Our Mission
Building on Ten Years of Activity
The NYU Center for Disability Studies (CDS) promotes disability scholarship, artistry, and activism through: grant-funded interdisciplinary research, a public event series, local and international community collaborations, and facilitation of an undergraduate Disability Studies Minor. CDS also supports the NYU Disability Student Union and Provostial Working Group on Disability, Infrastructure and Accessibility (DIA). CDS launched in 2017 as a cross-school Provostial Center, building on ten years of activity by the NYU Council for the Study of Disability, funded by the Provost’s office in 2007.
All Are Welcome
The Center welcomes participants from the faculty and student body across all of the schools and departments at NYU. Currently, active members come from Steinhardt, Tisch, FAS, Tandon, and Gallatin. Our goals include:
- To identify and build the NYU community of those whose teaching and research address issues of disability.
- To collaborate with organizations and initiatives in New York City and beyond, such as the annual NY Reelabilities Disabilities Film Festival; Disability/Arts/NYC (DANT); and the Cooke Center Academy SKILLS Transition Program for young adults with learning disabilities (incubated at NYU from 2009-11).
- To increase awareness about disability on campus through the development of courses and public events with scholars, activists, artists, and filmmakers whose work is on the cutting edge of disability studies.
- To make the campus more disability-friendly in terms of the built environment and availability of supports for students and faculty with disabilities.