
2023 Report

HopePunk: Persevering, Building Community, Chasing Hope
Table of contents
- Introduction ..............................................................................................................................................2
- What Makes the UMD Disability Summit Unique? .................................................................. 2
- The Summit Program ............................................................................................................. 2
- Who Registered and Attended?.............................................................................................. 2
- Summit Accessibility............................................................................................................... 4
- Positive Experiences & Takeaways ........................................................................................ 5
- Opportunities for Improvement ............................................................................................... 7
- President’s Commission on Disability Issues (PCDI) Awards ................................................. 8
- Summit Organizing Committee............................................................................................... 8
- Thank You to Our Sponsors ................................................................................................... 9
- Title Sponsors..................................................................................................................... 9
- No Barrier Sponsors ........................................................................................................... 9
- Accessible Sponsors........................................................................................................... 9
- Thought Partners ................................................................................................................ 9
- Press Coverage.....................................................................................................................10
Introduction
introduction will be inserted here once details for summit are given
What makes the UMD Disability Summit Unique?
The UMD Disability Summit prioritizes accessibility, and therefore we have maintained a free and open space for scholars, researchers, activists, and allies. Founded by Dr. Paul Jaeger and Dr. Stephanie Cork in 2016, leadership has always been shared by disabled and nondisabled community advocates. In creating a free cross-disability, cross-disciplinary space the UMD Disability Summit is unique and would not be possible without the support of our wonderful sponsors. Donations from our sponsors support accommodations for attendees and presenters including American Sign Language (ASL) interpretation and Communication Access Real-time Translation (CART) closed captioning services, as well as honoraria to recognize the time and expertise of our keynote speakers, who help to draw in a diverse group of attendees. We will strive to ensure that the Summit continues to provide a forum for engaging conversations and networking across and within the disability community in the District of Columbia, Maryland, Virginia and beyond. (will obviously change this up before the summit)
The Summit Program
In total the Summit featured 20 presentations or panels plus five pre-recorded sessions, opening and closing keynotes, a spoken word workshop, and the President’s Commission on Disability Issues (PCDI) Awards ceremony. 44 presenters, 10 moderators, and over 25 volunteers, in addition to the 8 members of the Summit Organizing Committee, pitched in to make this event possible. (will be adjusted once 2023 summit is over)
Who registered and attended?
will be edited once attendance details and demographics are acquired from 2023 summit
Summit Accessibility
will be adjusted once accessibility data is given for 2023 summit
Positive Experiences and Takeaways
will be adjusted once feedback is received for 2023 summit
Opportunities for Improvement
will be adjusted after data from 2023 summit is received.
President's Commission on Disability Issues (PCDI) Awards
Since 1988, PCDI has recognized the contributions of individuals and campus groups, departments, or other organizations that have had an impact on the lives of the disabled community at the University of Maryland. Since 2017, these awards have been given biennially, in conjunction with the UMD Disability Summit. This year’s award winners are: (will be updated once this year’s awards winners are announced)
Summit Organizing Committee
We are very grateful for our organizing committee, this summit would not be where it is today without them and their hard work. The Summit organizing committee began planning for this year’s summit in [insert date]. Members include faculty, staff, and graduate students from the University of Maryland and UMD alums from other institutions in Maryland and Ontario, Canada.
- Dr. Paul Jaeger, UMD iSchool, Co-Chair and Co-Founder
- Dr. Stephanie Cork, Ontario Tech University, Co-Chair and Co-Founder
- Dr. Sara Olsen, UMD School of Public Health, Director of Content
- Ron Padrón, UMD iSchool, Director of Academic Involvement
- Nedelina Tchangalova, UMD Libraries, Director of Digital Initiatives
- Alex Peterson, Director of Logistics
Thank you to our sponsors!
Fearless Sponsors
- College of Information Studies (iSchool), University of Maryland
- The President’s Commission on Disability Issues (PCDI), University of Maryland
No Barrier Sponsors
- Maryland Relay
- Maryland Center for Women in Computing, University of Maryland
- Maryland Developmental Disabilities Council (MDDC)
- Mid-Atlantic ADA/TransCen
- College of Behavioral & Social Sciences (BSOS), University of Maryland
- College of Education, University of Maryland
- Counseling Center, University of Maryland
- College of Information Studies (iSchool), University of Maryland
- Department of Counseling, Higher Education, and Special Education (CHSE), University of Maryland
- Division of Information Technology (DivIT), University of Maryland
- Office of Diversity & Inclusion (ODI), University of Maryland
- Office of Graduate Diversity and Inclusion (OGDI) - the Graduate School, University of Maryland
- Robert H. Smith School of Business, University of Maryland
- University of Maryland Libraries
Accessible Sponsors
- Center for Minorities in Science and Engineering (CMSE), University of Maryland
- College of Arts and Humanities, University of Maryland (ARHU), University of Maryland
- College of Agriculture and Natural Resources (AGNR), University of Maryland
- Office of Undergraduate Studies (UGST), University of Maryland
- Philip Merrill College of Journalism, University of Maryland
- School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation, University of Maryland
- Swenor Research Group, Disability Center, Johns Hopkins University
Thought Partners
- RespectAbility
- Ontario Tech University
- Information Policy & Access Center (iPAC), University of Maryland
Press Coverage
- Disability Summit to Examine Advances in Access, Equity (Maryland Today, UMD Office of Strategic Communications)
- UMD's Disability Summit Focuses on Intersectionality, draws 1,000 viewers (The Diamondback, UMD student newspaper)