Dr. Sylvia Mac

Dr. Sylvia Mac is an educator, researcher, and practitioner dedicated to building more humane and inclusive learning environments. She currently serves as Associate Director of the Center for Embodied Equity and Neurodiversity (CEEN), where her work focuses on supporting educators and institutions in creating sustainable, equity-centered systems for neurodivergent students and students with disabilities. A former special education teacher and Associate Professor of Inclusive Education, Sylvia brings both scholarly insight and classroom experience to her work, helping educators translate values like care, equity, and accessibility into everyday practice.

Across her career, Sylvia has worked closely with faculty, educators, and institutional leaders to rethink how learning environments are designed and experienced. She is the author of Neoliberalism and Inclusive Education: Students with Disabilities in the Education Marketplace and has developed widely used tools that help educators reflect on how power, belonging, and access show up in their teaching and curricula. Her work is grounded in a commitment to accountability and systems change—seeking to reduce harm in educational structures rather than placing the burden of adaptation on students themselves.

Through the Acosta Institute Fellowship, Sylvia hopes to continue exploring how learning can be approached as a relational and collective process. She enters the Fellowship with a thoughtful and attentive presence, valuing deep listening, curiosity, and the willingness to sit with complexity. Her intention is to contribute to a community where care, reflection, and shared inquiry help shape more equitable and sustainable ways of teaching, learning, and leading together.