WWU Give Day 2026

Disability Pride Flag on the WWU University Flagpole during Disability Pride Month

This year, we are focusing our support on the Disability Outreach Center, a program of the Disability Access Center.

Disability Outreach Center
The Disability Outreach Center (DOC) is a disability cultural center and resource hub centering the needs and experiences of disabled students and community allies. The DOC connects students with community, provides education and outreach, and advocates for disabled students.

Led by a team of student employees and a professional staff member,

• We build community by
  • Promoting disability identity development, community, culture, and pride by creating spaces where disabled students can connect, celebrate, and share experiences across the disability community including
    • Facilitating community spaces such as the disability affinity groups, 
    • Coordinating disability affinity event programming including 
      • DisOrientation (part of Western Welcome),
      • Disability Action Month (October),
      • Disability Day of Mourning (on or around March 1),
      • Autism and Neurodivergence Celebration Month (April),
      • DisCo (Disability Community) Graduation and Awards Ceremony (part of Commencement), and
      • Disability Pride Month (July), and
    • Coordinating the Disabled Peer Mentorship Program,
• We provide education and outreach by
  • Providing peer-to-peer support and referrals to students as well as to faculty, staff, and community members and 
  • Providing educational programming, trainings, classroom visits, and information about disability topics such as accessibility best practices, disability community and culture, and disability history to the campus community.
• We support individual and collective advocacy by
  • Serving on councils, committees, and working groups to advocate for increased accessibility, equity, inclusion, and belonging for disabled students and to center the lived experiences, perspectives, and expertise of disabled students.

Founded in March 2010, this year we are celebrating our Sweet 16 anniversary! 

The Disability Outreach Center is one of the less than 20 Disability Cultural Centers (DCCs) on a U.S. college or university campus. We are guided by Disability Justice principles, developed by “disabled Black, Indigenous, and people of the global majority, and queer, trans, and nonbinary disabled people," the Disability Cultural Center Charter developed by the DCC Professional Network, and student leadership.

Highlights from 2025-2026:

• We build community.
  • We have hosted and co-hosted 50+ events, activities, and programs including
    • 1st annual Disability Day of Mourning,
    • 2nd annual DisOrientation, Disability Action Month, and Disability Pride Month,
    • 3rd annual DisCo Graduation and Awards Ceremony,
    • Mask4Mask event series,
    • Affinity groups including Spoons and Knives, BIPOC x Disability Affinity Space, and Fat and Queer,
  • We have launched the first full year of the Disabled Peer Mentorship Program, a mentorship program for first year, transfer, and recently self-identified or newly disabled, chronically ill, neurodivergent, Blind and low vision, d/Deaf, DeafBlind, and Hard of Hearing students at WWU to receive individual mentorship from upper-level peers to increase the retention, success, and wellness of mentees,
  • We have conducted outreach to community organizations in Bellingham and Whatcom County to launch a campus and local community Disability Coalition,
• We provide education and outreach.
  • We have provided consultations, facilitated trainings, and shared educational information about disability, accessibility, and universal design to the campus community, 
  • We have facilitated classroom visits focused on STEM and business departments, 
• We support individual and collective advocacy. 
  • We served on councils, committees, and working groups including the Neurodiversity Inclusion Collaborative, Disability Employee Resource Group, Intersectional Experiences Committee, Trans Week, ASWWU Legislative Affairs Committee, Transportation Advisory Committee, and Information Technology Accessibility Committee to advocate for disabled students, staff, and faculty, and
  • We engaged in student leadership and professional development opportunities including the NASPA Certified Peer Education training. 
    
    

Help support our current and future projects!

• Expanding our capacity for DOC student employees to create more events and programming including signature events and additional affinity groups,  
• Continuing and improving the Disabled Peer Mentorship Program after our start-up funding runs out at the end of this academic year,
• Launching the Disability Coalition made up of campus and local community disability organization,
• Purchasing disability affinity cords in the colors of the disability pride flag, 
• Creating a community mural in the Disability Outreach Center community lounge, 
• Developing an art gallery that showcases student and local disabled artists and celebrates disability culture through visual and tactile art,
• Reestablishing and improving our Disability Studies library, 
• Creating an allergen free pantry and microwave in the Disability Outreach Center community lounge, 
• Establishing a sensory friendly space in the Disability Outreach Center community lounge, 
• Increase outreach to graduate students and students on the Peninsulas and Everett campuses,
• Developing an individual and collective advocacy series focused on skills, strategies, and collective access,
• Exploring options for disability and neurodivergence affinity housing,
• Establishing a disability community student scholarship, the only identity group under the Centers for Student Access, Community, and Intercultural Engagement to not have a community-focused student scholarship, 
• Establishing an emergency financial assistance fund to help students stay enrolled and succeed at Western, especially in times of unexpected hardship or disability-related barriers.

The Disability Outreach Center is funded solely through student fees, and all funding goes to disability affinity programming and student employee wages. No professional staff salaries are funded through student fees. Although the second oldest, the DOC is the least funded department in the Centers for Student Access, Community, and Intercultural Engagement. We need your support to grow and best serve disabled students.

Disabled students make up 21% of the student population at Western. Disabled students make tremendous accomplishments in scholarship, art, and beyond while navigating disability-related barriers and challenging experiences in their lives. Disabled students have identified challenges that pose barriers to their personal well-being and academic success. Disabled students face a significant gap in retention and graduate rates. Disabled students at Western also experience rates of basic needs, housing, and financial aid insecurity significantly higher than the overall rate. Disabled students also report struggles with finding connection or community. Disabled students of all identities, backgrounds, and experiences deserve accessibility, equity, inclusion, belonging, and support. Through building community, providing education and outreach, and engaging in advocacy, the Disability Outreach Center strives for change by working to address barriers and promoting equitable access to all aspects of education and university life. The DOC uses your donations to help alleviate some of these challenges.

We appreciate your donation of any amount. Thank you for supporting disabled students at Western Washington University!

We also encourage you to consider supporting the rest of the Centers for Student Access, Community, and Intercultural Engagement, Multicultural Student Services and LGBTQ+ Western, and our friends at the Institute for Critical Disability Studies and Adaptive Sports Club.