Off on the right foot
Taylor stumbled upon Doane College while accompanying his older brother on a college visit a few years ago. After a second visit and meeting with some professors, he was drawn to the college. The strong journalism program especially impressed him.
Accommodating circumstances
Although legally blind (he can see well enough to get to his classes but doesn't drive), Taylor has taken advantage of several opportunities to get involved at Doane College. He served as a reporter and editor for the Doane Owl and was elected a senator to the Student Congress last year. He also is in the Honors Program and a member of Delta Kappa Pi Fraternity.
Doane Owl advisor David Swartzlander found Taylor a reliable addition to his editorial staff last year.
"If he had a hole to fill and couldn't get anybody to do a story, he'd go out and write one," Swartzlander said.
Taylor was able to design pages with computer magnifying tools and an extra large monitor that was ordered, just one of the accommodations made for him. When he can't obtain large-print textbooks, a tutor is appointed to read the text aloud to him.
As a Student Congress senator, Taylor contributes a lot to student life, according to Student Congress advisor Kim Jacobs. Taylor addressed a dilemma he encountered as a resident assistant last year by researching and implementing a plan to work with a local company to provide lofts for students so they wouldn't have to build them.
"He really looks at issues in a comprehensive way," Jacobs said, adding that he keeps in mind the best interest of all students.
Educational enhancements
Taylor's experiences at Doane have been enhanced by off-campus trips, like the interterm journalism class that studied the roots of the Civil Rights movement via a trip to Alabama last spring. The group produced stories that appeared in the summer edition of the Doane Magazine - a very practical experience for the journalism major.
This semester Taylor will fulfill the requirement of the Honors Program to study abroad and go back to his Irish roots while in Ireland at Dublin City University. He plans to share his experiences by blogging for the student-produced Web site http://www.doaneline.com/.
Taylor is looking forward to studying Gaelic and American history from the perspective of another country and especially to the university's equivalent of physical education classes - activities like rock climbing, yacht sailing and cave exploring.
The anticipated transition from a small, private college to one with 25,000 students is a little daunting for him because he appreciates the closeness of the Doane community.
"It's one of those places where you want to go back, not just to the school but (to) the people I've met there, students and faculty," Taylor said.