Newsroom

In this Q&A, Dr. Jeannine Dingus-Eason reflects on her new book, A Thousand Worries: Black Women Mothering Autistic Sons, a powerful examination of Black mothering, advocacy, and care at the intersections of race, disability, gender, and class. Drawing from scholarship, lived experience, and community narratives, the book centers voices that are too often excluded from dominant conversations about autism.

In honor of Black History Month—and in recognition that Black history is always unfolding—we asked faculty, staff, alum, community partners, and students to share a book by a Black author that has shaped how they understand Black life, culture and history. Their recommendations remind us that these stories are ongoing, essential, and deeply human. Explore the list, borrow from your local library, and support the places doing the year-round work of preserving and celebrating Black history.

Daniel Yi, a PhD student in Organizational and Policy Studies at the UW College of Education, explores how admissions practices and early college programs — often designed to help students — can unintentionally widen inequality. Drawing on his experience teaching in very different school settings, Daniel studies how access, privilege and policy shape who gets ahead, and how schools can create more equitable pathways to college.