The Role of the Accommodations Resource Center in Students’ Success at GCC

By Alina Martin Glendale Community College’s

mission statement suggests that it prides itself on serving and representing students from all backgrounds The school is rich with a diverse student and staff body that is made up of different races, genders, ethnicities, socioeconomic status, and students with different kinds of disabilities As a disabled student, the Accommodations Resource Center (ARC) and Disabled Students Programs & Services (DSPS) have both played an instrumental role in helping me excel in my studies Being almost at the finish line, I cannot wait to wheel across that graduation stage I can’t do that without reflecting back and sharing my own personal experience with the DSPS and ARC services

To backtrack, I began taking classes at GCC in the Spring of 2018 I found out about DSPS through a friend of mine who had the same disability as me She recommended that I go meet with her counselor, who ended up becoming my original counselor prior switching to Rita Zoboyan My friend shared her experiences with DSPS with me when we were out together one day back in 2017 She told me about her counselor at the time, Mary Elizabeth, who retired a few years ago After her retirement, I was paired with Zoboyan and she has been with me ever since I couldn’t be more thankful and grateful to her for all the support she has given me over the years Throughout my years with her, Zoboyan has been a tremendous help in guiding me in my years at GCC She deeply cares about her students, and is always willing to go an extra mile in order to meet their needs In all of my meetings with her, she is always prepared, knowledgeable, and eager to help I am very grateful to her for all the assistance she has given me

At ARC, I met Mauricio Melendez and Ellen Oppenberg

Melendez was a tremendous help to me In 2019, when I was taking math courses, he served as my tutor when I was struggling to understand the material that was covered in class I would always make appointments with him for tutoring sessions for my statistics class In my one-onone sessions with him, he was beyond patient. He always explained things in a very concise and simple way He has unique ways of explaining math that is very easy to latch onto He really takes his time with each student to make sure they understand what they are supposed to do The area he helped me the most during my time there was graphing. Since I was physically unable to do the graphing of equations on my own, I would tell and show him how to graph an equation, and he’d graph it on my behalf Last, but not least, I want to give a major shout out to Ellen Oppenberg

Oppenberg has truly gone above and beyond to help me succeed in every way possible I can honestly say that she loves what she does and she loves helping her students thrive Every semester she’d reach out to every one of my professors on my behalf to introduce me to them, and tell them about my unique needs She has advocated on my behalf in order for me to get extended time on tests, quizzes, and assignments

It is with a heavy heart to say that my time at GCC is ending I am one semester away from graduating from Glendale Community College The thought of graduating brings me a sense of accomplishment, pride, and just a little bit of sadness to go along with it. I can honestly say that I am very proud to be a Vaquero College has been a very pivotal time in my life. I’ve grown and experienced so many things here that were instrumental and crucial to my growth both as a student and as a person

From the moment I stepped foot here, I was met with phenomenal professors, counselor, and student peers, most of whom I’ve established great friendships with that I know will last me a lifetime To all of you who have embarked on my college journey with me, please know that you will always be held by me in the highest regard.

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, I want to thank my mom for helping me get through college She was my note taker in the majority of my classes, in addition to being my personal tutor at home Thank you, mom, for being there throughout all of the highs and lows that college has brought I couldn’t have done it without you Graduation is a goal that I could not have achieved all by myself

Two GCC departments, previously mentioned in this article, deserve special acknowledgement, the Center for Students with Disabilities and Accommodations Resource Center The Center for Students with Disabilities is a portion of counseling services, comprised of a team of counselors who specialize in working with disabled students These counselors work to help students sign up for the classes they need to take each semester If a student is in need of extended hours in testing, or if they need tutoring services, it is the counselor’s job to direct the student to go to the Accommodations Resource Center, where the staff there are equipped to meet the students’ needs

The team there work with other offices and departments within the college to ensure their student is well represented

The Accommodations Resource Center is department within the school that dedicates itself to serving and meeting the needs of the disabled community, and helping them make the most of their time at Glendale College. The center is located on the first floor in the San Gabriel building, SG 108. The center grants qualified students access to extended time on class tests, help with study skills, and strategies to class success Additionally, the center offers students with one-on-one tutoring sessions in math and English.

