COMMUNITY
Toward Inclusion for People Who Experience Disability in the Speech and Debate Community: Questions and Answers Part Three in a Three-Part Rostrum Series
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What percentage of the American population experiences a disability?
and Training Center of Disability Statistics and Demographics from the University of New Hampshire, in 2016, 12.8 percent of Americans experienced a disability. The disability rate for young people between the ages of five and 17 was 5.6 percent. 1 As Education Week in September 2020 points out, the average high school has about 528 students. 2 This equates to about 30 students with disabilities per school. According to the NSDA website, there are approximately 3,000 high schools that are members of the organization. Thus, there may be as many as 90,000 students attending NSDA member schools who experience a disability.
According to the 2017 Disability Statistics Annual Report: A Publication of the Rehabilitation Research
What are some of the societal challenges experienced by
n this final installment in a three-part series on advancing inclusion for people who experience disability in the speech and debate community, the authors employ a question and answer format designed to take a deeper look at some of the issues experienced by individuals with disabilities. We hope these topics will help coaches, students, judges, and administrators gain a greater awareness of the challenges that disabled individuals face—thus, enhancing the opportunity for more outreach and understanding.
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individuals who experience a disability? Persons with disabilities encounter significant issues related to employment, economic status, and education. According to the Bureau of Internet Accessibility in their article “Disability Statistics in the United States” published November 29, 2018: “Employment rates for people with disabilities are consistently less than half of people without disabilities.” 3 The article goes on to explain, “The employment discrepancy between people with and without disabilities extends to their incomes as well.” 4 Furthermore, “In 2016, the poverty rate for people with disabilities was 21 percent, versus 13 percent for people without disabilities.” 5 Additionally, “People with disabilities often
by Victoria Freeman and Jan Pizzo experience challenges at all levels of the educational system. For example, only 16 percent of people with disabilities have completed a bachelor’s degree, versus 35 percent of people without disabilities. In addition, 20 percent of people with a disability do not have a high school diploma, versus 10 percent of people without a disability.” 6
Are there challenges facing the disability community that might be different from those experienced by other minority groups? Individuals who live with a disability face intentional and unintentional bias and discrimination. This group also contends with unique issues. Many persons with a disability live in families and communities and attend schools where they have no compatriots. While this is not always the case, it is true for a significant percentage of members of the disabled community. This