Changing the Culture (CTC): A Collaborative Training Model to Create Systemic Change

The goal of the Changing the Culture project at the University of Rhode Island is to develop a multi-institutional, statewide network of disability resource mentors, whereby faculty and administrators encourage their department colleagues to develop policies and teaching practices that are inclusive of students with disabilities. The CTC program is systematically increasing the number of disability resource mentors in private and public postsecondary institutions in Rhode Island. One of several outcomes of the project’s seminar, and the resulting day-to-day presence of disability resource mentors, has been increased system-wide inclusiveness for students with disabilities. departments to raise consciousness about the challenges students with disabilities face, increase knowledge about disabilities, consider what various accommodations make possible, and occasionally help resolve conflicts if someone is unwilling or hesitant to provide the requested accommodations. Underlying this approach to faculty development