The Office of DEI and the Diversity Council are excited to invite all Barnard community members to the third annual Accessibility Week, which will take place from March 20-24, 2023. Accessibility is everyone's responsibility, and Accessibility Week is a week of community-wide programming focused on disability inclusion and social justice.
RSVP to any or all the week's events via this link.
Special thanks to our partners: CARDS, Center for Engaged Pedagogy, Diversity Council, Furman Counseling Center, IMATS, and the Francine A. LeFrak Center for Well-Being.
Monday, March 20th:
Disability Justice Workshops
All Bodies, All Minds: Understanding Disability Justice [Part 1]: 9:30-11:30 AM, MLC LL018
What have we been taught about which minds and bodies have value, what "normal" means, and when we can expect our environments to meet our physical and emotional needs (and the physical and emotional needs of our students)? This dialogue-driven workshop will explore disability justice, consider how ableism shapes staff and student experiences at Barnard, and investigate what our offices and departments could do to affirm and celebrate disabled people. *This is a two-part workshop open to staff and faculty. Breakfast will be provided. Register here.
Defining and Navigating Accommodations: A CARDS + CEP Faculty Workshop: 4:15- 5 PM, MLC 126
While many faculty at Barnard have received accommodations requests for students from the CARDS Office, they may still have questions about the mandate of this office and its process of reviewing student requests. This workshop will provide an overview of the CARDS Office’s charge and process for determining barriers that require mitigation. With these key steps and terms defined, CEP and CARDS will lead a two-part activity, in which participants first discuss scenarios connected to course accommodations and then practice redesigning course components using the Universal Design for Learning framework. *This workshop is open to faculty. Register here.
It Starts With You: Building a Disability Justice Roadmap: 5:30-7:30 PM, MLC LL001
Disabled people represent the largest minority population in the United States, and yet disability is often left out of conversations about identity, oppression, and inclusion. How do we shift the narrative? This interactive session will explore disability justice and invite participants to identify tangible actions they can take in their daily lives to challenge ableism, create meaningful accessibility, and work towards a world that values all bodies and minds. *This workshop is open to students. Dinner will be provided. Register here.
Tuesday, March 21st:
Accessibility Week Keynote Event with Jen White-Johnson
The Anti-Ableist Art Educator Manifesto: Reclaiming Access and Acceptance: 5-6:30 PM, Sulzberger Parlor, Barnard Hall 3rd Floor
Jen is a disabled and Neurodivergent Afro-Latina art activist and design educator whose visual work aims to uplift disability justice narratives in design. Jen uses photography, zines and collage art to explore the intersection of content and caregiving, emphasizing redesigning ableist visual culture. Jen has presented her disability justice activist work and collaborated with a number of brands and art spaces across print and digital such as Twitter, Target, Converse, and Apple. Her photo and design work has been featured in The Washington Post, AfroPunk, Art in America, Curating Access: Disability Art Activism and Creative Accommodation and is permanently archived in libraries at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, and National Museum of Women in the Arts in DC. and most recently acquired by the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture. In 2020 she was an honoree on the Diversability’s D-30 Disability Impact List and in 2021 she was listed as 20 Latino Artists to watch on Today.com
Inspired by revolutionary mothering and radical feminist liberators, such as Fannie Lou Hamer and bell hooks, this presentation will reexamine the role of socially engaged practitioners, educators, and art agitators, highlighting our collective care and community work through the lens of Neurodivergent parenting and anti-ableist creative resistance. Jen will share the visual research that led to the creation of the KnoxRoxs, an advocacy photo zine dedicated to her Autistic son Knox, as a way to give visibility to children of color in Neurodiverse communities. Jen will also share the impact of accessible neurodivergent student-led workshops where students were encouraged to begin telling their own disabled in Higher Ed stories, using zines and manifestos as alternative methods of self-expression and protest being given the autonomy to identify qualities unique to them that are rarely seen in the media. And lastly there will be conversation around re-designing and hacking the IEP (Individualized Education Plan) which includes breaking the visual cycle of unjust stigmas and ableism within social and clinical practices. *This event is open to the entire Barnard community. Dinner will be provided. Register here.
Wednesday, March 22nd:
Intro to Digital Accessibility: 12-1 PM via Zoom
Led by Elana Altman, Associate Director, IMATS. The Intro to Digital Accessibility workshop covers principles of digital accessibility, which can be applied to any tools and technologies.*This event is open to the entire Barnard community. Register here.
Friday, March 24th:
Finding the Words: What are my accommodations and how do I talk about them?: 12-1 PM, On-campus, MLC LL016
In this workshop open to registered CARDS students, CARDS staff will explain the purpose of accommodations, how different accommodations might work to mitigate barriers students experience as well as language students can use to communicate about their academic accommodations with faculty. Furman Counseling staff will also be available to discuss with students how to communicate effectively about mental health challenges with faculty as well as provide helpful talking points that students can take away from this workshop and use in the future. Join us for a helpful discussion! *This event is open to registered CARDS students. Register here.
Have a Field Day with CARDS! CARDS Student Social: 3-4 PM, On-campus, Milbank 214
Join CARDS students for a classic field day event! There will be tie-dying (bring your own item, or we’ll have some available), charades, friendship bracelets, and BINGO with prizes. Classic camp snacks and boba tea will be provided! *This event is open to registered CARDS students. Register here.