Designing Belonging: Rethinking Accessibility in Higher Education

In this episode of The Other Side of Campus, hosts Jen Moon and Katie Dawson sit down with Dr. Stephanie Cawthon—researcher, author, and founder of the National Disability Center for Student Success—to explore how accessibility is reshaping higher education from the inside out.

Drawing from her lived experience as a deaf scholar and nearly two decades of research at The University of Texas at Austin, Dr. Cawthon reframes accessibility not as compliance, but as culture. She shares how the National Disability Center is transforming the landscape through research, mentorship, and outreach—amplifying student voices and equipping institutions with practical tools to design more inclusive learning environments.

From rethinking STEM classrooms to embedding accessibility into institutional decision-making, this conversation highlights a powerful shift: moving from accommodation to intention.

https://stephaniecawthon.com/the-movement

Huge thanks to Dr. Cawthon for making the time, and an extra special thanks to interpreters Jennifer Stoker and Amanda Ford for facilitating the conversation!!