Access Nashville is a college service learning accessibility training program at Vanderbilt Kennedy Center . The goal of Access Nashville is to gather and disseminate "accessibility-friendly" information about restaurants so that consumers with disabilities can make informed choices about dining out in their community. This goal is accomplished with the help of college students who receive accessibility training in the classroom and must survey a designated restaurant for homework assignment. Based on survey information, restaurants receive a Wow, Good,or Limited access rating and this information is posted on the Nashville Convention and Visitors Bureau and Access Nashville websites (www.accessnashvilleonline.org) The website includes other information about accessible hotels, entertainment attractions and transportation in the Nashville area.
The project outcome has impacted not only community members with disabilities but also student volunteers and restaurant owners through an information-sharing process. Access Nashville educates:
* Consumers about local area restaurants - Access Nashville provides accessibility-friendly information about restaurants in the Nashville area so that customers who use wheelchairs and/or have other disabilities can make informed choices.
* College students about disability and access - As a hands-on service learning project for Vanderbilt University and other local colleges, student volunteers receive disability awareness and accessibility training with hands-on experience in the community through volunteerism and social action. In 2010-2011, Access Nashville provided training to 5 college classes at the following colleges: Vanderbilt, Belmont, TSU, Nashville State Community College, and TSU. A total of 116 college students were trained this year. Over 600 college students have received training in the last few years. There has been a 100% student satisfaction rating.
* Restaurant managers about disability and access - Many restaurant managers and staff learn about accessibility and gain an awareness of disability issues through participation. Access Nashville encourages all restaurants to be accessible and provides special certificates to those restaurants that are "accessibility-friendly." Access Nashville also offers free training and technical assistance to restaurants receiving a "Limited Access" rating. There are over 450 restaurants with accessibility ratings posted on the website.
This project is guided by a coalition from the aging, business and disability fields. This year, Tennessee Disability Coalition paid for 5,000 Access Nashville postcards. These postcards will be available on attraction and event racks found in hotel lobbies, spearheaded by the Nashville Convention and Visitors Bureau. The Center for Independent Living purchased items (tape measure and clipboard) for 10 Access Nashville tool kits.
Due to the impact of this project on the community and low operational costs with college student volunteers surveying restaurants, the Vanderbilt Kennedy Center with TN Disability Coalition sponsored an Access Nashville Guide that will be distributed through the Disability & Business Technical Assistance Centers around the United States.
For more information, contact Carole Moore-Slater at 615.875.5085 or
by email at:
[email protected]
Please note that Access Nashville trains unpaid volunteers to gather "accessibility-friendly" information and does NOT assess compliance of businesses with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
