Cultivating a Sense of Belonging is Essential for the Success of Students with Disabilities
In this presentation, I will argue that, if we want to give students with disabilities the best chance of completing their programs of study, we need to develop an institutional culture that values the unique contributions that students with disabilities can make to campus life. In other words, we need to foster in them a sense of belonging. This goal is essential because a great deal of research shows that students who do not develop a sense of belonging during their first year in college are more likely than others to drop out. But students with disabilities often feel as if they do not fit in—that they do not belong. Some reasons for this lack of engagement are:
- Inaccessible course content
- resistance to providing accommodations
- negative stereotypes about the academic potential of students with disabilities
I will focus on how faculty, staff, and students can work together with administrators to transform campus culture into one that welcomes students with disabilities and understands the enormous benefits their unique perspectives bring to campus life.
Speakers
Jeffry Ricker
He/His/Him
Jeffry Ricker, Ph.D., is a freelance health and science writer whose work focuses on disability issues. Dr. Ricker attained the Ph.D. degree in Cognitive and Experimental Psychology at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. He also received training in clinical psychology at the University of Missouri, St. Louis.
Dr. Ricker was a professor of psychology at Scottsdale Community College for 26 years until becoming totally blind. He has recently published articles on adapting to vision loss later in life and authors a blog.