The University of Valencia is placed again in 2014 leading the Spanish universities in terms of attention to functional diversity. It is confirmed by the Guideline for Attention to Disability in the University 2104, published by the Universia Foundation. With 1,117 enrolled students, it is the residential institution with the highest number of students with functional diversity in classrooms.
Moreover, the University of Valencia has among its population 83 PDI (teaching and research staff) and 89 PAS (administration and services staff) with disability.
Also, it provides, through the Unit for the Integration of Disabled Persons, fifteen services of reference that the Foundation Universia reflects in the report: curricular adaptations; teachings of special attention to disability; seminars and courses; places; rates exemption; access to electronic media, spaces and buildings; accessible educational materials; volunteer programmes; LSE interpret; employment guidance; and fostering entrepreneurship.
The Unit for the Integration of Disabled Persons, part of the University of Valencia General Foundation, is a service which consists of a multidisciplinary team whose activity is to provide attention, advice and support in the field of disability to the university community: students, professors and research staff, administration and services staff. Its primary mission is to promote equal opportunities among all people within the University through activities collected in five different programmes.
These programmes are of “Psych-educative advice”, which offer the students a tracking throughout their university career with individual advice and evaluation of needs to install the necessary adaptations; ‘Equal opportunities’, which deals with managing and putting at the service of the user the necessary technical supports and staff in each personal situation; ‘Awareness, training and volunteering’, which aims that both the university community and the external institutions to the University of Valencia actively participate to benefit the full personal autonomy of the collective with disabilities; ‘Universal access’, which promotes the creation of work and study environments which respect diversity, taking into account the physical, electronic and communicative accessibility; and ‘Attention to PDI’, which provides advice to the teaching and research staff on integration measures.
This last programme turns the University of Valencia into pioneer in Spain to make, for the first time, regulations to promote the integration of teachers and researchers with disabilities, as well as a benchmark for other academic institutions.
Currently, the Unit for the Integration of Disabled Persons serves 52 professors; manages the work of 147 volunteers; and collaborates with 40 associations and entities of the Valencian Country.
Acknowledgements
Since 2005, the Unit for the Integration of Disabled Persons has the certification of the Quality Management System, according to the ISO 9001:2008 Regulation, and a Charter for Services made in 2008. In September 2012, the University of Valencia obtained a certificate of Universal Access of Aenor for the Educative Library María Moliner, a recognition framed in the programme Campus Sostenible, funded by the Ministry of Education, Culture and Sport through the programme Universal Access and Integration of VLC/Campus.
Thus, the work developed by the University of Valencia has been recognised on several occasions, among which outstand the acquirement of the Prize to the Best Public Sector Organisation, granted under the frame of the Tefónica Ability Awards 2012, awards which recognise the Spanish companies and institutions for their commitment and social encouragement in the field of attention to disability and social inclusion as a value added within the organisations; and of the cermi.es 2013 Awards, granted by the Spanish Committee of Representatives of Disabled People (CERMI) in ten different categories. The University of Valencia was awarded in the Institutional category for assuming with decision the inclusive dimension of disability in all academic areas.
Last update: 21 de march de 2014 12:42.
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