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Christy Ashby, Ph.D.Christy Ashby, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor 
School of Education
E-mail:  ceashby@syr.edu

Christy Ashby, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor in the Teaching and Leadership Department of the School of Education at Syracuse University. She teaches in the Inclusive Elementary and Special Education Program and the Graduate Inclusive Education Programs. Her teaching and research focuses on inclusive education broadly, with specific emphasis on supports for students with labels of autism and other developmental disabilities, disability studies, representation of disability in the media, and inclusive school reform. She teaches courses on inclusive education for students considered to have significant disabilities as well as the introductory course for the Inclusive Elementary and Special Education Program. Additionally, Christy is the Research Director for the Facilitated Communication Institute and Co-Director for the Schools of Promise initiative. A consistent theme throughout her research and writing is the challenging of the construct of mental retardation and a consideration of the social construction of competence. Her work seeks to disrupt dominant notions of disability as deficiency and underscores the importance of considering the lived experiences of individuals considered to have significant disabilities. Dr. Ashby's research has been accepted for publication in journals including the International Journal of Inclusive Education, Disability and Society, Teacher Education and Special Education, and Intellectual and Developmental Disability. In addition, Christy conducts educational consultation with school districts and families on topics of inclusive school reform, supports for students with autism labels, access to general education, and facilitated communication. Dr. Ashby received her doctorate in Special Education and her CAS in Disability Studies from Syracuse University. She received the 2009 Dissertation Award for the Disability Studies in Education Special Interest Group of the American Education Research Association and is currently Program Chair for that group's Annual Conference.