Driving Innovation through Disability Inclusion
Commitment in uncertain times.
Disability Inclusion is business critical for employee engagement, innovation, positive culture and organizational success.
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May is Mental Health Awareness Month
May is finally here — that means it’s officially Mental Health Month!
This year, Mental Health America invites you to join us as we turn awareness into action. We’ve got everything you need to make it happen — and we’re making it easy and fun!
Here’s what’s waiting for you:
Action Guides, Calendars, and More: Our site is packed with ideas, activities, and free resources for Mental Health Month. Check out the daily wellness tips to get started!
Be Seen in Green: Rally your friends and family to raise vital funds for Mental Health America — and make a bold statement for mental health awareness by wearing green.
Light Up Green: More than 150 buildings and landmarks are lighting up green for Mental Health Month. Check out the state-by-state list, snap a pic in your town, and tag @mentalhealthamerica!
Merch to show your support for mental health (and look good doing it).
Free Live Webinars: Join expert-led live webinars packed with practical tools for boosting personal and community mental health.
Ready to get started? Explore everything we’ve got waiting for you
Let’s make it a month to remember!
— The Mental Health America Team
Mental Health America is proud to have founded Mental Health Month in 1949. Every May, their organization comes together to continue the tradition of promoting awareness, offering vital resources and education, and advocating for the mental health and well-being of everyone. This year's theme is Where to Start: Mental Health in a Changing World.
The world is constantly changing – for better or for worse – and it can be overwhelming to deal with everything going on around you. While society is getting more comfortable discussing mental health, it can still be hard to know “Where to Start” when it comes to taking care of your own well-being. This May, Mental Health America will help you:
- Learn how modern life affects mental health with new resources to navigate our changing world.
- Act by building your coping toolbox so you can manage stress, difficult emotions, and challenging situations.
- Advocate to improve mental health for yourself, your friends and family, and your community.
Download the Mental Health Awareness Month toolkit.
| | What Our Community is Saying | | |
April 29, 2025
It is almost the end of Autism Acceptance Month. But the government keeps on hurting autistic and other disabled people. Last week, we joined other big autism and disability organizations to put out a statement.
In the statement, we say that we agree on three basic things:
- Vaccines do not cause autism.
- Autistic people deserve respect and support.
- Policy-makers should look at autism research before making new autism policies. Research can show proof that a new policy might help or hurt autistic people.
Right now, some people in the government don’t agree about the things we agree about. These people are making policy choices that don’t help us. For example:
On Monday, April 21st, National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director Jay Bhattacharya said some things in a meeting. He said that the Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) plans to create a registry of autistic people. NIH is a part of HHS that does research about medicine and health.
HHS in the part of government in charge of autism services and research. Robert F Kennedy Jr. (RFK Jr. for short) is the head of HHS. The week before, RFK Jr. said he wanted to use medical information to study the cause of autism.
A registry is a list of people that the government keeps. This registry would collect private medical information about autistic people. The registry could get used to take information for research studies. Dr. Bhattacharya said some of the information used to make the registry could come from things like:
- medical bills,
- people’s medications, and
- information from smartwatches or other devices that record health information.
Later that same week, HHS took back what NIH Director Bhattacharya said. HHS said that they were not going to make a registry. But HHS will still collect information about autistic people. Instead, HHS said they will just use information from lists that already exist. These lists are not supposed to have information about who someone is. If these lists have information about who people are, that information is supposed to be taken out.
But HHS has not given many details about what they plan to do. We are worried that HHS and NIH may not do what they are supposed to. We are worried they won’t take out the information that says who people are.
We have a lot of questions about this, like:
- What kinds of information will be collected from the lists that already exist?
- What new kinds of information might get collected?
- Will any of this information get used to show who someone is? This could be things like:
- people’s names
- addresses
- birthdays
- Will the government do anything to protect autistic people’s privacy when collecting information?
- Will people be told their information is being used?
- Will people be able to choose to not have their information used?
- Where will the information get kept?
- Who will get to see the information?
- What studies will this information be used for?
We think the government must answer these questions. The government has done a bad job of following what autism research says. They have not shown that they understand autism. They said lots of bad things about autistic people. We don’t think the research they want to do will help us. We are worried that they won’t keep our information safe.
What RFK Jr. and Director Bhattacharya said about studying the cause of autism makes us worry. We already know that autism is a genetic disability. That means autistic people are born autistic. Lots of studies have shown that people are born autistic. We do not think autistic people’s information should get used for more studies like this.
