AMBER CHEEK, an Anthropology student at the University of Georgia, graduated in May, 2009.Amber also completed the requirements to receive the Undergraduate IHDD Disability Studies Certificate. Her quiet demeanor, warm smile, and sincere interest in the disability program were immediate indications that she had serious goals in mind for her future.

Tracy Rackensperger, who writes for the IHDD Cascade, interviewed Amber to talk about her participation in the IHDD Disability Studies Certificate Program and her future plans.

Tracy: What made you interested in the Disability Studies Certificate Program?

Amber: I am an amputee and spent a great deal of time at Egelston's Hospital and various special needs centers growing up. I befriended children with many different disabilities and learned a great deal, but I never really thought about the issues facing the wider disability community until I attended a lecture at UGA in which Harriett Johnson, a disability rights attorney, opened my eyes to the disability rights movement. I had spent half my life in the disability community, and yet the only viewpoint on disability I had absorbed was the one held by my doctors in the children’s hospitals: that disability is a medical problem in need of correction, and little more. Hearing Ms. Johnson speak of the accomplishments and community roles of adults with disabilities challenged my former beliefs and motivated me to look into the Disability Studies Program.

Tracy: What's your degree and how will being in the DSP help you?

Amber:I graduated in May with a degree in Anthropology, and approaching Disability Studies from the perspective of an anthropology major has given me unique insight into disability as a culture. The Disability Studies Program, complemented by my medical anthropology classes, has given me the opportunity to meet many amazing people with disabilities and, over time, led me to feel the heartbeat of this vibrant and resilient community. This understanding will be essential to me in my legal career.

Tracy: What are your future plans?

Amber: I will be beginning law school in the Fall at the University of Missouri at Columbia, and plan to study dispute resolution and medical law. I hope to someday become a mediator and attorney specializing in disability law, and to continue exploring this diverse and meaningful field.

Congratulations and best wishes to Amber Cheek!