Using Data in Unconventional Ways: What ICADV Is Learning from Disabled Hoosiers Through Art

Expanding How We Understand Domestic and Sexual Violence
At ICADV, we are continually exploring new and meaningful ways to understand the experiences of survivors across Indiana. One area where traditional data collection consistently falls short is in capturing the realities of Disabled people and people with disabilities who experience domestic and sexual violence.

Many existing data sources do not collect disability status at all or rely solely on the six standard disability questions used in federal surveys. Even when disability is measured, reporting systems and data collection tools are frequently inaccessible. Physical, cognitive, and other barriers can prevent people with disabilities from safely reporting harm or participating in research. As a result, disabled survivors are often underrepresented—or entirely missing—from the data that informs policies, programs, and prevention strategies.

With more than one in four Hoosiers identifying as disabled, these data gaps have serious consequences. When disabled people are left out, our understanding of violence is incomplete, and our prevention efforts fail to reach those who may be at greatest risk.

Moving Beyond Counting Harm
Collecting, analyzing, and publishing data about violence against disabled people is essential. However, data must do more than count incidents after harm occurs. We must also understand what keeps people safe, what promotes healing, and what helps disabled people thrive within their communities.

This includes examining how we create protective, affirming, and accessible environments that support autonomy, dignity, and resilience. To do this effectively, we need data collection methods that are as inclusive, flexible, and creative as the communities we aim to serve.

Art as Data: Centering Disabled Voices
With support from the Noyes Foundation, the Hub exhibits expressive arts projects that invites disabled people to share their experiences, identities, barriers, and sources of strength through creative expression. This approach allowed participants to communicate on their own terms, using methods that felt safer and more accessible than traditional surveys or reporting tools.

The artwork produced through this project is not only beautiful, it is data. It is storytelling. It is lived experience. It offers insights that traditional research methods are rarely designed to capture. By treating art as valid and meaningful data, we are able to learn directly from disabled people in ways that honor their expertise in their own lives.

As we reviewed the artwork and accompanying reflections, clear themes emerged that deepen our understanding of both risk factors and protective factors related to domestic and sexual violence within disabled communities.

Protective Factors That Support Well‑Being
Many participants emphasized the importance of supportive relationships and environments. Words such as love, joy, calm, family, encouragement, acceptance, and stable housing appeared repeatedly throughout the artwork. These concepts highlight how affirming relationships, safe housing, and access to people who can help connect individuals to resources play a critical role in safety and healing.

Stable housing was consistently identified as foundational to well‑being. A safe place to live is not just a basic need, it is a key factor in reducing vulnerability to violence.
Identity and empowerment also emerged as strong protective themes. Participants reflected on disability identity, queer identity, visibility, and dignity as sources of strength. They shared that being able to define oneself and be recognized as a full, autonomous person is closely linked to self‑worth, confidence, and meaningful connection.

Creativity itself played a protective role. Engagement with special interests, passion projects, and artistic expression supported mental health, joy, and agency. Creative work offered participants a way to process experiences, express identity, and cultivate a sense of purpose.

Risk Factors That Increase Vulnerability
Alongside protective elements, participants also shared experiences associated with increased risk and harm. This included references to mental health challenges such as depression, anxiety, chronic stress, sadness, and suicidal ideation. These themes underscore the need for mental health supports that are affordable, accessible, and affirming for disabled people.

Trauma, abuse, and oppression were recurring themes throughout the artwork. Participants named experiences of violence, discrimination, stereotyping, internalized ableism, and isolation. These harms are not individual failures; they are the result of systemic inequities and social exclusion.

Barriers to autonomy were also commonly described. Participants shared experiences of having decision‑making power taken away, being treated as a burden, or feeling constrained by systems that limit independence. These conditions can increase vulnerability to abuse and negatively impact mental health.

Social isolation appeared repeatedly as both a risk factor for violence and a consequence of ableism—particularly when disabled people are excluded from community spaces and relationships.

Participants also pointed to unmet needs, including exhaustion, emotional distress, and concerns about safety. These reflections signal gaps in support systems and highlight areas where intervention is urgently needed.

What This Means for Prevention and Public Health
Together, these insights point to several critical considerations for public health and violence prevention efforts. Participants’ reflections reinforce the importance of intersectionality, particularly for people who are disabled, queer, neurodivergent, or navigating multiple marginalized identities. Prevention strategies must recognize these overlapping experiences and address compounded forms of stigma.

