Architectural+Standards


 * ==DIRECTIONS for students:==
 * 1) ==Scroll to the bottom of this page.==
 * 2) ==Copy and paste your research summary in the proper place in the section entitled "Research Summaries."==
 * 3) ==Be sure the source citation (in MLA format) is at the top of your entry.==
 * 4) ==Add your own name in brackets [first and last] to the end of your entry.==
 * 5) ==Add a horizontal rule after your entry.==


 * =early work by UIUC rehab program for American National Standards Institute=


 * =UFAS=


 * =U.S. Access Board (see Rehabilitation Act, 1973; Section 502)=

=Research summaries:= “About the U.S. Access Board.” //United States// //Access Board//. The United States Access Board, n.d. Web. 10 Feb. 2010. <@http://www.access-board.gov/about.htm> “The Rehabilitation Act of 1973.” //United States// //Access Board//. The United States Access Board, n.d. Web. 10 Feb. 2010. <@http://www.access-board.gov/about/laws/rehab-act.htm> In 1973 Congress noticed that the ABA was not being followed, and that they needed an executive agency to check compliance. When they passed the Rehabilitation Act that year, they included Section 502, which created the Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board (later known as the U.S. Access Board). It is an independent government agency, which creates, revises, and ensures compliance with standards and guidelines for accessibility. These guidelines support laws such as the ABA and the ADA, which are rather broad and cover many areas of accessibility and discrimination. Half of the members are heads of executive departments, and the other half (of which a majority must be disabled) are appointed by the President. [Daniel M. Stelzer]

United States Access Board. //“Uniform Accessibility Standards”. United States Access Board//. //N.p.// n.d. Web. 2/9/10. [] The UFAS are a set of standards that were made to cover accessibility in buildings that weren’t included in the Architectural Barriers Act. It was enforced in 1984 under the ABA. Before the ABA, there were four standard-setting agencies (the General Services Administration, the Departments of Housing and Urban Development and Defense, and the United States Postal Service). The UFAS united the standards of the four groups into one set of standards. It set stricter and more precise standards for accessibility to federal and federally-funded facilities. It also included some new requirements, like scoping guidelines. The rules were meant to be applied during the “design, construction, and alteration” of buildings. [Mara Dolan]
 * UFAS- Uniform Federal Accessibility Standards **

The Architectural Barriers Act (ABA)
//U.S. Laws, Acts, and Treaties//. ed. Timothy L. Hall. Vol. 2. Pasadena: Salem Press, Inc, 2003. Print.

The Architectural Barriers Act (or ABA) was passed by Congress on August 12, 1968. It was based on minimal regulations passed by the American National Standards Institute on architectural standards that were passed in 1961. Responsibility for maintaining these regulations was passed to the Department of Housing and Urban Development and Department of Health, Education, and Welfare. These regulations only applied to federally funded buildings being built at the time. At least 34 states had their own minimal architectural barriers regulations by 1965. The National Commission on Architectural Barriers conducted a survey about public knowledge of architectural barriers and found that most people were unaware of the fact that some buildings were not wheelchair accessible. When the ABA was passed, it applied regulations to all buildings built, leased, or refurbished using government funds. Most buildings did not comply with the regulations until ten years after the ABA was passed.

“Enforcement.” //United States// //Access Board//. The United States Access Board, n.d. Web. 21 Feb. 2010. <[]>

The ABA is enforced by investigating complaints. If someone sends in a complaint that a building does not comply with ABA standards, the United States Access Board checks first if the ABA standards apply to the building, and then checks if the building meets standards. If it does not meet standards, the Access Board helps the owners of the building come up with a plan to modify it to fit ABA standards. [Arch Robison]

Accessibility on Campus
Commemeratice Book Preparation and Publication Commitee, //Expanding Horizons: A History of the First 50 Years of the Division of Rehabilitation-Education Services at the University of Illinois.// Champaign, IL: Roxford DTPublishing, 1998. 9-10, 45.

In the history of the University of Illinois, undoubtedly one of the reasons it is so popular is due to the fact it has been made accessible to all students with a disability. However, this has not always been the case, and in the beginning, Tim Nugent, the head of the Rehab Program, had to wrestle with the board of Trustees in 1949, to get them to approve some changes so that disabled students could get around. Nugent got it so that there were six classrooms that could be accessed by a person in a wheelchair, and six curb-cuts were installed in 1949, along with 6 accessible buildings for the students get to classes. Eventually the numbers grew, and now it seems very hard to find a corner on campus that isn’t cut. The Rehab Program even installed an adjustable ramp that led to nowhere, just to figure out the best slope for people with varying levels of disabilities.

[Jia Curry-Bild]

Parkland College. “College History-Parkland College Library". Parkland College. Parkland College. (n.d) Web. 20 Feb 2010. [] . Parkland College. "For Students- Office of Disability Services". Parkland College. Parkland College. (n.d) Web. 20 Feb 2010 [] . Parkland College. “Parkland College -Who we Are- Quick Facts". Parkland College. Parkland College. (n.d) Web. 20 Feb 2010 []. Parkland College. "Resources- Office of Disability Services". Parkland College. Parkland College. (n.d) Web. 20 Feb 2010 []. __ History of Accessibility at Parkland College __** Parkland College was founded in 1967. At this time the campus had not been built so all of the classes were held in downtown Champaign. The location of the classes often limited the number of disabled students that could attend. The Architectural Barriers Act (1968) had not yet been passed so the buildings that were being used were not very accessible. Parkland’s campus was built in 1973. The By this time, not only the ABA but also the Rehabilitation Act had been passed. The Rehabilitation Act took several years to be enforced, so this law may not have affected the campus. However many of the buildings on the campus are very accessible. All of the buildings are connected and “there is a ramp for every set of stairs.” Since all of the buildings are connected, it is much easier for disabled faculty, staff, students, and affiliates to navigate the campus. There have been many additions to the connected campus building since 1973. Parkland has an Office of Disability Services (ODS) which makes sure that the needs of all types of students with disabilities are accommodated. They work to raise the level of participation of people with disabilities in academic programs in the community. Parkland offers many things to assist students with disabilities. Some of the accommodations they offer are: sign language interpreters, special classroom seating (for wheelchairs), note takers, and textbooks in different forms. Parkland is overall very accessible and helpful to students with disabilities.

[Emmanuel Pratt-Clarke]