News & Events

MIHEC News

Inclusive Higher Ed Moves Forward

Momentum: The Summer 2023 issue of MIHEC's newsletter

Impact: Feature Issue on Transition in a Global Context

Moving Forward: Inclusive Higher Ed. Mary Hauff received the Exceptional Advocate Award from the Minnesota Council on Disability, recognizing her contributions to building momentum for inclusive higher education in the state.

Impact: Feature Issue on Inclusive Higher Education for People with Intellectual, Developmental, and Other Disabilities

Profiles of Prospective Students, Current Students, and College Graduates

John James

Brynn Sexton

Gage Robinson

Dupree Edwards

Jean Hauff

Alicia Wickem

Coming Events

January 2024

MIHEC Community of Practice Event: National Accreditation Standards and Resources for Program Accreditation

January 23

Time: 3:00 - 4:15 pm Central Time

Register here for this event.

This session will provide an overview of the national accreditation standards and valuable insight into how to embed the standards into new or existing inclusive higher education initiatives. The conversation will include resources developed by the Think College National Coordinating Center and information about the Inclusive Higher Education Accreditation Council. The program accreditation standards are part of the Minnesota Inclusive Higher Education competitive grants. Also, learn about the available planning tools to support you in aligning your inclusive higher education initiative with the national accreditation standards.

Presenter Biographies

Mary Judge Diegert, Ed.D., is the associate director of the Center for Disability and Education at University of Rochester’s Warner School of Education and Human Development. She is also the disability services coordinator at the Warner School of Education. Dr. Judge Diegert has over 25 years of experience in education and working with people with disabilities and their families. She is a member of the Think College National Coordinating Center Accreditation Workgroup and a Think College consultant for inclusive higher education accreditation. She also co-leads the New York State Inclusive Higher Education Coalition and co-chairs the Northeast Regional Alliance. Her research interests are focused on increasing equity and access to higher education for students with disabilities. She is also committed to self-advocacy, policy, and systems change.

Martha Mock, Ph.D., is a Professor at the Warner School of Education and Human Development, at the University of Rochester. She is also the executive director of the Inclusive Higher Education Accreditation Council, a new program accreditor for higher education programs serving students with intellectual disability. Mock has worked alongside and on behalf of individuals with disabilities and their families as a teacher, professor, and advocate for three decades. Mock is widely known for her work in the area of college options for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities. She is the chair of the Accreditation Workgroup for the Think National Coordinating Center and is the co-founder of the New York Inclusive Higher Education Coalition, a group of colleges, agencies, and families interested in promoting inclusive higher education throughout New York State.

Past Events

November 2023

MIHEC Learning Community Event: High-Quality Inclusive Higher Education Initiatives (November 28)

In this session, presenter Edie Cusack reviews the process of creating an effective and successful post-secondary education program for students with intellectual disability from conception to implementation. She joined the College of Charleston [South Carolina] in 2010 and established a four-year, fully-inclusive postsecondary education initiative on campus. Drawing on her experience, Cusack covers planning, potential barriers, training, engaging all stakeholders, and measuring outcomes. She explains how to prepare faculty and staff and develop potential systems of support including tutors and mentors. She also has suggestions for students and their parents on how to prepare for college while still in high school and gives tips for the college search. See Cusack's TEDx Talk on “College– possible for students with intellectual disability. ”

November 2023

MIHEC Community of Practice Gathering: A Guide to the Comprehensive Transition and Postsecondary (CTP) Program Designation (November 14)

The CTP program designation empowers colleges and universities to offer an affordable inclusive higher education initiative. Eligible students with intellectual disability can access federal financial aid when they attend an approved CTP program at an accredited college or university, even if they do not have a standard high school diploma and/or are not seeking a degree. In Minnesota, the CTP program approval also opens the door to state financial aid for eligible Minnesota students with intellectual disability. The gathering opened with a brief overview of the CTP program by Cate Weir, who is coordinator of the Think College National Coordinating Center. This was followed by a panel discussion/Q&A with faculty and staff who have completed the CTP program application process. The panelists were Kami Gallus (Professor and Associate Director of the Oklahoma State University Center for Developmental Disabilities), Jennifer Woegens (Executive Director of Elevate at Arapahoe Community College), and Chad M. Blew (director of scholarships and financial aid at Oklahoma State University). Minnesota college and university faculty and staff—especially financial aid officers—gained practical advice, tips, and resources to complete the application process and obtain CTP program approval for their institutions.

