“ Not having my accommodations met was just a fact of life in those days . And it hardened me in understanding that you have to fight for what you want .”
so I asked the dean if she could hold all three classes in Revelle . She said , ‘ Well , that would involve moving 500 students ,’ and I replied , ‘ Yes , and they would probably love you for it !’” Her request ultimately denied , Jones had no other option but to put her studies on hold . She left the university that quarter , six courses shy of graduating .
“ Not having my accommodations met was just a fact of life in those days ,” Jones says . “ And it hardened me in understanding that you have to fight for what you want .” After a stint teaching public school in the Watts area of Los Angeles , Jones eventually would return to finish her coursework and earn her degree in biology with a minor in religious studies in 1974 . But the understanding she developed , along with the will to fight , would soon prove to have as much relevance in her professional life as a formal education .
SOON AFTER GRADUATION , Jones was faced with a unique opportunity incidentally afforded to her by the very discrimination she faced in her elementary school days . “ When they sent us all to a special school , they didn ’ t realize they were giving us the opportunity to organize and later create change ,” she jokes , referring to the old friends who contacted her to help launch Mainstream Magazine , a California‐based publication devoted to disability issues . Jones joined the magazine ’ s staff and started out doing anything the magazine required , from fundraising to design and editorial work , all in an era before computers changed everything .
Paving the Way Jones attended UC San Diego well before the ADA legislated disability accommodations . Today UC San Diego continuously works toward better accessibility , with projects like the new path on Peterson Hill .
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