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Tag: disabilities

  • Carepool Makes Rideshare Traction in the Twin Cities for Aging Adults and People With Disabilties

    Carepool Makes Rideshare Traction in the Twin Cities for Aging Adults and People With Disabilties

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    MINNEAPOLIS, April 4, 2024 (Newswire.com)
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    Carepool makes rideshare traction in the Twin Cities by acquiring Mobility4All. All of the current riders have had a smooth transition and will now enjoy expanded business hours (6 a.m.-12 a.m. to start). Carepool will start providing rideshare services on Monday, April 8. 

    Carepool was founded in Madison, Wisconsin, in 2018 by CEO Josh Massey, specializing in providing rideshare services to aging and disabled adults.

    Massey has purchased the Twin Cities-based Mobility4All accessible ride service. Its motto is: Providing hand-to-hand and door-thru-door trips for people who want or need a higher level of care. This fits Carepool’s philosophy while adding more technology in the process, like real-time text messaging. With the purchase of Mobility4All, Carepool will be providing rideshare services in eight states.

    Mobility4All’s customers are able to use Carepool immediately with no lapse in services. Riders will be able to call and book their rides as they have, with the ability to book through the web app. Carepool created rideshare-like technology with the State of Wisconsin’s health and human services departments, focusing on the needs for people with disabilities and older adults. Its model solved rural and wheelchair transportation gaps. 

    “As I spoke with someone from the State of Wisconsin about having a rideshare service in this space, I thought adding an ‘e’ to the word ‘carpool’ seemed to fit well for company’s name,” Massey said. “At Carepool, we truly care.”

    Massey’s inspiration to start a rideshare company came when he lived in Chicago and owned a technology consulting company. Rideshare was a game changer, but some experiences were much better than others. Massey envisioned a way to expand the technology with caring drivers across the Midwest. Rideshare would help aging adults and passengers with special needs, including his grandmother who lived in rural Wisconsin and faced challenges visiting his grandfather in a memory care facility.

    “It hit close to home when I heard my 90-year-old grandmother was on Medicaid and taking long bus rides to see my grandfather for an hour, making for seven exhausting hours of travel,” Massey said. “I thought, why can’t we tweak the rideshare model to also serve those in rural and suburban areas?” 

    What sets Carepool apart is its software platform that allows for recurring rides, designed to sync directly to drivers’ calendars and with Medicaid/Medicare programs and insurance payers, as well as hospital systems, offering “door-through-door service.” Passengers’ special needs are saved to their profile so drivers will know how to handle each customer’s unique situation. 

    Carepool’s drivers are able to assist customers inside their home or medical facility with getting into the rideshare vehicle. Carepool’s pay rates provide more earning power for its drivers, which includes a set customer pickup rate and 2x more per mile compared to other rideshares in the Twin Cities area.

    “Helping others, making a livable wage and having that caring profile is what really matters for Carepool,” Massey added.

    Customers can call Carepool at 1-833-268-2688 to order services or go to www.carepool.us/riders to log into the app and order rides. Drivers can go to www.carepool.us/drivers for more information about how to apply. 

    Watch Laura’s testimonial video and find out why she’s happy with Carepool’s Rideshare services. 

    Source: Carepool

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  • Digication and Teach Access Announce Partnership to Advance Accessibility Literacy in Digital Education

    Digication and Teach Access Announce Partnership to Advance Accessibility Literacy in Digital Education

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    EATON RAPIDS, Mich., April 3, 2024 (Newswire.com)
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    Digication, a leading Ed-Tech company serving millions of users across more than 7,000 K-12 schools and higher education institutions, is thrilled to announce a strategic partnership with Teach Access, a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to making digital accessibility a fundamental component of education. This collaboration, cultivated over the past year, is set to transform the digital learning landscape by integrating accessibility literacy into educational practices.

    Deepening Commitment to Accessibility

    Digication’s commitment to enhancing accessibility goes beyond compliance with standards; it’s about educating and empowering its user base. Partnering with Teach Access will bring a wealth of resources and tools to Digication’s platform, aiding in creating accessible digital content.

    Teach Access is an innovative non-profit collaboration between education, industry, government, and disability advocacy organizations. It addresses the urgent need to enrich students’ understanding of digital accessibility in designing, developing, and creating new technologies, considering the needs of people with disabilities.

