This content was published: December 6, 2021. Phone numbers, email addresses, and other information may have changed.
Equal access for all inspires Rock Creek’s Learning Garden improvements
Photos and story by Alfredo V. Moreno
An accessible bench at Rock Creek Learning Garden.
The 3.5-acre Learning Garden at Portland Community College’s Rock Creek Campus is a beloved educational, emotional and food security resource for students, staff and the surrounding community. Recently though, the staff at this essential campus space were made aware of hidden accessibility barriers that had kept some visitors from maximizing their experience or even being able to enter the garden in the first place.
With the help of PCC’s Disability Services team, however, the Rock Creek Learning Garden is now on its way to becoming a universally welcoming and accessible venue for all.
This re-examination of the space began a few years ago when a former student accessibility advocate with Disability Services, who was working on a community garden bed with garden coordinator Miriam Latzer, expressed the need for adaptive tools that would help people of all abilities better maintain their spaces. Latzer said that interaction sparked her curiosity about what other unidentified barriers might be present and soon resulted in a connection with accessibility specialist Patricia Kepler.
Creating Access
PCC’s Disability Services recognizes disability as a valued aspect of diversity and embraces access as a matter of social justice, and to promote universal design and inclusive environments.
“I had worked with students and colleagues to create a welcome map in four different languages, but the physical space was something I hadn’t really considered,” Latzer said. “I invited Patricia to visit the garden, along with her service dog, Gus, and I learned so much navigating the space with her.”
During the tour, Kepler was able to point out areas such as narrow paths and steep grades at the primary entrance that limited or entirely prevented access to people using mobility devices. She examined the raised garden beds, which were not wheelchair friendly and too wide for those in a seated position to fully reach, and also noted undersized picnic pavilion furniture that weren’t suitable for many people.
“That was a wonderful meeting,” said Kepler. “Miriam wanted to make sure the garden worked for everyone and that is the goal of our work in Disability Services.”
Together, they began developing creative solutions to the learning garden’s accessibility issues, while taking care to incorporate the voice of students and staff with disabilities as part of an inclusive planning process. Alternate Media Formats Technician Jennifer Lucas created 3D models of newly designed garden beds and picnic tables that would easily accommodate mobility devices and the entire project was reviewed with students at a virtual town hall.
“From computer imagery and tangible modeling using 3D printing to our presentation at a virtual, campus-wide town hall, every step of our process presents methods for site planning that will be useful to anyone striving to create a space more universally accessible,” Latzer said.
Patricia Kepler with her service dog Gus.
These types of consultations and cross-departmental projects are at the core of what Disability Services does to emphasize the shared responsibility of equal access at PCC. With the guidance of specialists like Kepler, faculty and staff throughout the college can ensure students feel truly welcomed by proactively removing barriers and embracing access as a matter of social justice.
“PCC spaces, like the learning garden, belong to everyone,” said Kepler. “We want to hear from the community, get feedback from folks on barriers they experience, and learn more about what they might need to actively enjoy our college resources.”
About Alfredo V. Moreno
Alfredo has served PCC's westside communities in both a community engagement and public relations capacity since September of 2018. Born in the border city of El Paso, Texas, Alfredo grew up in the timber town of Roseburg in Southern Oregon... more »
Great initiative. I am very much into gardening and I am an employee at PCC, I live very close to RC campus. Do you have any program where you provide a certain area for employees to grow during Spring and Summer time? Intel in Hillsboro has that option and was wondering about that at PCC but did not know who to ask or where to enquire. It will be really nice if we can get that option at PCC too.
Thanks,
Chethana
Chethana, thanks for your message! Beginning in Spring Term we will be inviting student resource centers to adopt a garden bed. However, if any of the available beds aren’t adopted I will make them available to individual students, staff and faculty via campus-wide announcements. Please stay tuned!
Plus: Big shout out to Jerad Klingsporn in the Physical Education department at RC for building our first, beautiful and accessible picnic table with removable benches! Thank you so much!
Great Article Alfredo! And awesome Work Jerad Klingsporn in the RC learning garden during the pandemic!
A great article ! Thank you Patricia and Miriam for working together to make the Learning Garden at Rock Creek completely accessible. This provides a good model for proactively thinking and providing equitable opportunity for students and staff without limitations. Kudos!
I have had the privilege of visiting the Learning Garden and, as a manual wheelchair user, I am incredibly grateful to Miriam and Patricia for ensuring its’ accessibility. It was such a great feeling when I visited to be able to eat at the accessible picnic table. I found the table to be totally accessible for me, and much more inclusive. Thank you Jerad Klingsporn! I am really looking forward to being able to work in the garden – hopefully in the spring – and to using the accessible the garden tools that the Learning Garden has available. Thank you Miriam and Patricia, your hard work and commitment to accessibility and inclusivity is very much appreciated!
With much gratitude,
PJ
This is such exciting and wonderful news! Thank you to all of you involved and especially to Patricia and Miriam!