Dear students of Gordon College,

On Monday, February 10 the front door of the library was closed in order to raise awareness of how some students on campus must enter the library due to their physical disability. While this closing was a surprise to many students, the main purpose of the door closing was for others to experience what it is like to not use the front entrance of a building and how stairs can be seen as a barrier.

The intention was not to frustrate students, but to realistically show how some of our peers must enter and exit the library. As was said on our sign in front of the library, “reconciliation is walking alongside our brothers and sisters.” Since one of the goals of Beyond Disabilities Week is to make Gordon a place more hospitable for people with disabilities, we wanted the campus to join our peers in using the accessible entrance.

The Beyond Disabilities Week planning committee hopes that you found this exercise to be a unique opportunity to reflect on the challenges some of our peers face on campus. We look forward to exploring this topic with you more next week, February 17-21.

Thank you,

Beyond Disabilities Planning Committee

Please enjoy the photos of the event below. Click “Beyond Disabilities Week: Gordon College Library Closing” for more picture.