk about acceptance, we're not just talking about people in society accepting people with disabilities. We're also talking about people with disabilities who are using alternate means of communication and how difficult it is for them to be out in the community.
Representation of a person in a wheelchair using assistive technology to communicate with a group of people around them.
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What Companies and Schools Should Learn About Disability Accommodations from the COVID-19 Outbreak
As the COVID-19 outbreak continues to sweep through the country, there are increasing orders from local governments for residents to stay at home, unless they’re essential workers. Both professionals and students are relying on Zoom and other video conferencing software to work or learn from the comforts of their home, although such measures, in most cases, were not permitted before the pandemic.
"Learning from Disability Accommodations for COVID-19" written in text next to an image of writer, Sarah Kim
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How I’ve Learned to Celebrate My Late Birth Mother
Saturdays were special as a kid growing up in Port Washington, New York. Saturdays meant Burger King outings with my grandparents, a great big slice of trade-marked Hershey’s chocolate pie for me and piping hot oatmeal for them. And we can’t forget about the Kids Meal toys. But on this particular Saturday, everything was different - at the tender age of five, I started to notice that certain aspects of my life were just off.
"How I’ve Learned to Celebrate My Late Birth Mother" written in text to the right of an image or writer, Sarah Kim, as a child
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Friendships in the Time of COVID-19
I don’t know if this is just me, but my time in quarantine has made me have weird flashbacks to my childhood. As a kid growing up with CP, especially with a speech impediment and mobility limitations, my lifeline to making and keeping friends was through AIM (AOL Instant Messenger, for those of you who are too young to remember) and one of the first video chatting platforms, ooVoo. Fast forward 15 years, many of us are in a similar situation. To slow the spread of COVID-19, most of life has moved online, including friendships.
"Friendships in the Time of COVID-19" written in text below an image of writer Sarah Kim
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Growing Up in the 90s & 00s with Cerebral Palsy
As I progress in my career as a journalist and writer, the more attention and followers I receive on social media. Every so often, I receive a direct message or email from young readers, explaining how I’ve become a role model for them. They express the inspiration they gain from witnessing me not allowing my cerebral palsy get in the way of following my dreams. It was then that I realized I am now the role model that I desperately needed when I was a young girl.
"Growing Up in the 90's and 00's with Cerebral Palsy" shown in text surrounded by images of 90's reminiscent items such as roller skates, a boombox, and a gameboy, all against a green background.
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