As Hitt discusses in her essay, a writing center should accommodate all types of clients. This goes beyond physical accessibility, such as wheelchair ramps and other infrastructure traditionally associated with accessibility. A writing center must incorporate Universal Design for Learning in order to serve as many clients as possible. According to the essay, different consulting techniques can facilitate learning for everyone, regardless of their disability status. It also discusses how a consultant should not view disabled people as additional obstacles they need to overcome in order to succeed. People with disabilities can be alienated by being treated as different types of people, and we all deserve to be treated as different individuals with different needs.
The O'Leary essay continues the conversation about accommodating, but it applies it to gender. Stereotypes are often the basis of initial conversations, so it's important now to let them cloud your judgment on how to communicate with them. In order to provide a pleasant and productive consultant experience, consultants should actively consider how they communicate with their clients. The importance of actively thinking about conversational patterns and content cannot be overstated; people sometimes say things they do not mean when not fully understanding what they are saying; the same applies to consulting.
One question I would pose is are there times where accommodations can go too far?
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