Summary
Our Student Fellows can be in the SXSW EDU 2025 spotlight — with your help. Vote for their panel, Secrets to Success for Disabled Students in Higher Ed, by August 18.
The future of teaching and learning will be center stage at SXSW EDU, which will be held in Austin, Texas, from March 3 to 6, 2025.
With your help, the National Disability Center’s Student Fellows can take the stage at the SXSW conference and share the spotlight with other educational innovators!
Public voting is now open for their panel, Secrets to Success for Disabled Students in Higher Ed, to be added to the SXSW EDU 2025 conference schedule.
Community votes contribute 30% of the overall score for determining if a session will be selected. You can cast only ONE vote per session but can vote for as many sessions as you like. Act now: Voting is open only until August 18.
About the Student-Centered Panel
The panel, chosen for the Accessibility & Inclusion conference track, will spotlight disabled college students and what they can teach about accessibility in higher education.
Over 20% of U.S. college students now have at least one disability and non-apparent disabilities — such as mental health conditions, autism, and attention deficit disorders — are skyrocketing.
Members of the panel — Desirée Lama, Lily Alvarez, and Soren Aldaco — are Student Fellows at the National Disability Center and will bring first-hand experience, research findings, and insights about navigating college as students. Their presentation will be moderated by Executive Director Stephanie W. Cawthon, PhD.
Key takeaways for SXSW EDU attendees from the session are:
- Understanding foundational issues for student success, including disability disclosure decisions, identity development, and campus accessibility.
- Identifying the hidden barriers and tapping unlocked opportunities to support disabled student success in higher ed and career readiness.
- Empowering instructors, staff, and leaders to support disabled student success on their campuses and beyond.
Vote for Dr. Cawthon’s SXSW Presentation
Dr. Cawthon also has a solo presentation, Disability Is Human: The Vital Power of Access for All, up for consideration for SXSW — the conference and festival for global thought leaders and creatives on March 7-13 — and that needs your vote, too.
Her session revolves around insights from her upcoming book, Disability Is Human: The Vital Power of Accessibility in Everyday Life. It will set participants up for success in creating a more accessible and inclusive work environment for themselves, their colleagues, and their employees.
With data, stories, and insights cultivated over decades of work in the field, Dr. Cawthon illustrates ideas in relatable ways. Participants will explore key concepts of disability, ableism, and accessibility, and they will leave empowered with a concrete set of ideas and strategies that can kickstart and sustain their accessibility efforts.
How to Vote
Here’s how to cast your vote for Secrets to Success for Disabled Students in Higher Ed.
- Create a (free) SXSW account at panelpicker.sxsw.com
- Once you are signed into your account, use the search field to find the Center session using the title or speaker names (Lama, Alvarez, Aldaco, or Cawthon)
- Once you find the session description, select “Arrow Up” to vote YES for the session. That’s it!
- Comments and sharing on social media are optional but greatly appreciated to build excitement, pose questions, or leave feedback. Share the National Disability Center love!
Other ways you can help? Share this appeal with your colleagues, friends, and network. Disability research is too important to not be part of the SXSW EDU conversation next spring.
