Skip to main content

We have a new name

Since 2003, we at the Justin Dart, Jr. Center for Students with DisABILITIES have had the privilege of serving students in need while honoring one of our most distinguished alumni and the "godfather" of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the groundbreaking civil rights law that prohibits discrimination based on disability.

Dart became one of the most renowned activists fighting for the rights of disabled people, even leaving a successful corporate career in the late 1960s to devote himself to his activism, ultimately even becoming the vice chair of the National Council on Disability. Dart was instrumental in the passage of the ADA on July 26, 1990.

Our UH Center was the first space specifically designed for disabled students at any major Texas university, and we are the only Center in the country that honors Justin's legacy of advocating for diversity, inclusion, and the ADA by bearing his name.

The all-caps emphasis on "abilities" was empowering nearly two decades ago, but, recently, students have shared that the name did not seem to reflect a current celebration of diversity and inclusion. That all caps emphasis, students say, implied that there was something negative about having a disability.

On the 31st anniversary of the passage of the ADA, the Division of Student Affairs made the Center that honors him even more inclusive, the Justin Dart, Jr. Student Accessibility Center, or Dart Center.

We do not plan to stop with the new name.

We are committed to serving you, and so we are also rolling out changes in the coming months to include more counseling staff, improved facilities, and a new online service data base.

Our utmost promise to you is to help you achieve success at the University of Houston by providing you with the access and accommodations with a goal for you to become successful graduates and engaged global citizens.

Please reach out to us at JDCenter@central.uh.edu or 713-743-5400 if you have any questions or want to learn more about the services offered by the Dart Center.

As always, we are here if you need us.

Thank you,

Your dedicated staff at the Justin Dart, Jr. Student Accessibility Center