Dr. Patrick Ojok, Ph.D.,
Senior Lecturer & Dean
Patrick Ojok, PhD, is a Senior Lecturer and Dean of the Faculty of Special Needs & Rehabilitation at Kyambogo University, Uganda, and the immediate past Head of the Department of Community & Disability Studies. He also holds a courtesy (non-salaried) appointment as Adjunct Research Assistant Professor at the Department of Disability and Human Development, University of Illinois at Chicago, USA.
A Fulbright & NORAD Scholar, DAAD alumnus, and NORED Post-doctoral Fellow (2017/18), Dr. Ojok received his PhD in Disability Studies from the University of Illinois at Chicago, USA, in 2015. Dr. Ojok’s research focuses on disability policy, inclusive education, inclusive employment, African perspectives on disability, and accessible technology. Primarily a qualitative researcher and policy analyst, he has extensive experience in mixed methods program evaluation, policy design and review, curriculum design and review, inclusive pedagogy, and disability inclusion training.
Dr. Ojok has over 25 years of teaching, research, and senior leadership experience, having taught at the primary level (10 years), tertiary level (3 years), and university level (14 years). In 2017/18, he was the only head of department among 30 Deans selected from African universities to participate in the DAAD-sponsored International Dean’s Course, “Dialogue for Innovative Higher Education Strategies” (DIES).
Dr. Ojok has presented numerous conference papers and delivered keynote addresses at national, regional, and international forums. He recently authored Uganda’s combined 2nd, 3rd, and 4th Periodic Reports on the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, submitted to the UN in October 2022. He was also part of a team of international consultants who developed the World Bank’s report on Disability Inclusive Education for Africa, titled: Understanding Multi-Dimensional Determinants of Disability Inclusive Education: Lessons from Rwanda, Sierra Leone, and Zambia.
Dr. Ojok teaches disability studies and inclusive education courses at both graduate and undergraduate levels, including topics such as disability law and policy, disability studies, research methodology, inclusive education, and qualitative data analysis. He is passionate about mentoring young people, giving back to the community, and advocating for inclusion and social justice.
Department
- Department of Community and Disability Studies
- Faculty of Special Needs and Rehabilitation, Kyambogo University, Uganda
Additional Responsibilities Held
- Dean, Faculty of Special Needs and Rehabilitation, Kyambogo University, Uganda, 2024 – Present
- Member, National Disability Coordinating Committee
- Member, Special Needs Education Technical Working Group
- Member, National Taskforce for the Development of the National Inclusive Education Policy (NIEP), (2016 present)
Department
- Department of Community and Disability Studies
- Faculty of Special Needs and Rehabilitation, Kyambogo University, Uganda
Additional Responsibilities Held
- Dean, Faculty of Special Needs and Rehabilitation, Kyambogo University, Uganda, 2024 – Present
- Member, National Disability Coordinating Committee
- Member, Special Needs Education Technical Working Group
- Member, National Taskforce for the Development of the National Inclusive Education Policy (NIEP), (2016 present)
- PhD in Disability Studies, University of Illinois, Chicago, USA, 2011- 2015
- Master of Philosophy (MPhil.) Special Needs Education, Oslo University, Norway, 2006-2008
- Bachelor of Education (Special Needs Education), Kyambogo University, Uganda, 2003- 2005
- Diploma in Special Needs Education, Institute of Teacher Education Kyambogo, Uganda, 1999-2001
- Grade III Teachers’ Certificate, Kotido Primary Teachers’ College, 1996
- Adjunct Assistant Research Professor, University of Illinois at Chicago, USA, 2021-Present
- Senior Lecturer, Department of Community and Disability Studies, Kyambogo University, Uganda, 2021- Present
- Research Assistant, University of Illinois at Chicago, USA, 2012 – 2015
- Teaching Assistant, University of Illinois at Chicago, USA, 2015
- Lecturer, Department of Community and Disability Studies, Kyambogo University, Uganda 2015-2021
- Assistant Lecturer, Department of Community and Disability Studies, Kyambogo University, 2011 – 2015
- Assistant Lecturer and Head, Department of Special Needs Education, Kampala International University, Uganda, 2009 – 2011
- Graduate Tutor, Special Needs Education, Kotido Primary Teachers’ College, Ministry of Education & Sports, 2006 – 2009
- Education Assistant II (Primary School Teacher), Kotido District Local Government, 1996 – 2006.
Research Interests
Disability policy, inclusive education, qualitative research, inclusive employment, African discourses on disability, Rights, social justice, and advocacy, inclusive development, accessible technology, and implementation science.
Selected Peer-Reviewed Publications
- Ojok, P. (2021). ‘The Role of Ugandan Public Universities in Promoting Accessible Information Technology in Michael Ashley Stein and Jonathan Lazer (eds). Accessible Technology and the Developing World, 322. https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780198846413.003.0017
- Bannink Mbazzi, F., Nalugya, R., Kawesa, E., Nambejja, H., Nizeyimana, P., Ojok, P., Van Hove, G. and Seeley, J. (2020) ‘‘Obuntu Bulamu’ – Development and Testing of an Indigenous Intervention for Disability Inclusion in Uganda’, Scandinavian Journal of Disability Research, 22(1), p. 403–416. https://doi.org/10.16993/sjdr.697.