It is normal for studies to use information that doesn't show who someone is. Lots of studies that help autistic people get done that way. But we are worried RFK Jr. will do studies the wrong way to lie about how autism works. We are worried the people he hires to do studies will lie about what the studies say.
The person RFK Jr. hired to help run autism studies at HHS is named David Geier. David Geier did a study before about autism. His study did experiments on autistic children. He said that he could cure autistic children by giving them dangerous amounts of a drug. He said that study proved vaccines cause autism. But David Geier lied.
David Geier isn’t a doctor. He shouldn’t have been experimenting on autistic children. He lied and said that his experiments were safe. He said other doctors had looked over his studies and said they were okay. These things are not true. David Geier should never have experimented on autistic children.
That’s why we are worried that David Geier will work on autism research at HHS. We think David Geier will do the same bad things he did before in his new studies. We think that is why RFK Jr. hired him. We don’t think David Geier or RFK Jr. care about our safety. We will keep watching the study. We will explain what the study says when it comes out.
We are also worried about possible cuts to disability services. Reporters found a draft budget proposal last week. A draft budget proposal is a plan for how parts of government want to spend their money. This draft proposal was from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). OMB’s job is to look over the whole U.S. budget.
The draft proposal is very bad. It says it will make big cuts to important programs that people with disabilities rely on.
Here are some examples of programs the proposal would cut:
- State Councils on Developmental Disabilities (DD Councils). They help people with intellectual and developmental disabilities get Medicaid waivers and other support.
- Protection and Advocacy (P&A) systems. They give legal help to disabled people in all US States and the US Virgin Islands.
- University Centers for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCEDDs). These programs help students with intellectual and developmental disabilities go to college.
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The Administration for Community Living (ACL). This part of government helps disabled people live independently. They make sure the human rights of disabled people are protected.
Here are some things our community can do this week:
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Share the joint statement debunking what RFK said about autism.
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Share our most recent statement about the HHS autism study and registry
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Call your members of Congress. Here’s how.
- Tell them you want no cuts or changes to Medicaid. Tell them no work requirements or new disability verification. You can also tell them you don’t want cuts to disability services like:
- Protection and Advocacy agencies
- State Councils on Developmental Disabilities
- University Centers for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities.
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If you can, this is also a great time to plan an in person meeting with your member of Congress. Many will be home for the next few weeks.
- You can also share your story about Medicaid for a policy purpose with story banks:
- Community Catalyst
- Caring Across Generations
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Faces of Medicaid
- Families USA
Support our work
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Stress Management in Uncertain Times
May 8, 2025
12 to 1 pm ET
Register for the May 8th webinar.
Disability:IN Chicagoland is hosting its next event on Stress Management in Uncertain Times.
Promo code AffiliatePartner
Employees face various stressors both in and out of the workplace. Concerns about employer support are common, and inadequate stress management can result in high burnout and attrition rates. Join Disability:IN Chicagoland for this virtual training utilizing therapy-based tools to foster meaningful connections and an experiential approach to enhance vulnerability and build a shared reality. The workshop addresses the unique challenges of prolonged workplace stress. Dr. Sunitha Chandy, Founder & CEO of the Artesian Collaborative, leads this interactive discussion of stress management strategies, generating questions and suggestions to foster healthy team functioning.
Learning Objectives:
- Describe the challenges of dealing with long-term heightened stressors.
- Differentiate normative stress responses to current events and environmental stressors.
- Practice strategies and skills to address heightened workplace stress.
- Generate resources and strategies for healthy team functioning.
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Disability:IN North Carolina Wellness@Work
The Human Condition: PTSD, Resiliency & Recovery
May 8, 2025
11:30 am - 1:00 pm ET
Register for the Disability:IN NC Webinar
Disability:IN North Carolina (DI-NC) is grateful to our sponsors, Novant Health, Atrium Health and MetLife for their generous support to enable DI-NC to offer Wellness@Work (W@W) at no cost to participants.
The theme for our 2025 W@W event could not be more appropriate given the catastrophic events that took place last year that have many in our state navigating on going stress that may lead to a mental health condition.
Please join us on May 8, 2025, to learn from our speakers, Kelli Bowen and Kevin Rumley, both military veterans, as they share their stories of resiliency, and recovery in times of crisis.
