Nell Koneczny

2018-2019 Emerging Leader Intern

Nell Koneczny is a PhD student at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) in Disability Studies. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology and European Studies at Vanderbilt University. In 2017-18, she was an AUCD UCEDD Diversity Fellow. Under this support and with a disabled student group at UIC, she co-created an accessible classroom training for UIC faculty, administrators, and teaching assistants. This training introduced instructors and university decision-makers to disability culture, disability community, and practices that make classrooms welcoming for disabled students. Her doctoral research examines professor perspectives on disability, accessibility and inclusion in the classroom. Along with her academic work, she is a disability justice activist who focuses on promoting and cultivating accessible spaces. In her free time, Nell enjoys watching Disney movies and playing Pokemon.

Image description: A white woman with short black hair wears thick, black-rimmed glasses and smiles at the camera. She also wears a white collared shirt with a repeating dark lined pattern over it, a black and gold diagonal stripe bow tie, and a glass pendant necklace. She leans back on the concrete structure behind her.