    Digication and Teach Access envision a future where technology products and services are inherently accessible, with students entering the workforce equipped with knowledge and skills in accessible design and development.

    Innovative Tools for Accessible Content Creation

    Digication will introduce new features to assist users in creating accessible content, such as notifications for missing image alt text or video captions. This proactive approach ensures that all content on the Digication platform is accessible and inclusive.

    A Future of Inclusive Digital Learning

    “This partnership is a significant milestone in our mission to make digital learning accessible to all,” said Jeff Yan, CEO of Digication. “Teach Access’ expertise and resources will be invaluable in enhancing accessibility literacy among our users, paving the way for a more inclusive future in digital education.”

    Empowering Students and Teachers Through Teach Access Programs

    Digication users will have access to free programs and resources for students and educators provided by Teach Access. This includes its Student Academy, Student Ambassador Program, Faculty Fellowship program, and Teach Access Grants for educators. Teach Access has given more than $350,000 in grants to educators to accelerate the integration of accessibility principles in college curricula. Additionally, Teach Access offers a free open educational resource, Curriculum Repository, and several online self-paced courses about disability and accessibility. Programs and resources remain free and open thanks to the support of corporate sponsors, individual and gift-in-kind donations, and grant support.

    “We are grateful to Digication for this opportunity to reach their students and educators,” said Kate Sonka, Executive Director of Teach Access. “We aim to create systemic change within education so all students learn the fundamentals about disability and digital accessibility, creating a pipeline of future employees who can create technology accessible and inclusive for everyone. This collaboration greatly increases our visibility, helping us close in on our goal of reaching one million students by 2030.”

    About Digication

    Digication is a premier ePortfolio technology and assessment tool provider serving millions of users in K-12 and higher education institutions. Its mission is to facilitate dynamic and engaging learning experiences through innovative digital platforms.

    About Teach Access

    Teach Access is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization collaborating with education, industry, government, and disability advocacy organizations to address the critical need to enhance students’ understanding of digital accessibility as they learn to design, develop, and build new technologies with the needs of people with disabilities in mind. Teach Access envisions a fully accessible future in which students enter the workforce with knowledge of the needs of people with disabilities and skills in the principles of accessible design and development, such that technology products and services are born accessible.

    For more information about this partnership and to access the new resources, please visit Digication.com and TeachAccess.org.

    Contact Information:
    Kate Sonka
    Executive Director
    kate@teachaccess.org

    Source: Teach Access

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  • California voters approve Prop. 1, ballot measure aimed at tackling homeless crisis

    California voters approve Prop. 1, ballot measure aimed at tackling homeless crisis

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    A statewide ballot measure aimed at overhauling California’s mental health care system, primarily through the issuance of nearly $6.4 billion in bonds, has been approved by voters.

    Proposition 1 is a two-pronged measure backed heavily by Gov. Gavin Newsom and a host of Southland elected officials, including Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and county Supervisors Hilda Solis and Janice Hahn. Backers of the measure say that it will dramatically increase access to treatment beds and supportive housing, but opponents claim it would slash funding for already successful programs. 

    It took more than two weeks for the vote tallying process to be completed, with the officials results being announced on Wednesday. 

    County officials across California will now be required to redirect money to create drug and mental health treatment beds and bolster their response to lessen the homeless issue that many major cities face.

    According to Newsom’s office, the proposition is slated to create 11,150 behavioral health treatment beds across the state, along with housing and 26,700 outpatient treatment slots. Roughly $1 billion of the bond measure is earmarked specifically for veterans. 

    “This is the biggest change in decades in how California tackles homelessness, and a victory for doing things radically different,” Gov. Newsom said in a statement. “Now, counties and local officials must match the ambition of California voters. This historic reform will only succeed if we all kick into action immediately – state government and local leaders, together.”

    What happens now that Prop. 1 passed?

    Since Proposition 1 is a bond measure, there will be no immediate impact on taxes. However, California is now slated to take on the new debt proposed in the measure — $6.4 billion — and pay it back with interest.

    Additionally, counties will now be required to change some of their mental health care and drug or alcohol treatment services, shifting some of the focus to housing and personalized support services. 

