ACCESSIBILITY
MEMBER STORIES
How are disability practitioners surviving COVID-19 'isolation'? Four of the five 'hot spot' municipalities in Melbourne’s west that were locked down in June, surround three campuses of Victoria University – Sunshine, Werribee and St Albans. This is where I work. Along with a small team of Accessibility Liaison and Student Wellbeing practitioners, we support students across eight metropolitan campuses – two in Footscray and three in the city. With the exception of essential workers, strict restrictions were extended at the end of June and Melburnians were 'locked in' with limited reasons to leave our homes; 5km travel limits and unending uncertainty impacting the fear and anxiety levels of 4.5 million people! The problem-solving aspects of my role as Coordinator of services for students with illnesses and disabilities went into overdrive, as the dread set in. Students lost face to face classes, events, access to libraries, clubs – many lost their jobs. International students arriving early in 2020 had do deal with no family in Melbourne, homesickness and unending uncertainty. Studying online is possible for most, but this has been not without its challenges.
Jen Anderson Victoria University
As we collectively realised the isolation was not going to end any time soon, we hurriedly printed course materials for TAFE students, arranged Zoom support sessions for note takers and sourced local options for cheaper devices. My thoughts returned to a national Disability Liaison Officer (DLO) Zoom session, where
To tell your COVID-19 story to the NTEU member community, please contact Helena Spyrou
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Sentry
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OCTOBER 2020
