Being the strong-willed kid that he is, his mother said, Zachary Haas wanted to return to campus just days after shattering his knee in a snowboarding accident this weekend.

Instead, his doctors, family and friends convinced him it would be in his best interest to rest in his Atlanta home for at least a week before attempting to conquer New England’s ice and snow on crutches.

Haas, a freshman business management major, broke his tibia, the bone under his knee, when he slammed into a tree while vacationing at a ski resort in Breckenridge, Colo.

“The board sort of just went one way, I went the other way and got wrapped around a tree,” Haas said.

Now, fitted with crutches, Haas said he plans to return to his business classes next week. In preparation for this, his mother contacted M.L. Langlie, the associate dean and director of residential life. Meg Haas had the director’s number from a letter Langlie sent out in October, making sure the freshmen were adjusting to campus properly.

Langlie then contacted the College of Business Administration (CBA) and the Disability Resource Center (DRC) to see what they could do for Haas’ temporary disability.

Within the CBA, his options depended on whether he was planning to return to school this semester or not. If his doctors advised him not to return, he would be able to take a medical leave, which would be handled by his advisor and the Lane Health Center, a CBA employee said.

If he was planning to return and only miss a few days of class, his professors would be notified and he would be excused.

“[Missing classes is] definitely going to make things difficult,” Haas said. “I’m also in airforce ROTC at BU, so I’ll be behind in that as well.”

In addition to the problems he faces while at home, he has more to face ahead of him when he returns.

The DRC is designed to help all students with disabilities on campus, including students with mobility disabilities, according to their Web site. It said that among the services they provide are making sure students have access to classrooms, and, if they injure their hands, provide them with a note taker.

However, Jan Anderson, the associate director of the DRC, said there is not much they can do beyond this, especially for students with temporary disabilities, as they are not covered under the Americans with Disabilities Act.

She also said that unlike schools such as Boston College, Northeastern does not provide handicapped students with any kind of transportation system.

“If the university had a shuttle service, then the university would make sure that it is accessible to students with mobility impairments,” Anderson said.

She said, however, “It’s not the DRC who owns that responsibility, it’s the university.”

In one case, Anderson said she helped a student with a mobility disability by helping him to find suitable on-campus housing.

Because the student had knee problems, she arranged it so he could be moved to a first floor dormitory so he did not have to walk up the stairs.

In addition to the DRC, Residential Life also deals with housing problems students with disabilities face.

In Haas’ case, he already lives on the first floor of Stetson West, so after discussing the situation with his mother, Langlie decided he would stay where he is.

Though Haas said he was not aware that Stetson West is handicapped accessible, Langlie said students can access the building through the dining hall entrance of Stetson East and use the connecting hall. In addition, the building has two handicapped rooms and an accessible bathroom on the same floor, she said.

“There’re different ways to go about things and [temporarily handicapped students] may not know what the most accessible routes are,” said Anderson, who uses a wheelchair full-time. “That map is a different map than what I travel by.”

Associate Dean of Housing Services Marina Iannalfo said ResLife will deal with Haas’ situation as they do with any – “on a case by case basis.”

Haas said he is looking forward to returning to school, despite the fact that he has “never really been on crutches before this and I’ve never been on them in the snow.”

His mother knows her son will have to deal with some “moderate lifestyle changes” after having plates and screws inserted into his knee.

“The first thing you say is, ‘oh my gosh’ and then you say ‘thank goodness it was just his leg.'”