- Ojok, P., & Musenze, J. B. (2019a). A defense of identity for persons with disability: Reflections from religion and philosophy versus ancient African culture. African Journal of Disability, 8, 490. https://doi.org/10.4102/ajod.v8i0.490
- Ojok, P. & Gould, R. (2019b). A comparison of disability rights in employment: Exploring the potential of the UNCRPD in Uganda and the United States. Disability and the Global South. https://dgsjournal.org/vol-6-no-2/
- Parker Harris, S., Gould, R., Ojok, P., Fujiura, G., Jones, R., & Olmstead IV, A. (2014). Scoping Review of the Americans with Disabilities Act: What Research Exists, and Where do we go from Here?. Disability Studies Quarterly, 34(3). https://doi.org/10.18061/dsq.v34i3.3883
- Ojok, P. (2013). Beyond Legislation: Implementing the employment provisions of the Persons with Disabilities Act of Uganda 2006’. Nordic Journal of Human Rights, 31(3), 343-358. https://www.idunn.no/doi/10.18261/ISSN1891-814X-2013-03-05
- Ojok, P., & Wormnæs, S. (2013). Inclusion of pupils with intellectual disabilities: primary school teachers’ attitudes and willingness in a rural area in Uganda. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 17(9), 1003–1021. https://doi.org/10.1080/13603116.2012.728251
Selected Reports Written: National & International
- National Blueprint for Disability Prevention, Management and Inclusion in Uganda. Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development (MGLSD), Uganda, 2023.
- Understanding Multidimensional Determinants of Disability-Inclusive Education: Lessons from Rwanda, Sierra Leone, and Zambia (English). Washington, D.C., World Bank Group, 2022.
- Uganda’s Combined 2nd, 3rd & 4th Periodic Report on the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, (submitted to the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities), Ministry of Gender, Labor and Social Development, 2022
- Disability Status Report, Uganda, National Council for Persons with Disabilities, Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development (MGLSD), Uganda, 2022.
- National Report on Disability Inclusion in the Implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals, National Union of Disabled Persons of Uganda, 2021
Research and Consultancy Projects
- International Consultant, Disability Inclusive Education for Africa Program, World Bank Group, 2018 – 2022. https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/disability/brief/disability-inclusive-education-in-africa-program
- Lead Consultant, Baseline and Endline Evaluation of LEGCO Braille Bricks Pilot Project in Uganda implemented by UNICEF and Ministry of Education and Sport (MoES), Uganda, 2023. https://www.unicef.org/uganda/stories/braille-bricks-transform-learning-children-visual-impairment
- Lead Consultant, “All in, All Learning” Program: Promoting Inclusive Education for Children with Disabilities using the Child-to-Child Approach, Able Child Africa and Uganda Society for Disabled Children, 2020. https://www.ablechild.org.uk/news/project/uganda/child-to-child-inclusive-education/
- Principal Investigator, Exploring the Implementation of Inclusive Education in Uganda, contracted by Regional Education Learning Initiative (RELI), 2021 – 2023. https://reliafrica.org/equity-and-inclusion-uganda/
- Principal Investigator, “Teachers’ Perceived Preparedness to Implement the Competency-Based Lower Secondary Curriculum in Uganda” commissioned by Regional Education Learning Initiative (RELI) Uganda, 2019-2021.
- Consultant, Process Evaluation of the MasterCard Scholars Program at the University of Ghonda, Ethiopia, 2021.
- Principal Investigator, From Segregation to Inclusive Education: what direction for Uganda? EQUAL Seeds Grant, a collaboration with New York University, from 2019 to 2021.
- Co-Principal Investigator – Evidence-Based Inclusive Education for Children with Disabilities in Wakiso Disability, Uganda, VLIR-OUS 2017-2019. https://www.vliruos.be/en/projects/project/22?pid=3691
- Lead Consultant, Final Evaluation of the Inclusive Early Childhood Education Project, commissioned by Able Child Africa and Uganda Society for Disabled Children (USDC), 2023.
- Lead Consultant, Mapping of Community-based Mental Health Services and Informal systems in Uganda, Validity Foundation Kenya. (Nov. 2020- March, 2021).
- Lead Consultant, Employment Situation of Persons with Disabilities and the Prospect of a Quota Employment Policy for Uganda, commissioned by Light for the World and National Union of Disabled Persons of Uganda (NUDIPU), 2019.
Selected Presentations, Keynote addresses
- Keynote Speaker, The World Congress for the International Association for the Scientific Study of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. Glasgow, Scotland, August, 2018
- Presenter, A seminar on Accessible technology in developing countries, leading to a book publication in which I am chapter author. (June 6-8, 2018) 16. Harvard University, Radcliffe Institute, USA.
- Discussant, Regional Round Table on Inclusive Education in the African Context convened by UNSECO, November, 2018. Pretoria, South Africa.
