UCLA Disability Studies is proud to share that Dr. Lauren Clark, core faculty in the Disability Studies Interdepartmental Program, has been appointed to the Disability Rights California Board of Directors.
Disability Rights California (DRC) is the agency designated under federal law to protect and advocate for the rights of Californians with disabilities.
DRC works in litigation, legal representation, advocacy services, investigations, public policy, and provide information, advice, referral, and community outreach.
For more than 40 years, DRC has worked to advance the rights of Californians with disabilities in education, employment, independence, health, and safety, and has grown into the largest disability rights organization in the nation.
Lauren Clark
Serving on Disability Rights California’s Committee(s) – Governance
Lauren Clark holds a Ph.D. in nursing and is a Professor of Nursing at UCLA, where she holds the Shaprio Family Endowed Chair in Developmental Disability Studies. She’s also the Associate Dean for Academic Programs in the School of Nursing. Over her twenty-five-year career, she served on various academic and professional leadership groups, committees, and taskforces at local, national, and international levels. She served on professional editorial boards for the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior, Qualitative Health Research, and Global Qualitative Nursing Research. And she also served on the Ethics Committees of two large national professional groups, the American Anthropological Association and the American Academy of Nursing.
Lauren is also an elected Fellow of the Society of Applied Anthropology, the American Academy of Nursing, the Western Academy of Nursing, and the Transcultural Nursing Society. She is serving her second term on the Board of Governors of the Western Institute of Nursing (2023-24 as President-Elect, 2024-26 as President, then 2026-27 as Past President).
Lauren is the mother of two children with developmental disabilities and has advocated for their rights in education, employment, transportation, healthcare, and community life.
Lauren describes why serving on Disability Rights California’s Board of Directors is important to her, saying, “The mission of the DRC is aligned with my personal and professional passions, and I’m honored to join the Board to assure that Californians with disabilities enjoy equal rights, dignity, choice, independence and freedom from abuse, neglect, and discrimination. As a Board member, I would like to add a focus on health and healthcare, beginning with healthcare provider education and accountability. In nursing, we know that health is more than the absence of abuse, neglect, and discrimination, and includes exercising choice and independence to thrive in safe and supportive environments.”
To learn more about Disability Rights California and the Board of Directors, visit their website.
