Redefining Ability: Christinne Gray ’00 ’02MS on Advocacy, Resilience and UCF Roots
When Christinne Gray ’00 ’02 was growing up in New Jersey, she wanted to become a disability advocate so she could help others like her.
Gray has cerebral palsy, a condition that affects the use of her left hand and legs. Caused by brain damage before or during birth, cerebral palsy can present in many ways — impacting movement, coordination and speech to varying degrees.
“I’ve always been able to talk just fine,” Gray says. But when she was younger, she often faced uncertainty from those around her. “No one was really sure how much I could do.”
Her early life was shaped by experimental surgeries and encounters with people who didn’t understand her condition. Still, Gray adapted because she knew no other way. And she knew she was meant for more.
At UCF, she found her voice. In her college application essay, Gray wrote candidly about her life with cerebral palsy and her dream to advocate for others. She majored in legal studies and initially planned to attend law school. But as she explored different avenues, a professor encouraged her to pursue UCF’s new criminal justice graduate program — one she completed in just 18 months.
“This disability I have may impede my body,” she says, “but it doesn’t affect my brain.”
Despite her confidence, Gray often faced doubters. During a phone call to discuss accommodations, a person told her she didn’t “sound” disabled. “What does a person with a disability sound like?” Gray wondered. The person insisted that people with cerebral palsy “should” have a speech impediment.
“Well, I don’t,” Gray replied.
Comments like that only strengthened her resolve to push back against misconceptions and educate others.
“I realized I have a bigger problem than having a disability,” she says. “I am too educated and too independent.”
Transportation challenges sparked her formal advocacy work. When she began working at the Orange County Public Defender’s Office, her paratransit service dropped her off at 3 a.m. for an 8:30 a.m. shift and picked her up three hours after work ended. Gray began contacting transportation officials and applying the research skills she’d honed at UCF. After all, she told them, people like her — who work but don’t drive — are probably the bus company’s most loyal riders. Her advocacy eventually led to work with the Center for Independent Living in Winter Park.
She also became a passionate speaker. At a parenting class, a nurse once told her she’d never be able to hold her son because of her atypical hand. “That remark stopped the whole class,” she says. “You know how Taylor Swift writes a song after a breakup? Whenever someone says something ignorant about disability, I write an article.”
After her son, Adrian, was born, a doctor expressed surprise that he had no disabilities. The experience prompted another article from Gray — this one about the importance of self-advocacy in health care. It brought back memories of middle school, when classmates spread a rumor that touching her hand would make theirs curl up, too. That rumor ended abruptly after she appeared in the media alongside the boy band New Kids on the Block — suddenly, everyone wanted to be her friend.
Today, Gray leads disability sensitivity trainings for businesses and organizations. At her husband’s suggestion — he’s an attorney — she developed a curriculum that helps others recognize and challenge bias.
Gray’s practical, no-nonsense advocacy has earned her recognition across the state. She was appointed by the governor for her work on transportation, has consulted on accessible housing initiatives and continues to contribute to numerous blogs and nonprofits.
“I have a big mouth,” she jokes, “but it’s only because I’m passionate about helping people with disabilities get the help they need.”
In 2017, she had to draw on that same tenacity to advocate for herself and her son after Hurricane Irma destroyed their home. She credits UCF with giving her the knowledge to navigate complex, bureaucratic systems and secure the support they needed.
“Everything in my life goes back to UCF,” she says. “If it weren’t for the research skills I gained there, I don’t know how we would have survived.”
Gray dived into disaster relief materials, deciphering eligibility rules and resources to secure housing. Throughout, she continued writing for her blog, mamasmunchkin.net, a parenting resource she started in 2012.
“When I was pregnant, so many people assumed I wouldn’t be able to take care of my child,” she says. “But I knew better.”
To quiet naysayers, she earned a green belt in Tang Soo Do through an adaptive martial arts class in New Jersey, and continues to share parenting advice, family recipes and personal stories to uplift others navigating life with a disability. Gray also contributes to The Mighty, an online health community, and hosts virtual workshops to help people with disabilities connect and find support. One of her workshops, “Disability in the Media,” explores the evolution of disability portrayals — from pity to empowerment.
“In the media, people with disabilities are too often shown as victims,” she says. “But we have full, fulfilling lives. We work. We parent. We thrive.”
In her debut novel, “Mandated Resistance,” Gray explores life after disability through the story of Jordan, a successful, able-bodied man whose life is upended after a stroke leaves him with limited mobility and speech. Though fictional, the story draws heavily on real-life experiences — reminding readers how quickly life can change.
Gray also offers peer counseling to newly disabled individuals. “There’s a mourning period when you lose your abilities,” she says. “You don’t have to be okay with it. But I try to offer some perspective, and hopefully some hope.”
Throughout her journey, Gray has remained anchored by her mission: to challenge outdated assumptions, break down barriers and amplify voices that are too often ignored.
“I may move a little differently,” she says, “but that’s never stopped me from moving forward.”
*Author’s note: As a disability advocate, Christinne Gray is passionate about finding ways to make the path easier for individuals who may need it. Listed below are links to her websites which range from a cooking channel to merchandise to her personal blog and more.
