A-Z index - Search
OASIS - myUSF

Sara Green
Associate Professor

Contact

Office: CPR 236
Phone: 813/974-2452
Email:

Links

• Curriculum Vitae

Personal Bio

It's a cold, dark, Halloween night and I am this year's designee as neighborhood 'Trick-or-treat Mom.' Glittered costumes sparkle in the glow of street lamps and jack-o-lanterns as we make our way from house to house. Excitement is palpable. My daughter Amanda is in the thick of things. Her wheelchair, bedecked in the magic carpet trim befitting her 'Jasmine' costume, is propelled by a small 'Aladdin.' He seems to feel his costume gives him permanent rights to this position. Others disagree. They bicker over whose turn it is to push and whose to gather candy for Amanda when front steps impede her progress toward a door. I am clearly out of the running for both jobs. I have, in no uncertain terms, been banished to the fringes of the group. As we leave our street and venture to the periphery of our 'trick-or-treat' territory, we come upon another group of kids. One among them is well known to us. Eric has been a frequent visitor to our neighborhood, our house and Amanda's room. He has taken his turn at wheeling himself down the street and up precarious inclines in Amanda's spare chair. The other kids are strangers. Their expressions hold the looks of cautious curiosity we have seen so very many times before. Eric dives into Amanda's bag of loot to compare his take with hers. Most others follow suit and are soon discussing the best houses to hit for super treats. One child leaves the pack. He walks toward me with the inevitable question written clearly on his face. "What's wrong with her?" he asks. I prepare to give my well rehearsed speech on the mysterious workings of the neuromuscular system and its failure in Amanda's special case. This time, however, Eric beats me to the punch. He raises his eyes from Amanda's stash and says in a tone that bespeaks both incredulity and irritation: "What do you mean what's wrong with her? There's nothing wrong with her. This is Amanda. She's just crippled!" Amanda absolutely beams her complete approval. The case is closed. My small companion utters a fully satisfied "Oh" and happily returns to the fold. I find myself again on the fringes of the action as we recommence our search for the neighborhood=s ultimate sHalloween House.

With the birth of my daughter in 1985 and her diagnosis of cerebral palsy in 1986, I was launched, unprepared, into the world of disability. Many Halloweens later, I have learned much about the process by which individuals with disabilities, their families and caregivers create, adapt and maintain a sense of personal identity within communities of others who are unfamiliar, and often uncomfortable, with the most profound experiences of their lives. I have also learned much about the ways in which the presence of a person with a disability can change the attitudes of members of these communities and the basic nature of the community itself. Over the last several years, I have used my own experiences as the mother of a child with cerebral palsy and as a family caregiver for elders with late-life disabilities in conjunction with more traditional quantitative and qualitative research to explore issues related to identity and community for individuals with disabilities of all ages. In particular, my recent research has focused on: the birth experiences of mothers of children with disabilities; how mothers benefit from the involvement of grandparents in their children=s lives; relationships between mothers and the medical professionals who treat their children; how feelings about whether one=s own behaviors, actions of powerful others, and/or chance affect well-being among individuals with disabilities and their families; ways in which elderly residents and staff members of retirement centers view themselves, each other and the retirement communities in which they live and work and how stigma affects the lived experience of disability across the life-span.

My interest in the area of disability has led me to develop graduate and undergraduate courses in the sociology of disability as well as a service learning internship through which students volunteer their time in organizations that provide services to individuals with disabilities. I have also had the privilege of working with graduate students engaged in a variety of exciting disability-related thesis and dissertation projects in Sociology and several other departments at USF including: Accountancy, Anthropology, Communication, Fine Arts, the Interdisciplinary Ph.D. Program in Aging Studies and Special Education.

My experience as Amanda's mother, combined with the insights gained from my students, colleagues, and research participants, has taught me many valuable things. It has been a truly transformative experience full of surprising insights. I have learned a great deal about the complex issue of perceived stigma and its impact on individual lives. Perhaps the most profound change in my perspective, however, is that I now have a much less restrictive vision of what it means to lead a good life, to have a positive identity and to create and sustain a sense of community. While I certainly would not have chosen for my daughter the complicated life that she must live as a person with severe cerebral palsy, I am extremely grateful for the perspective I have gained from being her mother. The disability experience will continue to be the core of my research agenda for the foreseeable future. I look forward to continued collaboration with students and faculty interested in the experience of creating, maintaining and living with the identity of disability across the lifespan. I also look forward to continued interaction with community organizations that seek to provide services to individuals with disabilities and their families.

Education

Ph.D.,Tulane University, 1994

Current Courses

Arts and Sciences Home | Arts & Sciences Calendar | Email Directory | USF Libraries
Copyright ©2008, Department of Sociology, 4202 E Fowler Ave CPR107, Tampa, FL 33620
Phone: (813)974 -2893 -- Fax: (813) 974-6455
Direct questions or comments about the web site to Webmaster | √ XHTML 1.0 Transitional