October 2023

MIHEC Community of Practice Gathering: Inclusive Teaching, In Practice and Theory (October 17)

A gathering of Minnesota college and university faculty and staff who are either interested in or part of their campus' inclusive higher education initiative. Facilitated by faculty members Annette Romualdo (University of Minnesota Duluth) and Diana Joseph (Minnesota State University, Mankato).

October 2023

MIHEC Learning Community Event: A Community-Based Collaborative Transition Model for Minnesota Youth with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (October 10)

The Institute on Community Integration (ICI) leads a Community-Based Collaborative Transition Model project to improve the transition experiences and outcomes of Minnesota students with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The project intersects with MIHEC's inclusive higher education efforts to expand postsecondary education options for students with an intellectual disability. In this webinar, ICI's Renáta Tichá, Brian Abery, and Seunghee Lee shared the project goals, preliminary findings, and next steps. They also discussed the importance of the collaborative group of stakeholders who are project partners: MIHEC, school districts, state agencies, local service providers, and disability advocacy agencies.

September 2023

MIHEC Learning Community Event: Strategic Partnerships Derived from Common Goals (Employment Opportunities, Work Skills Training, and Transition to Employment after College) (September 19)

Oklahoma has three Inclusive Post Secondary Education (IPSE) options for students with intellectual/developmental disabilities which are Comprehensive Transition and Postsecondary Programs (CTP designated) and one IPSE program for degree-seeking students with autism. Julie Lackey (Director of OKIPSE Alliance) and Yolanda Scott (Youth Programs Manager for Central Oklahoma Workforce Innovation Board) helped build the strategic partnerships that support students’ access to college and community employment, which are essential components of the Oklahoma IPSE initiatives. During this presentation, Lackey and Scott discussed the partnerships that Oklahoma IPSE has forged with Oklahoma Vocational Rehabilitation, the Oklahoma City Community Foundation, and the Central Oklahoma Workforce Innovation Board. Innovative collaborations with these organizations that have similar goals tap existing resources and funding to support students, IPSE staff, and off-campus employers when students work off-campus while enrolled and pursue competitive integrated employment after graduation.

September 2023

Community of Practice Gathering: All Things Inclusive Higher Education (September 12)

A gathering of Minnesota college and university faculty and staff who are either interested in or part of their campus' inclusive higher education initiative. Facilitated by faculty members Annette Romualdo (University of Minnesota Duluth) and Diana Joseph (Minnesota State University, Mankato).

May 2023

Community of Practice Gathering: Inclusive Teaching, In Theory and Practice

A gathering of Minnesota college and university faculty and staff who are either interested in or part of their campus' inclusive higher education initiative. Facilitated by faculty members Annette Romualdo (University of Minnesota Duluth) and Diana Joseph (Minnesota State University, Mankato).

April 2023

MIHEC Learning Community Event: Embracing Dignity of Risk (April 18)

Magen Rooney-Kron, Christopher Worth, and Stephen Schomaker—all from the University of Missouri-St. Louis (UMSL)—emphasized the importance of the dignity of risk for students with intellectual disabilities who are pursuing an inclusive postsecondary education. They discussed authentic dignity of risk, what it looks like on a college campus, and some of its benefits and outcomes.

Rooney-Kron taught high school students with intellectual disability in Chicago and now teaches the Transition Issues and Planning course at UMSL. Her research focuses on (a) the inclusion of students with significant support needs in high-quality, work-based learning experiences and (b) how policies, such as the Workforce Innovation and Opportunities Act, affects the provision of transition services to youth with disabilities.

Worth is a community organizer, community educator, writer, and visual artist with a disability. He takes a strengths-based approach to disability, teaching in the UMSL Succeed program, which is a postsecondary program for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Worth's research interests include exploring how “calculated risk” can improve self-determination across the life course.

Schomaker was a senior in the Succeed Program at UMSL in spring 2023. He intends to continue his education at UMSL with support from the Link Program. Schomaker plans to pursue an education degree and teach physical education in middle school.

April 2023

Community of Practice Gathering: Campus Allies and Community Partners (April 10)

A gathering of Minnesota college and university faculty and staff who are either interested in or part of their campus's inclusive higher education initiative. Facilitated and led by Annette Romualdo, UMD faculty, and Diana Joseph, Minnesota State Mankato faculty.

March 2023

Learning Community Event: The Portable Credential and Planning for Life After College

Christi Kasa, Ph.D., from the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs, shared two important aspects of Colorado’s inclusive postsecondary education (IPSE) programs: The Portable Credential and Planning for Life After College. She was joined by one of her students who shared their experience.

