The inaugural CEDHARS research symposium “Addressing Ableism in Research, Healthcare, and Higher Education” was held January 25-26, 2024, at the UAB Alumni House to bring together and promote leading voices in the movement toward inclusion science.

The symposium included a poster session and competition on Thursday, January 25 from 1:30 – 3 p.m. where emerging scholars and researchers showcased their work, providing a platform for innovative ideas and fresh perspectives on addressing ableism and other crucial disability-related issues. Congratulations to the winners!

Undergraduate

• First: Josh Domingue, UAB School of Public Health, “’You’ve Got A Friend in Me!’ Best Buddies at UAB Making an Impact in the IDD Community for All”
• Second: Gavin Newberry, UAB School of Public Health/School of Engineering, “Barriers to Care for PTSD Treatment in Adults with Physical Disabilities”
• Third: Lauren Luckie, UAB School of Public Health, “UAB PALS: Inclusive Campus Environment”

Graduate

• First: Madison Mintz, UAB Department of Physical Therapy, “Qualitative Evaluation of an Online Wellness Program Among People with Spinal Cord Injury” o
• Tie-Second: Phuong Quach, UAB Department of Physical Therapy, “Empowering Every Voice: Fostering Access and Inclusion for Individuals with Disabilities in Resource-Challenged Communities”
• Tie-Second: Sadie Hare, UAB Department of Occupational Therapy, “Effects of Mirror Neuron-Based Virtual Reality and Adaptive Software on Upper Extremity Function in an Individual Experiencing Hemiparesis Post-Stroke: A Case Study”

Postdoctoral Fellow

• Tie-First: Salma Aly, UAB Department of Family and Community Medicine, “Comparison between a remote versus clinic-based exercise intervention for people with multiple sclerosis residing in the Deep South: An enhancement non-inferiority trial”
• Tie-First: Younguk Kim, Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, “The Effects of Patient-Specific Adaptive Dynamic Cycling on Motor Function and Mobility in Individuals with Parkinson’s Disease”
• Third: Yumi Kim, Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, “A qualitative exploration of a tele-exercise program to inform adaptive intervention design for adults with multiple sclerosis”

Faculty

• First: Jereme Wilroy, Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, “Preliminary findings for a sequential multiple assignment randomized trial to increase adherence to home exercise in people with spinal cord injury: The Sequential Multiple Assignment Randomized Trial for Home-based Exercise And Lifestyle Tele-Health (SMART-HEALTH) study”
• Second: Byron Lai, UAB Division of Pediatric Rehabilitation, “Health disparities among adolescents in the Southeast United States after the COVID-19 pandemic”

Staff

• First: Stephen Lanzi, SHP Research Collaborative, “’Nothing About Us Without Us!’ A roundtable discussion by people with disabilities on promoting inclusion science in academia across the socio-ecological framework”
• Second: Kalani Upshaw, SHP Research Collaborative, “NCHPAD GROWTH Mental Health and WellBeing Program: Exploring Ableism with Adults Living with Mobility Limitations and Chronic Health Conditions”
• Third: Sherita Etheridge, Department of Family, Community & Health Systems, “Emerging Pedagogy Practice to Enhance Health Equity”

Stakeholder

• First: Caro Wolfner, Girls in the Know, “Mental health experiences of college students and postdoctoral fellows with disabilities or pre-existing conditions during the COVID-19 pandemic: A qualitative study”