UTRGV continues efforts to make its campuses accessible for individuals with physical, learning and temporary disabilities to ensure and promote equal learning under Section 504 of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Students with a variety of disabilities can receive services from Student Accessibility Services. SAS provides students with accommodations that allow them to adapt in a learning environment with equal accessibility. Incoming and current students with a qualifying disability can contact SAS for an appointment to receive future services. They must provide documentation of disability.
Reynaldo Reyes, program specialist at Student Accessibility Services, said there are many accommodations provided for students.
“We have a mentoring program where we have peers, guiding peers and usually they’re graduate interns, practicum students,” Reyes said. “We also have pregnancy and parenting. All kinds of accommodations for expecting mothers or parenting. Also alternative format interpreters. There’s quite a few, depending on the disability.”
Approaching issues and resolving them is a responsibility for Reyes.
“In general, [UTRGV has] an [Electronic and Information Resources] committee to review software that students use,” he said. “There is a physical plant. Ourselves, we take the input from students. I personally submit tickets to physical plant for access issues, sidewalks that are broken, doors that don’t open. So there’s different input from different areas. And of course, we need to know what the issue is before we approach it. We want to make sure there’s inclusiveness on campus, on all the campuses,” he said.
Parking and Transportation Services provides VOLT, a micro-mobility service that transports students from remote parking areas to the campus. The service is free on the Edinburg and Brownsville campuses. Riders can view different routes and “circuits” on the Ride Systems app.
VOLT services operate on a 15-minute frequency from 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday. Specific VOLTS are ADA accessible for riders, meaning they will accommodate a wheelchair.
Maribel Contreras, director of Transportation Services, said proposed service changes are presented in public meetings to receive comments and to make improvements in areas where the changes are going to take place.
Contreras said public meetings were conducted Aug. 9-11 to propose service changes that would take effect Aug. 28.
One change is the suspension of the Edinburg Visual Arts Building evening service from 8:30 to 10:30 p.m and the transition of the Brownsville to Weslaco connector service to the Orange Line.
Call stops are available on both campuses to request a pickup. Students must provide the vehicle’s model, color and location to receive assistance.
For wheelchair assistance, students may call 665-2036 to request a pickup to be dropped at a VOLT stop if they are in an ADA parking space. The ADA VOLT vehicles have a maximum capacity of five passengers, and are limited to one wheelchair space.
Another change to the VOLT service affects the Blue Circuit.
“So for the fall semester, we discontinued VOLT Blue Circuit in the Edinburg campus due to their low participation in ridership, and we introduced a new vault, Purple Circuit, in the Edinburg campus,” Contreras said. “So, through the new Purple Circuit, we were still going to be providing service in the areas of the Blue Circuit, where there was more demand and usage, which was the parking area E-31, E-32 and E-33.”
Contreras said adjustments have been made to the Brownsville campus, too.
“There was a transition of Brownsville to Weslaco connector service to an Orange Line through a partnership that we have with Valley Metro,” she said. “Those services being provided from Weslaco to Brownsville were going to be provided through that Orange Line. There was a modification done to the schedule in order for us to meet the service demand for the students.”
Diana Sobrevilla, an education sophomore, said she plans on using the VOLT services soon.
“I know that we can look it up on the UTRGV app, and that if you message them they can pick you up wherever you are located,” Sobrevilla said.
Under the Americans with Disabilities Act, students may be permitted a service animal or emotional support animal at on and off campus locations, according to the department’s webpage.
“There’s not a size limit, but it’s the type of animal, there’s a dog and a cat,” Reyes said.
The dog or cat must be fully trained and only perform tasks directly related to the person’s disability, according to the webpage.
If a student resides in campus housing, they must complete the Student Accessibility Services application process. The student must submit proof of disability through documentation. Any documents provided must meet the SAS Documentation Guidelines.
Service animals are welcomed on campus and in dorms, according to Reyes.
“We do recommend the students come to our office, and we will send a letter to Residence Life just to let them know, give them a heads up that there will be an animal in the dorms,” he said.
Contreras invites students to ride Vaquero Express and VOLT.
“Service is free,” she said.
Maps and schedules can be found on UTRGV Parking and Transportation website at www.utrgv.edu/pts. For comments or concerns, riders can email transportation@utrgv.edu.
For more information on transportation services, call 665-2036 in Edinburg and 882-2036 in Brownsville.
