AccessADVANCE activities take an intersectional approach to increase the participation and advancement of women with disabilities in academic science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) careers, recognizing that disability does not exist in isolation from other social identity categories (e.g., gender, race, ethnicity). Faculty with disabilities in STEM fields is an understudied and often invisible population.
Issues related to this population are important to address because even though there are relatively few women who currently hold faculty positions and women with disabilities finishing up Ph.D. programs. Any faculty member may at some point in their careers become disabled, permanently or temporarily. To create truly inclusive and equitable academic workplaces, it is imperative to systematically address issues impacting the career advancement and success of faculty with disabilities using an intersectional approach. Project objectives include the following:
For Institutions and Projects: To increase the engagement and capacity of ADVANCE, INCLUDES, and other programs that promote women in STEM and their host institutions to make institutional changes that make academic STEM careers more welcoming and accessible to faculty with disabilities from a wide range of underrepresented backgrounds.
For Individuals: To increase the interest and success of women with disabilities in pursuing academic STEM careers through outreach activities.
For the Entire Community: To expand an online Knowledge Base and other resources to share Q&As, case studies, and promising practices regarding institutional practices to increase the participation of women with disabilities in academic STEM careers.
AccessADVANCE Leadership
Leadership Team members work toward the AccessADVANCE goal and objectives by hosting events and presentations, engaging with collaborators, and creating and disseminating resources.
 | Canan Bilen-Green is the vice provost for Faculty Affairs at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Her work focuses in areas including faculty policies, recruitment, development, leadership training, promotion and tenure, executive searches, and other issues related to faculty and their concerns. Dr. Bilen-Green has also been involved with Disability Services, the Equity Office, Faculty and Scholar Immigration, International Student and Study Abroad Services, Multicultural Programs, ADVANCE FORWARD, Title IX/ADA, Senate Coordinating Council and Faculty Awards and Recognition Committee, and the Commission on the Status of Women Faculty. |
 | PI Brianna Blaser, who works to increase the participation of people with disabilities in science and engineering careers. Her work includes direct interventions for students with disabilities and working with faculty, employers, and other stakeholders to create institutional change. Brianna has a PhD in women studies from UW and a background in broadening participation and career development in science and engineering fields. Before joining DO-IT, she was the project director for the AAAS (American Association for the Advancement of Science) Science Careers Outreach Program. |
 | Co-PI Cecilia Aragon, who is a female faculty member with a disability, is director of the Human Centered Data Science Lab, professor in the Department of Human Centered Design & Engineering, co-director of the UW Data Science Master’s Program, and senior data science fellow at the eScience Institute at the UW in Seattle. In 2016, Aragon was the first Latina to be named to the rank of Full Professor in the College of Engineering at the UW. Her research focuses on human-centered data science, an emerging field at the intersection of human-computer interaction (HCI), computer-supported cooperative work (CSCW), and the statistical and computational techniques of data science. |
 | Lyla Mae Crawford, internal evaluator of AccessADVANCE, runs evaluation activities, coordinates publication content development, and manages the online community engagement. She holds a master's degree in developmental psychology and has a background in disability testing, support services, and outreach activities. |
 | Cali Anicha with a background in special education, psychology, and institutional analysis serves as a research associate at NDSU. Cali’s dissertation considered ways to mainstream critical disability studies. She develops and facilitates educational equity and diversity seminars and served as a member of the NDSU Women Faculty with Disability Task Force and the NDSU anti-racism team. |