Disability Studies Commons^™

Empowering Lifelong Choice: Supporting Older Individuals With Idd To Thrive At Work, Transition To Retirement With Dignity, And Maintain Community Connections, Leslie Quarles

Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection

This synthesis addresses the need to support older individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities in their engagement in continued work. The project traces the journey from an initial focus on supporting older individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities to work as long as they wish to an eventual shift toward a phased retirement approach. It considers issues such as a reimagined visualization of the support team structure, integration of tailored job supports and Community Life Engagement (CLE). The author's familial history sparked a sense of injustice that would not stay buried, shaping a career path in disability services and access. …

Applying A Neurodiversity-Informed Approach To Understanding Resolution In Families Raising A Child With Autism, Emma Manole

Honors College Theses

The first known documentation of the syndrome we today refer to as autism spectrum disorder (ASD) was published by Austrian psychiatrist Leo Kanner (1943), who identified a cluster of disordered symptoms among 11 young children, which he termed “early infantile autism”. Consequently, the psychiatric world became aware of autism as its own disorder separate from schizophrenia or “childhood psychosis” (Wing, 1997). Since then, the ways in which autism is studied, diagnosed, referred to, defined, and treated have seen drastic changes (Blacher & Christensen, 2011) over the course of almost a century. It is only natural that the perceptions held by …

Shifting Views, Shaping Outcomes: Exploring Relations Between Educators’ Neurodiversity-Affirming Perceptions And Their Autistic Students’ School Experiences, Josh Yen-Ho Chou

Graduate Masters Theses

School environments frequently serve as a source of socialization but also stigma and socioemotional distress for autistic students. Against this backdrop, teachers can be crucial sources of neurodiversity-affirming views and support. Teachers’ perceptions of students can also shape the quality of their relationships with students and students’ emotional and behavioral adjustment in school. This study focused on understanding how general education teachers perceive autistic students and how these perceptions shape their students’ school experiences. This study sought to investigate the degree to which teachers endorsed three dimensions of neurodiversity-affirming perceptions of their autistic students: (a) strength/deficit-based, (b) holistic/reductionist, and (c) …

Cannibalizing The Starving: Poverty And Disability In The Late 19th And Early 20th Century America, Cole M. Hayes

Graduate Masters Theses

Cannibalizing the Starving analyzes how the American ruling class and their institutions perceptually disabled people in poverty alongside the repercussions of this disablement within the late 19^th and early 20^th century. This thesis deploys an anarchist framework of understanding hierarchies, the state, and violence is utilized alongside critical disability studies to understand how disability was socially constructed in the context of poverty. Further, much of the framing involved is from the context of labor or those who could not or did not labor. At the heart of the issue is understanding seemingly innocuous language used to denigrate those …

Embodying Altruistic Love: The Role Of Emotions In Teaching Black Students With Disabilities Within An Inclusive Elementary School, Joshua Armentrout

Graduate Doctoral Dissertations

Teacher emotions play a pivotal yet understudied role in shaping the educational experiences of Black students with disabilities (SWDs). This study examines how five special educators in a fully inclusive elementary school understand, experience, and navigate their emotions in relation to Black SWDs. Using a qualitative approach grounded in portraiture, this study explores the intersection of race, disability, and emotion, revealing how teachers internalize, resist, and negotiate dominant ideologies within the broader educational system.

Guided by a three-dimensional space framework from the field of narrative inquiry—temporality, sociality, and spatiality—this study traces how educators’ emotions are shaped by past experiences, social …

Vocational Rehabilitation Services And Outcomes Of People With Intellectual Disabilities: 2014–2023, Alberto Migliore, Jean Winsor, John Shepard, John Butterworth

All Institute for Community Inclusion Publications

Data Note 89 describes the characteristics, services received, and employment outcomes of adults with an intellectual disability who exited from the vocational rehabilitation program during fiscal years 2014 through 2023. It also compares the findings of adults with intellectual disability to the findings of people with other disabilities.