    The money for Proposition 1 will come in two methods, primarily the issuance of $6.38 billion in bonds and also through a re-apportionment of funds generated by the Mental Health Services Act, which was passed by California voters in 2004, and it imposed a 1% income tax on people earning more than $1 million per year. Funds from that measure are largely directed to counties for mental health programs, but Proposition 1 would give the state control over much of the funding. 

    The Associated Press suggests that annual revenue from the tax runs between $2 billion and $3 billion a year, providing one-third of the state’s mental health budget. 

    Counties will be required to spend around two-thirds of the funds on housing and homeless outreach programs for people with serious mental health illness or substance abuse problems. 

    The bill also authorizes California to borrow more than $6 billion to build 4,350 housing units. Half of the units would be reserved for veterans and add nearly 7,000 mental health and addiction treatment beds. 

    Dean Fioresi

    Dean Fioresi is a web producer at KCAL News in Los Angeles. He covers breaking news throughout Southern California. When he’s not writing about local events, he enjoys focusing on sports and entertainment.

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  • Trump Finds Another Line to Cross

    Trump Finds Another Line to Cross

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    Former President Donald Trump, perhaps threatened by President Joe Biden’s well-received State of the Union address, mocked his opponent’s lifelong stutter at a rally in Georgia yesterday. “Wasn’t it—didn’t it bring us together?” Trump asked sarcastically. He kept the bit going, slipping into a Biden caricature. “‘I’m gonna bring the country tuh-tuh-tuh-together,’” Trump said, straining and narrowing his mouth for comedic effect.

    Trump has made a new habit of this. “‘He’s a threat to d-d-democracy,’” Trump said in his vaudeville Biden character at a January rally in Iowa. That jibe was also a response to a big Biden speech—one tied to the anniversary of the January 6 insurrection. (Guess who the he was in that sentence.)

    More than Trump’s ugly taunt, one thing stands out to me about these moments: the sound of Trump’s supporters laughing right along with him. This is a building block of Trumpism. The man at the top gives his followers permission to be the worst version of themselves.

    I was on my way to meet friends last night when someone texted me a link to Trump’s latest fake-stuttering clip. I am a lifelong stutterer, and as I rode the subway, holding my phone up to my ear, out came that old familiar mockery—like Adam Sandler in Billy Madison saying, “Tuh-tuh-tuh-today, junior!” Only this time the taunt was coming from a 77-year-old man.

    Read: What Joe Biden can’t bring himself to say

    Stuttering is one of many disabilities to have entered Trump’s crosshairs. In 2015, he infamously made fun of a New York Times reporter’s disabled upper-body movements. Three years later, as president, when planning a White House event for military veterans, he asked his staff not to include amputees wounded in combat, saying, “Nobody wants to see that.” Stuttering is a neurological disorder that affects roughly 3 million Americans. Biden has stuttered since childhood. He has worked to manage his disfluent speech for decades, but, contrary to the story he tells about his life, he has never fully “beat” it.

    As I noted in 2019 when I first wrote about Biden’s relationship to his stutter, living with this disorder is by no means a quest for pity. And having a stutter is not a get-out-of-jail-free card for any verbal flub. Sometimes, when Biden mixes up a name, date, or fact, he is doing just that: making a mistake, and his stutter is not the reason. I am among those who believe the balance of Biden’s stuttering to non-stuttering-related verbal issues has shifted since I interviewed him five years ago.

    And yet, Biden can still come off confident, conversational, and lucid. Although he’s not a naturally gifted orator like Barack Obama or Bill Clinton, he can still be an effective public speaker—someone who, as my colleague Jennifer Senior noted, understands “the connect.” Notably, he can find a way to do all of the above while still periodically stuttering, as he proved during his State of the Union speech. Depending on the day, his voice might be booming or it might be shaky. He may go long stretches of time without interruption, or visibly and audibly repeat certain sounds in a classic stutter formation. Such moments are outside of Biden’s control, as they are for any stutterer, which makes them an appealing pressure point for Trump, the bully.