Kelli Bowen is a retired Major of the United States Air Force, where she dedicated two decades to the Medical Service Corps. Her recent book, Weekend War on Two Fronts, delves into the emotional complexities of the combat zone and the profound challenges faced when returning home. Kelli’s book, Weekend War on Two Fronts, provides a real and compelling story that is both heart breaking and uplifting. When she is not lost in the world of words, Kelli enjoys savoring a good cup of coffee, exploring the great outdoors on a hike, or teaching the next generation to explore their faith. Currently, she serves as a civil servant in policy, living in South Carolina with her husband, three children, and two dogs who rarely follow orders.
Kevin Rumley (PHD.) is a combat wounded (32 surgeries) Marine Corps veteran and recipient of a Purple Heart for injuries sustained in combat. Kevin is also a person in long-term recovery, remaining a vocal community advocate for harm reduction modalities, including medication assisted therapy. Kevin serves as the Program Director for the Buncombe County Veterans Treatment Court (VTC), a treatment-based alternative to incarceration for justice-involved veterans. He completed his Doctorate in Social Work from the University of Tennessee in 2024. In his free time, he enjoys playing music. He released his first solo album, Kevin Rumley in April of 2024.
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2025 Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD):
Perspectives Around the Globe
May 14-15
Join IN for Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD) on May 14-15 with Disability:IN! Featuring accessibility leaders and experts from the Asia Pacific (APAC), Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA), Latin America (LATAM), and North America (NORAM), these webinars will explore topics including:
- Practical implementation strategies
- Real-world case studies
- The impact of AI on accessibility
- Methods for evaluating effectiveness
GAAD webinars are free and open to the public. Companies are encouraged to host their own streaming parties [DOCX] to spark conversations with their teams!
Register for GAAD
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Neurodiversity: Leveling Up Our Perspective
Thursday, May 15, 2025
1:00 – 2:00 PM ET
Register for the Disability:IN MN webinar
No two brains are the same. An estimated 1 in 7 people are neurodivergent, including those with autism, ADHD, mental health disabilities, learning disabilities, intellectual disabilities, or acquired brain differences. Given this prevalence, why are conversations around neurodiversity nonetheless so difficult, especially in the context of broader discussions about disabilities?
In this session, Haley will unpack the nuances of navigating disclosure, advocating for ourselves and others, and building accessibility into our understanding of inclusion. Come prepared for lightbulb moments, and leave feeling more empowered to tackle stigma.
Accessibility: Live captioning will be provided for this event. If you need accommodations to participate, please register at least 5 days prior to the event. Contact info@DI-MN.org with questions.
Registration Fees:
- $20 for Disability:IN Affiliate Members and Partners
- $20 for non-members
About the Presenter
Haley Moss is a neurodiversity expert, lawyer, and the author of five books that guide neurodivergent individuals through professional and personal challenges. She is currently a speaker, consultant, and neurodiversity advocate for organizations and corporations that seek her guidance in creating an inclusive workplace and a sought-after commentator on disability rights issues. She has won multiple awards, from Forbes 30 Under 30 to ABA Making a Difference and much more. The first openly autistic lawyer in Florida, Haley’s books include Great Minds Think Differently: Neurodiversity for Lawyers and Other Professionals, The Young Autistic Adult’s Independence Handbook, and Talking The Talk About Autism: How To Share And Tell Your Story. Her articles have appeared in outlets including the Washington Post, Teen Vogue, and Fast Company. Haley’s life experiences, advocacy, and dedication guide her to leave the state of inclusion better than she found it.
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Enhancing Digital Accessibility for Neurodivergent Job Seekers and Employees
May 15th 1-2 PM ET
Register for the NOD Webinar
In celebration of Global Accessibility Awareness Day
THURSDAY, MAY 15 | 1-2 PM EST
Join the National Organization on Disability (NOD) for a thought-provoking webinar on the intersection of accessibility, neurodiversity, and mental health in the workplace.
This session will explore how digital accessibility features in hiring technologies can support neurodiverse jobseekers and employees. We will also delve into the role that mental health plays in creating inclusive environments and ensuring that people with disabilities are given equal opportunities to succeed.
FEATURING:
Accessibility:
Captions and ASL Sign Language Interpreter will be provided.
Accommodations + Questions:
Please contact events@nod.org with your request or inquiry.
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May 21, 2025
2:00 – 3:00 p.m. Eastern
Register for the Mental Health Matters webinar
This session will explore the accommodations most often requested by workers with mental health conditions.
Discover how the Job Accommodation Network (JAN) can help organizations navigate the complexities of accommodating these employees while promoting productivity and well-being.
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More than a day. A month of learning, action, and impact.
