By now, I’m sure you have noticed that I’m one of CDR’s new bloggers. While I’m not one to openly express my personal life, I believe that it will help you, as a reader, understand the perspective of my future blogs.

At age three I had a spinal cord injury. My sister, brother, Mother, and I were struck head-on by another vehicle. With the inability to move and breath, I now had to embark on an unfamiliar life-long journey. This began what I now view as my opportunity to bring change for those with disabilities and diminish the never ending battle for equality. Instead of feeling distraught and incapable, I have conquered the discrimination that effects every day of my life. My disability has not been a prohibition, but rather, an experience that has made me a better person.After years of battling discrimination has a child and teen,

I left my high school and started college at Monroe Community College. At the age of 15, many thought this was ridiculous, but in my view, the discrimination I was experiencing was ridiculous. While I was told that I couldn’t go to college, I defied this statement and proceeded through my degree in Criminal Justice with honors. The professors at MCC were utterly astounding and fully accommodated my needs. For once, I wasn’t constantly reminded that I have a disability, and therefore, I continued to do what most said would be impossible.

During my time at MCC, I interned at the New York State Division of Human Rights. This was the experience that verified my career goal and I decided to pursue a law degree to become a defender of human rights. The discrimination complaints that I saw while there showed that all minorities are in need of defense, allowing me to recognize that I could be one to provide this service. In pursuit of this goal, I began applying to four-year colleges in the area. My brother had attended Cornell University and I dreamed of attending college there as well. However, I thought “yeah right” I could never do that, especially with a disability. With the encouragement of my brother and family, I applied to several colleges, including Cornell.

After months of agonizing, to my amazement, I had not heard back from even one college. With hope dwindling, I finally received a letter from the Ivy League college. I was accepted to Cornell University! Once enrolled and attending classes, I was overwhelmed with opportunities and challenges. The disability services were and continue to serve as a major source of support. For example, they provide digital textbooks and transportation to and from all my classes.

Currently, I’m working as a legal researcher at Cornell’s Employment and Disability Institute. This job sparked my interest in working at CDR because I constantly observe how common employment discrimination is for those with disabilities. With the knowledge I’m learning from this job and as a labor relations major, I feel it necessary to share this information with disabled individuals to begin the process necessary for change. After graduating with a Bachelor’s degree from Cornell, I will attend law school. In the coming months, I hope you will find my blogs not only enjoyable, but also educational. As we travel through the horrifying reality of unemployment for people with disabilities, I will provide the most up to date information on how to combat this injustice.

Please contact me if you have any questions related to the blog material and/or my experiences as I will always bring you up to date on my progress.