Bio - ADA30 Summit 2020 Archives - Page 6 of 8

Paul Luelmo, Ph.D.

#ADA30 Summit 2020

Paul Luelmo, Ph.D. is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Special Education in the area of Mild/Moderate disabilities at San Diego State University. His research focuses on addressing inequities in special education by working with families, teachers, and under-resourced racial and ethnic minority communities. His current research projects include a parent-to-parent advocacy intervention employing community-partnered participatory research to address autism service disparities in the Individualized Education Program (IEP). Additionally, he is working on improving special education paraprofessional training and he is currently employing improvement science methods to develop and refine a culturally responsive teacher candidate observation and feedback protocol.

Philip Kahn-Pauli

#ADA30 Summit 2020

Philip Kahn-Pauli is the Policy and Practices Director of RespectAbility, a nonprofit organization fighting stigmas and advancing opportunities for and with people with disabilities. He educates leaders at the federal and state level about best practices to expand opportunities for people with disabilities. Kahn-Pauli coordinated the development and distribution of both the Disability Employment First Planning Toolkit and Disability and Criminal Justice Reform: Keys to Success report. He frequently organizes accessible webinars on best practices, which are attended by workforce boards, agencies, VR, disability organizations, public officials, artists and more – reaching a national audience of more than 2,000. Kahn-Pauli also speaks at national and regional conferences for workforce boards, agencies and professionals. [continue reading…]

Rachel Handler

#ADA30 Summit 2020

Rachel Handler is an actor and filmmaker based in NYC. Most recently she won the AT&T Underrepresented Filmmaker Award for her short, “Committed” and the Sundance Co//ab June Monthly Challenge for her script “The A Doesn’t Stand for Accessible.” Since joining the disabled community she’s found a passion for writing, producing and directing; advocating for inclusion in every project she creates. Her writing credits include the award-winning short films, “The Housewarming,” “Committed,” “The Vanished,” and “Authentically Me” which won the Reelabilities 27 Second Film Competition and screened in taxi cabs throughout NYC. Handler’s TV acting credits include Law & Order: SVU, Goliath, New Amsterdam, Bull and NCIS: New Orleans. Some of her favorite stage credits include Marian in The Music Man, Lady Anne in Richard III and Maria in The Sound of Music.

Ramy Youssef

#ADA30 Summit 2020

Ramy Youssef is an Egyptian-American comedian, actor and director. Youssef most recently won a Golden Globe Award on behalf of his Hulu show “Ramy” in the category of ‘Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy.’ “Ramy” was also nominated for a Gotham Award for ‘Best Breakthrough Series – Short Format.’ Additionally, Youssef was nominated for a Writers Guild Award in the category of ‘Comedy/Variety Specials’ on behalf of his one-hour comedy special “Ramy Youssef: Feelings.” [continue reading…]

Randall Duchesneau

#ADA30 Summit 2020

Randall Duchesneau is a consultant that provides clients with real estate investment and transactional advisory services. He also is a founding member of the United Spinal Association Greater Philadelphia Chapter, and is a C5-C6 quadriplegic from a spinal cord injury during gymnastics. [continue reading…]

RJ Mitte

#ADA30 Summit 2020

Best known for his portrayal of Walter “Flynn” White Jr for five riveting seasons of AMC’s Emmy and Golden Globe Award-winning dramatic thriller “Breaking Bad,” RJ Mitte is an actor, advocate and philanthropist who has carved out his niche in Hollywood by breaking down stereotypes and changing people’s mindsets with his easy going demeanor and positive outlook on life. During it’s final season, the “Breaking Bad” premiere drew approximately 5.9 million viewers, a number that nearly doubled to 10.3 million by the season’s final episode. As Walt Jr., referred to by fans as “The Breakfast King,” Mitte acted as the Cerebral Palsy-afflicted son of Walter (Bryan Cranston) and Skyler (Anna Gunn). As Walter continued his descent into drug manufacturing and trade, Walt Jr. finds himself torn between his father’s deceit, his mother’s protectiveness, and his own developing sense of independence. Walter Jr.’s Cerebral Palsy on the show was embellished, meaning RJ had to learn how to walk on crutches and slur his speech to create a more dramatic version of his own disability. [continue reading…]

Ryan O’Connell

#ADA30 Summit 2020

Ryan O’Connell is a writer, producer, and actor. He created, wrote and starred in Netflix’s Special, which is based on his memoir, I’m Special: And Other Lies We Tell Ourselves. He’s written for other TV shows like Awkward, Will & Grace, and currently The Babysitters Club.

Sasha Ross Becker

#ADA30 Summit 2020

Sasha Ross Becker is a graphic designer, illustrator and newly-minted speaker. Ross Becker was born in the great green hills of Middlesex, Vermont, and moved from the plant-filled hills of Vermont to the people-filled streets of New York City a few years ago. She underwent several surgeries due to a brain tumor, with resulting disabilities. A dedicated advocate for all people with disabilities, one of Ross Becker’s illustrations was selected and hung in Sen. Bernie Sanders’ congressional office in Washington, D.C., promoting disability inclusion. Through her graphic design work, illustrations and typography, Ross Becker demonstrates her keen ability to craft the message that a client is looking to convey. [continue reading…]

Shane Kanady

#ADA30 Summit 2020

Shane Kanady is the Vice President, Workforce Development at Source America. In this position, Kanady focuses on the economic and social inclusion of persons with disabilities. Kanady joined the SourceAmerica team in 2001, and is a researcher on the future of work – advising social enterprises, government agencies and Congress on inclusive programmatic and legislative frameworks. He has published reports and articles based on his research and has spoken at the United Nations Conference of State Parties to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the International Labor Organization Global Business and Disability Network Summit.

Shaylee Mansfield

#ADA30 Summit 2020

Shaylee Mansfield, Deaf YouTuber turned into an actress, caught the world’s attention when several of her videos went viral garnering millions of hits. She starred in ASL Nook for more than 50 episodes inspiring families and children worldwide to learn American Sign Language (ASL). Since then, Shaylee has appeared in Deaf Out Loud documentary produced by Jon Murray and Marlee Matlin, nationwide commercials, TV shows (This Close, Bunk’D), and films (Disney+ Noelle, Netflix’s Feel the Beat, 13 Minutes).