How Families Can Empower Youth With Intellectual And Developmental Disabilities (Idd) From Racially And Ethnically Diverse Backgrounds, Esther Kamau, Jennifer Bose, Jean Winsor

All Institute for Community Inclusion Publications

This brief shares the perspectives and experiences of culturally and linguistically diverse family members of four youth who shared their employment and community engagement stories. It outlines the pivotal role these families played to support youth with IDD to find and maintain competitive integrated employment and to meaningfully engage with their communities. It draws from in-depth, semi-structured interviews with youth with IDD, their family members, and job coaches.

How Families And Employment Professionals Can Form Partnerships To Support Youths And Young Adults With Intellectual And Developmental Disabilities (Idd), Jennifer Bose, Esther Kamau, Jean Winsor

All Institute for Community Inclusion Publications

This brief highlights the perspectives and experiences of family members of four young adults with IDD who shared their employment and community engagement stories. The brief outlines the roles families played to support the youth adults to find and maintain competitive, integrated employment and to engage meaningfully with their communities. It draws from in-depth, semi structured interviews with young adults with IDD, their family members, and job coaches.

Summary Of Statedata: The National Report On Employment Services And Outcomes Through 2021, Jean Winsor, John Butterworth, Alberto Migliore, Daria Domin, Agnes Zalewska, John Shepard, Esther Kamau, Ryan Wedeking

All Institute for Community Inclusion Publications

This Data Note summarizes the findings from the National Report on Employment Services and Outcomes Through 2021. Overall, the findings suggest that across data sources, people with IDD experience greater levels of unemployment, underemployment, low wages, and poverty compared to those without disabilities and those with non-IDD disabilities.

Intellectual And Developmental Disabilities Agencies’ Employment And Day Services (1988–2021), Agnes Zalewska, Jean Winsor, John Butterworth

All Institute for Community Inclusion Publications

Data Note 87 summarizes core findings from the Institute for Community Inclusion’s (ICI) National Survey of State Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Agencies’ Employment and Day Services through FY 2021.

Comparing Vr Services Rate Between Black And White Job Seekers Across The Us, Alberto Migliore, John Shepard

All Institute for Community Inclusion Publications

Data Note 85 explores differences in receiving VR services between Black and white job seekers. Nationally, the data indicated that there was little discrepancy between Black and white job seekers in exiting a VR program in 2022. However, the discrepancy was pronounced at the state level.

Defining Intellectual And Developmental Disability: A Comparative Overview Across Five National Datasets, Daria Domin, Ryan Wedeking

All Institute for Community Inclusion Publications

Data Note 86 shares a comparative overview of the different definitions of intellectual and developmental disability (IDD) from five national data sources on employment outcomes: National Survey of State IDD Agency Employment and Day Services; Rehabilitation Services Administration; American Community Survey; National Core Indicators; and Social Security Administration. The goals of this Data Note are to provide clarity about how each data source defines the IDD population and support readers’ understanding of the results from each source.

Social Security Administration Data Trends: Key Findings On Work Incentive Programs (2000–2021), Daria Domin, John Butterworth, Jean Winsor, Ryan Wedeking

All Institute for Community Inclusion Publications

DataNote 84 summarizes Social Security Administration data from 2000-2021 on work incentives and their underutilization by Supplemental Security Income (SSI) recipients. It also compares younger recipients’ likelihood of working and participating in work incentives to older SSI recipients. Lastly, it examines the employment rate trends of SSI recipients across four disability sub-groups: intellectual disorders, developmental disability, autism spectrum disorders, and mental health disorders.

