York Street Poorvu Entrance

Seminar on Disability Pedagogy and Accessibility

A yearlong, funded opportunity to help instructors meet their teaching goals. 

Apply to Participate in Seminar

Apply

Applications are now open for the 2025-2026. Deadline to apply is September 15. 

Overview

The Poorvu Center is hosting a funded seminar on disability pedagogy and accessibility that will meet monthly throughout the academic year (September ‘25-April ‘26). Participants will create and enact teaching goals that relate to creating equitable classroom environments that recognize and address barriers to access encountered by students with disabilities. Participants will also have opportunities to reflect on effective ways to discuss disability in the classroom and how higher education institutions can move from ableist to accessible practices. The seminar’s curriculum is grounded in the literature on disability pedagogy, accessible pedagogy, equity-minded teaching, and disability social justice. 

This seminar is open to a maximum of 15 full-time Yale instructional or ladder faculty. It includes $800 that can be used for professional development or the purchase of equipment/materials related to accessibility. We welcome any interested instructor, regardless of their level of expertise or knowledge on the topic.

This seminar will be offered every other year. After this academic year, the seminar will not be available until 2027-2028.

For more information on the seminar’s curriculum, please refer to the annotated syllabus below and/or contact amanda.valdespino@yale.edu. 

Format and Dates

There will be a total of eight (8) sessions throughout the academic year that will take place on Thursday from 3-5 pm EST. Attending all of the sessions is highly encouraged (missing more than 2 sessions will make you ineligible to receive funding). Here are the dates:

  • September 25, 2025 (in person, Poorvu Center for Teaching and Learning Room 120C)
  • October 23, 2025 (Zoom)
  • November 13, 2025 (in person, Poorvu Center for Teaching and Learning Room 120 C)
  • December 4, 2025 (Zoom)
  • January 29, 2026 (in person, Poorvu Center for Teaching and Learning Room 118 A)
  • February 19, 2026 (Zoom)
  • March 26, 2026 (Zoom)
  • April 23, 2026 (in person, Poorvu Center for Teaching and Learning Room 118A.

This is a moderately structured seminar that will include monthly readings, open-ended and guided reflections, and discussions, and opportunities to collaborate with colleagues.

Homework will comprise of “readings” (articles, podcast episodes, videos, etc.), and mini-reflective assignments that will prepare participants to enact changes within their teaching relating to accessibility and supporting students with disabilities.

This seminar will be offered every other year. After this academic year, the seminar will not be available until 2027-2028.
 

The seminar has allowed me to think about access and ability in broader terms, and has encouraged more creative, capacious ways to create an inclusive learning atmosphere.

—

Seminar participant

Sample Syllabus of Seminar

In this seminar, participants will create and enact teaching goals that relate to creating equitable classroom environments that recognize and address barriers to access encountered by students with disabilities. Participants will also have opportunities to reflect on effective ways to discuss disability in the classroom and how higher education institutions can move from ableist to accessible practices.

 This moderately structured program entails monthly readings, open-ended and guided reflections and discussions on our current and past teaching and learning experiences, and an action plan for making changes in our teaching practices.     

By the end of this series, you will be able to…

  • Identify common barriers to access that students with disabilities encounter and understand how these barriers can impact learning outcomes.
  • Create specific, actionable teaching goals that promote equity and inclusivity by addressing the needs of students with disabilities.
  • Apply Universal Design for Learning (UDL) strategies to create and maintain accessible classroom environments beyond formal accommodations to support all diverse learners.
  • Critically evaluate the policies and practices of higher education institutions, identifying how ableist structures can be transformed into more accessible and inclusive systems.
  • Gain confidence and develop strategies for facilitating respectful, open conversations about disability in the classroom, with a focus on promoting understanding and inclusion.
  • Reflect on their own teaching practices, considering how they can integrate disability awareness and accessibility into their ongoing pedagogical development.

Session 1: Introductions and Ableism

Session 2: Ableism, Models of Disability

Session 3: Universal Design for Learning Part 1

Session 4: Universal Design for Learning Part 2 and Accommodations

Session 5: Accessibility and Equity Part 1

Session 6: Accessibility and Equity Part 2

Session 7: Disability Advocacy and Social Justice

Session 8:  Reviewing Seminar & Reflecting

About the Seminar’s Facilitator: Amanda Valdespino

  • Supports faculty and staff in integrating and advancing accessible practices.
  • Interested in learner-centered approaches to best support all students, especially those with disabilities.
  •  M.S. in Education from Florida State University.