We’re putting the spotlight on inclusion, empowerment, and digital equity with free resources to help you and your team take meaningful action. Take advantage of Level Access exclusive training opportunities and readymade kits for planning impactful GAAD events at your organization.
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Gallaudet leads the way in early intervention for
deaf children
Gallaudet University is dedicated to language access for all deaf and hard of hearing people. This basic right to language starts at birth. We have several early intervention programs that improve outcomes for our youngest community members.
Those programs include:
While some of the work is new, the goal of these programs is the same: to ensure every child has fully accessible language throughout the critical window of language acquisition, from birth to 3 years old.
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2025 NBCUniversal Tony Coelho Media Scholarship Application Now Open!
Thanks to a generous contribution from NBCUniversal, the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD) is pleased to announce that applications for the 2025 NBCUniversal Tony Coelho Media Scholarship are now open.
The NBCUniversal Tony Coelho Media Scholarship will offer eight (8) scholarships for the Fall semester of 2025. Each recipient will receive $5,625 to help cover the cost of education at their college or university.
The scholarship is open to all students who are:
- High school seniors, undergraduate, or graduate students with disabilities, and;
- Will be enrolled in a college or university during the Fall of 2025, and;
- Wish to pursue media, communications, and/or entertainment careers.
This scholarship is named in honor of Tony Coelho, a former United States Representative from California and the primary author and sponsor of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
Please visit the AAPD website for more information about the NBCUniversal Tony Coelho Media Scholarship, including the application process and requirements.
Application Deadline: Friday, May 30, 2025 at 5:00pm ET
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Champion for Accessibility Thomas Wlodkowski
Receives 2025 Helen Keller Achievement Award
AFB is excited to share that blind business leader and accessible media innovator Thomas Wlodkowski was among those honored at the 2025 Helen Keller Achievement Awards, celebrated the evening of April 24th in Midtown Manhattan.
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For over three decades, Thomas Wlodkowski has remained one of the leading champions for accessible and inclusive media, working across the broadcast, cable, mobile, and internet industries to make entertainment more accessible for people with disabilities. He began his career at Boston’s public broadcast station WGBH in 1992, working with Descriptive Video Service, now known as Audio Description.
He later joined AOL, working on multiple accessible user interfaces for web, video, mobile, and desktop applications during his 10-year tenure. Today, Tom serves as Vice President of Accessibility at Comcast, a global media and technology company, where he leads inclusion efforts for people with disabilities.
Tom was honored alongside author and journalist Andrew Leland and Mattel’s Blind Barbie at this year’s ceremony. Read the full news release on our website.
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Elver Ariza-Silva and Michael Brennan Elected as Chair and Vice-Chair to U.S. Access Board
At its April meeting, the U.S. Access Board elected Elver Ariza-Silva as its new Chair and Dr. Michael Brennan as its new Vice-Chair. Ariza-Silva is a disability community advocate based out of the District of Columbia. Dr. Brennan is Executive Director for the Office of Construction and Facilities Management (CFM) at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).
Every year, the Board elects officers, including a new Chair and Vice-Chair, which alternate between a Public Member and a Federal Member. As Chair, Ariza-Silva assumes the office previously held by former Deputy Administrator of the General Services Administration (GSA) Katy Kale, and Dr. Brennan succeeds Ariza-Silva as Vice-Chair.
| | Thank You to Our Sponsor Partners! | | Save the Date for these Signature Events! | | |
The 2025 Reboot: Discover What's for You!
- Live demos of the latest in accessibility tech innovations
- Insights from leading experts on legal, reskilling & workforce evolutions, AI for disability inclusion, and more
- Exclusive opportunities for networking and customer engagement.
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Early access to groundbreaking research
Join us at the Affiliate Summit
Monday July 14th 9 am - Noon
| | This year – 2025 – marks the 80th anniversary of National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM). Held annually in October, NDEAM celebrates the value and talent workers with disabilities add to America’s workplaces and economy. Stay tuned for updates about this year’s theme and ideas for how to participate. | |
Ready for a Transformative Journey into Digital Accessibility?
Join us in Washington, D.C., from October 6 to 8, 2025, at our new venue, the Crystal Gateway Marriott, for a three-day dynamic summit and exhibition. Connect with innovative thought leaders and trendsetters who are transforming inclusive environments and user experiences for over 1.3 billion people with disabilities. Gain insights and network with business executives, disability advocates, developers, and policy experts across various sectors, including private, public, nonprofit, and education.
