LAUSR

ABSTRACT Access to education has long been seen as a fundamental element of a developed country. Specifically, the relative availability and access to education by various constituent groups has been identified as an essential metric in educational evaluation. Yet, individuals with disabilities have been identified as being underrepresented within institutions of higher education, including the United States (U.S.) community college. Furthermore, scholars have also argued that discussion of disability remains on the margins of scholarship within academia. Therefore, this investigation employed qualitative methods by conducting a Critical Discourse Analysis of California Title 5 policies specific to disabled students. This was done in order to examine the sociopolitical space afforded to disabled students to navigate the institutional environment of the community college. Titchkosky’s (2011) 4 W Access framework provided the analytical frameworks for this investigation. Findings indicate that ideological constructs, inflexible funding models, and lack of integration shape access and opportunity negatively for disabled students in California community colleges.