Insights Into Changes In Employment And Day Services Data From Idd Agencies During Covid-19, Agnes Zalewska, Jean Winsor

All Institute for Community Inclusion Publications

The COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE) had a major impact on people with disabilities and the services they receive. This brief explores the impact of PHE on employment and day services of people with IDD. The focus of this product is the National Survey of State Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Agencies’ Employment and Day Services (IDD survey) and its data collection in FY2020 and FY2021. We explore the feedback from state IDD agencies on the data shifts resulting from PHE and we summarize the themes observed.

Datanote: The American Community Survey, Daria Domin, John Shepard, John Butterworth, Jean Winsor, Agnes Zalewska, Daria Domin, Alberto Migliore

All Institute for Community Inclusion Publications

The American Community Survey (ACS) offers a broad population view of employment outcomes for working-age people with disabilities. This Data Note summarizes findings from an analysis of 2021 ACS data on employment rates, weeks worked, and poverty rates of people with and without disabilities across the US. These data are compared for people with no disability, people with any disability, and people with a cognitive disability, which indicate that people with disabilities continue to have less success in the labor market, and a greater likelihood of being underemployed, compared to individuals without a disability.

American Community Survey (2021), John Shepard, Jean Winsor, John Butterworth, Alberto Migliore, Daria Domin, Agnes Zalewska

All Institute for Community Inclusion Publications

This Data Note summarizes employment and poverty rates across the US in 2021. These data are compared for people with no disability, people with any disability, and people with a cognitive disability, which indicate that people with disabilities continue to have less success in the labor market, and a greater likelihood of being underemployed, compared to individuals without a disability.

Datanote: Vocational Rehabilitation Services And Outcomes Of People With Intellectual Disabilities: 2013–2022, Jean Winsor, John Butterworth, Alberto Migliore, John Shepard

All Institute for Community Inclusion Publications

This DataNote describes the characteristics, services received, and employment outcomes of adults with an intellectual disability (ID) who exited from the vocational rehabilitation (VR) program during fiscal years (FY) 2013 through 2022, in the 50 states and the District of Columbia (DC). We compare the findings of adults with ID to the findings of people with other disabilities.

Building An Infrastructure For Down Syndrome Care, Kate E. Martin

Instructional Design Capstones Collection

People with intellectual disabilities experience greater obstacles in attaining their full health potential. The most common identifiable cause of intellectual disability is Down syndrome. Established in September 2021, the Down Syndrome Program at The Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) aims to meet the healthcare needs of members of the Southern Nevada community with Down syndrome and their families. However, there is currently no infrastructure in place in Southern Nevada to provide Down syndrome care, or clinical services dedicated to individuals with the condition. This work discusses options that were explored to develop …

Spotlight On Research. Leveraging Data To Deliver Quality Employment Services:, Alberto Migliore

All Institute for Community Inclusion Publications

Ensuring that job seekers with disabilities receive high-quality supported and customized employment services is key for increasing their chances of achieving their career goals. This paper describes the findings from piloting ES-Coach with nine employment programs in Minnesota and Massachusetts. ES-Coach is a tool designed to help teams of employment consultants visualize their employment support practices and leverage that information to reflect, set goals, and take action for continuous quality improvement.

Latinos With Disability In Massachusetts, Phillip Granberry, Vishakha Agarwal

Gastón Institute Publications

A disability, as defined by the 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), is an individual’s physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities. Data from the 2016-2020 American Community Survey identify six disability types: hearing, vision, cognitive, ambulatory, self-care, and independent living difficulty. In Massachusetts, approximately 108,000 Latinos have one or more of these disabilities compared to 738,000 Non-Latinos. This report examines demographic and economic characteristics of Latinos and Non-Latinos with disabilities in Massachusetts.

Statedata: The National Report On Employment Services And Outcomes Through 2019, Jean Winsor, John Butterworth, Alberto Migliore, Daria Domin, Agnes Zalewska, John Shepard, Esther Kamau

All Institute for Community Inclusion Publications

Access the latest information about employment and economic self-sufficiency for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Both national and state-level statistics are included.

