I am pleased to present this report on the major activities and accomplishments of the University of Hawaii Center on Disability Studies (CDS) for our 2013 and 2014 fiscal years (July 1, 2012 – June 30, 2014). This was a challenging period as the effects of the nation’s fiscal crisis that started in 2008 led to increased competition for reduced funding for grants at the Federal level. CDS responded by greatly expanding its efforts to gain external funding, including the development of contracts and memoranda of agreement with State and local agencies as well as the government of American Samoa.
The focused CDS grant writing initiative resulted in the submission of a remarkable number of proposals, most of which were developed by multidisciplinary teams that included content, research, evaluation, and editing experts. During FY2014 alone a total of 54 proposals were submitted, including 16 to the National Science Foundation (NSF) plus seven to the US Department of Education’s (DOE) National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR) and two to its Institute on Educational Sciences (IES). These agencies fund rigorous research and are highly competitive as they often attract hundreds or even thousands of submissions. Many of the CDS submissions proposed innovative strategies for improving the education system (particularly for students with disabilities) with regard to the essential basics of reading and writing as well as science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields, which are considered critical to the nation’s economic success. Other submissions focused on enhancing education in Hawaii to be more in tune with the host culture, particularly 11 proposals submitted to the US DOE’s Native Hawaiian Education Program. A number of the CDS proposals were funded, including several starting before the end of FY2014. Check out the full list of funded projects.
The report also highlights a number of CDS projects and initiatives that have proven to be well-regarded and impactful. They reflect the broad and expanding range of topics for which CDS has gained a reputation as a national leader on behalf of people with disabilities since its inception over a quarter century ago.
Robert A. Stodden, Ph.D.
Professor and Director