Photo of Daniel Freeman.

Daniel Freeman

Daniel (Dan) Freeman is physically disabled and currently a graduate student pursuing a degree in College Student Development at Kansas State University after graduating from Indiana University-Bloomington with a BA in English. Dan hopes to one day be a published YA fiction author as well as a college professor in the humanities, specifically focusing on Children’s/ YA Literature and media through a disability studies and social justice lens. His paper, “Performing Ableism in YA Literature,” was presented at the 2015 Society for Disability Studies Conference in Atlanta, Georgia, and was an adaptation of his undergraduate Honors thesis entitled, “Issues of Ableism, Authorship, and Reader Identity in Young Adult Fiction”.

Pieces

The author at Warner Bros Studios, standing on a bridge set piece for the Harry Potter movies.

Ableism and the Academy: What College Has Taught Me About My Disabled Body

College campuses can, and should, do a better job of advocating for their students, staff and faculty with disabilities.