Abi on Faith and Disability

I’m Abi, originally from Manchester, I have come straight from doing A Levels at 6th form to being in my 2nd Year as a Children’s Nursing Student. I am Jewish and a person with autism.

Thankfully I haven’t had any big challenges with being Jewish. The only thing that I have experienced is seeing some antisemitic things on social media which at times have been upsetting, but I have always had support from a lot of friends.

I haven’t had many big challenges being autistic however, I have had some challenges when I was in secondary school with teachers who were unsupportive and who didn’t understand my needs. However, I have realised that this was not intentional, it was done purely out of lack of education. Once they had been educated/made aware of my learning differences, then they were a lot better and were more helpful and provided the right kind of support and that allowed me to get to where I am today.

My main motivation was because the only way for me to become a nurse was by going to university.

Due to some of the struggles that I have experienced throughout my schooling I wanted to come to university because I wanted to show to the people that doubted me that I was able to get to this point in my journey. Going through those hurdles were just a stepping stone and each of those experiences gave me transferable skills that I have been able to use in my student nursing journey. For example, communication skills which have been especially important when trying to communicate important information as a nurse.

For me, the University campus has been supportive and welcoming. It has also been able to educate others on differences which I think is particularly important as it helps to reduce the amount of miseducation. When the levels of miseducation have been reduced, then it means that campus and public areas can be more supportive and inclusive.

I believe that diversity means representation across a wide range of traits, backgrounds, and experiences. For me, it is important that everyone I come across feels safe, accepted, and valued and has an equal opportunity to develop. Diversity also refers to recognising and respecting and valuing differences in people and creating a supportive and welcoming environment.

I think Staffordshire University is an inclusive and diverse community because all the staff that I have come across so far are willing to learn and want to provide the best education for all students. They also try to put as much support in place as possible and if it is something that they cannot put in place themselves, then they will signpost you to the relevant people. I have also experienced some staff members who have gone out of their way to provide support and facilitate their students’ learning. In terms of students, I have found that all students despite some of them being miseducated all want to learn more and are open to understanding differences. Students are also very welcoming to learning about new experiences for example will hold events that celebrate differences and aim to educate other students.

The best way is to ask the person from those diverse backgrounds personally as they can educate you better. I would say that it is good to learn about diverse backgrounds as it can allow you to have an open mind and be more able to adapt situations to create an equal “playing field” for everyone so that no-one is disadvantaged.