Employment And Poverty Rates Of People With And Without A Cognitive Disability, John Shepard

All Institute for Community Inclusion Publications

This DataNote shares census data from the American Community Survey (ACS) that demonstrates 5-year trends in employment rates and poverty rates for working-age individuals. It compares these rates between individuals without any disabilities to individuals with a cognitive disability.

Exploring Alternatives To Guardianship: A Brief For Youth With Intellectual And/Or Developmental Disabilities And Their Supporters, Jaimie Ciulla Timmons

All Institute for Community Inclusion Publications

This brief talks about some differences between people with IDD who have guardians and people with IDD who do not have guardians. It also discusses alternatives to guardianship, including supported decision-making and offers resources to learn more about alternatives to guardianship.

Substantially Silent: Exploring The Variability Of “Voice” At The Intersection Of Race And Dis/Ability In A Restrictive Special Education Placement, Christopher N. Hall

Graduate Doctoral Dissertations

The overrepresentation of Black students in special education, particularly in the most restrictive educational placements, is well documented in the literature. In addition, Black students are disproportionately placed into far more segregated educational spaces than their same-aged White peers with similar dis/ability labels. With limited qualitative studies that center the voices of students of color labelled as severely disabled in restrictive educational settings, informed by the tenets of Disability Studies in Education (DSE), this study adds to the growing body of research foregrounding the voices of individuals with dis/abilities in telling their own story from their perspective through narrative portraiture. …

Supporting Employment Consultants In Their Work With Job Seekers, Alberto Migliore

All Institute for Community Inclusion Publications

This is a summary of the article "Supporting employment consultants in their work with job seekers: A longitudinal study" published in the Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation. The article highlights an urgent need for policy, practice, and research to identify and remove the roadblocks that prevent employment consultants from investing more of their time in core activities that lead to hiring.

Older Supplemental Security Income (Ssi) Recipients Work Less Frequently Than Their Younger Counterparts, But Use Work Incentive 1619(B) At Higher Rates, Daria Domin

All Institute for Community Inclusion Publications

Data Note 77 examines Social Security Administration data that shows that younger SSI recipients were three times more likely to be working than older SSI recipients. However, younger recipients participated in work incentives at a lower rate compared to older SSI recipients.

The Percentage Of People Who Receive Vr Services Varies Greatly Across States, Alberto Migliore

All Institute for Community Inclusion Publications

Receiving vocational rehabilitation services is a key step toward employment. However, the percentage of job seekers with intellectual disabilities who receive #VocRehab services varies greatly across states, from 93% in Vermont to 34% in Nebraska. Check out this new DataNote to see how your state compares

Vermont: Collaborating To Educate Self-Advocates About Alternatives To Guardianship, Jaimie Ciulla Timmons

All Institute for Community Inclusion Publications

This promising practice describes Vermont’s statewide self-advocacy organization, Green Mountain Self-Advocates (GMSA), and their partnership with the Vermont Disability Law Project to organize legal clinics for people with IDD. These clinics have enabled self-advocates to get high-quality, easy-to-understand information about alternatives to guardianship they might not get anywhere else.

Are Hispanics Less Likely To Receive Vocational Rehabilitation Services?, Alberto Migliore, John Shepard

All Institute for Community Inclusion Publications

In the US, 16% of people with cognitive disabilities self-report to be of Hispanic ethnicity (US Census Bureau, FY 2020). However, among people with intellectual disabilities who received vocational rehabilitation services, only 11% (-5%) are Hispanic (N = 32,823, RSA911, FY2020).

State-Level Strategies That Promote Alternatives To Guardianship For Youth With Intellectual And/Or Developmental Disabilities: Lessons Learned From Georgia, Vermont, And Wisconsin, Esther Kamau, Jaimie Ciulla Timmons

All Institute for Community Inclusion Publications

This brief that shares key strategies to promote creativity and encourage replication among state-level projects seeking to advance alternatives to guardianship.