A new, accessible kitchen station was recently completed in Ecole Stonewall Centennial School (ESCS) ‘s Home Economics room.
As Amaya Dawson enters Grade 7 at ESCS this year, she faces no boundaries in home ec class. After a motor vehicle collision in 2020 left the now 12-year-old paralyzed from the waist down, she uses a wheelchair in everyday life. The current setup in the home ec room at ESCS was not wheelchair accessible, so the school took it upon themselves to change that.
In the accessible kitchen station, there is an oven that opens to the side rather than down, the upper cabinets have pull-down shelves, and everything is at an accessible height for those in wheelchairs.
“It’s definitely heartwarming to see it all happening,” said Alycia Dawson, Amaya’s mom. “[Amaya] is super excited that she actually gets to participate in the same way that her friends do. She’s not excluded from anything.”
After just having most of their home renovated to add accessibility, Alycia is no stranger to the differences needed for everyday life. They’ve added a ramp to the front of their house, a ramp to the back, and added a sidewalk connecting the two. They’ve also put in a fully functional elevator from the main floor of their house to the basement, changed all flooring to vinyl plank, added electric doors around the house, and lowered bathroom counters Amaya can access.
“With the school, it’s been one thing after the other where they’re ready to make necessary changes to make her happy and possible for her to do everything she does,” said Alycia, noting that in the school’s music room, they’ve added a lift so Amaya can access each level of the stands.
ESCS vice principal Jeff Levesque said they strive to increase accessibility, helping Amaya and students in wheelchairs after her. He said having the contractors finish the renovations to the home ec room before the school year started was huge, and the school is beyond happy Amaya could start her Grade 7 year with the accessible kitchen.
“As any student’s interests change or they’d like to have access to certain areas…if we don’t have that access, we certainly prioritize opening up that opportunity for students,” he said.
As the first half of the year is sewing, Amaya still needs to use the new kitchen station, but the school ordered her a sewing machine she can control with her hands rather than her feet, and she’s excited to use it.
The thing Amaya is most excited about though? Future students will have all these systems in place when they enter ESCS for the first time.
