CUNY Disability Awareness Month 2024 Event Calendar

Bookmark this list of events hosted by or featuring members of the CUNY SPS community

April is CUNY Disability Awareness Month, an annual observance by the City University of New York (CUNY) that seeks to recognize disability culture and share CUNY’s continued commitment to equal access and engagement of students with disabilities.

As part of our own celebration, CUNY SPS has compiled a calendar of events hosted by our School and the University throughout the month of April.

See below for a full list of the CUNY Disability Awareness Month events and their registration links. We hope you will join us!

Disability Awareness Month Opening Ceremony

• Date: Tuesday April 2, 2024
• Time: 11:30 am-1:00 pm
• Where: Guttman Community College, Room 401
• In Person or Virtual: In Person
• Event Description: Members of Guttman and faculty, staff, and students CUNY-wide are invited to celebrate the start of CUNY Disability Awareness Month at an opening ceremony on Guttman’s campus.
• Registration Link: Disability Awareness Month Opening Ceremony
• Hosted by: Guttman CC Office of Accessibility

Disability and Access Coalition Book Talk

• Date: Tuesday April 2, 2024
• Time: 7:00 pm
• Where: CUNY School of Professional Studies
• In Person or Virtual: Virtual (Zoom)
• Event Description: Join us for a conversation about disability representation in fiction with Annie Carl, editor of Soul Jar: Thirty-One Fantastical Tales by Disabled Authors.
• Registration Link: Disability and Access Coalition Book Talk
• Hosted by: CUNY SPS Disability and Access Coalition

2024 CUNY Neurodiversity Conference (Day 1, Virtual)

• Date: Friday April 5, 2024
• Time: 9:00 am
• Where: CUNY Office of Student Inclusion Initiatives
• In Person or Virtual: Virtual (Zoom)
• Event Description: As part of CUNY’s leading role in the movement to provide expanded access and services to neurodivergent students in higher education, the CUNY Disability Programs is hosting the 6th annual CUNY Neurodiversity Conference on April 5th and April 19th. This year’s theme is Neurodiversity & Mental Health: Navigating Wellness. The conference will be a safe space for individuals and organizations to share, explore, and reflect on strategies and best practices for addressing mental health.
• Registration Link: April 5 Virtual 2024 CUNY Neurodiversity Conference
• Hosted by: CUNY Disability Programs, Project REACH
• Note: Dr. Cassandra Evans, an adjunct assistant professor in the CUNY SPS disability studies program, will host the panel Strengths, Support, Success: Taking the “dead” Out of Deadlines for Neurodiverse Graduate Students.

CUNY Professional Development: Autism Awareness Symposium — Guest Speaker Stephen Shore, Ph.D.

• Date: Tuesday April 9, 2024
• Time: 3:00–5:00 pm
• Where: Kingsborough Community College in the MAC Rotunda (or virtually via Zoom)
• In Person or Virtual: Both
• Event Description: Faculty & staff across CUNY are invited to this professional development symposium on autism awareness, which will feature Dr. Stephen Shore, an autistic professor of special education at Adelphi University. A panel discussion will follow.
• Registration Link: CUNY Professional Development: Autism Awareness Symposium
• Hosted by: Kingsborough Community College’s Project REACH Program Transition to College Support (TCS) and the CUNY LEADS Programs at Kingsborough Community College and New York City College of Technology

LEADS Online Learning: Career Connections Part II — CUNY LEADS Alumni & Networking Event

• Date: Thursday April 11, 2024
• Time: 1:00 pm — 3:00 pm
• Where: Baruch College
• In Person or Virtual: In Person
• Event Description: Current CUNY students are invited to join us for our Student Alumni Panel and the opportunity to network with CUNY LEADS Partners Sharing Paths to Success.
• Registration Link: LEADS Online Learning: Career Connections Part II
• Hosted by: CUNY LEADS, Office of Accessibility

Disability Justice in the Built Environment: From Accessibility to Anti-Ableist Architecture

• Date: Friday April 12, 2024
• Time: 6:00 pm
• Where: CUNY School of Professional Studies
• In Person or Virtual: Virtual (Zoom)
• Event Description: Join us on April 12th as architect and DAC member Elizabeth Austin shares insights on the intersection of disability rights, justice, accessibility, Universal Design, interior design, and architecture. Expand your understanding of creating truly inclusive spaces and participate in an engaging dialogue where you can ask questions and contribute to the conversation on fostering accessibility and equity in our built world.
• Registration Link: Disability Justice in the Built Environment: From Accessibility to Anti-Ableist Architecture
• Hosted by: CUNY SPS Disability and Access Coalition

Unlocking Potential: Accommodations Explained

• Date: Monday April 15, 2024
• Time: 6:30 pm
• Where: CUNY SPS
• In Person or Virtual: Virtual (Zoom)
• Event Description: Transitioning from education to working life poses unique challenges for young professionals with disabilities. When Kaitlin Teore (K & J Workplace Access LLC) first started working in the corporate world in 2012, she concealed her disability, fearing it might hinder her chances of being hired or limit growth opportunities. The dilemma of requesting accommodations weighed heavily on her mind, leaving her uncertain about the potential consequences and her ability to succeed without them. Today, Kaitlin is determined to rewrite this narrative and has embarked on a mission to share the invaluable lessons learned along her journey. Join Kaitlin as she unlocks the secrets that she wishes she’d known as a young graduate, empowering other disabled professionals with the insights and tools to seize control of their career trajectory, transform uncertainty into confidence, and pave the way for a more inclusive professional landscape.
• Registration Link: Unlocking Potential: Accommodations Explained
• Hosted by: CUNY SPS Office of Student Disability Services, the CUNY SPS Committee on Institutional Equity and Diversity, and CUNY Central Office of Student Inclusion Initiatives

2024 CUNY Neurodiversity Conference (Day 2, In Person)

• Date: Friday April 19, 2024
• Time: 9:00 am
• Where: TBA
• In Person or Virtual: In Person
• Event Description: As part of CUNY’s leading role in the movement to provide expanded access and services to neurodivergent students in higher education, the CUNY Disability Programs is hosting the 6th annual CUNY Neurodiversity Conference on April 5th and April 19th. This year’s theme is Neurodiversity & Mental Health: Navigating Wellness. The conference will be a safe space for individuals and organizations to share, explore, and reflect on strategies and best practices for addressing mental health.
• Registration Link: April 16 In Person 2024 CUNY Neurodiversity Conference
• Hosted by: CUNY Council on Student Disability Issues

Also, mark your calendars: the 15th annual CUNY Accessibility Conference will be held in person on May 13, 2024 at John Jay College of Criminal Justice.

This yearly conference brings together CUNY professionals and others involved in the fields of disability services and higher education to share information, to network, and to receive theoretical and practical training on topics supporting access to higher education by students with disabilities. In 2024, the conference’s theme will be Breaking Barriers, Building Bridges: Creating a Culture of Accessibility and Inclusion.

In an exciting highlight, Dr. Andrew Marcum, academic director and distinguished lecturer for the CUNY SPS disability studies programs, will be delivering the 2024 CUNY Accessibility Conference’s keynote address.

Visit the 2024 CUNY Accessibility Conference page to register and get updates on the event.