School of Education

• 2022 - Ph.D. candidate, Special Education - Dissertation Title: Unessentializing the essential: Negotiating meaning with Black boys labeled dis/abled - Doctoral Advisors: Dr. Elizabeth Kozleski and Dr. Michael Wehmeyer - University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS
• 2017 - M.Ed., Special Education - Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA
• 2014 - B.A., Government - University of Virginia , Charlottesville, VA

• SPED 326 - Teaching Exceptional Children and Youth in General Education - Kansas, Spring 2019 - Co-Instructor
• SPED 326 - Teaching Exceptional Children and Youth in General Education - Kansas, Fall 2019 - Instructor
• K306 - Teaching Students with Special Needs in Secondary Classrooms - IUPUI, Spring 2022 - Instructor

• Special and inclusive education
• Race, ethnicity, ability, and gender in education
• Critical qualitative research

William Proffitt's research focuses on understanding the identities and lived experiences of Black boys with and without disability labels and those with whom Black boys co-construct the world (e.g., teachers, teacher educators, family members, friends, and spiritual advisors).

• Proffitt, W. A. (2022). From “problems” to “vulnerable resources:” Reconceptualizing Black boys with and without disability labels in U.S. urban schools. Urban Education, 57(4), 686-713.
• Scott, L. A., & Proffitt, W. A. (2021). Three buckets and eight strategies: Recruiting, supporting, and retaining a racially diverse special education teacher workforce. Journal of Special Education Preparation, 1(2), 16-23.
• Kozleski, E. B., & Proffitt, W. A. (2020). A journey towards equity and diversity in the educator workforce. Teacher Education and Special Education, 43(1), 63-84.
• Kozleski, E. B., Stepaniuk, I., & Proffitt, W. A. (2020). In the eye of the storm: When retreat is an unacceptable option. Multiple Voices for Ethnically Diverse Exceptional Learners, 20(1), 16-31.
• Kozleski, E. B., Stepaniuk, I., & Proffitt, W. A. (2020). Leading through a critical lens: The application of DisCrit in framing, implementing, and improving equity-driven, educational systems for all students. Journal of Educational Administration, 58(5), 489-505.

• 2022 - University of Kansas, Department of Special Education: Thomas M. Skrtic Outstanding Doctoral Student Award
• 2017-2022 - U.S. DOE, Office of Special Education Programs Fellowship
• 2020-2021 - KU Institute for Policy & Social Research Doctoral Student Fellow

Conference Presentations

• Toews, S. G., Wilt, C. L., Stepaniuk, I., Proffitt, W. A., Rath, S., & Nyegenye, S. N. (2022, April). Toward inclusive and equitable education: Disrupting deficit-based positioning of families and students labeled with dis/abilities. Symposium presented at the meeting of American Educational Research Association, San Diego, CA.
• Wilt, C. L., Proffitt, W. A., & Wilt, J. C. (2021, March). Supporting historically marginalized students and families: ReEnvisioning the work of transition educators through a recently developed framework on transition research. Poster presented at the meeting of Council for Exceptional Children, Virtual conference.
• Proffitt, W. A. (2019, April). Factors supporting Black male students’ resiliency: A systematic literature review. Paper presented at the meeting of American Educational Research Association, Toronto, ON.

Invited Presentations

• Proffitt, W. A. (2019, March). Supporting the resiliency of Black male students: A community endeavor. Paper presented at Office of Multicultural Affairs Spotlight program, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS.

Guest Lecture Presentations

• Proffitt, W. A. (2021, April). Black boys, disability labeling, and educational inequities. A conversation with undergraduate students in Race, Culture and Inequality, and The Souls of Black Folk courses, University of Virginia, Virtual presentation.
• Proffitt, W. A. (2020, November). From “problems” to “vulnerable resources:” Reconceptualizing Black boys with and without disability labels in U.S. urban schools. A conversation with undergraduate students in Race, Culture and Inequality course, University of Virginia, Virtual presentation.
• Proffitt, W. A. (2020, October). Thank you, ma’am: A culturally responsive lesson on culturally responsive pedagogy. A workshop with preservice teacher candidates, Simon Fraser University, Virtual presentation.

Professional Membership

• American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (AAIDD)
• American Educational Research Association (AERA)
• Council for Exceptional Children (CEC)
• Critical Race Studies in Education Association (CRSEA)

Editorial Service

• 2022 - Guest Reviewer, Remedial and Special Education
• 2021 - Guest Reviewer, Teacher Education and Special Education
• 2020 - Guest Reviewer, Education and Treatment of Children

Conference Proposal Reviewer

• 2020 - 2021 AERA Annual Conference, Division L - Educational Policies and Politics

University, Department, and Local Service

• 2019-2020 - President, KU Professionals for Inclusion and Social Justice (ISJ) - University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS
• 2018-2019 - Chair, Graduate Student Research Conference - University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS
• 2018-2019 - Vice President, KU Professionals for Inclusion and Social Justice (ISJ) - University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS
• 2010-2014 - Tutor/Mentor, Brothers United Celebrating Knowledge and Success - Jack Jouett Middle School, Charlottesville, VA