Advancing opportunities means that we take down barriers to education, employment, entrepreneurship, and civic engagement and create pipelines to enable disabled individuals to lead the lives of their choosing. Watch the recording of this fireside chat and learn from members of our Staff and two of our key partners about our work in this area and our vision for the coming years. [continue reading…]
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In the I/DD provider world we often see faith communities as merely the places our clients go for religious services. Faith communities have so much to offer, both to the people we support and to our own organizations. In collaborating with faith communities, our organizations have engaged in mutually beneficial and enriching opportunities to better serve individuals’ spiritual needs. We discussed multiple methods of engagement and provided examples of service, volunteer, employment, and social opportunities. [continue reading…]
WIN Summit is a unique opportunity to develop negotiation skills to better equip women to advocate for themselves and their companies. RespectAbility SVP Lauren Appelbaum moderated the panel “Strength in Authenticity: Negotiating with a Disability.”
Hear directly from RespectAbility’s President and CEO Ariel Simms and Chairman of the Board of Directors Ollie Cantos, as they celebrate the achievements of RespectAbility’s first decade as an organization, including achievements in developing leaders, changing policy, ensuring authentic representation, and creating more accessible and inclusive communities. They discussed their vision for RespectAbility’s next 10 years and the organization’s renewed efforts in diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA).
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How do you determine ways to support individual spiritual and religious preferences? Evergreen Life Services has developed its own spiritual assessment practice. This presentation described how Evergreen utilizes its successful approach to support an individual’s preferences and participation in their chosen spiritual and religious expressions. The assessments include targeted questions that help create a pathway for providers to support individual religious and spiritual preferences and practices. The presenters from Evergreen shared the stories of peoples’ journeys to belong to their chosen faith communities. [continue reading…]
“Cleft Hood,” a new episode of Disney Junior’s hit series “Firebuds”, introduced Castor, a vehicle character born with a cleft hood. The episode was written by Emmy-Award winner Jeremy Shipp and inspired by his own son, Henry, who was born with a cleft lip and palate. Henry also voiced Castor in the episode.
Following a screening of the episode was a Q&A with Jeremy and Henry, as well as “Firebuds” creator/executive producer, Craig Gerber, speaking to the importance of onscreen representation. The conversation was moderated by Lauren Appelbaum from RespectAbility, who advised on the episode.
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The passionate advocates of the disability community have long come together to advocate for inclusion in our places of work. Our focus often has been on legal rights, or the inherent justice of our cause. But lately, the business community has come to recognize the economic value of disability inclusion. This webinar equipped internal advocates to make the business case at their place of work, becoming champions of disability inclusion while raising profits and revenue. [continue reading…]
In recognition of Black History Month 2023, RespectAbility was excited to continue our “Black Excellence” series featuring a conversation with Black and Disabled filmmakers in our network who discussed their film work and creative careers. Moderated by Diane J. Wright (Writer and Development Consultant), we also amplified the work of featured panelists Juliet Romeo (Filmmaker and Festival Programmer), Cashmere Jasmine (Writer and Director), Nikki Bailey (Performer, Author, and Producer), Erika Ellis (Writer), Nasreen Alkhateeb (Filmmaker), and Tameka Citchen-Spruce (Filmmaker). [continue reading…]
BRIC Foundation and RespectAbility presented: “Disability Inclusion in Entertainment: Beyond the Pipeline,” a conversation about breaking into the entertainment industry and building community as creative professionals with disabilities. The event was moderated by Lesley Hennen (Writer, Entertainment & News Media Associate at RespectAbility), and featured panelists Jeremy Hsing (Writer, RespectAbility Entertainment Apprentice and Lab Alumnus), Samuel Krauss (Writer, RespectAbility Entertainment Apprentice and Lab Alumnus), and Myles Hunt (Visual Artist, Writer, and RespectAbility Lab Alumnus). They discussed navigating the Entertainment industry, why their voices are important, and details of the Entertainment Labs and other leadership programs that RespectAbility has to offer. [continue reading…]
