The CACTI Blog: My Contributions In Accessibility and Inclusivity

By Anahy Fernandez, 2024-2025 Undergraduate Interdisciplinary Approach to Disability in Professional Practice Intern

The Sonoran Center for Excellence in Disabilities has fueled and supported my passions in the field of public health during my internship. I was faced with many new things throughout this experience, including new populations to serve, new skills to learn, and new people to interact with. Facing all these new challenges, I worried I did not know enough about the disability community to meaningfully participate. Easing into my internship, I was graced with information and support from others that minimized my fears. I learned that there are not as many resources for the disability community as there should be. I also learned about the importance of accessibility and inclusivity. I began to view this experience as an opportunity for growth through learning.

Reproductive health is a great interest of mine, so it was exciting to be able to support the Sonoran Center’s Pregnancy and Parenting Support for People with Disabilities project. The project included an initial study which had the goal of collecting information about the needs and experiences of individuals with disability and the thought process in becoming pregnant and/or being parents. What stood out to me about the project was how the project used the input of healthcare providers and people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) to improve resources for this population. I started the experience by learning what professionals in the field do in their different models of disability by watching Professional Role Seminars from the Sonoran Center. This was impactful because I was able to learn the personal and professional stories of people with disabilities and how their disabilities impact their lives in different ways. This was a gateway to the work I did on the Pregnancy and Parenting project because these seminars gave me the chance to learn about the disability community before stepping into the project’s goals.

Understanding the importance of accessibility was my gateway to learning how to make strides in accessibility for others, such as captioning videos for the Sonoran Center’s channel. Learning about accessibility gave me time to reflect and think about how I may take captioning for granted, because for some, it’s not just an add on. Now I look for them: “Did this creator add captions to their TikTok?”, “Why did this company not integrate captions onto their advertisement?”, and so on. I did not expect this new perspective, but it is rewarding to provide more accessibility for others through my captioning projects. 

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While working on the Pregnancy and Parenting project, I was excited to start working in my field of interest while also learning about individuals with disabilities. Through the project’s previous findings, I learned that individuals with disabilities want to be parents just as much as individuals without disabilities. As I dove into the literature about this topic, I learned a lot more and translated this into some infographics. One of the infographics I developed is intended to dispel myths about disability and sexuality, and another encourages expecting parents with disabilities to ask important questions and plan for their delivery dates. This too was rewarding because I got to support individuals with disabilities by learning and making resources based on this topic I’m passionate about. This is especially important because the number of resources for adults with disabilities about pregnancy or parenting is nowhere close to the number of resources for individuals without disabilities. Another way that I have been able to contribute is by looking online for additional resources for this population. There is a gap in information that individuals with disabilities can refer to, for both prospective and current parents. I have learned to recognize the disparities that exist and how these significant efforts can contribute to supporting the disability community.

Through this journey I have seen myself becoming comfortable with new things and I expanded my knowledge in the field. Overall, recognizing the disparities that affect people with disabilities and working to close those gaps has been impactful. I have learned so much throughout this experience. I now feel confident in my ability to educate others about individuals with disabilities and their intersecting identities. This is especially true for those that are parents or thinking about becoming parents. I am appreciative of all that I have learned in the process, especially as I have been able to work on a project at the Sonoran Center that I continue to be very excited about.