By Erin Anderson

December 3rd is the International Day for Persons with Disabilities. To mark this occasion, on Friday, December 2, 2022, the University of Toronto Scarborough hosted the National Dialogues and Action for Inclusive Higher Education and Communities, which focused on “Addressing Ableism, Disability, and Accessibility in Canadian Higher Education”. The recent National Dialogues is the second installment of the series, which started in 2020 as part of the University of Toronto’s commitment to the eradication of anti-Black racism following the institutional signing of the Scarborough Charter and brings together leading experts from across Canada.

The fully virtual conference featured scholars and practitioners, such as U of T disability studies scholars Anne McGuire and Cassandra Hartblay, with panel discussions that focused on structural ableism within Canadian higher education, anti-ableist and inclusive pedagogies in co- and extra-curricula, and inclusive planning and design of institutional infrastructure and built environments. Esther Ignagni, director and associate professor in the School of Disability Studies at Toronto Metropolitan University, eloquently summed up the dangers of failing to consider disability as a dimension of one’s identity that has significant implications for one’s experience of higher learning.

When we do not articulate disability, we make disabled students, staff, and faculty disappear. We uphold the idea of the independent, autonomous, and productive scholar, and more importantly, we interrupt any opportunity we have in order to name and intervene in ableism.

Ignagni (2022) illustrates why it is critical for senior leaders, especially those involved in university governance and policymaking, to do the work of understanding ableism and how it materializes within systems of higher education, underscoring the importance of events such as National Dialogues.

As a new PhD student, it was my honour and privilege to be invited into the conversation, contributing my lived experience as a disabled graduate student navigating the hidden curriculum of a system that still largely leaves disability out of talks of equity, diversity, and inclusion. As a graduate student, it is hard to ignore the statistical evidence that suggests my future prospects, like my past encounters with educational systems not built for me, will depend on my ability to hide the authentic parts of myself. The very strengths I see as integral to my successes, are often at odds with the requirements of rigid structures that privilege certain skills over others. Shame and stigma cause me to conceal my struggles, adding to the already heavy load of invisible labour carried by students with disabilities like me.

Governmental policies precipitated the development of institutional policies, yet these policies are not always effective at changing conditions for students from marginalized groups (McGrath, 2010; Wolforth, 2016). While institutional responses to expanding laws (e.g., policies and practices) meet the standards set out in the legislation, they typically do not extend past their legal obligations (Ahmed, 2007; McGrath, 2010).

Accessibility refers to the provision of the tools necessary to increase participation. Within higher education, accessibility is typically discussed in relation to the availability of academic accommodations and other support services. However, these services often require disclosure and may hinge on the ability to ‘prove’ disability (e.g., through medical documentation). According to Brown (2019), a disability scholar, the higher one moves up the ladder of the academy, the less likely they are to disclose a disability. The reason for this decrease is two-fold; the risk of discrimination in relation to the benefits of support is a deterrent to self-disclosure among graduate students, faculty, and staff, and there is no way of ascertaining how many are pushed out of the academy by its rigid systems and structures.

Thus, it is critical we explore how systems can help carry the load. Particularly, systems that were overwhelmed prior to the pandemic, which has only exacerbated conditions and depleted resources (Adler et al., 2022). It will take a concerted effort on the part of everyone within the system to create inclusive spaces that are flexible to the needs of an increasingly diverse student body. Every person who works with, or makes decisions that impact, students with disabilities, must be trained in trauma-informed and universal design for learning practices so that all students are given equitable opportunities to succeed. Administrators must understand the gravity of the consequences of inaction, as well as an appreciation for the wide-reaching benefits of accessible higher education for everyone, students, staff, and faculty alike, regardless of their disability or disclosure status. Faculty members need to be brought into the conversation in more meaningful ways, and to be provided with formal training in inclusive course design and flexible assessment methods that measure more than just a handful of prescribed skills, to be given the tools to support the success and retention of diverse learners—and all learners—more effectively.

Erin Anderson is a first-year PhD student in Higher Education, Department of Leadership, Adult and Higher Education at OISE, University of Toronto. She is the CIHE graduate assistant where she enjoys the diverse opportunities for engagement in knowledge mobilization. Her research interests centre on issues of equity and access to higher education, including barriers to inclusion and marginalization within the postsecondary environment; identity development and belonging; mentorship; student development and engagement; mental health literacy and holistic wellness promotion; and designing inclusive and accessible learning environments.

References

Adler, J., Manning, R. B., Hennein, R., Winschel, J., Baldari, A., Bogart, K. R., Nario-Redmond, M. R., Ostrove, J. M., Lowe, S. R., & Wang, K. (2022). Narrative identity among people with disabilities in the United States during the Covid-19 pandemic: The interdependent self. Journal of Research in Personality, 101, 104302–104302. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jrp.2022.104302
Ahmed, S. (2007). ‘You end up doing the document rather than doing the doing’: Diversity, race equality and the politics of documentation. Ethnic and Racial Studies, 30(4), 590–609. https://doi.org/10.1080/01419870701356015
Brown, N. (2021). Introduction: Being ‘different’ in academia. In N. Brown (Ed.), Lived experiences of ableism in academia (pp. 1–14). Policy Press.
Ignagni, E. (2022, December 2). Ableism and the Canadian academy: Interrogating the culture and systems of exclusion [Panel presentation]. National Dialogues and Action for Inclusive Higher Education and Communities, University of Toronto Scarborough, Virtual.
McGrath, C. (2010). Services for diverse students. In D. Hardy Cox, & C. C. Strange (Eds.), Achieving student success: Effective student services in Canadian higher education (pp. 153–164). McGill-Queen’s University Press.
Wolforth, J. (2016). Students with disabilities. In C. C. Strange, & D. Hardy Cox (Eds.), Serving diverse students in Canadian higher education (pp. 128–144). McGill-Queen’s University Press.