The data also highlights the value of safe and nurturing environments, including stable housing, supportive relationships, and spaces that encourage creativity and independence. Supporting autonomy and decision‑making is essential for promoting safety and well‑being.

Finally, the prevalence of trauma and mental health concerns reinforces the need for accessible, trauma‑informed, and disability‑affirming services across systems.

Expanding What Counts as Data
This project demonstrates that disabled Hoosiers are fully capable of sharing their experiences. The challenge has never been communication—it has been whether our systems are prepared to listen.

When we expand our definition of data to include art, creativity, and expressive storytelling, we gain deeper and more accurate insights. We center people who have historically been excluded, strengthen our understanding of both risk and protection, and inform prevention strategies grounded in real lived experiences.

As you explore the art on the IDJ Resource Hub, we invite you to appreciate the talent on display, reflect on the messages the artwork conveys, and commit to being inclusive and creative when collecting valuable information from communities with distinct needs and powerful solutions.

ICADV will continue to use innovative and inclusive data methods to build safer, more ccessible, and more responsive systems for all survivors.

This content was written by Timike Jones at tjones@icadvinc.org.

To learn more about how we evaluate or do violence prevention, please email barizmendi@icadvinc.org.

Disability Empowerment By Samantha Horning

About two years ago, I was struggling with major depressive disorder and my recently diagnosed panic disorder with agoraphobia. It was my senior year, and I could barely drive or go to school without breaking down. During this time, I was also applying for college. I had applied to IU Indianapolis and IU Online. I thought I would have to attend college online, because it was a struggle just to leave my house, but I knew I couldn’t give up on getting higher education.

A few months after being accepted to IU Indianapolis, I found out I had earned a full-ride scholarship via the IUI Honors College. The scholarship required me to live on campus, something that felt completely impossible. Earning such a prestigious scholarship was an amazing feeling, but I also felt like maybe I was taking the spot of someone else who was more capable. After all, I couldn’t even go to the store without having a panic attack.

I applied for accommodations via IUI’s Accessible Education Services, which would help me learn and take tests in a more comfortable environment and have flexibility for mental illness-related absences. These accommodations helped me feel more confident about attending classes and living on campus. However, I knew I would have to do more if I was going to be able to go to college and live on campus

A college building with a graduation cap in the foreground.

I was able to graduate from high school with technical and academic honors (and a lot of absences during my senior year). After graduation, I started to visit the IU Indianapolis campus with my family to get used to being there in an attempt to appease my panic disorder. The
scholarship I received also required me to move in a week early and go on a retreat with my fellow scholarship recipients. At the time, this retreat was extremely scary, but looking back, being on campus early with fellow honors students helped me get acclimated to campus and
make a few friends. The retreat included traveling around campus and around downtown Indianapolis. I had to force myself to go, but it helped me immensely.

I credit Accessible Education Services, the IU Indianapolis Honors College, and my family for why I was able to attend college despite the struggles I was facing. The support I received helped me feel empowered to achieve my goals, no matter the obstacles along the way. I sincerely hope that other young people facing mental illness or disorders do not give up on their goals, because there are always resources and services that can help them.

I am majoring in psychology and plan to go to graduate school for clinical psychology, because I want to help people who are facing mental illness overcome their struggles and achieve their goals. Diagnoses can sometimes feel like a life sentence, but there are always people there to support and empower you.

About the Author

Samantha at the induction ceremony for Phi Eta Sigma and Alpha Lambda Delta honor societies. It is a headshot of a young woman with long, straight black hair and clear-framed glasses, smiling subtly

Image Description: Samantha at the induction ceremony for Phi Eta Sigma and Alpha Lambda Delta honor societies. It is a headshot of a young woman with long, straight black hair and clear-framed glasses, smiling subtly.

Artist Bio: Samantha is an undergraduate student at Indiana University Indianapolis. She is completing her BS in psychology with minors in neuroscience and sociology. She is passionate about helping people impacted by mental illness, addiction, and domestic violence. In the future, she plans to attend graduate school for clinical psychology.

Employment Tips

By Dena Polston

 

 

 

Growing up as a person with a disability, I always sought to achieve, having the same dreams, goals and aspirations as my sister and other non-disabled individuals. Included amongst those aspirations was the desire to obtain competitive employment.

            Unfortunately, the opportunities were somewhat limited when it came to acquiring the skills and experience needed to promote my success later in life. Thus, I had to get creative.  To that end, I took advantage of every volunteer opportunity I could find as a teenager.

