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Empowering Students With Intellectual Disabilities Through Inclusive Sex Education
No full textStudents with intellectual disabilities (ID) are often excluded from comprehensive sex education, despite their right to sexual health knowledge and autonomy (Hill et al., 2024; ASHA, 2025). This exclusion contributes to disproportionate risks including misinformation, sexual victimization, and limited opportunities for healthy relationships. This poster synthesizes current research on the barriers, gaps, and best practices for delivering inclusive sex education to students with ID. General sex education in the U.S. often emphasizes risk prevention while neglecting positive aspects of sexuality (Lameiras-Fernandez et al., 2021). Programs for students with ID are even more limited, characterized by restrictive cultural attitudes, caregiver discomfort, and inaccessible curricula (Frawley & Wilson, 2016; Kamaludin et al., 2022). These barriers perpetuate harmful myths, such as the belief that individuals with ID are asexual and unable to understand or control their desires (Collier, 2017). Digital platforms offer promising avenues for delivering sex education, but most interventions are not tailored to the specific needs of students with ID. Interactive Digital Interventions (IDIs) show potential but require further adaptation and research is needed to ensure accessibility and effectiveness (Bailey et al., 2015). Culturally responsive education is essential, especially for marginalized groups. Yet, many sex education programs remain heteronormative and exclude diverse experiences (Kaley, 2020). Students with ID are often left out of conversations about consent, identity, and relationships; these topics are critical to their safety and well-being (Schaafsma et al., 2017). Barriers to effective sex education for students with ID include varying comprehension abilities (Finlay et al., 2014), restrictive scripts (Löfgren-Mårtenson, 2012), and a lack of involvement in decision-making (Schaafsma et al., 2017). Many students report receiving little or no sex education and when they do, it is often overly biological, rules-based, and inaccessible (Frawley & Wilson, 2016). Cultural beliefs also play a significant role. In some communities, sexuality is considered taboo, and students with ID are infantilized or denied their sexual rights. These attitudes contribute to a lack of accurate health information and reinforce systemic barriers to education. Educators and caregivers often lack the training and resources needed to provide effective sex education (Hill et al., 2024; Lafferty et al., 2012). Teachers report being asked to deliver content without adequate preparation, and parents may delay or avoid discussions due to discomfort or misinformation (Isler et al., 2009; Pownall et al., 2012). The consequences are severe; individuals with ID are up to four times more likely to experience sexual abuse and significantly more likely to contract STIs (Casteel et al., 2008; van Schrojenstein Lantman-de Valk et al., 2000). They are also less likely to receive education on consent, boundaries, and healthy relationships, which are essential skills for autonomy in healthy decision-making. Aligned with NASP’s ethical standards (NASP, 2021), this work emphasizes the school psychologist’s role in advocating for inclusive, developmentally appropriate, and evidence-based sex education. Recommendations include integrating instruction into multi-tiered systems of support (MTSS), using accessible digital tools, and involving students in curriculum design. Programs should be tailored to cognitive abilities, culturally sensitive, and delivered through collaborative partnerships among educators, caregivers, and students in the school community. Ultimately, this review calls for a shift from protection to empowerment. By centering the voices of students with ID and addressing the systemic barriers they face, school psychologists can help ensure that all students receive the education they need to lead safe, healthy, and fulfilling live
Shame on you, Cultural Appropriation! Rethinking Dvořák’s ‘Gypsy Songs, Op. 55
No full textThis paper investigates the portrayal of Romani, “gypsy,” people in Western music, with Antonín Dvořák’s song cycle “Gypsy Songs, Op. 55” as a central case study. It explores the view of cultural appropriation as cultural borrowing, examining how this concept intersects with musical exoticism and orientalism, and how these musical traits shaped Dvořák’s portrayal of Bohemian Romani culture. Drawing on historical and socio-musical methodologies, the study analyzes the Bohemian Romani and Hungarian influences in Dvořák’s cycle. It discusses the ecological impact of the Gypsy Songs within its cultural environment and implications for performance reception. By situating Dvořák’s work within broader debates on authorship, authenticity, and representation, this research contributes to ongoing discourse on the ethics of an inevitable, and not always wrong, cultural borrowing in music. Ultimately, it seeks to reassess how nineteenth-century exoticism informs current perspectives on cultural “cancelation” and the evolving moral standards applied to cross-cultural artistic expression
The Legacy of Redlining: Examining Educational Inequalities in Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Full text linkThis study investigates the lasting impact of redlining on educational inequality in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Redlining, a discriminatory housing practice, segregated communities and restricted resources based on race and socioeconomic status. The research explores disparities in school funding, student demographics, and academic achievement between formerly redlined and non-redlined areas. Using a combination of literature review, historical data, and spatial analysis, the study seeks to uncover patterns linking redlining to modern educational outcomes. Hypotheses include lower funding, higher minority populations, and lower achievement levels in redlined areas. Data collection and analysis will identify how historical redlining practices influence current structural inequalities. The expected findings aim to emphasize the importance of implementing specific policy changes, such as more equitable funding distribution and efforts to reduce segregation. By linking historical housing discrimination to current educational challenges, this research strives to guide strategies for building a more equitable and inclusive education system in Cedar Rapids and beyond
KidZone Shadow Puppet Theatre
No full textAlt Text: RodCon attendees learn how to make colorful puppets for the Shadow Puppet Theatre in the Tree Room.https://scholarworks.uni.edu/rodcon2025_photos/1021/thumbnail.jp
The 501st Legion
No full textAlt Text: The 501st Legion poses in front of their table at RodCon.https://scholarworks.uni.edu/rodcon2025_photos/1039/thumbnail.jp
38. Protest 2025. United Faculty [article]
Full text linkCitation: NI Staff. (2025, April 9). United Faculty cements opposition to higher education bills in statement. Northern Iowan, 3.https://scholarworks.uni.edu/lgbtq_projects/1011/thumbnail.jp
29. Dragaganza 2025 [poster, October 27, 2024]
Full text linkPoster showcasing the Drag-a-ganza event which took place on October 27, 2024.https://scholarworks.uni.edu/lgbtq_projects/1003/thumbnail.jp
Drag-A-Ganza: Pink Pony Princess [poster]
Full text linkUNI Proud 2025 Dragaganza poster.https://scholarworks.uni.edu/proud_documents/1069/thumbnail.jp
Intergenerational Arts in the Classroom: A Win-Win
Full text linkThis paper suggests that intergenerational arts programs, particularly those conducted in public schools, can help participants build empathy, a sense of community and belonging. Evidence of these changes was collected through informal observations during three intergenerational art classes in a first grade classroom, as well as through discussions with participants before and after their participation in the intergenerational arts programming. Empathy and community can be built through carefully planned collaborative art-making opportunities and the effect can be evidenced in the forming of relationships, the absence of behavioral problems, and the building of the facilitator’s personal network. The paper concludes that intergenerational art programs are worth the effort for a variety of reasons