Contact Carolyn Hildebrandt University Division (765) 455-9309 Media Contact Mary Ellen Stephenson OCM (765) 455-9414 mestephe@iuk.edu

Landon Turner visit highlights Disability Awareness Month events

KOKOMO, Ind.—People with disabilities are people first; their disabilities come second.

Indiana University Kokomo will emphasize this message throughout March with activities marking Disability Awareness Month. The campus’ University Division office, which provides disability services for students, is coordinating events under the slogan “Make Room for Everyone.”

All activities are free and open to the public, including a talk by IU basketball great Landon Turner on March 22.

Disability Awareness Month
At IU Kokomo

February 28
Movie: I Am Sam
7 p.m. Kresge Auditorium. Sean Penn portrays a man with mental retardation, seeking custody of his daughter. Rated PG-13; 132 minutes.

March 1
Movie: Rain Man
7 p.m. Kresge Auditorium. After his father’s death, Tom Cruise discovers he has a grown brother (Dustin Hoffman), who has autism. Rated R; 133 minutes.

March 5
Guest Speaker: Ally Matt
10 a.m., Main Building, Room 082; 1 p.m., Main Building, Room 150; 4 p.m. Main Building, Room 105. Blind since birth, Matt is a graduate of Purdue University in Lafayette, who is currently pursuing a doctorate in psychology. She will speak on her experiences.

March 7
“Walk in My Shoes”
Noon. Kelley Student Center. Come participate in a simulated experience of life for people with disabilities. Co-sponsored by Moore’s Home Health.

March 22
Guest Speaker: Landon Turner
7 p.m. Kresge Auditorium. Four months after Landon Turner and his IU teammates won the National Collegiate Athletic Association men’s basketball championship in 1981, Turner was paralyzed from the chest down in a car accident. Today, he is a motivational speaker, advocating winning attitudes for life. Following his talk, Turner will sign copies of his book, Landon Turner’s Tales from the 1980–'81 Indiana Hoosiers.

March 28
Making IT Happen Fair
10 a.m.–2 p.m. Alumni Hall. During the campus’s annual Information Technology fair, the University Division booth will distribute information that will aid in changing attitudes and opening minds towards total acceptance of the individual with a disability.

Campus co-sponsors of Disabilities Awareness Month events include the Offices of Affirmative Action, Campus Climate, and Student Activities; the IU Kokomo Alumni Association; the American Democracy Project Committee; and the Student Union Board. For information, contact Carolyn Hildebrandt at (765) 455-9309.

University Division Disabilities Services joined with the Student Union Board for a kick off to Disabilities Awareness activities with a Battle of the Bands on December 2, 2006. The concert raised more than $900 for a summer camp for Hoosier kids with hemophilia.