After almost three years of planning, Fordham University’s Office of Disability Services (ODS) has acquired an office area on the first floor of Faculty Memorial Hall (FMH). The new location is intended to provide additional and more accessible placement for ODS’s growing population of students.
“I am thrilled. The space is beautiful and professional. Hoping that it will hold us over for a few years!” said Mary Byrnes, director of ODS, in an email to The Ram. “Everyone seems to love it so far!”
ODS serves the Fordham community with providing resources and their support for the undergraduate and graduate students who need accommodations, academic advisors, a new program for the neurodivergent students and more.
The department has had residence in the basement of O’Hare Hall, near the office for Counseling and Psychological Services since it was created, as according to Byrnes. But as Fordham’s population of students who utilize ODS and its services has grown, the department has been in need of adding additional space.
During the 2018-2019 school year, ODS took up residence in the top floor of Cambreleng House (the yellow house) near O’Hare Hall. Byrnes and Jessica Hawkins, associate director of ODS, moved their offices to the new location and converted their O’Hare offices to testing rooms for students. Byrnes said originally, they only used the yellow house for student intake sessions and staff meetings, while all testing and drop-ins continued in the O’Hare offices.
“The yellow house was always supposed to be a temporary space until a better, more appropriate space could be identified,” said Byrnes.
During the pandemic, the number of students registered with ODS increased drastically, causing them to need even more space. So ODS began using the entirety of the yellow house, purchasing furniture to create five new testing rooms, according to Byrnes. For a few years, they continued to use both the yellow house and the O’Hare location as offices and testing rooms. However, Byrnes said because the yellow house was not accessible to all students due to its steep and narrow stairs, they had to be intentional with the use of both places.
Byrnes discussed the move. “During the pandemic, our office exploded with new registrants and finding acceptable space became a priority,” Byrnes said. “The yellow house was not accessible so we used O’Hare for students whose disabilities prevented entry into the yellow house as well as overflow testing space during midterm and final exams, and academic coaching spaces.”
Finally, ODS began plans to acquire a new location. They started construction for a new space in the Loyola Hall basement in the fall of 2023. However, construction became quickly delayed due to water issues, according to Byrnes. As a result, they once again began searching for a new office location.
In the summer of 2025, they began plans to move into an office on the first floor of FMH; the former residents of the office space moved to the fifth floor. Byrnes said they chose the space because of its accessible entrance, proximity to a road where cars can drop people off and convenience for students and professors because the building is also used for classes. Byrnes also said she, Hawkins and Alexis Boykin, ODS office manager, were able to work with facilities to come up with the design for the new space.
Byrnes said ODS will keep their testing rooms in O’Hare and will continue to have access to the yellow house, should the additional space be needed, while using the new space in FMH as staff offices and to accommodate their increasing number of students.
Byrnes added that they are modifying the office in FMH to fit their needs, which includes obtaining two additional office spaces in FMH in summer, but that they are overall happy with the new location.
“We are very pleased with our new office,” Byrnes said. “There will be a number of tweaks made this summer as we figure out [if] any improvements are needed.”
