The Disability, Education, and Society Podcast

In this episode, we are joined by Dr. Sarah Arvey Tov for a thoughtful conversation about disability identity, culture, and justice in education. Together, we explore what it means to move beyond traditional ideas of inclusion by centering disabled voices, honoring disability as a valued part of identity, and creating learning environments where all students can thrive. Dr. Sarah Arvey Tov shares...

In this powerful episode of the Disability Education and Society Podcast, we sit down with Dr. Shariese Katrell, disability rights activist, scholar, musician, and advocate, to discuss her extraordinary journey navigating higher education as a Black woman with multiple hidden disabilities. Shariese shares her experiences developing a neurological disability at age 18, overcoming systemic barriers,...

In this episode we converse with Chantal Figueroa, Ph. D., a researcher, educator, and strategist that specializes in designing evidence-based programs meant to support the mental health and wellbeing of Latine peoples. Dr. Figueroa is the co-editor of the book titled Dis/ability in the Americas: The Intersections of Education, Power, and Identity. The conversation explores issues of mental and de...

In this episode we converse with David I. Hernández-Saca, Ph. D., an associate professor in the Department of Special Education at the University of Northern Iowa. The conversation explores what truly matters, the role of healing, disability consciousness, immigration and citizenship, and disrupting master narratives,  "common sense," and labeling practices in schools through disabled voices.  Lin...

In this episode of the DES podcast, we sit down with Dr. Rachel Lambert, associate professor at UC Santa Barbara, to discuss her groundbreaking book Rethinking Disability in Mathematics: A UDL Math Classroom Guide for Grades K-8. Dr. Lambert shares powerful stories about disability, inclusion, and the need to reimagine math education as a space of accessibility, creativity, and equity. We explore...

In this episode of the DES, co-hosts Paulo and Alexis return after a long break to discuss their latest academic work, activism, and the evolving political landscape. They explore the power of rejected scholarship as a catalyst for new ideas, the intersections of disability justice with broader social movements, and the urgent need for cross-coalitional solidarity in the face of rising authoritari...

In this episode, DES co-host Paulo Tan shares a practical application of abolitionist mathematics practices. This episode is a companion to episode #13 where Paulo laid out the groundwork for abolitionist mathematics practices. It is helpful but not necessary to first engage with episode #13 before engaging with this current episode. The practical application Paulo shares is one of infinite possib...

In this episode, DES co-host Paulo Tan shares a presentation he recently completed on abolitionist mathematics practices at Purdue University. Drawing on Black Feminist thought on prison abolition, Dr. Tan forwards three crucial tenets (i.e., imagining utopian futures, intersectional struggles, and immediate change making) to guide the fields of special and mathematics education. Dr. Tan argues th...

We turn inwards for today’s episode in a conversation with Dr. Alexis Padilla, this show’s cohost, about his upcoming book titled Decolonial Disability and Social Epistemologies. The first chapter of his book dives into the problems with how we think of productive struggle. We also engage in a brief reflection on the first few months after launching the Disability, Education, and Society podcast....

Dr. Alison Mirin, a Postdoctoral Research Associate in Mathematics Education at the University of Arizona, joins the DES podcast to discuss ableism and inaccessibility in mathematics education. We discuss the disconnect between how math is typically taught in schools and how students make their own meaning of math. Dr. Mirin shares her mathematics experiences as a researcher, a disabled student, a...

In this episode, we are joined by Dr. Fernanda Malinosky who is a professor in the Mathematics Institute at Mato Grosso do Sul Federal University in Brazil. We discuss issues of education and clientelism, and inclusive educational perspectives in the Brazilian context. Transcripts can be found here . Dr. Malinosky’s Mathematics Education, Diversity and Difference Research Group: https://sites.goog...

In this episode, we are joined by Dr. Anna Stetsenko who is a full Professor in the PhD Program in Psychology (and the chair of Developmental Psychology), with a joint appointment in Urban Education Program, both at The Graduate Center, the City University of New York. We discuss Dr. Stetsenko’s conception of Activist‑Transformative Methodology and its role in addressing social and environmental c...

In this episode, we our joined by Dr. Lisette E. Torres-Gerald, a scientist and disabled scholar-activist and Senior Researcher at TERC, a non-profit made up of teams of mathematics and science education and research experts. We discuss Dr. Torres-Gerald's advocacy work with Latinx Disabilities within and beyond the United States as well as in formal and informal STEM educational contexts. Transcr...

Offir Romero Castro joins the podcast to discuss his experiences living with a disability and his work in promoting inclusive mathematics education. Offir is currently a teaching and research assistant in the Mathematics Department at Western Michigan University, where he is also a Mathematics Education 2nd year-Ph. D. student. Transcripts to this episode can be found here .   Subscribe to DES on...

In this part II episode, we continue our conversion with Dr. Parrey. We dive into topics of ableism, disability studies, relationality, and thinking-feeling disability. Dr. Parrey shares a couple of powerful counterstories characterized as eventful events. Transcripts to this episode can be found here . Subscribe to DES on YouTube for video of this episode. Find DES on Twitter (@DES_podcast) and I...

In this episode, Dr. Parrey discusses moments in which the meaning of disability, and our relation to it, is an open question. We dive into topics of ableism, disability studies, relationality, and thinking-feeling disability. Dr. Parrey shares a couple of powerful counterstories characterized as eventful events. Transcripts to this episode can be found here. Subscribe to DES on YouTube for video...

In this episode Dr. Bagger who is an associate professor at Orebro University in Sweden discusses what caring may mean in mathematics education. We question and challenge the typical hierarchies associated with care and caring, instead, push us to think about caring in more reciprocal ways. Transcripts to this episode can be found here. Find out more about Dr. Bagger Subscribe to DES on YouTube fo...

Dr. Juuso H. Nieminen, an Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Education at the University of Hong Kong and a Banting Fellow at Ontario Tech University in Canada joins the DES podcast to discuss inclusive and accessible educational assessments. Dr. Nieminen's research concerns educational assessment from social, cultural and political points of view. He is particularly interested in the student's...

In this episode, we are joined by Dr. Rhonda Bondie who is an associate professor in special education at Hunter College and the director of the Hunter College Learning Lab. We dive into her recently published co-authored article titled “Transforming fear into rigor, love, freedom, and joy: A new paradigm of standards-based reform.” Transcripts to this episode can be found here .   Dr. Bondie's we...

Renita Evans joins the podcast to talk about practicing human freedom. Renita is a mother to multiple children claiming disability as a part of their identity and her research interests seeks to better connect schools and communities by examining educational and social justice issues by uniting the oral traditions of families to the broader collective voice. Transcripts to this episode can be foun...