    For a time, Trump exercised a modicum of restraint around this topic. As I once wrote, Trump was probably wise enough to realize that, to paraphrase Michael Jordan, Republicans stutter too. (Including Trump’s friend Herschel Walker, who has his place on the Stuttering Foundation’s website, along with Biden.) During the 2020 election, Trump wouldn’t go right for the jugular with the S-word. Instead, at his final campaign events, he would play a sizzle reel of Biden’s vocal stumbles, looking up at the screen and laughing at Biden along with the crowd. Back then, Trump left most of the direct stuttering vitriol to his allies and family. “Joe, can you get it out? Let’s get the words out, Joe,” his daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, said at a Women for Trump event. She’s now RNC co-chair.

    David A. Graham: Republicans are no longer a political party

    Watching this new clip brought me back to my conversation with Biden five years ago. At the time, I asked him whether he thought Trump would one day nickname him “St-St-St-Stuttering Joe.” If Trump were to go there, Biden told me, “it’ll just expose him for what he is.”

    Trump has now definitively gone there. What has that exposed? Only what we already knew: Trump may be among the most famous and powerful people in modern history, but he remains a small-minded bully. He mocks Biden’s disability because he believes the voters will reward him for it—that there is more to be gained than lost by dehumanizing his rival and the millions of other Americans who stutter, or who go through life managing other disorders and disabilities. I would like to believe that more people are repulsed than entertained, and that Trump has made a grave miscalculation. We have eight more months of this until we find out.

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    John Hendrickson

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  • Teach Access Paves the Way for Teaching Digital Accessibility

    Teach Access Paves the Way for Teaching Digital Accessibility

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    Nonprofit group’s collaboration with industry, higher education, government, and disability advocacy organizations has goal of teaching 1 million students how to make technology work for disabled people.


    EATON RAPIDS, Mich., March 5, 2024 (Newswire.com)
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    Beginning as a grassroots, 100% volunteer initiative in 2016, Teach Access has now educated more than 500,000 students on digital accessibility, a milestone in the national nonprofit group’s mission of developing a workforce that designs technological products and services with the needs of disabled people in mind.

    The mission of Teach Access is to close the accessibility skills gap by providing a pipeline of skilled workers to industries so technology can be born accessible.

    It does so with a novel approach: Teach Access does not provide workforce training for employers, but instead focuses on the education space, collaborating with colleges, the technology industry and advocacy groups to build curricula that will teach the future workforce about digital accessibility and universal design.

    “We aim to create systemic change within education, so all students learn the fundamentals about disability and digital accessibility, creating a pipeline of future employees who can create technology accessible and inclusive for everyone,” said Kate Sonka, executive director of Teach Access. 

    Teach Access was certified as a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) charitable organization in 2021, and provides its resources and services for free, through funding by grants, private donors and industry sponsors like technology giant Google. 

    “Accessibility is absolutely fundamental to what we do at Google. Yet, we still see that most new grads who join us have never learned about accessibility,” said Laura Allen, head of strategy & programs for accessibility & disability inclusion at Google, and board chair at Teach Access. “We are so excited about Teach Access’ mission and determination to drive this much-needed systemic change and are eager to partner on educating this next generation of students!”

    Employers say there is a strong need for the digital accessibility education that Teach Access facilitates, according to the organization’s 2022 Accessibility Skills Gap Survey: 

    Three out of four respondents (75%) reported a moderate to significant increase for employees with accessibility skills in their organizations in the last five years.

    More than 86% anticipated the demand to increase, while only 2% said it is easy for them to find candidates with accessibility skills.  

    Two out of three reported their products are not as accessible as they would like and are interested in job training for employees. 

    Teach Access has an ambitious goal and focused strategy to meet those needs. It has a target of introducing 1 million students by 2030 to digital accessibility, via free synchronous and asynchronous programs and resources for students and educators to learn about disability, accessibility, and how to incorporate accessibility into the curriculum.

    Teach Access offers courses for educators on the principles of accessible design in disciplines including human-computer interaction, computer software engineering, instructional technology, technical writing and more. It also maintains a curriculum repository, a free collection of open education resources such as syllabi, slide decks, assignment props, discussion questions and quizzes that have been developed by faculty to support teaching accessibility to students in a wide variety of disciplines.

    It also provides grants and fellowships to educators to encourage digital accessibility curricula and teaching, and sponsors programs like Study Away, which brings together students, faculty, and industry partners to explore the field of accessibility, and Student Academy, a series of free virtual webinars for students on topics of disability and accessibility.

