News

teacher high-fiving children in the classroom

Project Highlights

  • Project ENHANCE

    KU researchers and partners are leading a project to continue building supports to meet students’ academic, behavioral and social-emotional well-being needs and making the resources available to everyone in the school community, including parents teaching at home.

  • Reducing Challenging Behaviors in K-2 Classrooms

    Kathleen Zimmerman, assistant professor of special education and affiliated investigator at KU Center on Developmental Disabilities, received a grant from the Institute of Education Sciences to help enhance engagement in K-2 classrooms for students with challenging behaviors by testing commonly used behavioral interventions.

Featured News

  • Study Finds Effective Method to Help Teachers Address Gap Between Finding a Goo…

    Educators can attest they are regularly informed of new approaches, interventions and methods they can use to teach their students, but their time to do so is finite. New research from the University of Kansas has found that an approach that assists special educators with implementing evidence-based practices for their students helps overcome the “know-do gap” to put new approaches in place.

  • KU Expanding Job Opportunities for Disabled Kansans Through State Investment

    People with disabilities want to work. They bring value to businesses and contribute to organizational success. These are points that University of Kansas researchers have heard repeatedly as they work to build capacity for employment opportunities around the state. But expanding employment options for those with disabilities relies on improving the network of service systems that match people’s strengths to the needs of businesses. It also involves educating employers about the benefits of hiring people with disabilities. 

  • A Bill Would Explore Making NH a ‘Technology First’ State on Disability

    Some lawmakers and disability advocates are working to make New Hampshire the latest to adopt what’s called a “technology first” framework for state-administered services for people with disabilities. The technology-first framework is designed to address a persistent issue within state services for people with disabilities: a nationwide shortage of professional disability caregivers, commonly known as direct support professionals. Adopting this framework would mean the state prioritizes new technologies that might be able to mitigate the need for hard-to-come-by caregivers.

  • KU Disability Research Center Nationally Recognized for Community Partnership

    The Kansas University Center on Disabilities (KUCD) is among five national recipients of the 2026 Excellence in Community-Engaged Partnerships Award. The distinction from Campus Compact honors higher education programs and initiatives that make a meaningful impact by partnering with communities to address complex social issues. KUCD, based at the KU Life Span Institute, is the only honoree in the Midwest region of the United States.

  • KUCD Researchers Receive 2026 AAIDD Awards

    The American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (AAIDD) is pleased to announce and congratulate those who have been selected to receive awards of the Association in 2026. Each year, AAIDD honors select individuals, organizations, or media who have made outstanding contributions to the field. A call for award nominations is issued in the fall of each year and awards are presented at the annual meeting of the Association.