Disability Studies Minor

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Affiliation: Interdisciplinary Studies

Disability is a constant, pervasive, and deeply misunderstood element of human existence. While prevalence rates are unclear, at least 15-20% of all people have a disability. Virtually all people will have a disability at some point in their lives due to accident, disease, or old age. Few lives remain untouched by disability. We experience disability in our family, in our friends, in ourselves, and in every social, political, professional, or religious community. People with disabilities, throughout the world and in large numbers, remain disenfranchised, segregated, and oppressed. The systematic study of the world, through the lens of Disability Studies, addresses this injustice.

The field of Disability Studies examines disability as a social, cultural, and political phenomenon, and explores how disability is defined and represented. The Disability Studies Minor is an interdisciplinary approach to examining the interplay between the lived experience of disability and the social construction of disability. The Minor balances theoretical exploration with practical application, and provides students with a broad understanding of disability history, cultural representation, social justice and civil rights issues, policy concerns, and current ethical debates.

Program Requirements:

The minor requires the successful completion of 16 or more credits.
A grade of C or better is required for any class to count in the minor.
All courses may double count with a student’s major, minor, or LSP requirements.
No more than eight credits from any prefix may be counted for the minor.

Required Courses: 4-6 Credits

DS 120 - What is Disability? An Introductory Colloquium on Disability Studies Credits: 3
DS 480 - Disability Studies Seminar Credits: 1 to 3
With approval of the Disability Studies Minor Oversight Committee, projects and capstone papers completed through the student’s major may be used in partial fulfillment of DS 480 - Disability Studies Seminar .

Electives: 10-12 Credits

a. General Electives

CMDS 200 - Introduction to Communication Disorders Credits: 3
CMDS 475 - Sign Language Credits: 3
COMM 375 - Health Communication Credits: 3
ENG 434 - Queer Theory Credits: 4
ES 369 - Physical Activity for Individuals with Disability Credits: 3
HLTH 265 - Drugs in Society Credits: 3
JINS 324 - Contexts of Disability Credits: 3
SED 530 - Psychology of the Exceptional Child Credits: 3

b. Program and Pre-requisite Limited Electives*

*These courses may not be appropriate for non-majors and few or no seats may be available for non-majors.

CMDS 578 - Assistive Technology in Communication Disorders Credits: 3
ES 347 - Motor Learning with Lab Credits: 3
ES 365 - Injury and Rehabilitation Psychology Credits: 3
HLTH 255 - Introduction to Community and Public Health Credits: 3
NU 311 - Human Nutrition Credits: 3
NU 425 - Community Mental Health Nursing Credits: 5
PSYC 337 - The Autism Spectrum Credits: 3
PSYC 366 - Psychology of Abnormal Behavior Credits: 3
PSYC 369 - Behavior Modification Credits: 3
PSYC 430 - Psychopharmacology: Drugs and Behavior Credits: 3
SED 581 - Learning Characteristics of and Curriculum for Students with Disabilities Credits: 3

c. Pre-approved topics and Reading Courses

With the approval of the Disability Studies Minor Oversight Committee (who may seek appropriate documentation), specific section titles may be approved to count as elective credits for the DS minor.

d. Petitioned Courses (no more than 6 credits)

With the approval of the Disability Studies Minor Oversight Committee (who may seek appropriate documentation), the following may count towards electives above.

Internships, independent studies, and directed reading courses.
Any course may be allowed to count for the minor for a specific student if appropriate work has been done (such as by choosing an appropriate term paper topic) with the approval of the DS committee (in consultation with the instructor).