    Teach Access Teach Access has a commitment to ensuring engagement with faculty members in educational programs that are from historically excluded and underrepresented institutions such as historically Black colleges and universities, Hispanic-serving institutions, tribal colleges and universities, community colleges, and minority faculty at predominantly white institutions.  

    “Technology is developing more quickly than ever, from mobile apps to emerging systems and devices like wearables and sensors, and they are becoming increasingly integral to our ability to work and to conduct our social lives,” Sonka said. “Teach Access is working to ensure a workforce with knowledge of digital accessibility that it needs to make these essential products usable for the disabled population.”    

    For more information, please visit https://teachaccess.org.

    About Teach Access

    Teach Access is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization collaborating with education, industry, and disability advocacy organizations to address the critical need to enhance students’ understanding of digital accessibility as they learn to design, develop, and build new technologies with the needs of people with disabilities in mind. Teach Access envisions a fully accessible future in which students enter the workforce with knowledge of the needs of people with disabilities and skills in the principles of accessible design and development, such that technology products and services are born accessible.

    Source: Teach Access

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  • Colorado civil rights attorney Kevin Williams, who fought to improve lives of people with disabilities, dies at 57

    Colorado civil rights attorney Kevin Williams, who fought to improve lives of people with disabilities, dies at 57

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    Colorado civil rights attorney Kevin Williams died this week after 26 years of fighting to improve the lives of people with disabilities. He was 57.

    Williams died Tuesday after a short illness, according to colleagues at the Denver-based Colorado Cross-Disability Coalition, where he launched the legal program in 1997 upon graduation from law school.

    A quadriplegic paralyzed from his chest down following a car crash at age 19, Williams steadily increased access for disabled people by filing lawsuits — pressing for enforcement under the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Rehabilitation Act, the Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act and the Fair Housing Act.

    He began this work as a third-year law student at the University of Denver. Shortly before his graduation, he sued his law school. The issue was compliance with the ADA. He prevailed, leading to required improvements, including a wheelchair-accessible graduation venue.

    Often serving as the plaintiff, Williams repeated that feat again and again, expanding access for Coloradans with disabilities in stores, restaurants, public transit systems, theaters, arenas and travel pathways around the state. For example, his litigation compelled the operators of Red Rocks Amphitheatre to provide accessible parking, seating and ticketing.

    He also led other lawyers into disability rights work.

    Williams grew up in the suburbs of Cleveland.  He made Colorado his home in 1990, the year President George H.W. Bush signed the ADA into law. He enjoyed drives in the mountains, attending concerts and visiting local breweries and distilleries.

    Friends this week remembered him as passionate in his pursuit of civil rights.

    “Kevin was contemplative, thorough and certain not to leave any stone unturned, especially in litigation,” said Andrew Montoya, who worked in the coalition’s legal program as an assistant and then was inspired to attend law school.

    “Even seemingly mundane legal issues could occupy hours of lively discussion ranging from interpretive case law to contemporary and historical politics to litigation strategy to the meaning of life, and back again,” Montoya said. “His passion for civil rights, both in general and specifically those of people with disabilities, clearly animated his work, both in the courtroom and in the rest of the world.”

    He also had a knack for making light of difficulties. Friends recalled his adaptation of the Beatles’ “Let It Be” — a rendition that he titled “Let Us Pee.” (“When I find myself in times of trouble; The bathroom door is two-foot-three; Whisper words of wisdom; Let us pee, let us pee.”

    “He was intense, passionate, focused and very analytical. What kept him motivated was seeing people with disabilities face discrimination and knowing that the laws that are supposed to protect us are being violated,” said Julie Reiskin, co-executive director of the coalition.

    “What bothered him was the blatant violation of the law, especially by those who should know better, such as courts and lawyers that made excuses rather than working to fix the problem.”

    Get more Colorado news by signing up for our daily Your Morning Dozen email newsletter.

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    Bruce Finley

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  • 3 strategies to support inclusive learning

    3 strategies to support inclusive learning

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    Key points:

    The Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA), passed in 1975, ensures that eligible children with disabilities receive free public education along with the services they need to succeed. The IDEA act also guarantees that students with disabilities have the right to engage in the Least Restrictive Learning Environment (LRE) that best meets their individual needs.

