“Mustafa Rfat brings a rare combination of lived experience and professional expertise as a person with disabilities and a former refugee. His scholarship, advocacy, and leadership have advanced inclusive communities and ensured that the voices of the most marginalized are heard globally.”

Biography

Mustafa Rfat, MSW, MPA, is a doctoral candidate in Social Work at Washington University in St. Louis, with concentrations in social determinants of health, disability, and immigration. He holds an MPA in Healthcare Administration and an MSW focused on Child Mental Health from West Virginia University, where he also earned a BA in Social Work with a concentration in Geriatric Care. His research examines access to healthcare, education, and employment among structurally marginalized communities, including people with disabilities, immigrants, and refugees. Using interdisciplinary and community-engaged approaches, he explores how structural inequities and policy-level factors influence well-being, with the goal of informing equitable policies and practices.