OCAD U 2023 Academic Year Welcome | Keynote Presentation
Advancing Black Disability Justice in Post Secondary Contexts
by Dr. Sami Schalk, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Wednesday, August 30, 2023 | 10:30 am - 12:30 pm EDT
Location: MCA 190 - 100 McCaul St., Main Auditorium + a live stream viewing option for remote attendees
Join us for OCAD U’s Academic Year Welcome (AYW), an opportunity for faculty, staff and students to celebrate the beginning of a new academic year and to reflect as a community on our shared commitments and priorities. This year’s theme, Disability Justice in Art & Design Education, activates our Academic and Strategic Plan commitments to addressing ableism, improving accessibility, and advancing equity at OCAD U. The Academic Year Welcome will feature a keynote presentation in the morning and a faculty workshop in the afternoon.
The keynote presentation, Advancing Black Disability Justice in Post Secondary Contexts by Dr. Sami Schalk, Associate Professor of Gender and Women's Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison will demonstrate the interrelation of disability justice, anti-black racism, and other social justice movements and speak to creative ways that principles from black disability justice can be activated in post-secondary teaching and learning.
Open to the entire OCAD U community including students, faculty and staff, the keynote presentation will take place in OCAD U’s main auditorium (MCA 190) at 100 McCaul St. The keynote will feature live visual notetaking by OCAD U student Reymond Lise. Live ASL interpretation will also be provided in the auditorium by Toronto Sign Language Interpreter Service (TSLIS).
A live stream viewing option will be available for those who wish to attend the event remotely. Please email fcdc@ocadu.ca for the link to the event live stream.
Access Statement
The FCDC is committed to accessibility. Live ASL interpretation will be provided for the morning in the auditorium. If you are joining via livestream and require ASL interpretation, please let us know. Please contact Laura Thrasher lthrasher@ocadu.ca if you have any questions about accessibility or access needs that are not addressed here.
Accessibility and Wayfinding
The Auditorium is located on the ground (1st) floor of 100 McCaul St. The auditorium has stadium seating. A water fountain and accessible washrooms are located in the hallway outside the auditorium.
About Dr. Sami Schalk
Dr. Sami Schalk (she/her) is Associate Professor of Gender and Women’s Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She earned her BA in English (Creative Writing) and Women’s Studies from Miami University, her MFA in Creative Writing (Poetry) from University of Notre Dame, and her PhD in Gender Studies from Indiana University. Dr. Schalk’s interdisciplinary research focuses broadly on disability, race, and gender in contemporary American literature and culture. Her second book Black Disability Politics (Duke UP 2022) explores how Black cultural workers have engaged disability as a social and political issue differently than the mainstream, white-dominated disability rights movement. Using archival work on the Black Panther Party and the National Black Women’s Health Project, as well as interviews with contemporary Black disabled cultural workers, the book offers a framework for both identifying and enacting Black disability politics for scholars and activists.
Event poster design by Rachel Leung, second year Graphic Design student at OCAD U.