Apr 15, 2009 10:42 pm US/Central
Family Fights To Make School Wheelchair-Accessible
Mike Lyons Fought For 10 Years To Make His Childrens' School Accessible To Disabled
CHICAGO (CBS) ―
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Mike Lyons says the lack of wheelchair accessibility at the high school his son and daughter attended caused him to miss big moments in their lives.
CBS
Most parents wouldn't think twice about going to their child's school. But for one local man, it was a major ordeal just to get into the building. For 10 years, he and his family fought to make schools more accessible for the physically challenged. Now changes are in place. CBS 2 Investigator Dave Savini looks at the family's fight, and the problems that still need to be fixed.
Mike Lyons and his son Matthew are returning to the scene of their battle: Conant High School in Hoffman Estates.
"It was frustrating," Matthew Lyons said. "It's just kind of embarrassing that people look down on you like that."
Lyons says the lack of wheelchair accessibility meant his father missed big moments in his and his sister's lives.
"It made it a lot more difficult to go through school," Matthew said.
Mike Lyons, who suffers from multiple sclerosis, says he had trouble getting into doorways, or accessing rooms for band recitals, concerts, awards ceremonies and parent-teacher conferences. It frustrated the family, including wife Christine.
"No one made accommodations for people with wheelchairs," Christine said.
Mike says even the special education room was inaccessible.
To enter the building involved humiliation and dumpsters.
"They would send me in through the back entrance down a row with garbage cans because that's the only entrance they had," Mike said.
He even became trapped inside.
"He was locked upstairs for 45 minutes to an hour," Matthew said.
"I don't like being locked up and no way to get out," Mike said.
Mike Lyons is used to a battle. He served in Vietnam and spent his career fighting for justice as the Better Government Association's chief investigator.
He finally decided to fight the school and District 211 after missing his daughter's solo performance at a concert.
"It was a row of stairs, about 40 stairs, into the basement," Mike said. "When I couldn't see my daughter and her solo, that drove me absolutely crazy. I was so angry."
So he recruited Equip for Equality, a non-profit legal advocacy organization, and attorney Alan Goldstein filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education.
"It's important that parents be part of their children's education experience," Goldstein said. "Their rights need to be respected and upheld."
The district has since made numerous changes and spent millions.
"I think what the Lyons' family did is really improve the accessibility and access to the schools for everyone in District 211, and if other school districts pay note, possibly throughout the state," Goldstein said.
Last week, at Conant High School, CBS 2 Investigators found there are still a couple of problems. Curb cuts are missing next to some parking spots for the disabled. And one disabled access sign points to stairs.
Despite these lingering issues, this is a battle the Lyons' believe they won, and they are thrilled to help others with disabilities.
"It makes me feel happy that we got action," Mike said.
A District 211 spokesman, in a written statement, says the school was in compliance with the law, but it still presented challenges to some people, so the district has been working to make it more accessible.
With regards to the problems we found last week, the spokesman says they will improve the signage and consider the need for more curb cuts.
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(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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