Dr. Stephanie Cawthon Visits Oregon State University
This October, Dr. Stephanie Cawthon visited Oregon State University as author of Disability Is Human: The Vital Power of Accessibility in Everyday Life. A professor in the Department of Educational Psychology at The University of Texas at Austin, Dr. Cawthon is an internationally renowned expert for her research on education and accessibility for people with disabilities. She founded the National Disability Center for Student Success and serves as its Executive Director.
For the 2024-2025 academic year, the College of Education chose Dr. Cawthon’s book Disability Is Human: The Vital Power of Accessibility in Everyday Life as its book group pick. Throughout the year, faculty and staff participated in monthly group discussions centered on the theme of inclusion and access.
A collaboration between the College of Education and the School of Psychological Sciences, Dr. Cawthon’s visit was packed to the brim with learning opportunities. Dr. Cawthon hosted small group meetings with faculty as well as larger talks such as “Teaching Disability Through Connection: Bridging Concept, Experience, and Practice.” In these meetings, Dr. Cawthon shared her experiences developing a college course incorporating varied conceptions of disability, discussed her book Disability Is Human, and met with faculty about exploring research with student partnerships.
Dr. Kathryn Becker Blease, professor and Director of the School of Psychological Sciences, shared, “Dr. Cawthon is a nationally known expert on inclusive teaching. I was so fortunate to be able to talk with her one-on-one. We talked about accessibility for college students, college coursework and credentials, and some successes at our institutions. I learned a lot!”
This opportunity to welcome Dr. Cawthon to Oregon State University was an invaluable learning experience, furthering the College of Education’s mission to create change agents in counseling, teaching, and research. Dr. Cawthon’s incredible work is evidence that furthering social justice and inclusion in these fields is ongoing and vital.