The ARC is also responsible for helping students gain access to assistive technology, such as smart pens and iPads, offers assistive technology trainings, adaptive computer classes, technology access evaluations, and access to audiobooks If students are interested in seeking out these options, they should meet one-on-one with a specialist to discuss which of these options are best suited for their unique educational needs

The Center is also well equipped in handling the needs of blind students through the means of the alternate media center within the department The alternate media center is specialized in working with students who have visual and hearing impairments. The specialists there work to ensure that these students have their courses accessible to them, in such a way that is uniquely tailored to their individual unique needs. This means translating text into electronic text that is used with a screen reader, or text-to-speech software, screen magnification, producing large text, and braille or tactile graphics For those students who are deaf, the center has ASL translators, as well as captioning services that are available to them.

In addition to these services, the center offers note taking services to students who struggle or fall behind in taking notes throughout class lectures

There is a wide range of note taking services that will be presented to students, including: giving a student the option of recording a class lecture in order to be able to replay it and complete their notes, or providing a student with a note taker In order for the student to get assigned a note taker, there has to be another student in the class who is willing to take on the responsibility This student will receive a bookstore voucher for carrying out this service to help out their fellow classmate DSPS provides a special carbon paper to the note taker, so this way as they are taking their own notes, if they put the carbon paper underneath their paper, everything they write will get duplicated onto the carbon paper This way they do not have to write it twice

Further, the center provides assistive software technologies for students who are unable to read and write Lastly, this center provides students with extended time on exams They have individual rooms preserved for test taking in which students have a quiet area to focus on their exam free of distractions

The ARC staff is comprised of highly trained professionals each tasked with a different role I had the privilege of conducting a written interview with two individuals that work at the ARC, as well as interviewing one of the counselors from the Center for Students with Disabilities, Rita Zoboyaan. Two of the interviewees who currently work at the center include Ellen Oppenberg and Mauricio Melendez

Melendez serves as the instructional Support Tech at the center He discussed in a written interview what he believes the center’s role in the students’ success at GCC. “The role of the Accommodations Resource Center (ARC) is to provide a space, both virtual and physical, to students with disabilities that is conducive to the accomplishments of educational goals,” he said “To that end, the ARC is a place where students with disabilities initiate and establish an accommodations contract that addresses individual needs such as test proctoring accommodations, or specialized tutoring.”

He was further asked to provide an estimated figure as to the number of students he works with on a daily basis, and what types of help these students require “Currently, I am helping, on average, about five students per day,” he said. The most prominent need is the subject of statistics, which appears in multiple required math courses The biggest obstacle is the development of the language germane to the subject For example, students know how to find the slope of the least squares regression line, using statistical software; but “need help understanding what a least squares regression line represents, what the software is doing to calculate the slope, and the interpretation of the slope with respect to the problem ” Finally, Melendez was asked what he best enjoys about his job, he replied to this question by saying, “every semester, I get to work with students that inspire me ” He continued, “students who despite their disability, remain positive and motivated about learning.” He provided a quote by Carl F Gauss that he thinks accurately sums up his position at the center: “It is not knowledge, but the act of learning, not possession but the act of getting there, which grants the greatest enjoyment ”

Another written interview was conducted with Ellen Oppenberg, who serves as the Learning Specialist at the center where she was asked how she could best describe the role that the center plays in the overall success of each student based upon her job position and perspective Upon which she replied, “we are a multifaceted service. I think the name ARC (Accommodations Resource Center) fits our center well for that very reason We offer everything to help DSPS students have a successful semester. All they have to do is ask Tutoring in math, English; speaking with a Learning Specialist about successful study tips and how to manage their disability; test proctoring (online and in person); progress monitoring done by Learning Specialists that track how students are doing in their classes; technology apps and programs; online and in person meetings with ARC Tech Specialists; specialized CABOT classes; ST DV 143 (for tutoring credit and bi-weekly progress checks with a Learning Specialist); Learning Disability Assessments; Campus and community resources ”

She was further asked to provide an estimate as to how many students the center works with on an everyday basis, and additionally, she was asked about the students’ needs. “Just the number of students alone, during this particular semester, amounted to nearly 300 spread among all of the ARC Specialists For me, I think that number this semester is close to 30 Of the 30 I am mentioning, for some, they are requesting me to look over their assignments and papers that they have written, for others they need me to keep in contact with them to keep them motivated and on task, for others and with their permission – I correspond with their instructors to see how I can be more helpful to the student and how they are surviving in the class.”

