She has a master’s degree in political science from The University of Michigan with a specialization in disability politics and she continues to work in this field as an independent researcher.
In 2023 Mandi founded The S.T.I.M. Project with Nicole Parish. The project is an autistic-led non-profit organization that is working to get sensory tools and informaitonal materials directly to autistic individuals and their families who would otherwise be unable to afford them. To learn more about The S.T.I.M. Project visit thestimproject.org.
Mandi also currently works as an independent consultant on disability acceptance and accessibility. She has worked with several universities on improving their disability resources and accommodation procedures using survey data from both students and faculty at the institution. Interested in her consulting services? Contact Mandi directly at mandieatough@gmail.com.
writing
You’re not disposable, and neither am I.
“You’re not disposable.”
I was eighteen years old the first time I heard these words.
They weren’t said to me, they were said in a television show that I was watching instead of studying, but their impact was monumental anyway.
It is not something that gets talked about often — people being disposable — but those words helped me articulate a feeling I’d known for most of my life.
When you are born with a body that doesn’t quite work the way that others’ do, you can find yourself making endless comparisons in which you just can’t measure up.
Five Things You Can Do Right Now to Fight Ableism
1. Learn about the history of disability.
2. Actively look for and listen to modern disabled perspectives about disability.
3. Understand what inspiration porn is — and avoid it.
4. Only support disability organizations that are run by disabled people for disabled people.
5. Make listening to and raising up the voices of disabled people a part of your everyday life.
The Pain of Being in Pain at Church
I was born sick.
For a long time nobody knew how sick I was. When I was three it was just asthma. When I was ten it was just growing pains. When I was thirteen it was just in my head. When I was a junior in high school it was just pneumonia. When I was a freshman in college I just wasn’t eating right.
When I was a sophomore in college it was a clearly late diagnosis of autoimmune disease and a nervous system disorder that had been destroying my body for more than twenty years without treatment.
research
PEER REVIEWED PUBLICATIONS
OTHER PUBLICATIONS
WORKING PAPERS
PEER REVIEWED PUBLICATIONS
“Crediting Invisible Work: Congress and the Lawmaking Productivity Metric”
Forthcoming at American Political Science Review, with Jessica Preece
Barber, Michael and Mandi Eatough. 2020. “Industry Politicization and Interest Group Campaign
Contribution Strategies.” The Journal of Politics 82 (3): 1008–1025.
OTHER PUBLICATIONS
Eatough, Mandi and Jessica Preece. 2020. “Bipartisanship Reconsidered: Minority Party Contributions to
Lawmaking in the 101st to 113th Congresses.” Forthcoming Book Chapter.
Eatough, Mandi. 2018. “Congress and the Benefits of Social Media: A Low-Cost Investment in
Constituency Approval and Electoral Success.” In Sigma: Journal of Political and International
Studies 35: 39-66.
Eatough, Mandi. 2017. “Foster Care Privatization: How an Increasingly Popular Public Policy Leads to
Increased Levels of Abuse and Neglect.” In Sigma: Journal of Political and International Studies
34: 51-74.
Eatough, Mandi and Jordan Johnston. 2016. “Immigrants and Voting: How a Personal Relationship to
Immigration Changes the Voting Behaviors of Americans.” In Sigma: Journal of Political and
International Studies 33: 121-135.
WORKING PAPERS
“Public Opinion on American Healthcare Legislation by Health Status: Does a Personal Need for Coverage
Influence Preference on Healthcare Policies?”
“It’s Okay to Ask: Improving the Measurement of Disability in Survey Research”
Under Review: Revise & Resubmit
“Is This Election Accessible? How Government Officials Respond to Requests for Election Information by
Disabled Voters”
“The Effectiveness of Foster Care Placements: An Evaluation of Privatized and Non-Privatized Foster Care
Placements & Outcomes”
with Jay Goodliffe
Conference Posters
Education
2018 - 2022
University of Michigan
Ma, political science
Disability Politics & Health Policy specialization
2013-2018
Brigham Young University
BA, Political science
Political strategy & Research and analysis Emphases
Minors: Political Strategy, Theatre arts studies
Experience
2023 - Present
The S.T.I.M. Project
Founder & Director of Operations
2019-2021
university of michigan - Department of Political science
Graduate Student Instructor & Graduate Research Assistant
2017-2019
CEnter for the study of elections and democracy
Undergraduate Research Fellow
2016-2019
Brigham Young University - Department of Political science
Undergraduate Research Assistant