Campus Organization: Celebrating Everyone’s Differences

In today’s society, understanding and respecting that everyone is different in their own shape or form is something that we as a whole struggle with. Whether it  be a physical difference, a financial difference, or even a racial difference people struggle with accepting others. One of the major differences that society struggles with accepting, are people with disabilities. Earlier in history, there was a lack of inclusion for those who have disabilities.  People with disabilities were left out and often shunned. In the modern day there is an increase of inclusion for people with disabilities. For example, schools have inclusion programs, and there are events like the special olympics, etc.

At Fitchburg State University, a group of students created a club called Celebrating Everyone’s Differences (C.E.D.). C.E.D’s mission was to make the FSU community and surrounding cities aware of disability issues and raise awareness. The club held events to bring communities together and help students become personally and professionally responsible citizens. C.E.D had events such as Aero Dancers, Stare and Share, Mckay Halloween Party, Chris Burke (Chris Burke has down syndrome and is an advocate for disability while working as an actor and  professional singer.), and Deaf Awareness Day. These events created a space for people with disabilities to have fun, be included, and feel comfortable without the idea of not being accepted. An event like Deaf Awareness Day was able to educate those who do not know much about deafness. These events allow students to truly show people that rather than shunning someone who may be different from you in any way, we should celebrate them. Allow them to teach us things that we may not know. Come together with them and enjoy one another's company.

Before having the name Celebrating Everyone’s Differences, C.E.D was previously known as Cogito Ergo Sum Society. Cogito Ergo Sum means “I think therefore I am.”  The original purpose of this club was to “enlighten the college and surrounding communities of disability issues and awareness and to host social and educational events that will bring communities together.” While the name may have been different, the original goal and purpose of the club was always the same. The original name was more so directed to the founding members of the club. As time went on the members felt that the best thing to do is to change the name of the club so people can know the goals and the purpose of the club. With the name change, people who are not members will already have knowledge on what the club stands for and who it mainly helps, hence the name is self explanatory. The club did take their mission and goal very seriously. In the constitution that the club created there were many rules and regulations for being in the club. As there is for any club, if members did not fulfill the rules they were taken out of the club. For example the first constitution that was created by Cogito Ergo Sum society stated, “Members will be removed for behavior that is counter productive to the society’s purpose.” This shows that the founders of the club were very serious about making sure that members of the club were staying true to the purpose of the club.

The club also had specific goals and interests outlined. They were to organize and participate in activities that the club held during Disability Awareness Month. Coordinate and talk to Disability Services about accessibility on campus. Become actively involved in events like Stare and Share. Volunteer in the community helping people. Also, to collaborate with other groups and clubs to make sure all events are accessible to everyone. All these goals and interests go with the mission statement outlined, which is to make people more aware of disabilities.

The club’s intention was to create an atmosphere for people with disabilities and for people who want to learn more about disabilities. Did they succeed at doing this? Yes. With the many events and activities the students held, this created that safe space. On top of that Fitchburg State University currently offers Disability Services that accommodates the universities students that may have any disability. This way all students have equal opportunities and access to what the school has to offer. However,  the club Celebrating Everyone’s Differences is no longer a thing. In order to really continue to promote and teach people about the differences that we have, in this case being disabilities, the club should have stayed afloat. This would have been able to teach all of the new and upcoming generations about disabilities and how we treat someone who is different from us. The things that the past members of the club missed was ensuring the longevity and strength of the club. If the purpose was  to educate people on disabilities and bring different communities together an additional goal should have been created. This goal being, when the current class were to leave, the club should have continued to be a club. There should have been a way to ensure that the club would continue in order to keep educating others about people with disabilities.

Instead of knocking the differences we have, we should celebrate them. If everyone in the whole world were to be exactly the same the world would be boring. This is not saying that disabilities make the world fun, but it is saying that people being different from one another  adds character to the world. While it may be hard for some people to accept and understand that we are all different, clubs like this can teach us to live with everyone being different. It is very sad and unfortunate the fact that in the modern day we are still struggling to accept everyone. Celebrating Everyone’s Differences was successful in spreading the word about disabilities on the campus. Fitchburg State University’s accessibility on campus has also grown. The different buildings have ramps and elevators to offer for students who may be wheelchair bound or on crutches. This makes it easier for students to access the different buildings on campus. With that the only other thing there are still some buildings that need to be updated for students. For example, some of the mara buildings do not have elevators and only have  stairs which would make the living situation for any student harder.