Disability Studies in the Universal Design University

Universities are among the most durable and successful institutions globally. However, inclusive higher education remains an elusive goal, despite the worldwide ratification of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities that mandates inclusive education throughout the life course—and thus increased access to universities. In many countries, universities attempt to implement elements of a universal design university, built to serve diverse student bodies, that will be more fully inclusive. To do so, universities must implement principles of universal design and inclusive education. Enhancing accessibility requires the removal of myriad cultural and structural barriers and reduced ableism in the academy itself. In embracing social and political paradigms of disability, especially through the multidisciplinary field of dis/ability studies, universities can give voice to diverse participants as they engage and change awareness and attitudes. This contribution addresses both activities that facilitate the development of dis/ability studies and barriers that hinder its (multi)disciplinary flourishing. In contemporary developments in the German-speaking countries—Austria, Germany, Luxembourg, and Switzerland—this multidisciplinary field engages intellectuals and activists to subversively cross disciplinary, institutional, and political divides. Relying on collaboration among members of the disability (rights) movement, advocates, and academics to develop its subversive status, the field emphasizes the subversive status necessary to realize inclusive higher education in the universal design university.