Addressing Mental Disability in the Postsecondary Classroom via Faculty Development Partnership (Practice Brief)

Disability studies scholars have recently demonstrated the extent to which currently-hegemonic approaches to postsecondary teaching fail to account for the complex relationship between mental disability and academic commonplaces, such as presence and participation, with real consequences for the well-being of our students. Faculty development programs have been shown to positively impact the retention and success of students with disabilities (SWDs). However, such programs often fail to account for departmental policies and practices that shape inaccessible learning environments. This practice brief details a three-module faculty development program involving instruction in universal design for learning and disability studies literature, and the development and submission of programmatic reforms designed to address SWDs. Results from post-training interviews suggested meaningful improvements in faculty members' awareness of mental disabilities, accommodations for SWDs, and inclusive instructional practices, as well as their readiness to successfully intervene in departmental policies and practices to promote accessible learning environments.