While attending the Indiana School for the Blind and Visually Impaired (ISBVI), I volunteered as a tutor for elementary school aged children and a childcare provider for preschoolers while their parents attended meetings and other activities. I worked on the ISBVI switchboard during the evenings as well.

While in high school. A friend from ISBVI and I volunteered at Methodist Hospital on Saturdays and were tasked with a variety of assignments. We both put in over 200 hours there. While these volunteer opportunities didn’t necessarily lead to other employment after high school, those jobs gave me opportunities to meet new people and learn about workplace skills.

I was fortunate to find summer jobs in my home community through the Program for Economically Disadvantaged Youth,

and also worked with the Youth Employment Training Program as a receptionist/typist. These opportunities provided a feeling of accomplishment, allowing me to keep pace with other teenagers.

While attending college at Ball State University (BSU), I took advantage of volunteer opportunities both on campus and throughout the community. Some were for college credit and others for the purpose of giving back. I have continued to volunteer throughout my working life as well, holding leadership roles in various organizations. Volunteering may not give you the job of your dreams, however, it provides a means of networking with other people, learning skills related to employment, and adds experiential credit to be included on a resume.

Vocational Rehabilitation agencies help people with disabilities,  who are eligible,  find and retain employment.  (To find out if you are eligible, contact the vocational Rehabilitation agency for your area.)  

Below are some additional suggestions that I, as a former Vocational Rehabilitation Services consumer and counselor would offer:

  1. Take An active Role. When attending a meeting with your Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor (VRC), to discuss your 504 and/or Individualized education Plan (IEP) be forthcoming and specific in defining your goals so that you can establish a rapport with your counsello
  2. Avail yourself of experiential learning and other opportunities that will assist you in ascertaining your future goals.
  3. Consider becoming involved in a blindness or disability-related consumer organization such as the American council for the blind (ACB), National Federation of the blind (NFB), National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) or the Autism Society of Indiana to name just a few. These groups have mentors, special-interest affiliates for high school and college students and conventions where you can learn a mind-blowing amount of information. There is a plethora of exhibitors who display Adaptive Technology and other items along with many resources.
  4. Get involved with your Disabled Student Services (DSS) support office if you plan to attend college in order to familiarize yourself with services offered on your campus as well as obtaining the necessary accommodations. The accommodations you were offered in high school will not carry over to higher education without determining your specific needs. This is another way in which your VRC can assist you. As one of my former supervisors used to say: “You are the one driving the bus” once you are out of high school. In other words, you have to assert yourself and ask for what you need.
  5. Be honest with your VRC about your doubts and fears; see what accommodations the VRC would recommend and/or take another person with you who has been involved in the VR process to better assist in articulating your needs, hopes and dreams. Please know that VR will do all they can to assist you with necessary training, obtaining and retaining employment; however, you have to participate fully in the process and meet with your VRC as often as needed and required. Remember that your goal(s) may change, or VR may not be able to support your original goal. But keep communicating with your VRC in order for you to understand the reason that your goal may not be supported.
  6. Lastly, if a job coach/employment specialist  is needed to assist you in determining your vocational goal, assist you in finding places where you and your coach can evaluate your skills and interests and/or assist you in learning tasks for the job you want, work closely with your job coach just as you would your VRC. Don’t assume that your job coach knows your needs. You are the expert on you. If the job coach is not a good fit for you, talk with your VRC to see if another company and/or coach would be a better fit.

 

The object is to find a job that you will enjoy and want to keep.

Whether you want to work for the purpose of socialization, just to have a little bit of money in your pocket, for a long-term career, or to make a living wage, involvement in your plan is the key.

Remember, your VRC won’t know what you need unless you participate fully and communicate as needed and required. I wish you much success in your training and/or future employment.

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Dena Polston

I am Dena Polston who is a 2012 graduate in the Adult & Community Education Master’s program from Ball State University. I worked as a Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor for 6.5 years both in the Muncie and Marion regions.

I am from a small town here in Indiana which is Shirley. But I went to the Indiana School for the Blind and Visually-impaired in Indianapolis where I graduated from high school in 1981.

I enjoy singing, loving my pet Golden Retriever, collecting recipes and reading books. I also enjoy volunteering in my community and sharing resources that may assist people in their daily lives.

This is a picture of Dena Polston and her former service dog Vern. Dena is a white woman with short brown hair, wearing a pastel floral blouse. She smiles broadly as she hugs Vern. Vern is a black lab, wearing a red harness. Their faces are pressed against each other's.

