RespectAbility’s inclusion toolkits contain resources, tips, and answers to your questions on how to be more inclusive of people with disabilities. [continue reading…]
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RespectAbility and Norman Lear Center Unite to Help Hollywood Include People with Disabilities
HH&S’ Director Kate Folb in between RespectAbility’s President Jennifer Laszlo Mizrahi and Communications Director Lauren Appelbaum
Los Angeles, Calif., April 18 – RespectAbility, a nonprofit organization fighting stigmas and advancing opportunities for people with disabilities, announces a new partnership with Hollywood, Health & Society (HH&S), a project of the USC Annenberg Norman Lear Center. The partnership will help educate, inform and support the success of the movie/TV industry in its work to ensure that people with disabilities are included on both sides of the camera in the stories that Hollywood tells. HH&S provides entertainment industry professionals with accurate and timely information for storylines on health, safety and national security. Like RespectAbility, HH&S recognizes the profound impact that entertainment media have on individual knowledge and behavior – ultimately impacting society and lives at large.
“We’re delighted to be working with RespectAbility to help inform and inspire the frequency and accuracy of portrayals of people with disabilities in TV and film,” said Kate Folb, the director of HH&S.
HH&S offers several resources, including quick facts, briefings and consultations with experts, case examples, panel discussions about timely health issues, a quarterly newsletter with health updates called Real to Reel and an expanding list of tip sheets written specifically for writers and producers. The broad range of topics includes disability-specific topics autism and mental health. Some of the TV shows they have assisted include The Fosters, The Good Doctor, Grey’s Anatomy, Orange Is the New Black, Speechless, Switched at Birth and many more.
The creation of this partnership would not have been possible without the financial support of The California Endowment. “Visibility and representation matters,” said Jose L. Plaza, who manages the grant for The California Endowment. “We know that accurate and positive portrayals of diverse people with disabilities will not only empower and educate viewers and program creators but will ultimately lead to a more inclusive, responsive and healthier society.”
Entertainment professionals across all platforms are working to become more inclusive of minorities. This is our opportunity to ensure inclusion and equality for all people – including America’s largest minority – the one-in-five Americans with a disability. Opening the inclusion umbrella is the right thing to do as well as economically smart given that the disability market is valued at more than $1 trillion. [continue reading…]
Treshelle Marie Edmond with interpreter
“Some people don’t even want to try to communicate with a deaf person and seem afraid to talk to us or ask questions. We are just regular people too. Don’t be afraid. Talk to me! I love talking to people.”
–Treshelle Marie Edmond, Glee, House, Master of None
Lawyers Haben Girma and Claudia Gordon, actor Nyle DiMarco, Academy Award winning actress Marlee Matlin, The Silent Child’s Maisie Sly and filmmakers Delbert Whetter and Jevon Whetter also are deaf. [continue reading…]
Index:
What is considered a disability?
What is the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)?
What is ableism?
What is an inclusion rider? How can they help people with disabilities in Hollywood?
What is person-first language? Does everyone use it?
What does it mean to “reclaim” a word, and why is reclaiming important?
How does intersectionality play into all of this?
What are some concrete steps to ensure we are inclusive?
How can I communicate that I am welcoming of people with disabilities?
How do I ensure my events are inclusive and accessible?
What is some sample inclusion language to use for accommodations?
How do I ensure my space is accessible physically?
How do I ensure my exterior space is accessible physically?
What signage do I need to be more accessible?
How do I ensure my website is fully accessible?
How do I add captions to my online videos for free?
How do I ensure my other materials are accessible?
How can I tell if an animal is really a service animal and not just a pet?
What do I need to know regarding hiring employees with disabilities?
How can I be more inclusive in my hiring process?
What is an example of non-discrimination language to include?
What tax and other incentives do employers have to hire people with disabilities?
Where can I look to find examples of companies who are effective at including people with disabilities? [continue reading…]
Date: July 30, 2018, 8:00 AM – 5:30 PM
Location: Rayburn Building, Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C.
