Congratulations to the 2019 winners, Ashley Cowan D'Ambrosio and Jasmair Bains and Ellie Hurlbert!

The Dennis Lang Award recognizes UW students who have a demonstrated commitment to the field of disability studies and issues of social justice for individuals with disabilities.   Two awards were given this year. 

• Ashley Cowan D’Ambrosio – for her work as Director of the ASUW Student Disability Commission and efforts to expand accessible distance learning opportunities, universal design, and post-secondary modifications for disabled students.

Ashley's Major is Disability Studies; Minors in Diversity, and Education, Learning and Society. Named to the Husky 100 in 2019. Director of the ASUW Student Disability Commission (2017-2019); projects include secured funding for a new Assistant Director role, led a team featuring 10 internship positions, introduced the F*** Stairs campaign and UW tours is now taking the pledge and learning ADA routes they had historically not known, begun work on a campaign called #DistanceLearningNow and have advocated for greater distance learning integration across campus, beginning critical dialogue with stakeholders about the need. Future Plans: I have been accepted into CUNY’s Master of Arts in Disability Studies. I hope to eventually pursue a career in higher education leadership, and/or pursue my PhD in Education, to address the need for distance learning integration in post secondary programs.

• Jasmair Bains and Ellie Hurlbert – for their work as co-founders and co-leaders of a Task Force that is developing a meaningful and inclusive educational opportunity for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities at the UW Seattle campus.

Jasmair's Major is Communication; Minors in Diversity, and Disability Studies. Co-Chair of a task force that is trying to bring a 30-credit certificate program to UW for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, UW Unified Special Olympics, Special Olympics Washington, HUB Board of Reps, and Choose Love UW. Future Plans: Continue my efforts to implement the 30-credit program for people with I/DD at UW.

Ellie's Major is Speech and Hearing Sciences; Minor in American Sign Language. Research Assistant in the Child Language Lab, Service Learning Intern at Olympic Hills Elementary School, Founder/Secretary of Delta Epsilon Mu (a co-ed, professional, pre-health fraternity on campus), Media Coordinator of ASL Club, Secretary of NSSLHA (National Student Speech Language and Hearing Association), Co-Chair of a task force that is trying to bring a 30-credit certificate program to UW for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and 2 years of volunteering at Seattle Children’s Hospital. Future Plans: I have committed to attend the University of Washington’s Medical Speech Language Pathology Master’s Program starting in Fall of 2019 and become a pediatric Speech-Language Pathologist focusing in Traumatic Brain Injury. 

Congratulations to Ashley, Jasmair and Ellie for their efforts to continue Dennis Lang’s activism on campus!