Larke Johnson—a Roosevelt junior whose career goal is to improve school accessibility for students with disabilities—is particularly discerning about building layouts and routes. She even wants to pursue a career that improves school accessibility upon graduation. So when she first toured Roosevelt as a high school senior, she was immediately impressed by the Loop Campus’ elevators, ramps and wide hallways that allowed her to navigate the building with ease. Johnson, who was diagnosed with cerebral palsy at 10 months old and uses a walker, immediately felt that she could pursue her college ambitions here
“I took the tour and I found the building was so accessible,” she says. “The way the two buildings were combined into one made it so much easier to get to different classes with my physical disability, and I’m able to make connections with my teachers because I’m here in-person to connect.”
The other moment that cemented Johnson’s enthusiasm for Roosevelt was President Ali Malekzadeh’s welcome speech during her freshman year Convocation. “I remember listening to President Ali and him talking about the school’s mission, and I remember thinking to myself ‘Yes! This is where I belong.’ I love that we have social justice as our purpose and that it guides what we do.”
Since attending Roosevelt, Johnson has been able to thrive on campus with assistance from the Disability Services team in the Learning Commons (which works with her professors to develop altered assignments to accommodate her writing speed) and the Shirley Ryan Ability Lab (where she participates in ongoing occupational and speech therapy). With the Roosevelt support team behind her, Johnson has been able to actively participate in her Psychology program lectures and become highly involved with the Honors Program by attending several off-campus field trips like a visit to the Chicago History Museum earlier this year.
“I’ve been able to attend every class in-person and participate, which is great because not only because your classmates get to know you, but they are more likely to call you by name and you can really build a community within this school,” she says. “And my professors are outstanding. If you approach them with a 100% attitude, they’ll return that energy and completely support you.”
Johnson hasn’t allowed her cerebral palsy diagnosis to slow her down beyond academics, either. She’s an avid painter, horseback rider and dancer who performed in a production of the Joffrey Ballet’s Nutcracker as a high school student. And after graduation, she wants to use her Psychology degree to make classrooms more accessible for children with disabilities or mobility constraints who need a specialized curriculum.
“There’s usually a hesitation to discuss how a building can accommodate someone, and usually it can, but lots of administrations assume able-bodied people are the standard,” she says. “I’m motivated to change that.”
