As a group of disabled and chronically ill faculty and staff, we were disheartened to see some of the comments in the Oct. 16 issue of the Collegian regarding paving Middle Path. As it stands, Middle Path is inaccessible and has deeply impacted many community members, both disabled and able-bodied. Navigating Middle Path while using a wheelchair, crutches, scooter or stroller is prohibitively difficult, in some cases impossible. Community members with chronic pain or joint problems avoid the path wherever possible. In the winter, ice makes Middle Path even more treacherous. This is not “just a what-if scenario”: the disabled community is present at Kenyon, and every day, we have to grapple with the inaccessibility of Middle Path.

Accessibility is not a convenience for disabled people. It is a necessity. More than that, it is a legal requirement under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA, section 302). Moreover, able-bodied people benefit from accessibility features, such as curb cuts, elevators and closed-captioning. Everyone in the Kenyon community will benefit from paving Middle Path. 

We must also remember that Kenyon today looks very different than it did in the 19th century. Our campus has changed over the past two hundred years, and while change can be hard — especially on a campus that values tradition as much as Kenyon does — it is necessary to remain aligned with our community values. Kenyon used to be a school only for white men. In 1948, Black men were finally admitted and in 1969, women. The goal of teaching and challenging students remains the same, but who qualifies as a student has expanded. However, such inclusion is meaningless if some are prevented from fully participating in the life of the College. Disabled students and community members are deliberately excluded when they can’t enjoy free and unencumbered access to Middle Path.

Many of the comments against paving Middle Path made reference to maintaining campus’ “natural beauty.” We ask: What is “natural” in this case? Is the substrate described by its manufacturer as a “perfect aggregate” of stone and stabilizing binder natural? Is a perfectly straight line cut through a grassy field natural? The first Middle Path was built in the 1840s using unpaid student labor and was installed because then-President David Bates Douglass felt Kenyon’s campus was disorderly. Douglass’ Middle Path wanted to tame nature. Any “natural” element to Middle Path has always been manufactured. 

For us, Middle Path does not represent nature but rather the ease of life that the able-bodied community enjoys without second thought and the difficulty of convincing that community that accessibility is necessary for the rest of us. The aggregate of stone and stabilizing binder provides an image of access, while damaging the case for effective change, because the problem seems solved. This access is in appearance only, and Middle Path is just the tip of the iceberg.  

One student’s response to the poll stated, “The pebbles don’t make Middle Path, the people do.” We wholeheartedly agree. The community of diverse students, faculty, staff and family that comes together on Middle Path makes Kenyon special, not what that path is made of. When Middle Path’s substrate impacts the ability of any individual to participate in the community-building foundational to Kenyon, it is time for change. 

Sincerely,

Faculty/Staff DISCO

Dani Ezor (Visiting Assistant Professor, Art History)

Travis Chi Wing Lau (Assistant Professor, English)

Eve Kausch (Outreach Librarian for Special Collections & Archives)

Tara Stringfellow-Bond (Admin Assistant, Cox Health & Counseling Center)

Mary Ellen O’Meara (Service & Support Coordinator, Registrar’s Office)

Dann Shifflet (Assistant Director of Summer Programs and External Client Events, Office of Campus Events)

Sarah McKee (Director of Instruction and Engagement, Chalmers Library)

Julie Prince (Associate Director, Student Accessibility and Support Services)

Sarah Heidt (Professor, English)

Michelle Mood (Assistant Professor, Political Science)

Ross Feller (Professor, Music)

Emily Wise (Associate Director of Housing Operations)

Jenna Nolt (Digital Initiatives Librarian, Chalmers Library)

Michelle Fidler (Library Services Supervisor, Chalmers Library)

Simon Garcia (Associate Professor, Chemistry)

Orchid Tierney (Associate Professor, English)

Liz Keeney (Associate Director SASS, retired)

Edward Schortman (Professor Emeritus, Anthropology)

Ruthann Daniel-Harteis (Director, SASS)

Janell Verdream (Campus Engagement Librarian)

Rosemary O’Neill (Professor, English)

Lin Li (Assistant Professor, History)

Aimee Jenkins (Science Librarian)

Eliza Ablovatski (Professor, History)