Welcome to
Disability Studies Convocation!
We’ll be starting shortly.
Program
Accessibility
Welcome Remarks (Joanne Woiak)
Graduation Video
Presentation of Graduates
Award Presentation
Closing Remarks (Mark Harniss)
Poetry Reading
Reception
Welcome Remarks
Graduation Video
Disability Studies Major
Talia Katayama Bass
Dance Minor
My favorite memory was my first class with Joanne. Originally I was planning to major in psych or bio and continue on into premed. I dropped everything and switched my major to DIS ST. I learned so much from her class, but also from the students.
Natasha Lawson
Early Childhood & Family Studies
My favorite Disability Studies memory was the very beginning of my DS journey -- taking Introduction to Disability Studies with Dr. Heather Evans. The course material was very interesting and exciting to learn about, and it ultimately led me to majoring in Disability Studies and becoming passionate about DS perspectives.
Olivia Quesada
Interaction Design
Diversity Minor
Favorite memory: Watching Gattaca
(twice) with Joanne :)
Natalie Stagnone
B. S. in Neuroscience
with College Honors
Writing my nonprofit volunteer manual as part of my senior thesis/honors project and sharing it with the volunteers. I incorporated material from most of my DIS ST classes, so I got to reflect on all the concepts that I had learned. I also go to work with amazing faculty, including Joanne, Stephen Meyers, Megan McCloskey, and Heather - who guided me in this project and read the whole thing!
Nina Tran
Informatics Minor
My favorite Disability Studies memories are learning about the history of eugenics and meeting wonderful people in the Disability Studies courses.
Phoebe Wang
Psychology
My favorite DS memory is meeting a whole department of professors that have contributed to my learning of disability studies subjects as I had no prior knowledge of anything disability related before!
Congratulations!
Disability Studies Minor
Francinne Villegas Alarcon
Public Health-Global Health
My favorite Disability Studies memory has been the abundant opportunities I’ve been given to gain the knowledge, skills, and empowerment necessary to become a better disability justice advocate for people, including my loved ones and even myself.
Olivia Chong
Speech and Hearing Sciences
Favorite memory: Taking all the DIS ST classes over zoom.
Irene Cuevas
Law, Societies & Justice
My favorite memory was seeing people outside of the minor/major or those who were taking their first disability studies class realize that by being inclusive and having closed captioning/ramps/elevators that they also benefit from it. It really just showcased how important DS is because they wouldn't even realize these things if these programs didn't exist. For example since English is my second language I’ve always benefitted from captioning.
Maria Christella Rianne Gloria
Early Childhood & Family Studies
Being able to learn more about disability studies and make connections with my education major. I know this sounds super cheesy, but I am super grateful to have stumbled upon this course. I would not know anything about disabilities studies if I never took this course. That’s the sad reality of life, we don’t learn about DS unless we choose to do so. That is why I plan to make sure that this is something that I cover in my work as an educator.
Jay Lin
Computer Science & Software Engineering, UWB
I want to thank my academic advisors, as well as professors I’ve had in my Disability Studies classes: Professor Joanne Woiak, Professor Megan McCloskey, Professor Kristen Johnson, Professor Heather Evans, and Professor Stephen Meyers. Also thanks to my sis for lending me your graduation cap and gown haha.
Hailey Meister
Informatics
Favorite memory: Learning what it means to be disabled and how disability can impact technology design. I’ll be working remotely at a cybersecurity company doing web development. I plan to use the skills I learned in informatics and disability studies to ensure anything I make is accessible and follows universal design principles.
Isabella Milanio
Biochemistry
Philosophy
My favorite DS memory was learning from my passionate peers. Class discussions were always open and thoughtful. Future plans: Take time to grow and explore careers in health care!
Orion Parker
Comparative History of Ideas
Favorite memory: The sheer relief on the first day of my first Disability Studies class, when transcription was already enabled, realizing I wouldn't have to self-advocate quite so hard in this program as elsewhere.
Trisha Joy Ramirez
Medical Anthropology & Global Health
Favorite memory: Being introduced to the DS program my first year at UW.
Samantha Anne Stackle
Early Childhood & Family Studies
My favorite Disability Studies memory is taking all of my DIS ST courses with Joanne over Zoom and discussing readings and ideas with peers over Zoom. I took all of my DIS ST courses during the height of the pandemic, so learning how to function, run a class together, and provide accommodations over Zoom is something I’ll remember forever.
Kaylie Yellowlees
Early Childhood & Family Studies
I think my favorite Disability Studies memory happened in the Fall of 2021 — it was my first in person class for DS due to COVID-19, and even though I had never met most of my peers or my instructor in person, it felt comfortable right away and we were able to have conversations that were just as productive in person as they were on Zoom.
Disability Studies Minor
D. Grace Duffy (Speech and Hearing Sciences)
I completed the majority of my DS courses on Zoom and it truly made online school bearable as I was always excited to learn more from this field. I am going to UW for 2 more years, for my masters in Medical Speech Language Pathology!
Michelle Forbes-Luong (Education, Communities, and Organizations)
Will be attending graduate school at Johns Hopkins University for Educational Technology.
Disability Studies Minor
Maya Olson (Political Science and Law, Societies, and Justice)
Plans to attend Law school after a gap year.
