When I first met Yazan Khalaf he apologized profusely for being two minutes late. He stood tall on his scooter, but acted as if it was not even there - holding the door for me on the elevator and slowing his scooter to a crawl as we walk across the quad on a Technicolor Friday afternoon.
As we traveled to the Letts-Anderson quad, Khalaf did small laps, dodging tulips and prospective students and their families along the way, to show me how his scooter - capable of going 13 miles per hour - worked, with a giant smile spread across his face.
"Ever since I got my scooter, I like to zoom around, especially when it's a great day," he said. "Having the wind in your hair, it's pretty nice."
Using an electric scooter is still a relatively new concept to Khalaf. The junior in the School of Public Affairs has only been using it for two years, ever since he had surgery to straighten his legs before transferring to AU from Montgomery College in Maryland.
"I've always walked my whole life, and with no crutches or whatever, just regular walking," he said. "Of course, I walk with a limp, because I have cerebral palsy."
Since his surgery, his walking has improved but he gets tired faster. His scooter, which is not specifically meant for individuals with disabilities, gets him more stares from strangers than when he walked, Khalaf said.
He also has a back-up scooter, which he keeps parked outside his room on the first floor of Letts. However, a few weeks ago Khalaf was woken by Public Safety, who informed him that someone had pushed his scooter down a flight of nearby stairs, which dented part of the handlebar and chipped one of the wheel coverings, with possible internal damage, costing at least $400, if not a total loss, according to Khalaf. A similar scooter would cost around $1,200, he said.
"I've been lucky that it didn't happen before," he said.
It is risky to store his scooters in the hallway, Khalaf said. He was contacted by Housing and Dining to remove the scooters since they are considered a fire hazard, but has not done so.
"What do you want me to do?" he said. "I can't put them in my room, because that's going to be an obstacle not just for me, but for my roommate, and it's going to take up so much space."
Khalaf would like a key to his floor's trunk room to store his spare scooter, but Housing and Dining will not give him one because it is a shared space and he might vandalize other residents' belongings, he said.
"I understand where they are coming from, but I think I'm also putting my belongings in there, so I would not vandalize my stuff," Khalaf said.
Since trunk rooms are a shared facility, they must stay locked at all times. However, they can be accessed by a hall staff member like a resident assistant or desk receptionist whenever needed, Executive Director of Housing and Dining Chris Moody said.
"Because there are many people's things in the room, you can't prevent one student from taking stuff that's not theirs," Moody said about providing specific students with a key to the trunk room.
Khalaf's RA does not have a key to the trunk room, Khalaf said.
"The problem is since they're not going to give me access to a key to the storage room, I am not guaranteed access to the other scooter if one of my scooters stops working," he said. "And the RA doesn't have a key, so technically even the RA has said to me it might take hours before we even get a key to access the site."
Khalaf was not given a practical alternative to keeping his scooters in the hallway, he said.
"I think, to a certain extent, it is discrimination," he said. "I feel that it's not maybe purposeful but it's lack of understanding. I feel that maybe because I don't fit a certain mold."
Both Moody and Director of Disability Support Services Joanne Benica said they were not allowed to talk about specific students or instances, but agreed to speak generally about accommodation issues.
"There is not a requirement related to providing space for equipment such as wheelchairs or scooters," Benica said in an e-mail. "Most students request single spaces on campus to accommodate larger equipment in their rooms."
Housing and Dining works with DSS to make accommodations for students in need, according to Moody. For example, some students may need a single room to store extra equipment, such as a wheelchair or scooter, he said.
Khalaf did not seek any room accommodations when he applied for housing this year, but hopes to be in a single next semester, he said.
In the meantime, Khalaf is seeking $400 in reimbursement from Housing and Dining for the damages.
"It's not about the money, it's about [is Housing and Dining] willing to do the right thing," he said.
Instances such as this will be discussed in the club Khalaf recently founded - the Disability Alliance - which aims to mentor and create a safe space for students with disabilities and their allies. He said he plans to bring speakers to campus, either successful people with disabilities or lawyers who specialize in disability law.
"We want to be taken seriously as a club," Khalaf said. "We don't want it to be a joke for the university. It's not like 'oh, we have a club now, and we're going to seek revenge.' ... It's [a] social, info and mentoring club."
The club's first meeting last month drew 10-15 students without advertising.
At the end of our interview, he led me to the LA quad. I asked him what his name, Yazan, means - "one who judges fairly" in Arabic. Going down the ramp, he greeted multiple friends with a grin before saying his goodbyes and zooming away.
Friend Mark Lyubovitsky, a sophomore in the School of International Service, said Khalaf has more optimism than anyone he knows.
"He has an absolute, unparalleled enthusiasm for life," he said.
You can reach this staff writer at thallerman@theeagleonline.com.
