In this article, I reflect on how my positioning along axes of disability, race, and class shapes my interaction with dominant discourses of motherhood and on how these tensions are explored in "The Mother," a public installation of my artwork shown in 2023. Situating myself in the liminal space between participation in and resistance to…

In spring 2021, I taught a synchronous online course in disability studies, communing with young people struggling with their present and future as educators. The students not only felt empowered to introduce themselves with their preferred pronouns, but they were also empowered to disclose their disabilities. One-third of the students identified…

The National Joint Committee on Learning Disabilities (NJCLD) affirms the importance of transition as a critical component of successfully progressing from secondary school to college or university for students with learning disabilities. Although NJCLD has addressed secondary to postsecondary education transition planning in a previous paper,…

The Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) recognizes the important role standardized and other student assessments play in documenting education accountability, and in ensuring sound educational decisions are made toward achieving the highest possible academic standards for all students. CEC is committed to ensuring students with special learning…

Multifactorial models of dyslexia have expanded how we consider heterogeneity within the population of children with dyslexia. These models are predicated on the idea that cognitive/linguistic risk factors are not deterministic but instead probabilistic, with the likelihood of difficulties involving an interaction between risk and protective…

The Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) advocates for the full participation of all children and youth with disabilities and/or identified as gifted and talented in educational programming that promotes positive academic, social emotional, and adaptive/independent living outcomes and sets the stage for lifelong success. This position statement…

Inclusive education for students with severe disabilities has and continues to spark intense debate. To what extent should students with severe disabilities be educated in nonsegregated environments, particularly the general education environment? For some, there is no question, but history indicates many do not agree. Agran and colleagues provide…

This article addresses particular aspects of the Agran et al. identified determinants related to inclusive educational practices for students with severe disabilities. More specifically, this article focuses on perceptions of competency in students with severe disabilities and the resulting placement decisions, as well as facilitating systemic…

Agran and colleagues have not only summarized the research on inclusive education, but they have also summed up the frustrations of many of us who have been working with families, teachers, and administrators to facilitate the inclusion of children and young adults with severe disabilities over many years. My response takes some of their most…

In this article, Anne Masters responds to Erik W. Carter's "The Absence of Asterisks: The Inclusive Church and Children with Disabilities." Masters agrees that Carter provides a much needed framework for catechetical programs and parishes. Carter's ten dimensions of belonging remind the reader of the shared human need to belong, which is…

Little progress has been made in the last 20 years toward developing and sustaining effective inclusive programs for students with severe disabilities. An article by Agran and colleagues examines factors that contribute to this lack of progress and provides some initial discussion regarding alternatives for addressing this seemingly intractable…

This article briefly responds to the following question: Why aren't more students with severe disabilities being placed in general education classrooms? I offer five reasons why more students with severe disabilities are not included, because: (a) ableism persists, (b) schools continue to misapply the least restrictive environment provisions of…

Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) has recently adopted a new position statement focused on preventing and responding to maltreatment of children with disabilities. This significant initiative builds on previous efforts, including the CEC Policy on the Prevention of and Response to Maltreatment, and aims to provide actionable steps for…

Interdisciplinary dialogue can help progress and improve professional fields. Progress and improvement may be impeded by barriers within an interdisciplinary dialogue, two of which are false dichotomies and faulty generalizations. It is our opinion that this particular interdisciplinary dialogue will advance productively by avoiding: false…

This self-reflective article describes my experience as a disabled-Latino faculty member in a teacher preparation program at a minority-serving urban university. This personal narrative of the physical, emotional, attitudinal, and resource aspects of the author's experience highlights barriers and challenges experienced in the educational and…