Alyssa Vafaei

Counselor

Past Education highlights: M.S. in Marriage, Family and Child Counseling at Sacramento State University; Assistive Technology Applications Certificate at CSUN; Deaf Studies coursework at Palomar College
Past Professional Experience Highlights: Director of Bachelor’s Degree Completion Program at University of San Francisco – Branch Campuses
Favorite Quote: “Compliance does not equal equity: access exists on a continuum. What is equitable is almost always compliant, but what is merely compliant is almost never equitable.” – Dr. Amanda Kraus
Proudest moment or accomplishment at the DRC: Establishment of “Faculty Hour @ the DRC”, soon to be renamed “Access & Equity Hour @ the DRC”
One thing I have learned over the pandemic: Many of the things we said, across our institution and throughout higher education, could never be done – turns out we could have been doing them all along. This particularly applies to policies and practices that have created barriers or disproportionately placed burdens on students and employees with disabilities. We now have almost two years of proof that we can do better.
Person with a disability who expanded/shaped my mindset and daily work and why: Andrea Dalzell, Public Figure, @TheSeatedNurse. Andrea and her life story are a constant reminder to me of how the inclusion of disabled persons in all work spaces and career fields inspires innovation and improves outcomes for patients/clients/customers in those industries. STEM-related academic and career fields, in particular, tend to exclude individuals like Andrea, and she is living proof for the argument that disabled students and professionals belong everywhere that non-disabled people disproportionately occupy.