RespectAbility Submits Comments to the Social Security Administration in Response to Request for Information on Strategies to Improve Adult Outcomes for Youth Receiving Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
Rockville, Md., Jan. 26 – RespectAbility, a nonprofit organization fighting stigmas and advancing opportunities for people with disabilities, submitted the following comments to the Social Security Administration in response to their Request for Information (RFI) to elicit ideas, strategies, and best practices related to improving adult economic outcomes for youth aged 14 to 25 with disabilities receiving Supplemental Security Income (SSI). We are a national, non-partisan, nonprofit organization fighting stigmas and advancing opportunities for and with people with disabilities. We advocate for the 1-in-5 Americans who have a physical, intellectual, sensory, learning, attention, mental health or other disability. This includes 6 million students with diagnosed disabilities who are enrolled in America’s public schools. We invited SSA to sustain its commitment to improving outcomes for youth with disabilities by considering the range of best practices that are achieving transformative results. [continue reading…]
Public Comments on Proposed Amendment to Section 100.5 of the Commissioner’s Regulations Relating to the Superintendent Determination Option
Download the testimony’s companion PowerPoint (PPT).
Overall, only 64 percent of students with disabilities graduate high school compared to 83 percent of students without disabilities
Rockville, Md., Jan. 19 – RespectAbility, a nonprofit organization fighting stigmas and advancing opportunities for people with disabilities, submitted public comments relating to the pubic education system in New York City. Please read the full testimony below:
The P-12 Education Committee’s goal of increasing graduation rates for students with disabilities in New York is commendable. Yes, New York’s high school graduation rate for students with disabilities is significantly below the national average. Clearly efforts are needed to ensure that all New York students show equal advancements through school. However, RespectAbility believes that lowering the bar and reducing requirements is not the best way to support the dreams and aspirations of students with disabilities or society overall which needs the talents that people with disabilities can bring to us all. We invite the Board of Regents to sustain its commitment to improving the quality of education provided to New Yorkers with disabilities and we offer our help to reach that goal. We encourage you to use best practices that other states have successfully adopted to improve outcomes. We are excited to share our ideas and to find ways to collaborate.
RespectAbility is a nonprofit organization fighting stigmas and advancing opportunities for and with people with disabilities. We are a national organization but believe fundamentally in the positive impact that state leaders can have on disability issues. We work with a broad coalition of partners across government, the private sector and public organizations to help solve problems. As such, we are submitting the following comments to the New York P-12 Education Committee regarding the proposed amendment to Section 100.5 of the Commissioners regulations relating to the Superintendent Determination Option for certain students with disabilities to graduate with a local diploma.
RespectAbility Submits Testimony to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights on the School-to-Prison Pipeline: Intersections of Students of Color with Disabilities
Washington, D.C., Jan. 17 – RespectAbility, a nonprofit organization fighting stigmas and advancing opportunities for people with disabilities, submitted testimony to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights in strong support of ending the disproportionate, unjust and counterproductive use of suspensions and expulsions for children with disabilities and students of color.
“The continued use of these tools of exclusion worsens educational outcomes and decreases safety for all students,” RespectAbility’s President, Jennifer Laszlo Mizrahi, wrote. RespectAbility advocates for the 1-in-5 Americans who have a physical, intellectual, sensory, learning, attention, mental health or other disability. This includes six million students with diagnosed disabilities who are enrolled in America’s public schools.
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Kevin McCloskey, Senior Director, Leadership and Workforce Development
Kevin McCloskey
Kevin McCloskey is the Senior Director, Leadership and Workforce Development, at RespectAbility, a nonprofit organization fighting stigmas and advancing opportunities so people with disabilities can fully participate in all aspects of community. Kevin has more than a decade of experience in the human resources and workforce development industries. Kevin worked with large employers such as Pepsi, Frito Lay, Synchrony, and more to develop programs to actively attract, hire, and retain talent with disabilities. With the firm belief that changing lives requires changing minds, Kevin led the research, development, and implementation of a training suite to educate employers on all topics related to disability inclusion and training for job seekers and talent partners to educate and prepare to successfully get a job or help a job seeker obtain the job. Kevin built a network of ten thousand-plus nonprofit organizations like educational entities, workforce centers, vocational rehabilitation offices, veteran groups, etc., that refer the best-matched talent to employers.
Before joining RespectAbility, Kevin was the VP of Development with GoodGames, which uses game-inspired tools and experiences to gather story-based data to enhance employee engagement, ignite productivity, and improve mental health in the workplace.
Kevin resides in Connecticut with his wife, three children, and their dog, Noopy.
