On January 27, 2022, the RUB Senate appointed me as the new representative for the interests of students with disabilities and chronic illnesses for a term of office lasting 5 years. I am very pleased that the university has entrusted me with this task!
Accessible and equal opportunities at RUB have been an important cause for me for a long time.
I myself studied with my physical disability at Ruhr-University Bochum, University of Freiburg and the University of Manchester and completed my state exams in English and Philosophy in 2016.
I have been working at the Advice Center for the Inclusion of Disabled People (BZI) at the public student service organisation AKAFÖ since 2016 and have been managing the center since August 2020.
I am committed to improving the living situation and supporting students with severe disabilities and/or chronic illnesses, which is why my work is always focused on solving existential problems both during their studies and in their everyday lives.
I hope that through my work I can encourage students and prospective students not to be dissuaded from pursuing their path and not to doubt the resources that they personally bring with them!
Furthermore, in my view, inclusion is a university-wide task on the one hand, but also a cross-university task on the other, and for this reason I am a member of the spokesperson group of the NRW State Working Group for Studies and Disability (website in German) and a member of the advisory board of the nationwide competence center “Information and Advice Center for Students with Disabilities” at the federal association of public student service organisations in order to represent the concerns nationwide and in the political networks.
In addition to providing holistic advice to students and prospective students with disabilities and chronic illnesses, I offer regular training and further education courses on the topic of inclusion at universities and advise teaching staff and administrative staff on establishing inclusive structural processes.
It is always important to me to raise awareness of the needs of students with disabilities and/or chronic illnesses, but also to create opportunities for accessible teaching and university didactics and to support existing projects. For example, the Inclusive University project, which has been running since 2021, offers helpful structural measures and support services for all RUB university members.
