Graduation Year

2026

Document Type

Capstone Project

Research Type

Project

Degree Name

Doctor of Occupational Therapy

Department

Occupational Therapy

Program Chair

Kitsum Li, OTD, OTR/L, CSRS

Faculty Mentor

Caroline Umeda, PhD, OTR/L

Content Expert

Caroline Umeda, PhD, OTR/L

Site Mentor

Benji Harrington, MSOT, OTR/L

Community Partner

Autistry Studios; California Academy of Sciences; Charles M. Schulz Museum and Research Center

Abstract

Background: Hidden access barriers persist within cultural arts organizations. As a result, people with IDD continue to experience reduced levels of community participation, limiting the associated benefits to health, well-being, and quality of life. Organizational-level occupational therapy (OT) consultation can address barriers and expand organizational capacity to meet the needs of people with IDD.

Purpose: The project aimed to strengthen organizational capacity of Bay Area cultural arts organizations and expand existing accessibility resources by co-developing a resource guide centered on lived experience to maximize community social participation for people with IDD. The guide was disseminated to cultural arts organizations and evaluated for its perceived utility, value, and feasibility for implementation.

Methods: Community social participation and organizational considerations were explored using multiple sources, including immersion, observations, questionnaires, literature review, and cultural arts staff input. Insights informed the resource guide and an iterative co-development process with Autistry members, who contributed solutions and resources across varying levels of effort. Disseminated in website and PDF formats, the resource guide was evaluated through surveys and semi-structured interviews. For sustainability, the resource guide was left with Autistry Studios to maintain, update, and take lead in disseminating to other cultural arts organizations.

Outcome of Project: Resource guide was perceived to have utility, value, and feasibility for implementation. Specifically, it highlights the value of collaboration in strengthening the resource guide, how the level of effort supported organizations in assessing feasibility assessment and future planning, and the role of accessible design in enhancing utility.

Implications: Cultural arts organizations are spaces where meaningful occupations and community social participation occur, making OT practitioners uniquely positioned to address access barriers within these spaces. Organizational-level OT consultation can bridge the needs and lived experience of people with IDD with the organizational context of cultural arts organizations to develop solutions that are meaningful, practical, and responsive to both. Evaluation findings highlight OT consultation ‘s potential to support environmental changes that promote meaningful occupation and community social participation for all.

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