Coordinator – Comprehensive Transition and Post-Secondary Program (CTP), Supported Higher Education Project, Human Development Institute, University of Kentucky
Erin Fitzgerald
Erin Fitzgerald works for the Human Development Institute at the University of Kentucky, where she coordinates the College and Career Studies (CCS) program. CCS is a Comprehensive Transition and Postsecondary *(CTP) program, a non-degree program supporting students with intellectual disability. CCS students attend college to take classes of interest, explore career options, and engage in campus and community life.
Erin also helps coordinate the Kentucky Supported Higher Education Partnership (KSHEP), a statewide partnership of inclusive postsecondary programs.
Disability Accommodation Specialist University of Kentucky
John Caldora
John Caldora received his M.Ed. from the University of Maryland and is an Accommodations Consultant with the Disability Resource Center at the University of Kentucky. As an accommodations consultant, John meets with students and determines appropriate accommodations under federal law. John also provides information to faculty on civil rights compliance.
John has a decade of experience training post-secondary staff and faculty on supporting neurodivergent students. John is the primary consultant for Autistic students at UK and runs the Neurodiverse Educational and Social Initiative, providing support and a sense of belonging to neurodivergent students.
Employment Specialist Edge Employment of Louisville, KY
Julian Adam Employment Specialist, Edge Employment of Louisville, KY
Julian Adam, He/They, Julian has a bachelor’s degree from Murray State University in Sociology with a Minor in Organizational Communication. He spent four years as a Crisis Respite Case Manager in Seattle Washington, working with vulnerable individuals in the fields of mental health and chemical addiction. Previously Julian worked as a Center Manager for The Job Center assisting with finding employment for individuals in the Warehouse and Distribution fields. Julian is a Cheerleading Coach for Noe Middle School locally in Louisville and has coached for more than a decade. He is a very passionate and professional individual who believes in leaving the world a better place than of which it was found.
Employment Specialist Edge Employment of Louisville, KY
Roan Campbell Employment Specialist, Edge Employment of Louisville, KY
Roan Campbell, They/Them, Roan has a Bachelor of Science in Business with a concentration in Human Resource Management and a minor in Informatics from Indiana University. Before joining with Edge Employment, Roan worked within the healthcare industry in onboarding, recruiting, HR data analysis, serving various HR roles. Roan is a passionate human rights activist and spends much of their personal time advocating inside the greater Louisville community within multiple capacities— these experiences include serving on multiple organizational boards, fundraising, event planning, organizing volunteers, and public advocacy.
Lead Information Specialist – Training and Technical Assistance Southeast ADA Center – Burton Blatt Institute
Speaker Bio
Rebecca Williams Lead Information Specialist – Training and Technical Assistance Southeast ADA Center – Burton Blatt Institute
Rebecca Williams has been employed as the Lead Information Specialist since 2011 for the Southeast ADA Center, a project of the Burton Blatt Institute (BBI) at Syracuse University. In this capacity she provides technical assistance and resources/referrals to individuals, organizations, state & local government entities, employers and business owners throughout Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee on the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Fair Housing Act, Air Carrier Access Act, Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and other disability related inquiries.
Rebecca has over 40 years of experience in the disability field. She has developed and presented dozens of workshops and trainings on the ADA and other disability rights issues to a wide variety of audiences both locally and nationally. Rebecca completed the ADA Coordinator Certification Program offered through the University of Missouri – College of Human and Environmental Sciences, School of Architectural Studies and the Great Plains ADA Center in April 2012.
Rebecca is a member of the Millersville University (PA) Disability Arts Advisory Council and the Association of Programs for Rural Independent Living (APRIL). She has been a professional audio describer since 2004 and currently provides audio description services for live theater, museums, dance, documentaries and on-line course videos. Rebecca has developed and presented audio description sessions at several national conferences.
Webinar
Guest:
Cheri Hofmann
ADA Distance Learning and Training Director Southeast ADA Center – Burton Blatt Institute
Cheri Hofmann ADA Distance Learning & Training Coordinator, Southeast ADA Center – Burton Blatt Institute
Speaker Bio
Cheri Hofmann began her career in 1976 working with the Federal Government as a training coordinator. During her 16 years with the Federal Government, she worked with the Staff Judge Advocates Office as a paralegal and at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) as a paralegal assistant. Her areas of experience include: legal, technical writing, training, contracting, procurement, and architecture engineering /design. Throughout her career, Cheri has been involved in volunteering, fundraising or assisting with researching laws for people with disabilities.
