My husband and I are both ASU online students. I'm 34, he's 38, we're both overweight, he's disabled. My almost 15-year-old son is also disabled. We have gone to the different campuses for various reasons.
Never have we ever encountered any weird attitudes, strange looks, snickers. No one ever acted like it was their campus and we were trespassing.
No one, neither staff nor student, ever looked at or treated us like we didn't belong. The attitudes are always nice, helpful and pleasant. We have never been treated as just another "financial aid" number, and we have never been brushed to the side.
When I say my family and I love ASU, it's not just because its a Tier 1 school with an excellent reputation, challenging coursework and awesome instructors. It's also because there's a family vibe here, very welcoming and inviting. You expect a university of this size to make it easy to get lost in the shuffle, those that are 18 to 25 years old to maybe be unwelcoming. But that couldn't be further from the truth. I'm proud to say that ASU truly welcomes ALL its students, no matter how they get their degree, no matter how old they are or what they look like, and no matter their ability or disability.
I want to say "thank you" and tell you that you make a difference. Maybe you aren't always sure what kind of impact ASU will have on someone, but I assure you, you will have a very positive one on my family. Please know that you do make a difference to those of us lucky enough to call ourselves Sun Devils.
I'm proud both my kids want to go here and make ASU our "family school." THANK YOU, Arizona State. You've made this wife, mom, student feel alive again.
Natalie Anderson
Undergraduate
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