Co-curated by Brenda Brueggemann and Hannah Dang
Introduction and Outline of the Assignment:
During the first four weeks of the “Disability in American Literature and Culture” course (ENGL / AMST 2274W) at the University of Connecticut, we focused on a collaborative learning adventure about disability institutionalization in the United States. As the concluding writing assignment attached to this four-week unit, students were asked to create a “poster board” (essentially one-slide deck or an infographic-style presentation) on a more SPECIFIC area/topic of the general inquiry under the larger umbrella of “Disability Institutionalization in the U.S.” The following possible subtopics were further suggested:
- A specific kind of disability issue/identity
- Parents in this disability institutionalization process
- Community interactions with disability institutions
- Specific disability institutions
- More focused themes such as:
- care; control; [lack of] autonomy; medicalization; abuse; treatments (psychotropic meds, restraints, confinement, and other awful things); education at/in these institutions; employment at/in these institutions; internalized (resident) labor; employee-resident interactions’ communicable diseases at these institutions; celebration events; testimonials and oral histories; the economics of these institutions; the policies; the politics; the legal histories; the media & newspaper/letters documents; charity and the institutions; deaths and burials; runaways; romance, etc. etc. etc.)
Students were given a full week, essentially, to work on developing this poster board both inside and outside of class (while a couple of films were screened that required little/no homework). We also then did an initial draft “share-around” of their topics and sketched/story-boarded it on a sheet of paper or online board, followed by a further discussion in small groups with what they had sketched out and questions/struggles they were having. The final poster was due several weeks later (and individual writing conferences were held with each student) before that. Finally, their infographic/posters were on public display during the open reception for a major event hosted by the UConn Humanities Institute near the end of the semester, as part of their Medical Humanities series: “The ‘Haunting’ Legacy of the Mansfield Training School.”
TOPICS:
General Timeline of Disability History:
In these three general timeline projects: Shreekar offers, in his “Snapshots” of Disability in the United States poster, an overview of disability history from pre-1492 to present day; Oliver presents a timeline of events surrounding Connecticut’s Institute of Living (originally named the Retreat for the Insane) since their establishment in 1824 to 2024; and Fizza provides a background on the key events and players involved in making colleges/universities and education accessible for disabled students residing in Connecticut.
Snapshots of Disability History in the US, Shreekar Viswanatha
The Institute of Living: Connecticut’s History of Mental Health Treatment, Oliver Przech
Disability Institutionalization: Accessibility in CT Educational Institutions, Fizza Hussain
Mental Health:
In the following three posters, Oliver, Alexandra, and Jaylee consider the consequences of institutionalizations greatly affecting the mental psyches of their patients negatively instead of improving their livelihoods.
The Institute of Living: Connecticut’s History of Mental Health Treatment, Oliver Przech
What is Institutional Autism?, Alexandra Papas
US Disability Institutionalization: Exploring Vulnerability, Power Dynamics, and Health Outcomes, Jaylee Cox
Education:
Fizza’s and Matthew’s posters are about making schools accessible for disabled students in regards to the teaching methods used by the schools and the unalienable rights disabled students should have.
Disability Institutionalization: Accessibility in CT Educational Institutions, Fizza Hussain
American School for the Deaf: The First School for the Deaf in the US, Matthew Kylin
Accessibility:
The theme of “accessibility” is touched upon in Fizza’s poster, in which she asserts the importance of making education accessible to disabled students, especially in colleges/universities. This same theme centers as well in Jessica’s poster – where the highlights illuminate the impact of accessibility in Louisiana’s School for the Deaf, where the comfort of both students and teachers were prioritized, and thus, a spark of community and self-assurance in their identities blossomed.
Disability Institutionalization: Accessibility in CT Educational Institutions, Fizza Hussain
Louisiana School for the Deaf Institutionalization, Jessica Smith
Disabled Indigenous Community:
The intersection between the disability community and the indigenous people’s community are explored in Shreekar’s and Claire’s posters. Both posters emphasize the enduring history Native Americans and disabled indigenous people have undergone in the past due to colonization, cultural erasure, and discrimination.
Colonial Confinement: Disability and Institutionalization of Indigenous People, Claire Murphy
Snapshots of Disability History in the US, Shreekar Viswanatha
Disabled Black American Community:
Danielle writes about a snippet of history of institutionalization for black, disabled people. Danielle specifically summarizes the life of Junius Wilson, a deaf black man who was wrongfully accused of a crime he did not commit and was then institutionalized.
Anti-Blackness in Disability Institutionalization, Danielle N.
Deaf Culture:
Both Matthew and Jessica explore parts of disability history in relation to the deaf community and deaf culture, particularly the education of deaf individuals. Matthew’s poster is about the history of the American School for the Deaf, and Jessica’s poster is about the Louisiana School for the Deaf.
