By Mallory Bowman
The University of Louisville Disability Resource Center has been creating ways for disabled students to take full advantage of all the educational, social and cultural opportunities provided at U of L for years. Just ask nursing student Mary Kelly Kaufman, who suffers from a learning disability but has been successful as a student with the help of the Disability Resource Center.
“There are always challenges that come with having a disability,” Kaufman said. “Through being disabled, I have now learned that I can break down barriers for people, too. The DRC has been excellent throughout my years at U of L.”
Kaufman, along with nine other university faculty, students or departments, received an award at the 10th Annual Disability Awareness Awards Luncheon on April 7. Kaufman was recognized with the Academic Achievement and Personal Growth Award.
The luncheon recognized persons and departments at U of L that have made contributions to and advancements in the field of disability resources.
Disability Resource Center Director Cathy Patus said the annual event, cosponsored by the center and by the Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity, always helps her to remember the great strides that the resource center makes every year — and how important outside contributions are to the center.
Dr. Bill Penrod, with U of L’s College of Education and Human Development, Teaching and Learning division, was this year’s Bill Cox Lifetime Achievement Award recipient. The award is given to an individual or group who has committed a lifetime to disability issues. The award was named for Bill Cox, who developed and implemented disability support services on the U of L campus.
Penrod was described as a man who had dedicated his life to improving the lives of the disabled through his work as a professor and researcher.
“I’ve been taught you have to put the person first and the disability second,” Penrod said.
“This is one of the greatest days of my life,” Penrod said upon receiving the award. “This is one of my proudest moments.”
Penrod said he was inspired by professors to dedicate himself to improving others’ lives, and that since then the work has reaped its own rewards. “The best part is when I see students that I have taught living independently, being productive, happy, the way everyone else does. They are my products.”
Disability Awareness Award Recipients
Housing and Residence Life, Outstanding Service Award
Physical Plant, Outstanding Service Award
Sherri Gary, with the medical school Student Affairs Office, Outstanding Service Award
Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity, Outstanding Service Award
Ron Schildknecht, with the Delphi Center for Teaching and Learning, Outstanding Service Award
Dr. Cathy L. Bays, with the School of Nursing, Faculty of the Year Award
Matthew Paul Selm, Disabled Student of the Year Award
Jenny Smith, for her work with The Mobility Project, Disabled Alumna of the Year Award
Mary Kelly Kaufman, Academic Achievement and Personal Growth Award
Dr. Bill Penrod, College of Education and Human Development, Bill Cox Lifetime Achievement Award