    The LRE ensures that students under IDEA are offered equitable access to education alongside their non-disabled peers. Under these requirements, special education students should be in the same classrooms as their peers to the maximum appropriate extent. The goal isn’t to make sure that special education students are in the mainstream classroom as much as possible, but to allow students to engage in a classroom setting that is the most beneficial to their academic success and development and to have equal opportunities to their peers. This requires some training for educators on how to create more inclusive classrooms.

    Strategies for educators to support inclusive learning

    Inclusive classrooms are classrooms where students with diverse abilities and backgrounds learn together in a mainstream classroom setting. To maintain an inclusive learning environment, it is critical that educators have effective strategies to ensure that all students, regardless of their abilities, are given the opportunity to thrive academically.

    Here are three strategies for educators to support inclusive learning:

    1. Foster a collaborative classroom culture

    A collaborative classroom culture encourages students to work together and appreciate the unique perspectives that their peers bring to the table. Educators can create this culture through tactics such as group projects or peer tutoring programs. Other activities like circle time, where students have the opportunity to share their thoughts and experiences, can also help foster mutual understanding and respect. Collaboration not only helps to create a sense of community and belonging inside the classroom, it also prepares students for the real world that values teamwork.

    2. Professional development

    To enhance educators’ capacity to support diverse learners and inclusive classrooms, they need ongoing training and professional development opportunities. Having regular professional development training helps educators to learn more ways to best serve their students.

    3. Differentiated instruction

    Offering tailored teaching methods, materials and assessment strategies can help students to better understand the curriculum. Students learn in various ways, and offering materials at different difficulty levels, providing visuals or offering kinesthetic activities ensures that all students can engage in the classroom.

    Why special educators are essential

    Expertise

    Special educators play an important role in ensuring the effectiveness of inclusive classrooms. They have the expertise, training, and resources to address the diverse needs of students, especially those with special needs.

    Teaching methods and materials

    In an inclusive classroom, special educators can tailor their teaching methods and materials to meet the abilities and preferred learning styles of students. This ensures that every student has access to individualized support that suits their unique needs.

    IEP familiarity

    Special educators are also trained to create Individualized Education Plans (IEPs) for students who have special needs. IEPs describe how a student learns, how they demonstrate what they are learning, and what educators can do to help a student learn more effectively. They are tailored using input from general and special education teachers, parents, school administrators, and the students themselves. Having an IEP can also help to determine if a fully inclusive classroom environment is the right fit for a specific student.

    Behavior management

    Behavioral difficulties are often a challenge in inclusive classrooms. Special educators have the necessary training to manage students with behavioral issues and can help maintain a productive learning environment in the classroom.

    While special educators are important in driving the success of inclusive classrooms, they also face challenges such as being responsible for too many students.

    Pros and cons of inclusive classrooms

    The pros and cons of inclusive classrooms have been heavily debated and can vary with each individual circumstance or classroom.

    Inclusive education has benefits for both students with disabilities and for their peers as it promotes social integration, cultivates empathy, and exposes students to those with diverse abilities. Studies have shown that inclusive education can lead to improved academic outcomes for both students with disabilities and their peers.

    While inclusive classrooms have many benefits, there are also drawbacks that often dissuade schools and classrooms from adopting an inclusive classroom environment. Meeting the needs of students with varying abilities and offering individualized support can be challenging for teachers, especially in larger class sizes. Resource allocation can also be a concern because special education students often need support staff, specialized teaching materials or technology.

    Inclusive classrooms are not a one-size-fits-all environment. By working with special education students alongside their peers, with an appropriate IEP in place, educators can tailor their teaching to better serve each student. While an inclusive classroom might not be the best fit for every student, every student should have the opportunity to participate in the learning environment that allows them to gain the most from their education.

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    Lesley Slaughter

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  • Wyoming cop assaulted a disabled 8-year-old, then deleted the body camera footage, lawsuit claims

    Wyoming cop assaulted a disabled 8-year-old, then deleted the body camera footage, lawsuit claims

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    Last spring, a disabled Wyoming 8-year-old was assaulted by a school resource officer, who pinned the boy facedown on the floor of a school conference room seemingly unprovoked. According to a lawsuit filed by the boy’s family last week, after the incident, the resource officer deleted body camera footage showing the most egregious parts of the attack and even accessed the child’s private school records without his parents’ or school administrators’ knowledge.