The 13th Annual M-Enabling Summit, themed “Digital Accessibility Innovation—A Deep Dive into Next-Generation User Experiences,” will explore the latest tech trends for organizational inclusion. Engage in roundtables, workshops, and discussions to enhance your accessibility approach. Don’t miss the Accessibility Professionals Forum, presented by the International Association of Accessibility Professionals (IAAP), a division of G3ict, focusing on accessibility in the organization at the intersection of physical and digital environments.
Can’t make it to Washington, D.C.? No problem at all! Join us online to access a curated selection of streamed sessions, interact with leading industry experts through our conference app, or catch up with post-event recordings. Not planning to attend the conference in any form? You still have the option to purchase post-show recordings to stay informed. Be part of the essential digital accessibility movement, no matter where you are!
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Technology and the Disability Experience
Fall 2025 | New York, New York
Learn More
An exploration of artificial intelligence, extended reality, smart devices, and their impact on accessibility, disability inclusion, and the future of workforce innovation.
The National Organization on Disability proudly welcomes a diverse group of advocates and professionals to an exploration of the advantages and limitations of advancing technology in the workforce. Disability advocates, human resource and technology professionals, leaders, and others are invited to join us in examining how technological innovations are impacting individuals with disabilities.
Guests will enjoy...
- A showcase demonstrating cutting-edge, tech-driven products for people with disabilities from trailblazing brands
- An engaging panel discussion with industry experts exploring their emerging tech products and strategies for driving advancement for marginalized identities
- Networking opportunities with passionate, like-minded individuals
- An award ceremony recognizing leading disability employers
- Captivating entertainment
| | MEET OUR COLLABORATIVE PARTNERS | |
Learn More About DC Metro
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Disability:IN DC Metro
“Think Globally, Act Locally”
Patrick Geedes
Join Today!
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Promoting Inclusion
Expanding Disability Education and Awareness
Our focus is on Culture Change!
Founded in 2006
Twice honored as Disability:IN Affiliate of the Year
Led by The Hon. Katherine McCary
Founding Chair of Disability:IN National and
CEO, Executive Director of Disability:IN DC Metro
Disability:IN DC Metro (DC Metro) is an employer-led membership-based business association that creates business to business connections, dialogue, and learning within our geographic region of Washington, DC, Virginia, and Maryland, an area known as the National Capital Region. Our offerings, however, are not limited to geographic location. All DC Metro corporate member employees enjoy member benefits regardless of their physical geography. You don't have to live in the National Capital Region to engage and enjoy DC Metro's Professional Development Courses and topical Hybrid Programming!
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Our Members and Guests have access to resources, programs and partners to strengthen the disability inclusion efforts and outcomes.
- Thought leadership
- Professional Development courses
- Business to business networking
- Introductions to community partners
- Access to talent
- Hot topic programming led by Subject Matter Experts
- Webinars
Join our
LinkedIn Page
Follow us on
Facebook
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Our Board
Board Members:
- Jessica Lee Aiello, TCS Teams
- Jennifer Bassett, Immediate Past Chair, JBG SMITH Companies
- Meghan Cadigan, Vice Chair, KPMG
- Tashi Carper, Leidos
- Tom Downs, Booz Allen Hamilton
- Jenn Gauvreau, Secretary, CGI Federal
- Andrea Hall, General Dynamics Mission Systems and DC Metro Chief Strategy Officer
- Susan Morgan, General Dynamics IT
- Eduardo Meza-Etienne, Level Access and DC Metro Chief Accessibility Officer
- Ryan Walters, Chair, Deloitte
- Myra Wilder, BAE Systems
Strategy Advisors Board Members:
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Josh Basile, Jack H. Olender & Associates
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Michelle Crabtree, Town of Vienna
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Crosby Cromwell, Cephable
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Lori Daly, Diversifi Consulting Group and Chair, Community Outreach PRG
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Ron Drach, Drach Consulting, LLC and Chair, Veteran PRG
- Diane Monnig, The Arc of Northern VA
- Melody Goodspeed, The American Foundation for the Blind
- Karen Herson, Concepts, Inc.
- Carolyn Jeppsen, BroadFutures
- Craig Leen, K&L Gates, Former OFCCP Director
- Rick Rodgers, The Resource Network and Chair, Disability Supplier Diversity PRG
The Hon. Katherine McCary, CEO, Disability:IN DC Metro
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Our Vision
“Cultivate workforces and workplaces where talent with disabilities are recruited, included, promoted, retained and valued as both internal talent and innovative vendors.”
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