New Publication by Prof. Fady Shanouda Explores the Carceral Geographies of the University
Please join us in congratulating Dr. Shanouda on this important contribution to critical scholarship on higher education, madness, disability, and social justice.
Published in the latest issue of the International Mad Studies Journal, Dr. Shanouda‘s article, The Carceral Geographies of the University, examines how Canadian universities respond to student suicidality through policies and practices that prioritize surveillance, control, and containment. Drawing together insights from Mad Studies and carceral geography, the article critically analyzes the growing use of defensive architecture, involuntary leave policies, and hospital-based interventions, arguing that these measures reflect a broader “carceral turn” within higher education.
The article explores how institutional responses framed through risk management and safety discourses can disproportionately impact mad, disabled, and racialized students. Rather than addressing the social, historical, and structural conditions that shape student distress, these approaches often position students as problems to be managed, reinforcing exclusionary understandings of mental health and wellbeing.
Dr. Shanouda‘s scholarship continues to advance critical conversations at the intersections of disability justice, Mad Studies, anti-carceral frameworks, and transformative approaches to education. Through this work, he invites readers to reconsider how universities understand care, safety, and belonging, and to imagine institutional responses that move beyond containment toward justice and collective responsibility.