The RDE Collaborative Dissemination Project's objectives are:
1. To increase awareness of how people with disabilities can be successful in STEM.
2. To increase awareness of strategies and resources for making STEM welcoming and accessible to people with disabilities, including the findings, products, and opportunities of RDE-funded projects.
3. To increase collaboration of RDE-funded projects with respect to dissemination.
The project team will lead a community of representatives of RDE-funded projects, who will design project products, share strategies for making resources accessible, and explore possibilities and develop plans for cooperating on dissemination efforts. They will create three project products and will utilize the Internet, public television, and existing networks to share what works and what does not to increase the successful participation of people with disabilities in STEM. All project products will be designed to be accessible to people with disabilities. Products include:
Website: A password-protected collaborative 'wiki' that engages RDE-funded projects in developing products and dissemination plans, including those for sharing information about projects, outcomes, and materials on the Internet.
Video: A video that shows how high school, college, and graduate students and employees with disabilities succeed in STEM and highlights the RDE-funded Alliances for Students with Disabilities in STEM as resources.
Brochure: A concise brochure that includes information and results regarding all RDE-funded Alliances for Students with Disabilities in STEM and pointers to the project website for the project video and additional information and resources.
All project products will promote creative and potentially transformative concepts. The project evaluation will document (1) high quality, useful, and accessible resources; (2) effective distribution methods; and (3) increased engagement of RDE projects.
The external formative and summative evaluation for this project will be conducted by Dr. Gerald Gillmore.
at the University of Washington (UW) was funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF, grant # HRD-0929006) to (1) develop products that could be used by many Research in Disabilities Education (RDE)-funded and other projects and (2) coordinate the dissemination activities to maximize the impact of these projects. The project was conducted by the DO-IT (Disabilities, Opportunities, Internetworking, and Technology) Center and led by DO-IT’s founder and director, Dr. Sheryl Burgstahler. The ultimate goal of the RDE-funded projects was to increase the successful participation of people with disabilities in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields. The Dissemination Project objectives were to increase: awareness of how people with disabilities can be successful in STEM; awareness of strategies and resources for making STEM welcoming and accessible to people with disabilities, including the findings, products, and opportunities of RDE-funded projects; and collaboration of RDE-funded projects with respect to dissemination. To meet these objectives staff of the RDE Collaborative Dissemination Project led a community of representatives of RDE-funded projects in the development of resources and dissemination plans, utilizing the Internet, public television, and existing networks. All project products were designed to be accessible to people with disabilities. Products include: Website. A public website, www.washington.edu/doit/RDE/, highlights projects funded by the NSF to increase the participation of individuals with disabilities in STEM academic programs and careers. Materials included increase awareness of how people with disabilities can be successful in STEM as well as how other programs can make their web and print resources, courses, and activities more welcoming and accessible to people with disabilities. Materials can be used for individual and group instruction. Video. A 15-minute video, titled STEM and People with Disabilities, is freely available on the project website at www.uw.edu/doit/Video/index.php?vid=53. It can be integrated into training and conference presentations. The video includes high school, college, and graduate students and employees with disabilities succeeding in STEM. The video is provided on YouTube, as well as on the project website in five different video file formats with and without open captions and audio description. Brochures. Two project brochures are freely available on the project website. Alliances to Promote the Participation of Students with Disabilities in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics includes information and results regarding all RDE-funded Alliances for Students with Disabilities in STEM and pointers to the project website for the project video and additional information and resources. It was developed early in the project. Increasing the Participation of Students with Disabilities in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Lessons Learned and Resources from NSF’s RDE Projects summarizes evidence-based practices of RDE-funded projects and includes a description of the project website for obtaining further information regarding RDE-funded projects, the project video, the AccessSTEM Knowledge Base, and other resources designed to broaden the participation and achievement of people with disabilities in STEM education and careers. Searchable Knowledge Base. Project staff and partners also created seventeen new articles for the AccessSTEM Knowledge Base at www.washington.edu/doit/Stem/kb.html. This popular resource now contains more than 500 Q&As, case studies, and promising practices dealing with issues related to the participation of people with disabilities in STEM. All Knowledge Base articles are reviewed and updated by the DO-IT Center on an ongoing basis. Publications. Project partners and staff published thirteen journal articles; two additional articles have been submitted for publication. One book chapter and three non-periodical publications were also completed during the project. All project products promote creative and potentially transformative concepts. Ultimately increasing the accessibility of STEM education and employment and supporting the success of people with disabilities in academic STEM careers will broaden participation in STEM and improve these fields with the talents and perspectives of this population. Products will continue to be periodically updated through the DO-IT Center, thus ensuring long-term impact of the RDE Collaborative Dissemination Project.
