Who we are
The Australasian Network of Students With
Disabilities (ANSWD) is a student organisation,
advocating, promoting, lobbying and campaigning on
disability issues. We seek to achieve equality,
access, and representation of students with disabilities
in the tertiary education sector.
How we were formed
ANSWD was formed at the Pathways 5 Conference in
Canberra in early December 2000. Tertiary students
with disabilities from each state of Australia and
throughout New Zealand, make up our membership.
ANSWD is affiliated with and has representation to the
Tertiary Education Disability Council of Australia
(TEDCA) Limited. TEDCA is the peak body for
regional network groups of service providers and
consumers concerned with the education and employment
needs of people with disabilities in post-secondary
education.
Why ANSWD exists
More than 4% of tertiary students acknowledge that
they have a disability, yet most Student
Councils/Representative Bodies do not have a Disability
Officer.
ANSWD acknowledges it is important that there is
widespread representation of students with disabilities
within the tertiary sector, in addition to representation
on decision-making committees. ANSWD is committed
to working towards gaining representation of students
with disabilities by students with disabilities because
of the complex nature of the issues they face. We
feel that in doing so, we can ensure disability issues
are not ignored and that the best outcomes are
achieved.
What ANSWD represents
ANSWD is committed to:
- ensuring the rights of students with disabilities
to have equal and equitable access to tertiary
education by working together with staff, and to
eliminate discrimination at all levels.
- playing an active role in keeping a watch over
government decisions that adversely affect tertiary
students with disabilities, and to challenge these
decisions whenever necessary. ANSWD has
already successfully represented a number of important
issues for students with disabilities at a national
level, like the Federal government’s abandoned
changes to the Pension Education Supplement
(PES).
ANSWD understands accessibility as being the ability
to access, utilise or participate independently of
others, with safety and dignity.
ANSWD acknowledges that those with disabilities are
disabled, not so much by their individual (or multiple)
impairments, but by the barriers put in place by
society.
