About

Kate Corbett Pollack is Culturally Deaf, and disabled. She has an M.S. in Cultural Foundations of Education and a C.A.S. in Disability Studies from Syracuse University’s School of Education in Syracuse, N.Y. Kate received her B.A. in History from Hunter College in New York, New York, and also has a degree in Fine Arts from Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute (now PRATT) in Utica, New York.

Kate was born in Eugene, Oregon, and also spent many years growing up in Syracuse. Kate became interested in disability history and studies during her time working as a genealogical, historic, and archival researcher at a private research department in North Syracuse. There, she spent three years transcribing 144 letters written in New England during the 18th and 19th centuries, in which the story of Josiah Spaulding Jr. was revealed. Josiah was a psychiatrically disabled man who was put into a cage at age 23 by his Reverend father in around 1812, and remained caged for the duration of his life-57 years. Kate has written extensively about this story, and articles about it appear on Metathesis, and on the blog for the American Pomeroy Historic Genealogical Association, located under the tabs for the years 2011-2014.

In undergrad, Kate focused on the history of the Middle Ages, anthropology/archaeology (Mesoamerica and Iceland), Hebrew Studies, early Christianity, and Medieval Catholicism. In graduate school, her focus turned to disability law and policy, crime, theory, deaf studies, homeschool, and the Christian Patriarchy. Kate also writes and conducts research as the Disability and Accessibility Advisor for the Coalition for Responsible Home Education .

Kate is currently a first year master’s student in Forensic Science at Syracuse University where she focuses on law, policy, science, and crime. She is also the Coordinator at the Disability Cultural Center at Syracuse University, one of the first college disability cultural centers in the world. She is the President of the Beyond Compliance Coordinating Committee, a historic graduate student activist organization, and active with the Disability Law Society at Syracuse University College of Law.

Kate grew up surrounded by antiques and fine art, and enjoys interior decorating, gardening, and reading, and has kept a diary since she was seven years old. She has worked as a volunteer/intern for the Landmarks Society of Greater Utica, San Francisco Architectural Heritage and Hass-Lilienthal House Museum, Onondaga Historical Association, and the Tipperary Hill Neighborhood Association in Syracuse. Kate has long held an interest in historic preservation, and loves to visit Utica to appreciate Victorian architecture.