Institute for Human Development

Changing the way you experience the world

Access | Attitude | Inclusion

Our Work:

Impacts people at all life stages – individually and socially
Facilitates research to inform change that positively impacts individuals with disabilities

Vision: People with disabilities fully participate in all life experiences.

Mission: Promote full inclusion by advancing attitudes that value persons with disabilities and enhancing access to all aspects of the human experience.

IHD fosters the development of attitudes that promote the increased inclusion of individuals with disabilities in their communities. Attitudes, as barriers to or facilitators of inclusion, go hand-in-hand with access. Access, commonly thought of as access to services and supports, has a much broader meaning: while services are essential for inclusion, access also refers to access to information, education, inclusive physical environments, community participation, friendships, and relationships. Conceptually, access and attitude have reciprocal roles in promoting or inhibiting inclusion.

The toughest barriers faced by people with disabilities are not architectural, they are attitudinal. They are not in the environment, they are in our hearts and in our minds. When people with disabilities are integrated throughout our communities, we are given the opportunity to change our attitudes from ones based on stereotypes, fear, and ignorance, to ones based on admiration, acceptance, and affection… We all gain from the opportunity to experience people with developmental disabilities as friends, as neighbors, as coworkers, as classmates.

Senator Tom Harkin

News and Articles of Interest

Click to read IHD’s 2021-2022 Report to the Community annual report.

IHD awarded $5M to provide training and technical support to tribal vocational rehabilitation projects

Posted November 11, 2021

“Living the Dream,” a profile of IHD Professor for Disability Studies Matthew Wangeman written by Andrew Faught, has been awarded the 2021 Circle of Excellence by the Council for Advancement and Support of Education. One nominator described Professor Wangeman as “father, scholar, and disability studies lecturer who is himself a member of the disabled community,” and commended the article for its insightful look at the hardships faced by people with disabilities as well as the accompanying photo essay, which conveys “not just the details of Matthew’s daily life but also his sheer joy of living.”

Parents, family members, or professionals in the field, do you need information on an AAC Evaluation? Go to the NAU AAC Evaluation Page for program and contact information.