Amelia-Marie Altstadt, Ph.D. Candidate, M.A

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Amelia-Marie K. Altstadt is a PhD Candidate in Disability Studies at the University of Illinois, Chicago, and a Pipeline to an Inclusive Faculty Fellow originally from San Diego, California (Kumeyaay land). Amelia-Marie is pursuing their degree under Dr. Carrie Sandahl in the Department of Disability and Human Development. She supports multiple projects with Bodies of Work at UIC. Their work focuses on disability culture and the arts, performance studies, media analysis of theatrical works, and playwriting.

In 2025, Amelia-Marie received the Gary Burns Graduate Travel Award from the Midwest Pop Culture Association and the Graduate Travel Award from the Pacific Ancient and Modern Languages Association for their scholarship on disability culture and works of theatre. In 2024, she received the Disability Visibility Fellowship for the Unexpected Shape Writing Academy and the 2022 recipient of the Association of College Personnel Administrators (ACPA) Coalition for Disability’s Disability Leadership Award.

Previously, as a student affairs professional in higher education in Nebraska, they served low-income, first-generation students primarily of Latinx, Black, and Indigenous backgrounds from both rural and urban settings. In a full-time role, she served Honors scholars primarily through advising, teaching, and organizing experiential learning opportunities. They, additionally, are a proud hermana of Sigma Omega Nu (ΣΩΝ) Latina Interest Sorority, Incorporated.

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