Individuals with Disabilities in PhD Programs & the Professoriate

Sheryl Burgstahler

Handouts

Bookmark - note “The Faculty Room” Broadening Participation in S&E by

Welcoming Participants with Disabilities Equal Access: Universal Design of Your

Project Equal Access: Universal Design of

Computing Departments

www.washington.edu/doit

AccessSTEM: The Alliance for Students with Disabilities in Science, Technology, Engineering, & Mathematics

AccessComputing: The Alliance for Access to Computing Careers

DO-IT: Disabilities, Opportunities, Internetworking & Technology

Activities

Prepare students through transition workshops, summer programs, e-mentoring, peer support, internships, …

Improve accessibility & acceptance in courses, employment, technology, services…

Barriers to Success Diminished/different support systems at

different academic levels Little access to successful role models Inadequate self-advocacy skills Lack of access to technology that can increase

independence, productivity, & participation Inadequate accommodations Low expectations & other negative attitudes on

the part of people with whom they interact- National Org on Disabilities

“I broke my leg a month ago & now some people act completely different towards me just because I’m in a wheelchair.”

- Jeff, posted at www.dizabled.com/

“One of our professors is confined to a wheelchair.”

“One of our professors uses a wheelchair.”

People with Disabilities

Caution: problems with statistics 11% of postsecondary students self-report

disabilities. Institutions report 1-3% of students have disabilities.

1/4 of students with disabilities disclose them to the institution.

27% undergraduates with & without disabilities major in STEM. 17%/19% graduate students with/without disabilities major in STEM.

S&E Doctorates, 2006306 (1%) earned by students with

disabilities: Learning disabilities 89 Physical/orthopedic disabilities85 Deaf/hard of hearing 43 Blind/visually impaired 30 Vocal/speech disabilities 12 Other, multiple, unspecified 47

Most disabilities are not obvious.

Historical Perspective

ExclusionAccommodationUniversal Design

Accommodation =

Alternate format, service, &/or adjustment for a specific individual with a disability

Universal Design =

“the design of products & environments to be usable by all people, to the greatest extent possible, without the need for adaptation or specialized design.”

- The Center for Universal Design, www.design.ncsu.edu/cud

Universal Design is:

an attitude that values diversity, equity, & inclusion.

a goal. practices that make products & environments

welcoming, accessible, & usable. a proactive process that can be implemented in

incremental steps. can be routinely applied to physical spaces,

technology, instruction, services, etc. minimizes the need for special

accommodations for individuals.

Quiz

1. When a professor cannot tell that an emergency alarm is blaring, is it because …???????

Response choices:

a. she is deaf?b. she did not arrange for someone to

help her?c. the emergency alarm system designer

neglected to provide both visual & audio warning signal?

d. the administrator selected an inaccessible alarm system?

Quiz

2. Ten professors met to discuss the design of the electrical engineering curriculum. One professor requested a sign language interpreter. When the invoice arrived…

Who is right about the cost of interpreters?

a. Accountant: “Ouch. $80 for one person? That is expensive!”

b. Faculty leader: “Oh, no, the cost was only $8 for each person.”

Examples: UD of Your Project/Department

Planning, policies, & evaluation Staff & faculty Courses, presentations, events Physical environments, products Information

resources/technology

Information Resources

• Websites (program, department, university, professional organizations, STEM journals) adhere to accessibility standards

• Publications available in alternate formats

• Videos captioned. Audio transcribed. A statement in position announcements/

publications/websites tells how to request accommodations

Pictures in publications & on website include people with disabilities

Think About Signs

HANDICAPPED ENTRANCE AT NORTH

END OF BUILDING

Universal Design: Live It!

Suggestions for AGEPs

Collect disability statistics. Recruit people with disabilities to Ph.D.

programs & faculty positions. Routinely apply universal design. Review communication tips. Consult a student/professor with a disability

about what works best for him/her. Know your resources (campus disability

services, 6 RDE-funded alliances)

includes more than 300: Q&As Case studies Promising practices

>40,000 hits per month

AccessSTEM Knowledge Base

www.washington.edu/doit/Stem