DFN Informational Teleconferences: Employment and Disability Culture/The Arts

Because of a grant from The HSC Foundation, DFN members, both grantmakers and grantseekers, joined forces after the tragedies of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita and presented an informational teleconference on emergency relief and disaster preparedness that was hosted by former DFN board member Susan Mazrui of AT&T. Marca Bristo, executive director of Access Living, moderated the call, which included Olegario Cantos, Vii, special assistant to the Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice; Marcie Roth, executive director of the National Spinal Cord Injury Association; Lex Frieden, former chair of the National Council on Disability; Hlllary Styron of the National Organization on Disability; and DFN consultants June Kailes and Harilyn Rousso. As a result, DFN established a fund to support people with disabilities who survived the tragedies.

Based on the success of that teleconference, DFN is proud to announce two additional informational teleconferences sponsored by The HSC Foundation and scheduled for November 1 and November 20, 2007. These teleconferences on dynamic topics are provided to DFN members and tap into the expertise of our members and disability community colleagues.

On November 1, from 3:00 to 4:30 p.m. ET, the first teleconference will focus on all aspects of employment of people with disabilities, including recruitment, hiring, retaining, promoting and workplace accommodations. DFN board member Elaine Katz, vice president of grant programs and special initiatives of the Henry H. Kessler Foundation, will moderate the call, and DFN member Alliance for Technology Access (ATA) will host the call.

Expert guests include:

• Alan Muir, executive director, Career Opportunities for Students with Disabilities (COSD);
• Lou Orslene, manager of strategic partners, Job Accommodation Network (JAN);
• Laurie Dowling, executive director of the ground-breaking UCLA Leadership Institute for Managers with Disabilities; and
• Sue Peters, program officer of the LISC Michigan (and former program officer of the Mott Foundation).

The November 20 teleconference will focus on disability culture and the arts, and will be moderated by Prof. Carol Gill of the University of Illinois, Chicago.

Guests speakers include:

• Beth Ziebarth, director of the Smithsonian Institution Accessibility Program;
• Betty Siegel, director of accessibility at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts;
• Shari Werb, director of institutional outreach at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum; and
• Deborah Lewis, executive director of the ELA Foundation, DFN member and former DFN board member.

Additional information will be forthcoming. If you are interested in participating in either or both DFN Informational Teleconferences, contact DFN consultant Tari Hartman Squire at tari@einsofcommunications.com.