Student suspended for running stairs
April 29, 2010 by Leslie E. Packer PhD
Filed under Advocacy
Angela D. Sykora reports:
A College of Lake County honor roll student recently suspended for an indefinite period of time feels he’s being discriminated against because of his disability, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), which made him display behaviors in public that he said he could not control.
Kyle Stephans, 18, of Grayslake, is a second semester freshman at CLC who is registered with the campus Office for Students with Disabilities. In late February, Stephans received a letter from the school stating it had received numerous complaints that he was running up and down stairwells, "which is posing a safety hazard to others and to yourself."
Stephans told Pioneer Press this behavior is a result of his doctor-diagnosed OCD and that it helps him relieve stress and anxiety.
Read more about this case in the Lake Villa Review.
It’s a bit confusing as to whether the running up and down stairs is actually a compulsion or if it’s simply a technique he engages in to reduce stress. Would that make a difference in your thinking about the behavior and whether it should be viewed as a reasonable accommodation? There also seems to be some conflicting statements as to whether others are present on the stairs when he is running, which might also influence any decision.
What do you think? If there really are no other students in the stairwell when he is running, I wonder if it would help if he just offered to sign a release that would remove any liability on their part should he get hurt or injured from running on the stairs.