American School for the Deaf: The First School for the Deaf in the US, Matthew Kylin
Louisiana School for the Deaf Institutionalization, Jessica Smith
Disability Today:
In their posters, Sarah, Fizza, and Shreekar excerpt the implications of institutionalization and its grip in the present day.
The Transition to Adulthood for Individuals with Disabilities: Options and Difficulties, Sarah Nowacki
Disability Institutionalization: Accessibility in CT Educational Institutions, Fizza Hussain
Snapshots of Disability History in the US, Shreekar Viswanatha
Personal Family Connections:
Sarah’s poster features a bit of Prof. Heather Cassano’s (UConn) documentary, “Limits of My World.” The documentary centers around Heather’s brother, Brian, who has autism and the challenges he and their family face due to the lack of accommodations in the modern world. In Alexandra’s poster, a narrative on a woman named Adele who developed institutionalized autism due to living at Willowbrook is featured.
What is Institutional Autism?, Alexandra Papas
The Transition to Adulthood for Individuals with Disabilities: Options and Difficulties, Sarah Nowacki
Treatment of Children:
In their posters, Robyn, Ayla, Aleena, Fizza, Sarah, and Jaylee acknowledge the various consequences of institutionalizing children with disabilities, and the trauma that trails after them in adulthood.
Hindsight is 2020: The Impact of Institutionalization on Family Members, Robyn Ampadu
Examining the Roles of Restraint in U.S. Disability Institutionalization, Ayla Fauler
Treatment of Children With Disabilities in Connecticut’s Institute of Living, Aleena Fiazuddin
Disability Institutionalization: Accessibility in CT Educational Institutions, Fizza Hussain
The Transition to Adulthood for Individuals with Disabilities: Options and Difficulties, Sarah Nowacki
US Disability Institutionalization: Exploring Vulnerability, Power Dynamics, and Health Outcomes, Jaylee Cox
Historical Figures:
The following underrated historical figures in disability history are referenced in these ten posters: Ed Roberts, Phyllis Zlotwick, Adele, Francis Kelley, Eunice Kennedy, and Beau Doherty, Denton Mallis, Emily Dickinson, Junius Wilson, Eli Todd, Frederick Olmsted, and Dr. Braceland, Thomas Gallaudet, Laurent Clerc, and Alice Cogswell, and finally, Paul Newman.
Ed Roberts and the Independent Living Movement, Lilian Vito
Disability Institutionalization: Accessibility in CT Educational Institutions, Fizza Hussain
Hindsight is 2020: The Impact of Institutionalization on Family Members, Robyn Ampadu
Connecticut’s History in Special Olympics, Isabella Helgeson
Louisiana School for the Deaf Institutionalization, Jessica Smith
Impact on Disabled Soldiers, Hannah Dang
Anti-Blackness in Disability Institutionalization, Danielle N.
The Institute of Living: Connecticut’s History of Mental Health Treatment, Oliver Przech
American School for the Deaf: The First School for the Deaf in the US, Matthew Kylin
The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp, Ryan Frier
Historical Local Places:
Ryan gives a description and origins of the Hole in the Wall Gang Camp, a camp for kids who either were disabled or had a serious illness, founded by Paul Newman. Matthew’s poster details the American School of the Deaf, which is located in West Hartford, Connecticut; the institution was founded by Thomas Gallaudet and Laurent Clerc.
The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp, Ryan Frier
American School for the Deaf: The First School for the Deaf in the US, Matthew Kylin
Artifacts:
In Ayla’s “Examining the Roles of Restraint in U.S. Disability Institutionalization,” she provides ample information on the origins of restraints used on disabled adults and children as well as their purposes as movement-inhibitors and as forms of punishment. Based on “The Ones We Sent Away” by Jennifer Senior, Robyn’s poster derives from the untold story of Senior’s aunt, Adele, who was institutionalized at Willowbrook. Last but not least, Sarah’s poster delves into the documentary produced by Professor Heather Cassano, a professor residing in Connecticut, about her brother’s autism and his story.
Examining the Roles of Restraint in U.S. Disability Institutionalization, Ayla Fauler
Hindsight is 2020: The Impact of Institutionalization on Family Members, Robyn Ampadu
The Transition to Adulthood for Individuals with Disabilities: Options and Difficulties, Sarah Nowacki
Historical Events:
The posters by Isabella, Hannah, and Shreekar document specific historical events remarked as critical to the timeline of disability history. Such events include: the Special Olympics which was held at the University of Connecticut; the American Civil War: and the several events Shreekar detailed (Colonial Era, American Civil War, Progressive Era, etc.).
Connecticut’s History in Special Olympics, Isabella Helgeson
Impact on Disabled Soldiers, Hannah Dang
Snapshots of Disability History in the US, Shreekar Viswanatha
Disability & Access Collective 