    Last February, an 8-year-old with a “diagnosed neurodivergent disability” was sitting in the principal’s office of Freedom Elementary School in Cheyenne, Wyoming, during the school’s lunch period. The boy, named in the suit as “J.D.,” had been doing this for days, in accordance with his Individualized Education Plan (IEP). The complaint states that Principal Chad Delbridge and another faculty member began to quietly speak to J.D. about comments he made to a school cafeteria cashier and whether he should apologize to the cashier. Deputy Benjamin Jacquot, the school resource officer, was standing nearby during the discussion. J.D. was calm during this period.

    According to a report later filed by Delbridge, when J.D. stood up to return to class moments later, Jacquot grabbed J.D.’s arm. Delbridge had not asked for Jacquot’s assistance in any way. 

    “J.D. was not a threat to himself or to anyone else. There was no reason at all for Deputy Jacquot to become involved with J.D. during this interaction with Principal Delbridge,” the lawsuit notes. “Deputy Jacquot, nevertheless, forcibly wrestled J.D. into a nearby conference room using an armlock where the assault grew violent.”

    The suit claims that Jacquot repeatedly “slammed” J.D.’s face into the conference room floor, causing numerous lacerations and bruises. The undeleted portion of Jacquot’s body camera footage shows the 250-pound Jacquot pinned on top of 68-pound J.D.

    “At this point, J.D. is bleeding from wounds on his face, and his smeared blood is visible on the video,” the complaint reads. “As shown on the video, Deputy Jacquot is out of control, pinning J.D. by his arms face down to the ground in a prone restraint position and yelling threats at J.D. J.D., meanwhile, is struggling to breathe, and is coughing.”

    According to the suit, Jacquot screamed at J.D.: “Do you understand me! I should be taking you to jail!”

    Eventually, Delbridge called J.D.’s father, Ishmael DeJesus, to pick him up. When he arrived, DeJesus asked Jacquot why he grabbed J.D. even though the boy wasn’t causing a disruption. 

    “Because, as a law enforcement officer, that’s my primary function,” Jacquot replied.

    The complaint further alleges that “immediately after his assault on J.D., Deputy Jacquot went to his vehicle, and, upon information and belief, destroyed evidence by deleting his body cam video which showed the most violent portion of the assault, as well as the footage of his improper intervention into and escalation of this situation.”

    Later, Jacquot obtained J.D.’s “private and protected” school records and included excerpts of those records in the police report of the incident. An investigation from the school later concluded that Jacquot had “no need to access these records in his work with this situation.”

    In addition to his physical injuries, the lawsuit says that the incident has led to long-term psychological consequences for J.D., including the need for psychological treatment and J.D.’s transfer to a school for children with emotional disturbances.

    In all, the suit argues that Jacquot’s use of excessive force violated J.D.’s Fourth Amendment rights and violated the Americans with Disabilities Act.

    “Deputy Jacquot failed to employ reasonable interventions with respect to J.D. such as crisis intervention, de-escalation, patience, and waiting, which would have been consistent with J.D’s status as a disabled child as well as his IEP,” the lawsuit reads. “J.D. suffered and continues to suffer physical pain, emotional pain, psychological injury, trauma, and suffering.”

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    Emma Camp

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  • This Texas woman divorced her husband to become his guardian. Now she cares for him — with her new husband

    This Texas woman divorced her husband to become his guardian. Now she cares for him — with her new husband

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    Kris Armstrong and her then-husband, Brandon Smith.

    Kris Armstrong


    In 2008, Kris Armstrong was driving between her two jobs when she got a call and the caller asked her to pull over. Then came news that would change the then-23-year-old’s life forever: Her husband, Brandon Smith, had been in a car crash.

    “They were unable to tell me if he was alive or not,” she told CBS News. “By the time they called me, it had already been, like, seven hours since the accident.”

    The two had married just two years earlier — when they both were 21. High school sweethearts, the two met when she was 16 and he was 15. She knew she wanted a family — and so did he.

    But that plan had abruptly changed. Now, doctors were trying to save his life, and by the time she arrived at the hospital, he had fallen into a coma. When he woke up two months later, the Brandon she knew was gone. He now needed constant care.

