AAAS proposes to develop a database and an electronic directory that will be the 4 th edition of the Resource Directory of Scientists and Engineers with Disabilities. The Directory will fill a continuing need of NSF and other Federal agencies, educators, parents, counselors, disability organizations, and the media to find role models and existence proofs in all fields of science and engineering, with a wide range of disabilities. In addition the individuals listed in the Directory will be able to serve as peer reviewers, consultants, and sources for stories. AAAS has the only complete repository of this information. Names and contact information are regularly requested by NSF and the other agencies and organizations. In the efforts to include underrepresented groups in the STEM workforce, and especially those groups underutilized because of disabilities, this information is critical. The intellectual merit of this project will be the research and documentation of the existence of person with disabilities, currently in the STEM workforce as a crucial element in diversifying the science and engineering workforce. Recording that persons of both genders, varied in age, ethnicity, geography, discipline, disability, and educated in many types of undergraduate and graduate institutions will be a crucial base to change attitudes and actions about including persons with disabilities in the science and technology enterprise of the country. It is essential that educators, funders, families, and counselors capitalize on the experience of these accomplished scientists and engineers to assist them in opening up STEM education and broadening the participation of persons with disabilities in STEM careers. The broader impacts resulting from the dissemination of the proposed activity will be advancing the understanding of educators and employers on the possibilities of STEM education and careers for preschool and precollege students, undergraduates, and graduate students with disabilities. It will also serve scientists and engineers who become disabled mid-career, or acquire a chronic disability by making it possible for them to connect with other scientist with related experiences. It will contribute to overturning traditional stereotypes of persons with disabilities as to career and occupational limitations that exclude science, engineering, and technical fields. The listings will be a first step in identifying and contacting potential advisors and collaborators from all fields of science and a wide range of disabilities. Annual updating of the database will ensure the freshness and sustainability of the information and will encourage others to come forward and share information.
