Disability Studies Program at the University of Toledo

Happy graduation day, Rockets! Your Disability Studies profs are so proud of all you've done and cannot wait for all you've yet to do! 🚀

ID: Four smiling disability studies graduates, Cielo, Shar'Vah, Marissa, and Aabha, in caps, gowns, cords and stoles with Dr. Monteleone standing behind them with her arms raised in celebration

It's Inclusive Postsecondary Education Day! celebrates college opportunities for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities so we thought it would be a great time to honor our Disability Studies Program interns from the last several semesters, Graham, Ana, and Jocelyn! All three are part of the Toledo Transition (T2) program which provides students with IDD college opportunities to enhance social, academic and vocational skills.

Our DST interns have contributed a ton to our program, from digitizing our student library to planning our student parties - thank you, Graham, Ana, and Jocelyn!

Special congrats to Ana and Jocelyn who will also be graduating this weekend!

Learn more about T2 here: https://www.utoledo.edu/hhs/toledo-transition/

This week, we are celebrating our graduating students! Check out their profiles here or on the 4th floor of University Hall!

We're so proud of all of you!

Yesterday, we got to honor our fantastic graduating students, undergraduate majors Marissa Kuehn, Aabha Agarwal, Shar'Vah Williams (not pictured), and Cielo Caputo (not pictured) and graduate certificate students Meghan Ragle and Brittany Kupresanin with our traditional hand-knit cords at our End-of-the-Year party. We also got to recognize Patricia A. Murphy scholarship winner Lindsey Knight and Outstanding Disability Studies student Marissa Kuehn. We also had THREE of our past interns with the Toledo Transition program, Ana Pacheco de Loera, Graham Micham (not pictured), and Jocelyn Jones. We could not be more proud of you all!

Headed to The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical this or next weekend? Grab an Easy Read summary of the show created by stage manager Abby Papenfus! Easy Read summaries can help everyone follow along with the story. Abby created this one as part of her final project for Dr. Monteleone's Disability and Theatre class - access in action!
Check out a digital version here: https://www.canva.com/design/DAHGBOdWvX8/2cwH1ncHSJJfq4h4jU3TAQ/edit

Eric John Roberts is one of our Disability Studies Graduate Certificate students, and we could not be prouder to have him be part of our Disability Studies community! Congratulations, Eric, and we are so grateful for the huge impact you are having on the world!

For Eric John Roberts, the law has always been personal, practical, and rooted in the lives of people who need it most. As a first-generation law student and a first-generation college student, Roberts arrived at The University of Toledo College of Law with a deep commitment to public service shaped long before law school.

Roberts’ passion for disability rights and equity has also taken shape through scholarship. This academic year, he authored or co-authored two law review articles accepted for publication, a rare achievement for a law student in a single semester.

Read more: https://news.utoledo.edu/index.php/04_08_2026/law-student-turns-lived-experience-into-advocacy

It's that time of year! Registration for next year opens March 18 - now's the time to get some Disability Studies courses in your life!

In Fall 2026, we will be offering the following courses:
• DST 2020: Introduction to Disability Studies - An overview of the key debates, conversations, and ideas about disability in the United States. This course features perspectives from the social sciences on topics such as activism, representation, society, and culture.

• DST 3030: Disability Culture: An interdisciplinary exploration of disability culture and its relationships to the dominant culture.

• DST 4980.001/LST 4980: Eugenics Past and Present: This course provides a historical overview of the ideologies, implementation, and global spread of eugenics, primarily focusing on the United States but also including non-U.S. perspectives. We conclude by raising contemporary questions about eugenics, relating the past to the present.

• (GRADUATE) DST 6400: Disability History and Rights: This course examines the history of the lived experiences of people defined as disabled as well the concept of disability. Furthermore we will explore the development of disability as an issue of rights, and consider how disability rights impact each students’ professional and civic lives.

In Spring 2027, we will be offering the following courses:

• DST 2020: Introduction to Disability Studies: An overview of the key debates, conversations, and ideas about disability in the United States. This course features perspectives from the social sciences on topics such as activism, representation, society, and culture.

• DST 3060/LST 3060: Disability History: This course provides a historical overview of the lived experiences of people defined as disabled and changing historical definitions of disability in the region that became the United States of America. We will consider how major historical forces such as capitalism, industrialization, colonialism, and democratic ideals have impacted and been shaped by people with disabilities.

• DST 4980.001/SOC 4980: Disability and Social Services: In this special topics course, we use a disability studies approach to explore the social and political dimensions of disability social services. Using an array of social scientific research and theory – including a book-length ethnography of a group home – we will interrogate issues of stigma, authority and knowledge across an array of fields from direct care to social work to behavioral health services and more.

• DST 4980.002/THR 4150: Aesthetics of Disability and Difference: From freak shows to Broadway, the disabled body has been a source of spectacle for nondisabled audiences throughout history. In this advanced theatre studies course, we will explore how disability and nonnormative embodiment have been deployed, ignored, and exploited in theatre and performing arts. We will especially emphasize disabled-led aesthetic and creative innovations in modern theatre performance and production.

• (GRADUATE): Disability Studies in Theory and Practice: This course provides students with an introduction to the core theories and practices of Disability Studies, including critical approaches to defining disability, the social and political dimensions of disability, ethics in disability-related research, and key debates in the field. This course is a gateway course for graduate students on the topic of Disability Studies.

Not sure what to take? Schedule a meeting with Dr. Monteleone and we'll talk through all your options!

Experiential learning is at the heart of what we do at University of Toledo. In Dr. Monteleone's Disability and Theatre class, students learn the ins and outs of accessible and inclusive theatre through guided projects and workshops from experts on relaxed performance, audio description and more.

They also spend each week working with 30 community performers with developmental disabilities and trained facilitators from our community partner OpenSpot Theatre to create a new play. Save the date for the premiere on April 23 and check out a few rehearsal pictures from this week!

UToledo Judith Herb College of Arts, Social Sciences and Education The University of Toledo of Toledo Department of Theatre and Film

Zines (self-published pamphlets) have a long history in disability activism - they're historically a way for marginalized communities to share their experiences and expertise with each other. Check out our new display on the 4th floor of University Hall to see some of the zine projects our Disability Studies students and faculty have worked on. Read the zines and even grab some instructions on how to make your own!