Students with disabilities are a significantly underrepresented demographic in the STEM disciplines. To help alleviate this inequality, we, at the University of Delaware, have developed the unique summer outreach program “Research Experience for Undergraduates Science and Engineering Leadership Initiative.” This innovative, NSF-funded program encourages undergraduates with physical, psychological or learning disabilities to take an active role in the scientific endeavors at a research-intensive University. This integrative measure is designed to empower the participants to pursue research related careers and professions related to STEM disciplines. In our presentation, we will not only discuss the details of our program, but aim to give experience-based, practical advice on how to best accommodate students with disabilities in research laboratories and ways to implement similar programs in other institutions.

Increasing participation of students with disabilities in STEM

255th National Meeting (2018)

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