Disability – Rankin Climate

Several studies have begun documenting college students with disabilities perceptions and experiences with their campus climates, but they are relatively small , single institution studies that focus on one type of disability. In addition to examining existing literature regarding the influence of campus climate on students with disabilities, we provide information from a data set of over 51,000 students from 13 on institutions. In this project, 9,800 of the included students indicated having a disability/medical condition. Our hope is to contribute to a more holistic, representative picture of the American college student with disabilities.

Rankin, S. (2017). The Climate in Higher Education for Students with Disabilities. In Evans, N. J., Broido, E. M., Brown, K. R., & Wilke, A. K. (Eds.) Disability in higher education: A social justice approach. John Wiley & Sons.

The goal of this study was to provide a foundation for developing informed policies to improve the campus climate for employees with disabilities, thereby enhancing their recruitment and retention.

The employment levels of people with disabilities in higher education significantly lag behind the percentage of individuals with disabilities in the broader population. Across all measures, employees with disabilities had a less favorable perception of climate than non-disabled employees, but perceptions were somewhat positive for all groups. Women without disabilities had a less favorable perception of climate than men without disabilities, with the opposite being found for employees with disabilities. Unexpectedly, white employees without disabilities had a less favorable perception of climate than people of color without disabilities. Again, the opposite was the case for employees with disabilities.

Heider, M. A. (2023). Campus Climate and Non-Faculty Employees with Disabilities: A Quantitative Analysis of Perceptions [Doctoral dissertation, Bowling Green State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=bgsu1672996913752353