 This is a picture of Dena Polston and her former service dog Vern. Dena is a white woman with short brown hair, wearing a pastel floral blouse. She smiles broadly as she hugs Vern. Vern is a black lab, wearing a red harness. Their faces are pressed against each other’s.

Guarding Our Path to Independence

By R. Diane Graves

 

I grew up in an era wherein the technologies most of us take for granted today were unheard of. In some respects, life was much simpler. There were no menu-driven touch screens. Appliances and electronics were operated by individual buttons and controls easily identified by touch. At the opposite end of that spectrum, however, were some insurmountable barriers to the independence I longed for. As a person who is blind, there was no way to proofread my typewritten work, read my personal printed mail, or shop for groceries without assistance.

            Fast forward 40 plus years, to a world in which technology and the ability to use it is a necessity. Most all of us use the internet and our smart phones on a daily basis without a second thought. We use these tools to communicate with one another, to pay our bills, track our banking information, do our shopping and fill out all manner of forms and applications; the list is endless. Though the overall convenience of 21st century technology is global, the freedom and independence these advancements have provided to the blind and others with disabilities is something I, in my youth, could have never imagined.

            We are now able to proofread our own work via screen reading software, and identify our own printed materials. There are phone applications which will identify colors and currency and provide orientation and navigational information for independent travel. Clearly we have come a long way.   We cannot afford to celebrate these advances, however,  without also recognizing the potential dangers posed by their rapid evolution. While 21st century technology has opened many doors, it also has the power to lock us out if we are not careful. For example, it is extremely difficult today to find an appliance, be it a printer, a dishwasher, or thermostat just to name a few, with individual controls not hidden behind a touch screen. Sometimes you can create a “quick fix” by pasting a marker or a braille label on the screen. However, more and more of these designs are going to multifunction, menu driven controls.

            It is not that the technology needed to make these devices accessible is not available. Companies such as Apple have proven that. Apple has built out of the box accessibility directly into its original devices. Sadly, most companies don’t stop to consider the needs of people with disabilities. They are just so far removed from our world that accessibility never crosses their minds and thus, is not a part of their proverbial game plan.

            Still other companies would like to assure accessibility, but they just don’t have a clear understanding of what it means to be fully accessible. There are no published rules or guidelines as to how to implement such a design. It is this lack of direction which has prompted the National Federation of the Blind to promote the passage of the Websites and Software Accessibilities Act.

This proposed piece of legislation will direct the Department of Justice to set in place some clear cut rules for website and software  design and provide technical assistance to companies as they implement these changes. How liberating it would be to access a website for the first time, and not have a question in the back of one’s mind as to how accessible it will or will not be! We need to get this piece of legislation passed, and we are well on our way to doing so .

            This is just one example of the need for and power of advocacy within the disability community. Another might be the advocacy for an accessible absentee ballot for those unable to make it to the polls. There are many others which could be cited. We need to ban together and make our voices heard; advocating for a world in which there is truly “justice for all.”

            So how do we do this? The most important and likely most obvious first step is to register and cast our votes. Voting for elected officials will give us the privilege to speak out against injustice. We then need to work together with all of our brothers and sisters in the disabled community to identify the barriers to our independence and join together to eliminate them.

            It is so easy to become complacent; to feel that our voices won’t make a difference. We must remember however that there is power in numbers. A single voice  might not be enough to bring about a fully accessible world, but if we join together in one mighty harmonious chorus, we will make a difference. It is time for us to stand up and be counted, continuing our quest for equity, and advocating as only we can.

For more information on the above referenced legislative effort see https://nfb.org/programs-services/advocacy/washington-seminar/websites-and-software-applications-accessibility-act .)

           

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Diane Graves.   

 

Diane Graves entered the disability community at two years of age, after losing her vision to Retinoblastoma—a genetic cancer of the retina. Thus, it was at an early age that she became familiar with the obstacles posed solely by discrimination, and when civil rights became her passion.  

​When she was hired by the Indiana Civil Rights Commission in the spring of 1990, she felt privileged to have been chosen to represent the disability community, and other minorities, in their quest to ensure equality.​

Since coming to the Commission as its front desk receptionist, she has advanced, and is now working as a mediator for the agency. She has also obtained a bachelor’s degree in Organizational Communication from Kaplan University and is currently working towards her Master’s Degree in Social Work. She has serves in various offices and leadership roles in the National Federation of the Blind of Indiana, and has served on the Governor’s Planning Council for People with Disabilities.