By Mikaila Bluew
Access to equal education for students with disabilities was once considered a privilege rather than a right. For over two decades, Marcie Carter has helped transform how education is approached to ensure that every student’s potential is acknowledged and supported.
“When I first started there were a lot of people who didn’t feel those individuals necessarily had a right to education, it was something we had to advocate for,” Delta’s Downtown Midland Campus Manager Marcie Carter said.
Before starting her lifelong career at Delta College Carter worked at The Arnold Center in Midland. During her time there, she was the coordinator of vocational experience working to find employment opportunities for high school students with social and learning disabilities.
“A lot of students had reading and writing difficulties, so being able to advocate for them was important,” she said. “Understanding that they needed assistance, but that education was possible, that they could certainly master some skills with accommodation.”
This understanding was one that The Arnold Center laid the foundation for, but it followed her throughout her career as an advocate. Witnessing what accommodations high school students needed made the transition to Delta seamless and helped Carter cultivate deep connections with students through listening and understanding.
“One of the great things Marcie has done throughout her career is she’s very good at listening and understanding,” said Martin Finney, Director of College Partnerships at Northwood University. “Not everybody had verbal communication skills, you know, depending on their situation she was just always so good at reading between the lines.”
Finney had the unique experience of working alongside Carter not only at The Arnold Center, but at Delta College as well.
He recounted that Carter has always advocated to help students find their voice. This can be seen in her efforts to implement tools and applications like Dragons, a Speech Recognition Software for students who need writing assistance.
Carter said the acceptance of administration and support from Delta without a doubt made these advancements possible.
“I’ve always had really supportive administrators, and I work for a great college that wants to do what’s best for students,” Carter said.
Delta’s Developmental Education programs had a massive period of growth between 2010 and 2017 that Carter feels is “something to be proud of.” Delta worked to support students both in and out of the classrooms, and Carter played a role in the learning communities and intra class support being offered.
One of her most cherished “full circle moments” was witnessing a former student from The Arnold Center thrive at Delta. This student, who aspired to work in childcare despite facing social challenges, flourished with Carter’s coaching and came back to further her education.
“I got to job coach her at a preschool for a couple of months, and in that time, she really thrived and worked in a daycare for several years,” Carter said. “After I worked at Delta, she came back and got her child development certificate.”
Knowing these resources are available gives students access to dream jobs and opportunities despite obstacles they may be facing in their lives.
The stigma around what individuals with disabilities are capable of has come a long way. But there are still individuals in leadership roles feeding into these harmful narratives.
“I think it’s very irresponsible,” Carter said. “A leader is giving permission for people to say those things, and I think, when you’re at that level it’s your responsibility to be a role model.”
This was in response to a statement President Donald Trump said regarding his running mates, where he used the phrase “mentally disabled” as an insult. This creates an unsafe environment for individuals and Carter feels this gives permission to speak without thinking about what these comments do to people.
Although Carter is no longer working in advising, she hopes she can continue to be an advocate for students coming through the Midland Campus in her role as manager. Her goal is to ensure students know the Midland Campus is there as a resource, constantly working to find best practices and working one-on-one with individual students’ needs.
“For Marcie, she truly does care; it’s not just the job of another number it’s really all about success,” Finney said. “Not standing down and not backing down, saying ‘no, right is right, and you fight for what’s right.’” Carter will continue to give students a place to feel challenged, a place of equal opportunity, where they feel like they have a fair shot at success.