Paloma Marisol Vazquez (Law, Societies & Justice)
Favorite memory: Taking the course "Redesigning Humanity: Science Fiction and the Future of the Body" with instructor Joanne, and reading Octavia E. Butler and Rivers Solomon. relocate to Chicago to begin her journey with falconry and also dedicate some time to resting and restoring their bodymind.
Congratulations!
Disability Studies Graduate Certificate
Shixin Huang
PhD in the Jackson School of International Studies
I have had countless unforgettable DS memories in the past four years. The best part of it was being in a wonderful community that taught me lived knowledge and practices of disability and social justice, offered me a lot of support and care, and made me confident and passionate about bringing DS perspectives to my future endeavors.
Ian M. Johnson
PhD in Social Welfare
Favorite memory: Getting to TA with Heather and alongside Megan McCloskey for Intro to Disability Studies. Future: Assistant Professor in the School of Social Work at University of Tennessee. Finding disability studies was the highlight of my academic doctoral experiences :)
Emily Lord
Master of Social Work
I loved Heather Evans' Disability Foundations class. That class was the first time I felt that I could talk about my identity as a disabled person without fear of judgment. Future: Applying for jobs, hopefully working with youth with disabilities.
Congratulations Disability Studies Graduates!
Dennis Lang Award in Disability Studies
Courtney R. Cole
Comparative History of Ideas Major
Courtney has worked at Rooted in Rights, the national Society for Disability Studies and for the UW Disability Studies Program generating accessible media (as an editor, audio describer, and narrator) and has advocated for accessibility, disability culture, and mental health disabilities as a social media creator and a public speaker. Courtney’s academic, activist, and professional career is exemplary of the theory and practice of disability studies.
Joyce Lin
Interaction Design Major
Joyce is a former intern of the UW Student Disability Commission and is currently involved in several nonprofit orgs advocating for Disability Justice. She is conducting research exploring the various ways that d/Deaf and Hard of Hearing (DHH) people experience music and intends to compile her findings into accessibility guidelines for industry stakeholders. She says: “I’m truly grateful for the disability studies program at UW and the campus disabled community that catalyzed my growth …into an activist and advocate for crip pride!”
Tiara Schwarze-Taufiq
Public Health-Global Health Major Neuroscience Major
Tiara founded the student organization Huskies for Neurodiversity which seeks to amplify the voices of neurodivergent community members and promotes empathy between ND and non-ND UW students. Tiara works to integrate Disability Justice into her activities, stating “My vision for Huskies for Neurodiversity is to be at least one space in a largely unaccommodating world and educational environment where people can come as they are without needing to censor their experiences or hide their true selves.”
Casey Wilson
Master of Occupational Therapy
Casey is committed to integrating DS perspectives into OT practice promoting neurodiversity-affirming healthcare for autistic adults. She advocates for including autistic voices, aligning with community values, and pushing the boundaries of traditional care for autistic people. After graduation, Casey plans to continue partnering with people with disabilities and hopes to one day open her own community-based, neurodiversity-affirming practice where people can be supported to authentically participate in the things that matter to them.
Pamela E. Yee Gender and Disability Studies Awards
(Department of Gender, Women, and Sexuality Studies)
Pamela E. Yee Award
Talia Katayama Bass
Major in Disability Studies
Paloma Marisol Vazquez
Minor in Disability Studies
Harlan Hahn Endowment Fund Grants
Harlan Hahn Student Grants
Hannah Garland (Juris Doctor)
Will attend the 13th International Disability Summer School through the Centre for Disability Law and Policy at the National University of Ireland Galway.
Megan McCloskey (PhD in Law)
Will attend The Conference of States Parties to the CRPD, an annual meeting held at the United Nations headquarters in New York.
Harlan Hahn Student Grants
Shannon Meyer (Master in Cultural Studies at UW Bothell)
Capstone research at the intersection of disability justice and reproductive justice.
Natalie Stagnone (Majors in Disability Studies and Neuroscience)
Materials for her nonprofit Thurston County Inclusion (TCI).
Sarah Arvey Tov (PhD in Special Education)
Funding for the Disability Justice in Schools project.
Harlan Hahn Faculty/Staff Grants
José Alaniz (Slavic Languages & Literatures)
Attend the Comics and the Invisible conference.
Stephen Meyers (Law, Societies & Justice, and International Studies)
Bring two international disability advocates to UW, regarding the rights of persons with albinism in Africa and children with disabilities in Jamaica.
E.T. Russian (UW Medicine)
Create original comics and illustrations for the book All of this Safety is Killing Us: Health Justice through Prison, Police, and Border Abolition.
Congratulations!
Closing
Closing Remarks:
Mark Harniss, Director of the Disability Studies Program
Poetry Reading
Camisha Jones, “Praise Song for the Body”
Read by Sara Goering
Praise for the body that takes pain and names it survival. That drinks anguish without ruling it bitter. Contains the daggers of sickness and bends them into a good home, a shelter, an escape route. Call this body miracle. Call it sanctuary. Name its ghosts but refuse to believe it is haunted. Refuse to give up on hope and all of its helium, its elevating power to raise this weighted vessel into a thing of light.
Congratulations Class of 2022!