Category: Found in the Archives

National Accessibility Pioneers: Timothy Nugent and the Division of Rehabilitation Education Services

Posted on by Catalina Hernandez

Did you know that the rate of graduation of students with disabilities registered in DRES is between 87% and 91%? That is higher than the average graduation rate on campus, which has been around 85% and 88%! Also, are you aware that our campus has been ranked #1 for several years as the most accessible campus for students with disabilities? Did you know that the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign was the very first institution to provide full access to all university services, curricula and facilities? One more question. Have you heard of the NWBA (National Wheelchair Basketball Association)?

You are probably guessing what this is all about. Dr. Timothy Nugent, first director of the University of Illinois’ Disability Resources & Educational Services (DRES), and pioneer for disability advocacy and equity, left a legacy that continues to shape the development of accessibility design and equity policies for individuals with disabilities.

Among other important contributions, Nugent pioneered research on architectural barriers, accessibility standards, transportation, and recreation for individuals with disabilities. Nugent was involved in supporting the activities and the administration of DRES and the fraternity Delta Sigma Omicron, a rehabilitation service fraternity whose members originally were students with disabilities on the University of Illinois campus. In addition to this work, he also founded the National Wheelchair Basketball Association (1948), collaborated closely with organizations as American National Standards Institute (1959-92) and was pioneer in developing accessibility-friendly public transportation.

At the University Archives, you will find 21 Record Series related with the history and development of the DRES center, which include: Timothy J. Nugent Papers, 1939-2007 (Series 16/6/20); the DRES Subject file, Photographic File and Scrapbooks; the Fraternity Delta Sigma Omicron records; and several records related to the Wheel Chair Basketball team and Wheelchair Athletics. Materials in these collections consist of correspondence, photographs, booklets, video recordings, audio recordings, and committee minutes. Some materials include contents accessible on-line. See here all disability-related Record Series available at the Archives.

To honor Timothy Nugent, who recently passed away on Wednesday, November 11 2015, the University Archives is sharing an exhibit highlighting some of DRES’ main achievements. Enter the exhibit here.

 

Design Buildings to Permit their use by the Physically Handicapped. Fall 1960. Found in Series 16/6/1, Box 4
Design Buildings to Permit their use by the Physically Handicapped. Fall 1960. Found in Series 16/6/1, Box 4

Champaign County On Film

Posted on by Angela Jordan

Champaign County On Film, the second event in the Town & Gown Speaker Series, will be held in the Lewis Auditorium at Urbana Free Library, Wednesday, October 15, at 7pm. The Champaign County Historical Archives and the Student Life & Culture Archives will present an evening devoted to the changes of Champaign County from the 1920s through the twenty-first century as captured by the film lens. Continue reading “Champaign County On Film” →

School of Military Aeronautics

Posted on by Angela Jordan

The last of four posts written for “WWI and Champaign County” of the Town & Gown Speaker Series, a collaboration between the Student Life & Culture Archives and the Champaign County Historical Archives.

Research for this post contributed by Maggie Cornelius.

Besides ROTC and SATC, the Department of War instituted another military training program at the University of Illinois during World War I. The School of Military Aeronautics (SMA) was not a permanent addition to the University, but its activities preoccupied the campus during the latter years of the Great War.

School of Military Aeronautics instructors, fall 1917. In March 1917, the Daily Illini reported on this development: “The aviation section of the military department of the United States has become active during the present crisis and is desirous of interested students at all the universities in aviation.”[1] To meet the nation’s need for pilots in time of war, the federal government commissioned six U.S. universities to open aviation schools. Illinois was the first American university to offer its facilities and resources to the government to aid the war effort.[2] Continue reading “School of Military Aeronautics” →

Student Military Training and the Great War

Posted on by Angela Jordan

The third of four posts written for “WWI and Champaign County” of the Town & Gown Speaker Series, a collaboration between the Student Life & Culture Archives and the Champaign County Historical Archives.

Research for this post contributed by Maggie Cornelius.

America’s entry into World War I required the mobilization of the country’s brightest minds and ablest bodies for military training and leadership. The War Department looked to American universities to recruit capable men for its military departments. These recruitment efforts prompted the establishment of two prominent military organizations at the University of Illinois, both of which served as the foundation for the current Illini Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) program. Cadet George Wellington Rider, 1915

Prior to ROTC, the 1862 Morrill Act obligated land-grant universities to instruct its male students in “military tactics.”[1] Anticipating the American entrance into the war, the National Defense Act of 1916 established the ROTC as part of its reorganization of the American military. Illinois created its ROTC chapter in 1917 and fundamentally changed how the University fulfilled its Morrill Act obligation.  ROTC’s primary purpose was to train and enroll men into the Reserved Officers’ Corps who were qualified to be “captains or lieutenants of volunteer organizations in times of war.”[2] In its early days, ROTC was divided into seven units: medical corps, signal corps, engineers, cavalry, field artillery, coast artillery, and infantry.[3] Continue reading “Student Military Training and the Great War” →

The Women Behind the Men Behind the Guns

Posted on by Angela Jordan

The second of four posts written for “WWI and Champaign County” of the Town & Gown Speaker Series, a collaboration between the Student Life & Culture Archives and the Champaign County Historical Archives.

Research for this post contributed by Maggie Cornelius.

The United States government asked Americans to knit socks, sweaters, and other garments for soldiers during World War I. Most of this knitting was produced by volunteers working under the auspices of the American Red Cross. Illini women, like many women during the war, devoted their free time and money to contribute necessities and luxuries to the war effort. The former provided subsistence and the latter provided morale. Continue reading “The Women Behind the Men Behind the Guns” →