Brandon Harding isn’t a member of just one international honor society—he’s a member of two. As vice president of Guttman’s DAPi, he’s earned the distinction of belonging not only to the campus’ chapter of the Phi Theta Kappa (PTK) International Honor Society but of meeting the even narrower eligibility requirements of Delta Alpha Pi. DAPi is the only collegiate academic honor society that specifically recognizes high-achieving students with disabilities and develops or enhances skills in leadership, advocacy and education while fostering disability identity and a sense of community.
In addition to pursuing academic excellence (members must maintain a 3.1 minimum GPA), Harding and his fellow DAPi members take a pledge to “demonstrate leadership in advancing the rights of individuals with disabilities, to serve as a role model for other students with disabilities, to advocate for [themselves] and for other individuals with disabilities.”
“I’m not afraid to express myself fully as to who I am, and I’m fine saying that I have dyslexia,” stated the Business Administration major who aims to graduate in 2025. “The haters you have to ignore, but what I find when I disclose my disability to trusted friends is that they see what I can do and what I achieve. They usually respond with support like, ‘Wow! How do you manage that?’ Telling people who you really are, including the challenges you have, gives them the chance to become supporters, to be on your side. By saying that I have a disability, I’m giving them a bigger picture of who I am, and I may be encouraging others who feel afraid or ashamed and are hiding their disability to speak up.”
Serving as the honor society’s treasurer, second-year Liberal Arts student George Jordan appreciates the group’s commitment to visibility and leadership, especially in providing opportunities for him to continue his passion for volunteering. As a group, DAPi spent hours packing and sorting food on 10/29 in Washington Heights at the West Side Campaign Against Hunger Warehouse and Distribution Center.
“People don’t realize that people with disabilities are here to serve, too, and marginalized people’s stories are not being told,” Jordan says. “I want to spark a change in this world, and when my GPA went up and Guttman Office of AccessABILITY advisors Marcus [Griffith] and Maryanne [Sackarnoski] invited me to apply for DAPi, I said, ‘Put me to work!’ “
DAPi’s motto is “Working for an aDAPtable world.” Members of the honor society support the principles of Universal Design and believe that the environment, rather that the individual, needs to adjust to provide access for everyone. Student members of DAPi are encouraged to increase awareness of disability issues in their quest for full inclusion. Jordan’s zeal for inclusion and equity is manifested in his drive to write scripts in the entertainment field, for soap operas and telenovelas, to be exact. “I’ve been a fan since the age of six and am super interested in expanding the tropes of families and affairs that are part of this genre. There’s so much more complexity to explore than the way the iconic, legacy characters are written. I’m writing against the stereotypes of races, ethnicities and backgrounds and creating new generation characters who are real change agents,” he said.
The Greek letters Delta (D), Alpha (A), and Pi (P) represent Disability, Achievement and Pride, and the organization’s colors are royal blue for perseverance and justice and gold for the pursuit of excellence—visual reminders for students who often arrive at college with negative messages about their ability to be successful.
DAPi Vice President Brandon Harding encourages other students: “Speak your truth. Don’t put yourself in a dark place.” He knows this from experience. When he started to see his grades slipping, he knew he had to do something, so he got up his nerve to go to his statistics professor. “I went with the idea that I want her to see me as a whole person. I asked, ‘Do you want to get to know more about me? I’m a person who is taking this class, trying to push through it because I have a goal of going into sports marketing, sports management or broadcasting. And I have a disability. When I don’t understand, I will email you, schedule time for a one-on-one. I’ll ask you to explain it another way.’ And she heard me.”
DAPi is celebrating its 20th anniversary, established in 2004 by East Stroudsburg University’s Dr. Edith F. Miller and Dr. Julianne Albiero-Walto and incorporated as a 501(c)(3) not-for profit organization with the name Delta Alpha Pi International Honor Society (DAPi) in 2008. It offers an annual $2500 scholarship to undergraduate active members. As of October 31, 2024, there are 236 chartered DAPi chapters at colleges and universities in 39 states and the District of Columbia for a total membership of over 6,000 undergraduate and graduate students.
