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   Oftentimes, people do not give much attention to a problem unless they are involved or affected by it. I will be the first to admit I have been guilty of that until recently when I got injured while jogging. I twisted my ankle and had to be on crutches for at least 24 hours. I have never been on crutches before, but I knew I could do it until I arrived on campus and made the discovery that my campus lacked proper facilities for handicapped students.

   I learned a few buildings are not equipped for the handicapped, so I engaged myself in some research to see how the master plan for renovating the college was going to solve this problem. After my experience, I decided that from now on I would be more involved in issues affecting others and not just the problems affecting me.

   While on crutches I had to walk up and down two flights of stairs at Sorrells Hall due to the fact that it does not have an elevator. Professors are required to change the meeting place of a class if needed due to a handicap issues. My case is an exception though; I had no time to let my professor know since it happened the night before, and my class is at eight in the morning. I did not want to cause any complications.

   After that class, I had to walk to the Babin Business Center and had to walk up and down a flight of stairs. Brittany Washington, who once had to be on crutches for three days, skipped class one day because she did not want to deal with the stair problem and did not feel like causing confusion to the class by asking the professor to move the meeting place. She did, however, go to class the next day, and it took her 20 minutes to get to class inside the BBC.

   Another building on campus, Wells Hall (a.k.a. the Nursing Building), does not have an elevator. This building in no way accommodates handicapped people. My roommate Chelsey Gaulden, a nursing student, says two handicapped girls have to walk up and down the stairs to get to class every time.

   I really thank the administration for finally realizing the major inconvenience and for taking action. Willard Hall did not have an elevator until recent construction began. I talked to the president of the Student Government Association, and he stated Wells Hall and Sorrells Hall would be connected, and both buildings would share a common elevator. I believe university officials are doing a great job in making this campus a better place to be. For more information about the master plan, look on the school's Web site.

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