In 2000, Cheri began actively working with the Independent Living Movement as the Advocacy/Outreach Coordinator for the Center for Independent Living (CIL) Disability Resource Center. Cheri began her career with the Southeast ADA Center in 2002 as a part-time ADA Technical Assistant and later became the full-time in 2003. She currently is their ADA Distance Learning and Training Director. Additionally, she is a recognized voice for ADA technical assistance and training for the Southeast ADA Center for eight states for businesses, state and local government and people with disabilities for her knowledge with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and other federal laws. Cheri currently has her ADA Coordinator certification from the ADA Coordinator Training Certification Program through the University of Missouri- College of Human and Environmental Sciences, School of Architectural Studies and the Great Plains ADA Center as well as the University of Alabama Birmingham, ADA Coordinator Program.
Senior Researcher Burton Blatt Institute at Syracuse University
Meera Adya Senior Researcher Burton Blatt Institute at Syracuse University
Meera Adya, Ph.D., J.D., serves as the Senior Director of Research and Evaluation at BBI. She is currently PI of a five-year, US Department of Labor’s sub-contract evaluating Onondaga Community College’s Pathways to Careers program, a five-year, Rehabilitation Services Administration subcontract from San Diego State University’s Workforce Innovation Technical Assistance Center to provide comprehensive evaluation services, and a NIDILRR funded subcontract to the National Disability Institute, leading the design and analysis of a RCT-based investigation of financial counseling in improving asset accumulation and community participation.
Dr. Adya was the PI of a field-based, experimental (RCT) investigation of employer hiring practices of persons with disabilities in collaboration with Rutgers University which provided statistical evidence of real-world discrimination by employers (a NIDILRR-funded study). She has over 15 years of experience in applied research, including with federal and state government agencies and is expert in the design and implementation of research and evaluation studies in several areas including employment and community participation. Her studies often employ multiple research methods, including experimental (RCT) designs, field research, surveys, qualitative / interview based studies, archival research, and meta-analyses. Dr. Adya has taught courses on research methods and social psychology. Dr. Adya is a member of the National Rehabilitation Association and their Rehabilitation Program Evaluation Network, and the American Evaluation Association.
Director – Disability Supplier Diversity Program & Affiliate Relations U.S. Business Leadership Network (USBLN®)
Aditi Dussault brings both programmatic and relationship development expertise to the USBLN®. Aditi gained her supplier diversity certification experience through her work with the certification programs of the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council and the National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce.
Aditi holds a B.S. in Economics from American University in Washington, DC. Aditi will lead our Disability Supplier Diversity Program, as well as be the point of contact for our Affiliates. She will be working with our Affiliates to strengthen our network and enhance the value of being a USBLN® Affiliate.
Webinar
Guest: Building the Corporate Business Case for Including Disability-Owned Businesses in Supplier Diversity
Barry Whaley
Project Director Southeast ADA Center
Barry Whaley Director, Southeast ADA Center
Barry Whaley works at the Burton Blatt Institute, Syracuse University College of Law. He is the Project Director of the Southeast ADA Center, Principal Co-Collaborator with the University of Leeds (UK) Inclusive Public Spaces project, Co-Collaborator with the University of Queensland (AU) Gender, Equity, Disability, and Social Inclusion Mainstreaming Short Course, and Principal Investigator of the Mid-Atlantic Youth and Self-Advocacy project.
Previously, he was Project Director of the Supported Higher Education Project at the University of Kentucky Human Development Institute. Barry was a Consultant for Atlas Research providing technical assistance and training for the Homeless Veterans Supported Employment Project. For many years, he was Executive Director of Community Employment, Inc. a supported employment provider. Barry has worked for the Kentucky Office of Vocational Rehabilitation. He began his career with the “New Neighbors” deinstitutionalization project, liberating people in state institutions to return to their home communities.
Barry is an alumna of Indiana University and holds a Master of Science in Mediation, Arbitration, and Conflict Management from Sullivan University.
Amy Gartman is an Employee Relations Manager with State Farm Insurance. She began her career with State Farm 26 years ago and during that time has served in different capacities in multiple departments-Claims, Agency, and Human Resources. She has a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Montevallo in Birmingham, AL and has also acquired an Associate in Management (AIM) and Professional in Human Resources (PHR) designations. In her current role as Employee Relations Manager, she is responsible for managing the Human Resources ADA Team who handles all American’s with Disabilities Act (ADA) inquiries and requests from employees throughout the company.
Webinar
Guest: State Farm Human Resources Accommodation Process
