Public Discussion “Universal Design, Restorative Justice and Campus Codes of Conduct” by Dr. Rebecca Cory (PhD ’05)

The Office of Diversity and Inclusion (ODI) is pleased to invite campus members to attend this public discussion with ODI’s inaugural alumna-in-residence, Dr. Rebecca Cory, during Disability Pride Month.

About:

This discussion examines the intersection of disability studies and student conduct processes in higher education. The speaker is chair of the student conduct appeals committee at her college and a proud Syracuse alum (PhD ’05) in disability studies. The talk will examine how the conduct system, and our system of campus behavioral socialization, are failing some disabled students. The speaker will discuss the universal design mindset and restorative justice practices and how together they could reform expectations around student behavior and the conduct process.”

Speaker biography:

Rebecca C. Cory, Ph.D., is a proud Syracuse University Alumna (PhD, ‘05) and a college educator who has focused on educational equity across student and academic affairs since 1994.

Currently Dean of Curriculum and Assessment at Bellevue College in suburban Seattle, she works with faculty to create accessible curriculum and to implement the campus-wide learning outcomes assessment process. Among her “other duties as assigned” is serving as the Student Conduct Committee Chair where she hears the appeals for students whose sanctions include suspension or expulsion from the college or the residence hall. She is committed to creating a conduct process that serves diverse students through trauma informed practice and restorative justice.

Rebecca is passionate about Universal Design for Learning. She has written, taught, and spoken about it, as well as implemented it in her higher education practices, for over twenty years. Rebecca served as disabilities services director at three intuitions and has coedited two books on accessible pedagogy, Building Pedagogical Curbcuts: Incorporating Disability in the University Classroom and Curriculum (Syracuse University Press) and Universal Design in Higher Education, from Principles to Practice (Harvard Education Press). She has also served as a faculty member in higher education leadership, universal design, and adult education.