Kasa is a Professor for the Department of Teaching and Learning and the Director of the Office of Inclusive Services in the College of Education at the University of Colorado. Her passion guides her teaching, research, and consulting to create successful inclusive schools. Kasa’s expertise is in Universal Design for Learning, best practices for inclusive schooling, and inclusive post-secondary education. Her began her career teaching in the public schools of California as a general education teacher and special education teacher. Kasa now spends time in schools all over the country, working to end the segregation of students with disabilities.

February 2023

Learning Community Event: Customized Employment

Jaclyn Camden of Virginia Commonwealth University discussed the importance of paid employment while in college and offered information on a national study to assist staff in higher education to provide employment supports that fit the strengths and needs of college students with IDD. The presenter explained how to help students get paid jobs while in college and suggested practical strategies on implementing customized employment in higher education. The presentation also shared what has worked for study participants, representing 75 universities across the country, as well as challenges they faced in providing employment supports. Facilitated by Nicole Rabinowitz, Inclusive Networking.

December 2022

Community of Practice Gathering: Building Relationships and Allies on Campus

A gathering of Minnesota college and university faculty and staff who are either interested in or part of their campus's inclusive higher education initiative. Facilitated and led by Annette Romualdo, UMD faculty, and Diana Joseph, Minnesota State Mankato faculty.

November 2022

Learning Community Event: 2022 National Inclusive Higher Education Conference Key Takeaways

A conversation that shared key developments, big ideas, and important resources from the 2022 national inclusive higher education conferences. The State of the Art (SOTA) and Student Leadership Conference (SLC) happened in October 2022 in Syracuse, New York. MIHEC members who attended those conferences shared what they learned and how we could apply it to our Minnesota initiatives. The presenters included Mary Hauff of MIHEC and Diana Joseph, a faculty member at Minnesota State University, Mankato.

October 2022

MIHEC Workgroup Webinar: Community of Practice

This first Minnesota Community of Practice for inclusive higher education gathering was designed for Minnesota college and university faculty and staff who are either interested in or part of their campus's inclusive higher education initiative. Facilitated and led by Annette Romualdo, UMD faculty, and Diana Joseph, Minnesota State Mankato faculty.

September 2022

MIHEC Learning Community Webinar: Public Policy Advocacy

Julia Burkstaller and Dupree Edwards shared their experience advocating for inclusive higher education in Minnesota, providing information on state-level advocacy, what it takes to get a bill signed into law, and what you can do to get involved in public policy advocacy. Students, parents, educators, and faculty can all make a difference as inclusive higher education public policy advocates.

April 2022

Student Journeys

Gain insight from the experiences of current college students and graduates. The student panel members shared their experiences about their journey preparing for college and going to college. What has their experience been? What would they do differently? What are their career aspirations after college or what career are they pursuing after college? Their answers are in the video.

March 2022

Access to College: Ableism vs. Inclusion and Opportunity

This event shared how disability history - in its legacy of segregation and separation - still influences educator attitudes, school systems, and the educational experiences of people with disabilities.

February 2022

What Are Your College Plans?

Presenters at this Student and Family Information night included members of the Minnesota Inclusive Higher Education Consortium (MIHEC) workgroup.

November 2021

Student Supports: A Panel Presentation and Discussion with Georgia Tech's Excel Program .

Presenters included student Martha Haythorn, peer mentor Hanna Shaw, parent Preston Tauscher, mentorship coordinator Luke Roman, and the Excel Program director, Ken Surdin.

October 2021

What Does Inclusive Higher Education Look Like?

Amy D'Agati presented on the Terps-EXCEED Model at the University of Maryland.

September 2021

Campus Capacity Building

Presented by Jessica Lamb from Augustana University and Diana Joseph from Minnesota State University, Mankato.

May 2021

Person-Centered Planning

Presented by Mark Winters from Beacon Specialized Living.

April 2021

Job Coaching and Peer/Natural Supports

Presented by Nicole Rabinowitz from INclusive Networking.

March 2021

Minnesota CTPs: Reconnect and Share

Presented by Benjamin Larson from Ridgewater College, Dawn Allen from Bethel BUILD, and Patricia Sloan from Central Lakes College.

November 2020

Action and Outreach: A Community Discussion About Next Steps in Minnesota

October 2020

Braided Funding

Presented by Debra Hart from Think College and University of Massachusetts, Jan Bechtel from Millersville University, and Denise Rozell from Think College and AUCD.

September 2020

Meaningful Credentials

Presented by Kelly Haines and Russ Thelin from Think College.