Walter Isaac Finds Teaching and Research Success While Managing ASD
Walter Isaac shares his life experience and education with UT students across an array of course subjects, from African and African American studies to Jewish and religious studies and philosophy. A lecturer in the Department of Africana Studies, he brings to the university a unique background as a scholar and African American rabbi of Palestinian descent.
He also co-directs an ongoing research and education program, funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), dedicated to the Gullah/Geechee culture of the southeastern US coast where he grew up.
Isaac navigates his academic and research success while managing life and career with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). He wants Vol colleagues and students with ASD to know that the challenges of higher education can be met.
“I want students with autism to see one of their professors, having gone through similar struggles, being able to function in social life,” said Isaac. “I don’t think people really understand what an accomplishment it is to graduate from college with autism. I had to work really hard to find a healthy and supportive environment.”
Things many people might take for granted—multitasking, filling out paperwork, reading social cues, following conversations, and other social conventions—do not always make sense to people with ASD.
“But it’s not all doom and gloom,” said Isaac. “I honestly don’t think of it as a disorder. There are many strengths—I call them superpowers. More than anything else, I think it’s finding joy in my work. Some routines never become boring. It’s things like that which help me succeed. I love what I do. I’ve noticed that my students see that and appreciate it.”
Students with ASD often engage with Isaac when they learn that he is also on the autism spectrum. His representation on campus adds to the university’s support for Vols with ASD through programs like PASS, the Postsecondary Autism Support Service.
“I would tell students with ASD the following,” said Isaac. “Be proud of yourself, develop your strengths, and strengthen what you need to develop. Some days will be difficult, but don’t give up. When necessary, lean on your support network, especially family, friends, and other resources here at UT such as the PASS program. Everyone, including myself, needs the help of an advocate sometimes.”
In addition to advocating for the campus ASD community, Isaac’s Africana Studies expertise and life experience help him guide research for the $400,000 education grant project from the NEH.
“The nonprofit that I’m co-directing it through is known as the NOBIS Project, based in Savannah, Georgia,” said Isaac. “It’s hard to get grants for projects in the humanities and social sciences in general, but this was our second time being successful.”
This grant funds experiential learning conducted by NOBIS with a focus on democracy, civil rights, and disseminating information about Gullah/Geechee history and culture. The southeastern coastal region from South Carolina into northern Florida represents a rich and unique crossroads of US history.
“Where I grew up, you see relics and artifacts of the political hegemony of the past 500 years,” said Isaac. “You see artifacts from Native Americans, you see artifacts from the French, Spanish, and English colonial periods, in addition to many African-influenced cultural practices.”
The ancestors of many Black Americans came into the country through the ports of Savannah and Charleston as enslaved peoples during these colonial eras and later settled throughout the coastal region.
“African American culture is filtered through those layers of colonialism,” said Isaac. “That’s why it was a good place for the National Endowment for the Humanities to invest money in the study of Black societies. It honors African people’s diversity. Human beings are always more than one thing. When we encounter diverse people, even neurotypical minorities such as people with autism, it’s good to remember that there’s always more to us than meets the eye.”