Disability Matters

Joyce welcomes Elijah Armstrong, a student at Penn State University in Pennsylvania, who has started an organization called Equal Opportunities for Students. The organization teaches self-advocacy by informing people of their rights under federal law and also explores issues of social justice. Elijah will discuss when his self-advocacy began, what made it necessary for him to stand up for himself and what led to his passionate stance that anybody with a disability needs to learn the skills to advocate for themselves.

Christine Griffin is a disability rights leader and search consultant at Bender Consulting Services, Inc. She will discuss her background at Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) within the federal government, the Disability Law Center of Massachusetts and her work at the White House.

Joyce welcomes, Dustin Gibson, another 2019 American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD) Hearne Emerging Leader Award Winner to the show. Dustin works beside community members and grassroots organizations to lead campaigns and build coalitions to eliminate police violence, address community needs, end the criminalization of students -specifically African American disabled students. He advocates for the implementation of policy and legislation to reduce harm. He will discuss his work in depth and explain how he plans on using the funds from the Hearne Emerging Leader Award to advance this noble cause.

Joyce welcomes Frances West, an internationally recognized thought leader, speaker, author, strategy advisor, and women-in-technology trailblazer known for her work in innovation, technology, and business transformation. She is the founder of FrancesWestCo, a global strategy advisory company focused on operationalizing inclusion as a business and technology imperative through her unique Authentic Inclusion™ blueprint. She will discuss her work in depth during the show.

Joyce welcomes Laurie Henneborn a managing director within the Accenture Research organization. She has operational responsibility for the global teams dedicated to supporting the research and thought leadership needs of the Digital, Technology and Operations Businesses and their related initiatives. This includes managing program budgets and related third-party content subscriptions. Laurie's research capabilities include market research and competitor intelligence, thought leadership creation, project and program management, strategic complex research and team strategy/leadership. In addition to this multidisciplinary role, Laurie passionately co-leads the global Accenture Research team's initiatives focused on Disability Inclusion. She will explain in-depth her duties during the show.

Joyce's honored guest is disability advocate, Sarah Blahovec. Sarah is a recipient of the 2019 AAPD Paul G. Hearne Emerging Leader Award given out at the 2019 American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD) Leadership Award Gala on March 12th in Washington, DC. Diagnosed with severe Crohn's Disease at age 15, she has always had a passion for politics and focuses her advocacy on civic engagement and issues that intersect the chronic illness and disability communities. The AAPD Paul G. Hearne Emerging Leadership Awards recognize outstanding emerging leaders with disabilities who exemplify leadership, advocacy, and dedication to the broader cross-disability community. With the 2019 Paul G. Hearne Emerging Leader honorarium, Sarah is thrilled to establish the first campaign training curriculum for people with disabilities who want to run for elected office. She will discuss this training curriculum in detail during the show.

Joyce welcomes Todd Bankofier, CEO of AudioEye, Inc. AudioEye provides enhanced web access and usability for its customers. AudioEye's custom and proprietary Digital Accessibility Platform testing suite automatically detects Section 508 and Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG 2.0) access criteria violations and details best practices to remediate issues. Mr. Bankofier will discuss how AudioEye is helping companies improve digital accessibility.

Joyce welcomes Laurie Henneborn a managing director within the Accenture Research organization. She has operational responsibility for the global teams dedicated to supporting the research and thought leadership needs of the Digital, Technology and Operations Businesses and their related initiatives. This includes managing program budgets and related third-party content subscriptions. Laurie's research capabilities include market research and competitor intelligence, thought leadership creation, project and program management, strategic complex research and team strategy/leadership. In addition to this multidisciplinary role, Laurie passionately co-leads the global Accenture Research team's initiatives focused on Disability Inclusion. She will explain in-depth her duties during the show.

Joyce welcomes Colleen Starkloff co-founder, with her husband Max, of the Starkloff Disability Institute. This 501(c)(3) non-profit organization is dedicated to helping people with disabilities participate fully and equally in all aspects of society. Founded in 2003, the organization works on changing social attitudes and perceptions about people with disabilities through activities that send a positive message about living with disability in order to create a world that welcomes them. Ms. Starkloff will explain in-depth the programs and services offered by the institute to people with disabilities.

Joyce's honored guest is Pittsburgh's own, Rob Pratte. Rob is a long-time NewsRadio KDKA host and former Pittsburgh cable TV host. Rob will discuss his career in broadcasting, and why his compassion for people with disabilities is important to him. He will also explain how and why that compassion compels him to feature topics affecting people with disabilities on his shows.