Kiley McLean

WORK HISTORY

EDUCATION

ABOUT KILEY MCLEAN

Kiley J. McLean, PhD, MSW, MSEd (she/her) is an Assistant Professor in the Helen Bader School of Social Welfare at the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee and faculty with the Wisconsin Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities (LEND) Program.Dr. McLean’s work is grounded in systems-level and anti-ableist approaches to research and practice. She uses large-scale administrative data (e.g, Medicaid, Medicare, national survey data) alongside community-engaged qualitative methods to identify policy and service barriers and co-create solutions with disabled partners. Her research prioritizes healing rather than curing, centering trust, dignity, and joy as essential components of equitable systems change, and advances equity and belonging across the lifespan for autistic adults and individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD).Her teaching and mentorship emphasize macro social work, social policy and advocacy, and systems change, with a particular focus on ensuring that inclusion efforts meaningfully share power and leadership with disabled people. She has received multiple awards for teaching excellence and inclusive scholarship, including the Association for Women in Science (AWIS) Spark Award for advancing diversity and accessibility in science.Dr. McLean is deeply involved in Wisconsin’s disability community, including managing a year-round (free) Special Olympics team and serving on the board of Disability Rights Wisconsin, where she works to build advocacy and community spaces rooted in inclusion, healing, joy, and connection—principles she views as central to sustainable movements for systems change and collective care.You can learn more about Kiley McLean\'s work—including publications, presentations, awards, and teaching—at https://uwm.edu/socialwelfare/directory/mclean-kiley/**The postings on this site are my own and do not represent my University\'s positions, strategies, or opinions.**