Oppenberg explained how she and the center as a whole have an approach to working with multiple instructors throughout the course of each semester in an effort to ensure the success of each one of her students “We are an extremely cohesive department that is dedicated to being visible all over campus What this means is that we are often offering workshops to faculty and staff about our services and understanding disabilities more fully; I send out hundreds of emails per semester to keep in touch with the instructors our students are taking and to inform them of how our accommodations process works In other words, we

DSPS in the success of GCC students. “At the basic level, the role is to provide the support and eligible services and accommodations for students to access education Beyond that, I hope that the workshops (such as Student Success) and events that we host (such as Welcome Back Fall Kick Off, Alumni Panel, Resource Fair, etc.) help build a sense of belonging and work toward destigmatizing disabilities and empowering our students,” Zoboyan said

“Our new group, Creative Minds, is the student branch and we're excited to help develop their goals and outreach,” she continued.

We are an extremely cohesive department that is dedicated to being visible all over campus What this means is that we are often offering workshops to faculty and staff about our services and understanding disabilities more fully take the time always to educate the faculty and communicate with them. In return, I get a lot of faculty who feel comfortable enough to email me questions about students and how to work with students in a more successful way.” When asked to provide a quote in which she believes best describes her job she said: “Kindness and understanding spoken here This is the motto that I live by and work by. So many of our students have had difficulties in their life where they have been mistreated or misunderstood because of their disability Everybody needs to be validated and treated with dignity They will never receive less than that from me. I will always work hard to help them succeed ”

My final written interview was with one of the counselors from DSPS, Rita Zoboyan, who happens to have been my counselor for the past three years.

Zoboyan was questioned in regards to how she best characterizes the role of

Zoboyan was also asked how the DSPS division works witheducators to ensure the success of students “As I mentioned, we work with students and instructors to set up accommodations and services Additionally, DSPS provides training to GCC personnel to help faculty and staff understand our role, the process, and our students' needs For example, we have in the last four years presented twice at Faculty Institute Day on DSPS and neurodiversity We present to various divisions to answer their specific questions and educate them on techniques of working with students with disabilities We are involved in the Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA) committee, as well as the Curriculum and Instruction (C&I) committee to ensure that the needs of individuals with disabilities are included in decision making and courses. We bring in guest presenters/organizations such as Disability Rights activist Judy Heumann and the Armenian Autism Outreach Project (AAOP) to co-facilitate workshops

We open our events, such as the DSPS Book Club, to GCC personnel so that they can learn more about disability communities and experiences By providing information and opportunities such as these, we are helping educators work with student populations, recognize the strengths of individuals with disabilities, and destigmatize disabilities.”

When asked for a ballpark estimate as to how many students she personally helps on an one-on-one basis, she explained that it is sizeable “Fall semester so far has been around 360 student contacts,” she said Later in the interview, Zoboyan was asked to provide a quote that best captures her role “I'm a GCC alumna and my counselor, Sharon Combs, was incredible,” she recalled “She helped me see my own strengths and worth outside of just academics She and Dean Smith were very instrumental in my development I hope to provide the same with my students ” As for what Zoboyan enjoys most about her job, it is “forming the connections and seeing the growth and progress of my students ” She said she really enjoys when alumni reach back out after graduation via emails or calls

I would like to give my gratitude to GCC. I will miss you!

Learn more about DSPS: bit.ly/DSPSGCC

Learn more about the ARC: https://bit.ly/ARCGCC