- Keynote Speaker, Uganda National Inclusive Education Dialogue organized by the Ministry of Education, UNICEF Eastern and Southern Regional Office (ESARO), UNICEF Uganda, UNESCO International Institute for Capacity Building in Africa (IICBA) & African Union Pan-Africa Institute of Education for Development (AU IPED), April 5, 2023. Kampala, Uganda, Africana Hotel.
- Panel Presenter, National Dialogue on Inclusive Education. Panel presentation entitled: Article 24 of the UNCRPD: To What Extent is Uganda Complaint? Africana Hotel, Kampala Uganda (2021).
- Presenter, “Special Schools and Schools for All: Necessary contradictions for East Africa?” a paper presented at the East African Linkage Conference on Inclusive Education, May, 2017, Wakiso District, Esela Hotel, Uganda.
Conference, Workshops, Seminars
Technological Innovations to Promote Disability Employment:
A keynote Speaker at the launch of an Online Job Ability Portal, at Imperial Royale, Kampala, Uganda, on August 26, 2021.
Berlin, Germany – Internet Governance Forum. Panelist at a workshop on
access to ICT by persons with disabilities in developing countries organized
within the IGF 2019, from 25th to 29th Nov. 2019.
Africana Hotel, Kampala, Uganda. National Dialogue on Inclusive
Education. Panel presentation entitled: Article 24 of the UNCRPD: To What
Extent is Uganda Complaint? Venue: Africana Hotel, Kampala Uganda.
Makerere University Law School. Invited to discuss the paper entitled: Efficacy of Community-Based Services for Persons with Psychosocial Disabilities.
Makerere University Law School, Centre of Disability Rights and Law.
Discussion of a paper entitled: implementation Status of Makerere University
Disability Policy: A baseline survey and self-reflection.
Pretoria, South Africa. Regional Round Table on Inclusive Education in the African Context organized convened by UNSECO. Nov. 2018
Radcliffe Institute, Harvard University. A seminar on Accessible technology in developing countries, leading to a book publication in which I am chapter author. (June 6-8, 2018)
Nairobi, Kenya. Conference paper entitled Inclusive education policies in East
Africa: rhetoric, practice and emergence issues. (March 22-23, 2018)
Esela Hotel, Wakiso District. Conference paper entitled Special Schools and
Schools for All: Necessary contradictions for East Africa? (May, 2017).
Kyambogo University, Kampala, Uganda. National Disability Policy Dialogue
paper entitled: The Persons with Disabilities Amendments Bill 2014:
Strengthening or Compromising Disability Rights – June 14, 2017.
University of Zimbabwe, Harare, Zimbabwe; Conference paper entitled:
Access and utilization of information and communication technology by students
with visual impairment in Uganda’s public universities. (August, 2017)
Francis W. Parker School, Chicago, Illinois, USA. Guest Lecturer entitled The
Disability Rights Movement: Advocacy and Action. November 2014.
Faculty of Law, Oslo University, Norway. Conference paper entitled Beyond
legislation: implementing the employment provisions of the Persons with
Disabilities Act of Uganda 2006. (October 12, 2012).
Denver, Colloredo, USA. A conference paper entitled Participation of people
with intellectual disabilities in integrated employment. (June, 2011)
Membership of Corporate, Social and Professional Bodies
Service to the Profession
Journals’ Peer reviewer, European Journal of Disability Research https://journals.openedition.org/alterjdr/index.html?lang=en ;
African Journal of Disability https://ajod.org/index.php/ajod ;
Journal of Social Inclusion https://journalofsocialinclusion.com/ ;
Rwanda Journal of Education https://www.ajol.info/index.php/rje
Member, Adhoc Committee for Competitive Research Grant, Kyambogo
University, 2019 – 2022
Chair, Scientific Committee for organizing the 2nd National Inclusive Education
Symposium, 2021, 2022
Member, National Task Force overseeing the development of the National
Inclusive Education Policy for Uganda (2018-Present
Chair, Adhoc Committee for the Restructuring of the Faculty of Special Needs
and Rehabilitation, Kyambogo University. My role included chairing a series of
faculty level and committee meetings and drafting the report, 2018
Member, Adhoc Committee set by Kyambogo University to probe into
allegations of irregular admissions of students into the undergraduate
program on Civil and Building Engineering, 2015 – 2016
Technical Team Member, Developing the Quality Assurance Guidelines on
Disability for Higher Education Institutions in the East African Community,
under the auspices of Inter University Council for East Africa – 2014-2015
Founding member, African Network for Intellectual and Developmental Disability
Member, International Association for the Scientific Study of Intellectual and Developmental Disability (IASSIDD)
Member, Technical Working Group on Special Needs Education; Adhoc Committee for Competitive Research Grant – Kyambogo University (2019 to 2022), National Task Force for the development of the National Inclusive Education Policy (NIEP) for Uganda. www.iassidd.org/
Chair, Scientific Committee for the 1st, 2nd and 3rd National Inclusive Education Symposium, 2021, 2022, 2023
Founding Member, Association of Special Needs Education Teachers of Uganda (ASNETU).