Mays: Good Afternoon. I’m Allison Mays with your CTV update.  Those who know him say it doesn’t matter if it’s rain or shine, he’s always going to show up with a smile on his face. This C of C student is always interested in helping those around him.  We take a moment to sit down and get to know who Alex Jackson really is. Those that know him say he’s a joy to be around.

Kay Fickin, Office Manager at the Center for Disability Studies: He’s always up, he is, and he shares that, he spreads it, spreads that attitude around the office. You can feel it as soon as he comes through the door.

Mays: And he always has a smile on his face.

Fickin: He’s just, he’s got a great smile, good personality…

Mays: This Charleston native, Alex Jackson, is your average student at the College of Charleston.  The only difference is… he’s in a wheelchair.

Jackson: I have quadrepelegia.

Mays: Quadrepelegia causes the spinal cord nerves to be either very week or completely damaged from a certain level.  For Alex, it means that he is paralyzed from mid-chest down.

Jackson: My quadrepeligia allows me to still use my upper body, so I can still write, I can type.

Mays: When Alex was 9 years old both he and his mother were in a severe car accident.

Jackson: It was a drunk driver that crossed over into oncoming traffic and hit us head on.

Mays: Because he was so young when this happened, he doesn’t know what it was like not being in a wheelchair. However, growing up it did take time to adjust. 

Jackson: I guess I was wondering, not really why I couldn’t do those things, but why wasn’t everyone else in a wheelchair?  Like I thought that was the normal thing. 

Mays: From a young age Alex knew he wanted to enter into the field of journalism.

Jackson: You’re listening to College of Charleston radio out of Charleston, South Carolina.  This is Alex Jackson here with you on the A Train. 

Mays: And now as a junior at the college, his heart still remains the same.

Jackson: Ever since I can remember, I liked watching television and sort of being in the newsroom and watching the broadcasters.

Mays: And because of that he became involved in C of C Radio.  Every week Alex’s radio show is made up of gospel and R&B music, with segments on campus activities, news, and also about disability awareness. 

Jackson: I would like for people to understand that everyone, that each disability is different.

Mays: Now C of C Radio isn’t the only organization Alex is involved with here at the college. He’s also part of the gospel choir, as well as a student worker for the Center for Disability Services, also known as SNAP.  That’s normally where you can find him.  Even though Alex only works two days a week, he goes in to help with whatever he can.

Jackson: It’s basic, just like helping the students and the administrators, with any kinds of chores, answering the phones…

Mays: Alex says he finds it very rewarding to help others with special needs around the campus.

Jackson: It’s rewarding to just understand what they’re going through and be able to help them out whenever they need help.

Fickin: He understands a lot about what students with disabilities are going through because he’s a student himself and because… he has a physical disability, but he doesn’t look at it as a disability, he looks at it as a way to help other people understand what people are going through.

Mays: With only one more years to go, Alex looks forward to the day he graduates, but says he might consider going to grad school right away.

Jackson: Since I’m already into college mode and academically prepared, I’m going to keep doing it as long as I can.

Mays: Whether he plans to leave his hometown of Charleston or stay nearby, Alex says he’ll go anywhere there is a program he’s interested in. 

Jackson: I know my mom probably wouldn’t want me to go far, but…I’m going.

Mays: For CTV News, I’m Allison Mays.  Now, if you want to check out Alex’s radio show, go to www.cofcradio.com for more information. For CTV news, I’m Allison Mays.