The Disability, Education, and Society Podcast

Alexis Padilla & Paulo Tan
  • 5.0 (4)
  • Education

A podcast for collective (un)learning in the struggle for intersectional liberation. We focus on educational realms, expanding to other societal areas. We share our stories as academics as well as those of our featured guests, including disability activists involved with multifaceted dimensions of system’s equity, self-determination efforts, anti-ableist and antiracist liberation. Join us as co-conspirators. This podcast is also available on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@DES_podcast

  1. Jun 25

    20. Cripping Cultural Sustaining and Responsive Pedagogies & Disability Pride and Culture

    In this episode, we are joined by Dr. Sarah Arvey Tov for a thoughtful conversation about disability identity, culture, and justice in education. Together, we explore what it means to move beyond traditional ideas of inclusion by centering disabled voices, honoring disability as a valued part of identity, and creating learning environments where all students can thrive. Dr. Sarah Arvey Tov shares insights from her work with disabled youth, educators, and communities, discussing disability culture, collective access, and the transformative potential of disability justice in schools. This episode invites listeners to reimagine education through the lens of belonging, equity, and possibility.   Link to Transcript! Connect with Sarah via e-mail: satov@uw.edu   One Out of Five: Disability History and Pride Project

  2. Jun 24

    19. I Will Not Be Silent: Dr. Shariese Katrell on Disability, Race, and Resistance

    In this powerful episode of the Disability Education and Society Podcast, we sit down with Dr. Shariese Katrell, disability rights activist, scholar, musician, and advocate, to discuss her extraordinary journey navigating higher education as a Black woman with multiple hidden disabilities. Shariese shares her experiences developing a neurological disability at age 18, overcoming systemic barriers, advocating for herself in academic spaces, and challenging the intersections of ableism, racism, and inequality. Through stories of resilience, activism, music, and scholarship, she highlights the importance of representation, self-determination, and creating more inclusive educational systems. This conversation offers a moving and thought-provoking exploration of disability justice, identity, and the power of using one's voice to create change. Link to Transcript!

  3. Jun 24

    18. Critical Trauma, Mental Health, and Education with Dr. Chantal Figueroa

    In this episode we converse with Chantal Figueroa, Ph.D., a researcher, educator, and strategist that specializes in designing evidence-based programs meant to support the mental health and wellbeing of Latine peoples. Dr. Figueroa is the co-editor of the book titled Dis/ability in the Americas: The Intersections of Education, Power, and Identity. The conversation explores issues of mental and decoloniality and connections to educational spaces. Also in this episode: Alexis shares his childhood experiences in a boarding school.  Link to transcript here! Dr. Figueora's website https://www.chantalfigueroa.com/ Dr. Figuerora's email cfigueroa@coloradocollege.edu

  4. 10/10/2025

    17. Disrupting Master Narratives through Disabled Voices and Access Intimacy with Dr. David Hernández-Saca

    In this episode we converse with David I. Hernández-Saca, Ph.D., an associate professor in the Department of Special Education at the University of Northern Iowa. The conversation explores what truly matters, the role of healing, disability consciousness, immigration and citizenship, and disrupting master narratives,  "common sense," and labeling practices in schools through disabled voices.  Link to Audio transcript Dr Hernández-Saca's university profile page Dr Hernández-Saca's university facebook page Dr Hernández-Saca's co-authored article: “Storying” from special education classroom: Centering voices from accessible-interdependence-intimacy as interdisciplinary justice in pedagogical practices Mia Mingus Access Intimacy

  5. 10/03/2025 ·  Video

    16. Rethinking Disability in Maths: A Conversation with Dr. Rachel Lambert

    In this episode of the DES podcast, we sit down with Dr. Rachel Lambert, associate professor at UC Santa Barbara, to discuss her groundbreaking book Rethinking Disability in Mathematics: A UDL Math Classroom Guide for Grades K-8. Dr. Lambert shares powerful stories about disability, inclusion, and the need to reimagine math education as a space of accessibility, creativity, and equity. We explore the systemic barriers that disable students in math, the power of time and collaboration, and the importance of challenging deficit narratives. Tune in for an insightful conversation that pushes the boundaries of how we think about mathematics and disability.   Transcript link: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1khVmTMVCPXkYndjkYDuhvLSEr3VHWhszjdpAmgkWVrU/edit?usp=sharing   Link to Dr. Rachel Lambert's book: https://www.amazon.com/Rethinking-Disability-Mathematics-Classroom-Grades/dp/1071926039

  6. 03/13/2025 ·  Video

    15. Rejections, Resistance, and Reconnection: Disability, Academia, and Activism

    In this episode of the DES, co-hosts Paulo and Alexis return after a long break to discuss their latest academic work, activism, and the evolving political landscape. They explore the power of rejected scholarship as a catalyst for new ideas, the intersections of disability justice with broader social movements, and the urgent need for cross-coalitional solidarity in the face of rising authoritarianism. Tune in for a thought-provoking conversation on resilience, writing, and the ongoing fight for liberation.   Transcript link: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1kxvDROW3002856wPVzveWDIM4lzULtCv_sux_Gp4Kgo/edit?usp=sharing

  7. 05/07/2024

    14. Abolitionist Educational Unit Planning Tool

    In this episode, DES co-host Paulo Tan shares a practical application of abolitionist mathematics practices. This episode is a companion to episode #13 where Paulo laid out the groundwork for abolitionist mathematics practices. It is helpful but not necessary to first engage with episode #13 before engaging with this current episode. The practical application Paulo shares is one of infinite possibilities of abolitionist mathematics practices. Paulo shares this practical idea in the context of elementary mathematics teacher education.   Presentation slide Subscribe to DES on YouTube for the video of this episode. Find DES on Twitter (@DES_podcast), Instagram (@DES_podcast), and Facebook.  To support the DES community please subscribe to the DES podcast and become a DES patron

  8. 04/30/2024

    13. What can Special & Mathematics Education Learn from Prison Abolition Movements?

    In this episode, DES co-host Paulo Tan shares a presentation he recently completed on abolitionist mathematics practices at Purdue University. Drawing on Black Feminist thought on prison abolition, Dr. Tan forwards three crucial tenets (i.e., imagining utopian futures, intersectional struggles, and immediate change making) to guide the fields of special and mathematics education. Dr. Tan argues that these tenets are necessary to eliminate harms disabled students encounter in special and mathematics education while collectively building more just futures. Situating this argument in elementary schooling contexts, Dr. Tan implicates mathematics education in its complicity and perpetuation of containment, a form of incarceration that denies opportunities to certain disabled students. As such, Dr. Tan calls on educational researchers and practitioners to take up leadership in this disability freedom struggle.  Link to view the slide deck Books mentioned: Abolition. Feminism. Now. Decarcerating Disability: Deinstutionalization and Prison Abolition Subscribe to DES on YouTube for the video of this episode. Find DES on Twitter (@DES_podcast), Instagram (@DES_podcast), and Facebook.  To support the DES community please subscribe to the DES podcast and become a DES patron

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About

A podcast for collective (un)learning in the struggle for intersectional liberation. We focus on educational realms, expanding to other societal areas. We share our stories as academics as well as those of our featured guests, including disability activists involved with multifaceted dimensions of system’s equity, self-determination efforts, anti-ableist and antiracist liberation. Join us as co-conspirators. This podcast is also available on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@DES_podcast

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