Image description: a photo of Lorie she has short dark brown hair wearing a green dress. Her head is tilted to the right smiling with her hands in front of her. She is standing behind pink cherry blossoms, green grass, and sidewalk bricks in the background.

Lorie Zullo

UW Graduating Class 2020
Early Childhood & Family Studies

What was your experience as a child with a disability in school?

As a person born in the Philippines with cerebral palsy, my parents couldn’t afford the proper care and therapy I needed to maintain my developmental growth. My family decided to move to the United States to not only have a better life, but also find opportunities to have proper healthcare for me as I grew. Over time, I began doing physical and occupational therapy weekly. Every day was a new learning experience; and it was in school where I felt most safe and supported by my teachers, and I utilized my Individual Education Plan (Info on IEP) to attend school. I started to admire the adaptable work teachers and counselors made and the care they showed towards me and their other students. They inspired me to pursue a career in education. 

 “I was bullied by how I processed my own thinking in various subject matters and ridiculed for how I walked with a slight limp in my right side of the body.”

However, school was not always a positive environment. When I was transfered to a new school in junior high I saw and experienced the discrimination and stigma students had toward my disability. I was bullied by how I processed my thinking in various subject matters and ridiculed for how I walked with a slight limp in my right side of the body. There were multiple inaccessible areas for wheelchair use, no extra time to do testing, and special education did not seem to be a priority for the school administration. These experiences led me to feel frustrated and wanting to pursue a career in the education field so I could challenge these attitudes and bring awareness to disability rights in the school system.

What is your role at the D Center?

I’m the outreach coordinator for the D Center. I get to reach out to organizations and departments in the University of Washington and also find known activists to present on various issues at our planned events. In addition, I get the chance to greet, welcome, and interact with new and old students/members as they come in and out of the D Center space, when we were open of course!

 “The D Center is currently hosting office hours virtually. This allows the community to hang out, communicate about school, life under COVID-19 and disability issues.”

How is the D Center creating community despite COVID-19?

As a D Center staff member, we have been posting multiple events happening virtually and adding resources for our community through our social media pages. In addition, we are currently hosting office hours virtually. This allows the community to hang out, communicate about school, life under COVID-19 and disability issues. It is a free form to chat about anything and everything on your mind. 

“I try to make sure that I don’t beat myself up for not accomplishing everything on the list.”

How do you balance coursework with family and other commitments during the pandemic?

I’m currently at home with family in Tacoma and have been adjusting to remote learning. During the weekends, my parents and I go out for a walk around the neighborhood as much as we can. Every day is a different challenge; there are days where I’m more productive than another. However, as often as I can I write down tasks for the following day and create a daily routine. I try to make sure that I don’t beat myself up for not accomplishing everything on the list. This reminds me to take good care of myself. I spread my classwork within the week and make sure I rest when I need to. During this time, I’ve been exploring new activities such as cooking and drawing. I also revisited journaling and writing poetry. This pandemic can be stressful at times, but I know with a little self-care and community we can make it through this together.

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