History

Wesleyan's Course Cluster in Disability Studies was a student-led initiative. In 2010, two students active in Wesleyan Students for Disability Rights (WSDR), Ariel Schwartz and Allegra Stout, approached Professor Margot Weiss to discuss strategies for increasing Disability Studies offerings at Wesleyan (see the WSDR 2010 statement of needs and goals here). Working with faculty in American Studies, Anthropology, English, FGSS, History, and SISP, Prof. Weiss proposed a Course Cluster in Disability Studies to the Wesleyan faculty in late 2010. The Cluster became part of Wesleyan's curriculum in April 2011 (see Argus coverage here). 

In 2014, Schwartz and Stout published a research article, "'It'll Grow Organically and Naturally': The Reciprocal Relationship between Student Groups and Disability Studies on College Campuses," in Disability Studies Quarterly. The article explores the role student activism can play in developing disability studies on campus.