Dani Carlson’s zest for life is apparent the instant you meet her.
Like most college freshman, Carlson deals with loads of homework, late night studying, and if there is time, watching her friends in the latest campus performance of the play ‘Robin Hood.’ As a member of Alpha Chi Omega sorority and Baker University Speech Choir she participates in her own campus activities as well.
Carlson is also one of the few disabled students at Baker. Born with cerebral palsy, a disorder that affects her ability to walk, Carlson battles weakness in the muscles of her legs on a daily basis.
The 18-year-old has undergone eight reconstructive surgeries on her legs to make them stronger and more efficient. Given the option recently to use a cane or a wheelchair, she has chosen a wheelchair, partly because weather makes walking a more difficult task.
As a student going from class to class, navigating campus in a wheelchair is not as simple as some might think, and Baker is not necessarily a handicap-friendly campus.
“People don’t notice this, but there is not a lot of easy wheel chair accessibility,” Carlson said. “To get into the Union I have to go to the back, and up the wheelchair ramp. It is just little things like that that make it kind of a hassle.”
Even though getting around campus is not necessarily easy, Carlson remains positive.
“She is strong willed and you can tell that nothing really holds her back, ” Shalynn Eldredge-McMillan, a classmate of Carlson’s, said.
Carlson’s mental toughness, along with the support of her family, friends and doctors, has gotten her through the tough times.
“A lot of people who are disabled tend to let it consume their lives in a negative way, and my parents never allowed me to look at it like that,” Carlson said with a smile.
She is open to talking about her disability and willing to educate whoever inquires about it.
“I love informing people and making sure people are aware that just because someone is different doesn’t mean you have to treat them differently, ” she said.
Katy Runnells, a good friend of Carlson’s, said, “Dani doesn’t think of herself as disadvantaged because of her disability. She is really comfortable with herself.”
Carlson’s career goal is to become a rehabilitation psychologist at Children’s Mercy Hospital, where she wants to focus on helping children who have been put in physical life-changing situations.
“I want to help them realize that they are going to face challenges, but there is always going to be someone there, and I want to be that person for someone,” she said.
Carlson hopes to use her disability as a platform to educate and help others who are struggling.
“I am truly a blessed person,” she said.