In April 2023, the APSA Council approved a proposal for a new Committee on the Status of Disability in the Profession. The committee, chaired by Monica Schneider (Miami University), also includes Amber Knight (University of North Carolina Charlotte), Lisa Schur (Rutgers University), Art Blaser (Chapman University), and Nancy Hirschmann (University of Pennsylvania). “I am honored to have this opportunity to help make political science a better discipline for disabled scholars and for research and teaching about disability,” Schneider said. At their first meeting in December 2023, they created a vision statement for a discipline, “where disability is actively valued as a dimension of diversity” (https://connect.apsanet.org/apsadisabilitystatuscommittee/).

The immediate plans of the committee are to survey past and present APSA members to learn more about how many political scientists identify themselves as disabled and how they experience disability within our discipline. Lisa Schur is leading this charge. “Disabled people are underrepresented in many fields. This survey is designed to learn about their experiences as students, teachers, and researchers in political science as a first step toward ensuring full access and inclusion for all people in our discipline,” Schur said. The Committee expects that this investigation will lead to recommendations for improving conferences and for accommodating disability at all levels of the profession.

Other core parts of the mission include advancing research on disability and developing and promoting curricular materials on disability.

The Committee will also establish its presence at the 2024 Annual Meeting in Philadelphia by hosting a panel entitled, “Rethinking Disability as a Universal Experience,” which will feature a discussion of how to define disability and a variety of issues facing the profession and discipline. The Committee will also be co-sponsoring the Joint Reception for APSA Status Committees, Caucuses, and Organized Sections reception.

To learn more about the Committee and follow their work, visit their website at https://connect.apsanet.org/apsadisabilitystatuscommittee/. To be added to the email list, please contact: schneimc@miamioh.edu with your contact information. If you have suggestions for the committee, please fill out the form at https://apsa.wufoo.com/forms/z1yfqlmc053ynhi/.

About Status Committees: The American Political Science Association has status committees that focus on developing reports and projects, and promoting activities concerning advancement through the pipeline and the professional development of scholars from underrepresented groups within the political science discipline and across the profession. Learn more at https://apsanet.org/status-committees.

Monica C. Schneider (Chair) is the Paul Rejai Professor of Political Science at Miami University, located in Oxford, Ohio.

Nancy J. Hirschmann is Geraldine R. Segal Professor in American Social Thought in the department of political science and the program on gender, sexuality, and women’s studies at the University of Pennsylvania.

Amber Knight is an Associate Professor of Political Science and Public Administration at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

Art Blaser is Professor of Peace Studies and Political Science at Chapman University in Orange; California where he co-directs the Disability Studies minor.

Lisa Schur is Professor and past Chair of the Department of Labor Studies and Employment Relations at Rutgers University.