The goal of this three-year project is to create a model program that targets students in Arizona at all levels—from middle school through graduate school—who are physically disabled, in order to increase the proportion following Science, Mathematics, Engineering, and Technology (SMET) curricula. We wish to promote opportunities for SMET middle school, high school, and university students with physical disabilities to achieve a high level of success, both academically and professionally, through the removal of architectural, technological, and societal barriers that presently exist. This project has the following objectives.

• To increase the proportion of the middle school students with physical disabilities throughout Arizona who will pursue SMET subjects for college preparation when they become high school students.
• To increase the proportion of the high school students with physical disabilities who will pursue SMET subjects when they become college students.
• To increase the proportion of the college undergraduate students with physical disabilities who will pursue SMET subjects when they become graduate students.
• To establish a mentoring and role model system between SMET middle and high school students, college students, and SMET professionals in industry and in education, all with physical disabilities.
• To educate school teachers and college faculty—particularly international faculty and teaching assistants—peers, co-workers, and parents, resulting in the elimination of stereotyping and the encouragement of self-esteem among students with disabilities.
• To assess existing SMET laboratories at the University of Arizona (UA) with a view to transforming them into barrier free environments allowing full access to all equipment contained therein.

Our approach consists of eight interrelated components.

1. Middle/High School Student Outreach. This component is designed to increase the interest in SMET fields by middle and high school students with disabilities. It is accomplished through mentoring by current UA SMET students with disabilities and faculty, who travel to schools throughout the state meeting with students.

2. Middle/High School Counselor/Teacher Training Workshops. We will host workshops for school counselors and teachers focusing on strategies to encourage students with disabilities to pursue a career in a SMET field. The two-hour workshops will be conducted by UA SMET faculty and UA students who are physically disabled.

3. Encouragement Grants. We will award 15 grants, of $1,500 each, through a competitive process to science/math teachers who attended the workshops for middle/high school teachers and counselors. These grants will encourage the design of projects to promote continued study in SMET among students with physical disabilities.

4. Summer Institute. This is a five-week long summer institute held at UA for 15 middle school students with physical disabilities. Topics will be drawn from Biology, Chemistry, Computer Science, Engineering, Mathematics, and Physics.

5. Mentoring Undergraduates. At UA, SMET graduate students with physical disabilities will mentor SMET undergraduates with physical disabilities.

6. Industry Outreach. We will establish contacts and match professionals with physical disabilities in industry and education with middle school, high school, undergraduate, and graduate students with disabilities.

7. Lab Facilities Survey. We will perform assessments of existing UA SMET laboratory facilities, and specify what changes need to be made for each laboratory surveyed to be transformed into a barrier free environment.

8. Faculty Development Workshops. We will hold workshops for UA faculty and Graduate Teaching Assistants on disability awareness and alternative teaching methods.