The Latest: Bridge-Building to the Future

👋 Welcome to the January edition of The Latest, where we’re excited that your favorite topics, tips, and truths last year were our favorites, too. 🥰

• This issue is an “ICYMI On Steroids,” featuring the posts and pages that got the most visits and downloads on my website last year – with context about why they mattered in 2023 and how they build a bridge to 2024 (and beyond).  

📣 6 Ways to Dismantle Barriers for Disabled Faculty on Campus 

Why is it so important to dismantle access barriers for faculty in higher education? Because if faculty do not feel like they belong, they are less likely to support their students. Same is true for access — if disabled faculty do not have access to the resources they need to be successful in their jobs, students will not receive the instruction and leadership they deserve. 

• Faculty cannot be overlooked any longer. Institutions need to address this directly by including disabled faculty in strategic planning for disability, diversity, and access. 

• The bridge to 2024… Connections are going to be more vital than ever. I am continuing to build a vibrant community on LinkedIn to support my friends, colleagues, and partners — in academia and every field. Join us! 

✅ Accessibility Infographics and Insights 

The work of the Collaborative for Access & Equity continues to extend its reach and be as relevant as ever. And the Collaborative’s infographics are downloaded regularly and posted on campuses around the nation:

• Make Access Easy: 9 Strategies for Higher Education Faculty 

• Access for Success: 9 Tips for Disabled College Students

From the full impact report to nuggets from our participants, the takeaways for accessible higher education ring true.   

• In 2023… Many of these ideas and ways of engaging with each other became the foundation of my newest endeavor, the National Disability Center for Student Success. (Want to be in the room where that happened? Back in October, I wrote about how a $141,000 grant became a $5 million research center.) 

• The bridge to 2024… The National Disability Center will see our first full year of actionable research and outreach built by a team of students, faculty, and staff. 

🔆 Spotlight on Dr. Melissa Gholson: “I Believe in Possibilities and I Believe It’s Up To Us To Do It”

Sometimes, we need a reason to get to know our colleagues better. I tried something new in 2023 – interviews! This interview with Melissa Gholson covered a huge range of topics, including high expectations in special education, fairness in testing, the importance of Halloween, beekeeping as mental health, and more.

• Even during busy times — ESPECIALLY during busy times — it’s so refreshing and meaningful to spend focused time learning about who our colleagues are. 

• The bridge to 2024… I’ll be shining the spotlight on more people, because I’ve experienced firsthand how, when we support and understand each other, incredible things can happen. 

📈 Myth-Busting Research Raises Expectations for Deaf Students 

Data plays a large role in my life, and sometimes that data will surprise you! There are many favorite things about this research article — that element of surprise (I am especially pleased to see deaf children succeed and to encourage educators not to give up on them!), working with such a solid team (thank you, Elizabeth Barker, North Cooc, Johny Daniel, and Ana Vielma!), and it’s one of the few cross-industry collaborations I’ve participated in (and I look forward to the chance to do more)!

• But it was no surprise in 2023… the assessment world is going through a lot of changes! We now see shifts to a balanced assessment system over a focus only on summative, year-end tests. 

• The bridge to 2024… Even more changes are on the horizon! I appreciate opportunities to sit on the boards of ELPA21, CCSSO Students with Disabilities Task Force, ALTELLA, and more. Conversations around accessibility, language, and assessment are critical to the future of this field.

💔 In Memoriam, Jon Henner, EdD

In my life’s milestones in 2023, losing Jon Henner as a colleague is a big one. Writing his In Memoriam meant a lot to me and is a good reminder of why we do the work we do — with, of, and for deaf people. 

• A lot of people don’t know… My first love in academic life was language. I think of Jon often when I think of the power of language in how we learn about ourselves, others, and our world. My own story was captured well by The Mind Hears interview. 

• The bridge to 2024… The words we use and what they mean have a lot to do with ableism, accessibility, and disability. These are themes that I cover in depth in the courses I teach, the workshops I give, and the book I wrote that will be published this autumn. Jon’s legacy lives on. 

☂️ Living the Umbrella Definition 

There is no one way to be deaf. There is no one way to be anything, actually! The idea that disability is human, and that assumptions about who disabled people are and what that means for them is something my team continually grapples with.

• That said, we do have common experiences and are a community. Disabled people make up 1 in 4 people at any given time. For example, the work to navigate inaccessible systems is too high for many disabled people. However we choose to call ourselves, we are united in our humanity. 

• The bridge to 2024… We are continuing to learn about intersectionality and disability, particularly in the work of my mentee Desiree Lama and our colleagues at the National Disability Center!

👩‍👧 My Deaf Tween and Our Search for Belonging 

In her guest blog post, one of my favorite people and colleagues, Cassie Franklin, writes so thoughtfully about the journey for her family in seeking the best educational experience and what it means to her to advocate for access. 

• It reminds us… Parents are a huge part of how our disabled youth navigate what is often an inaccessible transition from middle school to high school, then high school to college. 

• The bridge to 2024… Parents are an important part behind the scenes in higher education as well. We are asking key questions about how we support parents when the legal and institutional landscape changes as their disabled children leave high school. 

🌱 Students As Partners, As People, As Progress 

This guest blog post is by UT Austin undergraduate Soren Aldaco, who has been a big part of my life over the last two years. Through them I learn a lot about autism, identity, inclusion, and advocacy. 

• Allowing myself to be more fully mentored by our students is one of the huge learning experiences for me of the last several years. This collaboration with the UT Austin Center for Teaching and Learning is also the inspiration for faculty development centers and how to create opportunities for people to connect, develop, and grow. Higher education can use this student-centering model across the board! 

• The bridge to 2024… If your college or campus has professional development opportunities for faculty, particularly on strategies for accessibility, check out the Collaborative’s impact report for key insights (and contact us if you’d like support)! 

⚽️ I Hate Inspiration Videos. Here’s Why I Decided to Produce One. 

Making the short film, Deaf Capo, was such a meaningful experience connecting cultures, languages, and community contexts. Plus it was a delight to have the chance to share Leo Bopp’s story and continue work with talented creatives in our deaf community! The icing on the proverbial cake? The fact that it’s now receiving award recognition as it makes the film festival circuit, and I’ve been invited to co-present the film at the 2024 Rehabilitation Psychology Conference.  

• What many people don’t know is… much of the work I do besides academia is in the film studio, collaborating with a team of deaf experts to create ASL videos that support test accessibility for deaf students around the country.

• The bridge to 2024… One of my missions is to make sure that more people know the future of academic assessment must be equitable (that, and how to host, film, and include deaf and disabled people in every type of media — which is why my media room is full of tips and guidelines). 

🙌 And Finally… 

Who would want to cross a bridge to the future without the dear friends and colleagues who make our work possible, better, and sometimes even fun? 

• This is a hand-wave to everyone who works with us to make meaningful change — like Bedarius Bell, Jr., pictured with me at the 2023 SERID Annual Meeting at which Duane Mayes wowed us with his keynote.

Bedarius is a champ at state-level work and its importance, which is why I’m thrilled to be working on a big revision in 2024 to the 2022 Model State Plan for VR Services for Deaf People. 

• It’s going to be a busy, impactful, and wonderful year!