Advertising junior Katie Feirer watches the Spartans warm up with her step-father Daniel Heyden in a handicap seating section before the game against Wyoming on Sept. 27, 2014, at Spartan Stadium. Her seats were across from the student section. Feirer said she feels segregated from the student body during the games because she is unable to sit in the student section. Julia Nagy/The State News
This season, unlike years past, students who require wheelchair accessible seating will be able to cheer on the Spartan football team from the student section of Spartan Stadium.
A project which involved installing wheelchair accessible viewing platforms in sections 11-14 of the student section, was completed about two weeks ago and is able to accommodate up to 20 wheelchairs, said MSU Spokesman Jason Cody.
Cody said the $850,000 project was funded through the athletics budget, which is a separate entity from the general university budget.
Spartan Stadium was previously in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act but wheelchair accessible seating was only provided on the opposite side of the field from the student section.
The State News reported on Spartan Stadium’s lack of wheelchair seating in the student section last year and spoke with Katie Feirer, an advertising senior who was unable to sit with her fellow students on game days.
Feirer advocated for a more inclusive student section and helped bring attention to the issue through meetings with the President’s Advisory Committee on Disability Issues and MSU’s athletic directors last year.
She and others who use wheelchairs can now cheer on the Spartan football team without being isolated.
Support student media! Please consider donating to The State News and help fund the future of journalism.
