The authors contend that eugenics still lingers in academia ableism. For instance, there have been waves and multiple iterations of faculty perceiving disabled students as faking disability for accommodations or using rhetoric that accommodations give disabled students unfair advantages. Instead of treating disability as a form of diversity discussions in higher education around disability often lean back on eugenicist rhetoric about who should have access to higher education and assumptions that disabled students are diluting the credibility of academia due to an assumption that accommodations make academic work less rigorous. 

Echos of Eugenics in Academic Ableism

Higher education has historically perpetuated ableism, with early instances rooted in the eugenics movement. During this period, academic research was frequently leveraged to determine who was considered "fit" or a "beneficial" member of society, thereby establishing foundational ableist practices in academia.

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- Percentage of Disabled Students in Higher Education
- Ableism in Academia
- Models of disability used in Universities

Background of Disabled Students in Higher Education

Abrams, E. J., Floyd, C. E., & Abes, E. S. (2024). Prioritizing Crip Futures: Applying Crip Theory to Create Accessible Academic Experiences in Higher Education. Disability Studies Quarterly, 43(4). https://doi.org/10.18061/dsq.v43i4.8270

Prioritizing Crip Futures: Applying Crip Theory to Create Accessible Academic Experiences in Higher Education

A 2015-2016 study from the National Center for Educational Statistics reported that 19% of undergraduate students reported having a disability in the United States. This report also noted this number has increased and is projected to continue increasing. 

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