De-Cripting Disability

University of Hawai`i at Mānoa graduate students Barbara Lee Barnhart and Kristin Hargrove have authored a new digital resource about disability that they hope to share beginning Fall 2023. De-Cripting Disability started as a class project as part of the Disability & Diversity Studies Certificate program at UH Mānoa. As a result of their studies and partnership with the UH Mānoa Center on Disability Studies, Barbara and Kristin hoped to fashion an all-in-one, “go-to” resource to help destigmatize and clarify disability to an able-bodied population. Their goal has been to provide overviews of various impairments, resources, and etiquette suggestions on how best to support people with disabilities in Hawai`i and beyond as a form of social justice and empowerment.

De-Cripting Disability will be a public-facing resource, with an additional offline, print version available to users when the project is finally realized. The students will leverage their schoolwork to help clarify the four main categories of disability (behavioral, developmental, physical, and sensory-impaired) and the common disabilities that UH faculty and staff might encounter with their UH students. The digital content can also be exported into other learning management systems for local adoption, particularly as part of teacher education training at both the K-12 and college levels. Key concepts in disability theory, as well as connection to Hawaiian and Polynesian values are included. A printable promotional poster will also be designed to create awareness to disability and the De-Cripting Disability resource. Both Barbara and Kristin will be completing outreach to various UH system disability offices and community groups as part of their respective capstone courses as they finalize the resource over the next few semesters.

Contact both Barbara (bl26@hawaii.edu) and Kristin (kah808@hawaii.edu) for additional information. Mahalo!