    “When someone has a severe traumatic brain injury in a big way, you lose that person, but you gain somebody new,” she said. “And it took me a long time to realize that.”

    She turned to God and asked for guidance. She still wanted a family, but it would be impossible to have that with Brandon. It would be one of the hardest decisions she’d ever make.

    “I had made vows that I would be with him in sickness and health, and I took that very seriously,” Armstrong said. “I didn’t stay married to him, but I wanted to take care of him.”

    It broke her heart into a million pieces as she began the process of becoming his legal guardian by divorcing him. But she knew she was the best person to take care of him, so she showed the court by doing the things she’d always done.

    “I took him to appointments. I advocated for him,” she said. “I visited him almost daily. I took care of financial issues and managed all of his health care, his Medicaid, his Medicare, all of that.”

    At one of the final hearings, the judge asked her a specific question.

    “She asked me, ‘What will you do if you have a family someday? Will we be able to take care of Brandon? What will happen then?’” she said. “I told her, ‘Nothing’s going to change.’”

    And nothing did change — not even when she met James Armstrong in 2014, then a single father with a young child. The first thing she told him about was Brandon.  

    “I have a former husband that I take care of and he’s a part of my life and I realize that’s a lot,” she recalled telling him. “But if you’re interested in dating me, that comes with the territory.”

    “It didn’t bother me at all,” James said. “It intrigued me more, because I knew that Kris had a good heart.”

    When Brandon and James met for the first time, Kris recalled Brandon asking James if he wanted to grab a beer. That sparked hope for her budding relationship.

    “Of course, that made me happy.” she said. “Brandon being at peace and being OK with being a part of our family the way it is is super important.”

    lehmer-family-session-2022-12-of-18.jpg
    Kris and James Armstrong with their children and Brandon Smith.

    Michael Smyer


    A year later, Kris and James were married and Brandon had a new protector. More than a decade after his accident, the love for Brandon has only grown with the couple’s young children, who delight in the time spent with their “Uncle Brandon.”

    “They love to snuggle with him on the couch when he’s hanging out,” said Armstrong. “There’s a lot of love — a lot of love there.”

    It’s an unconditional love that other people have been moved by. When Armstrong first started sharing their family’s story on TikTok, it went viral — generating millions of views. 

    “We’ve been living out the story, this kind of unique family situation for about — that I have for about 15 years,” she said. “And I found that when I meet people, when I share my story and they share their stories, it’s a way to connect. It’s a way to share hope.” 

    “[Brandon’s] world got very small after his brain injury and it’s sort of gotten bigger again,” she said.  

    Michael Roppolo

    Michael Roppolo is a CBS News reporter. He covers a wide variety of topics, including science and technology, crime and justice, and disability rights.

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  • How to Ensure Your Workplace Is Truly Inclusive for All | Entrepreneur

    How to Ensure Your Workplace Is Truly Inclusive for All | Entrepreneur

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    The 21st-century workplace is evolving rapidly. As we step further into a world driven by digital advancements and changing socio-cultural dynamics, it is essential to acknowledge that our workforce should be as diverse as the world we live in. An inclusive workforce is not just about hiring people from various backgrounds or cultures; it also means embracing individuals with different cognitive processes and physical abilities. Neurodivergent individuals and those with visible and invisible disabilities bring unique perspectives, skills and innovations to the table.

    But how do we ensure a truly inclusive environment for all? As a person with nearly 30 years of experience in the workforce solutions space, I take this opportunity to recommend ways businesses can start preparing for a future that will be determined more by inclusive policies and practices than by traditional business metrics.

    Related: 5 Steps to Building a Supportive and Inclusive Workplace for Neurodiverse Employees

    1. Policy reforms

    Before diving into specific strategies, let us all agree that policies are foundational. They set the tone and the guidelines by which organizations operate. However, when we talk specifically about organizational policies around neurodiversity and disabilities, there is still room to improve.

    • Anti-discrimination laws: While many countries have policies against discrimination based on gender, race and religion, fewer have robust protections for neurodivergent and disabled individuals. Strengthening and enforcing these laws will send a strong message to employers about the importance of leveling the playing field for everyone.

    • Flexible working arrangements: It is important to recognize that not everyone thrives in a standard 9-5 setting. Flexibility in working hours or remote work can be especially beneficial for those with certain disabilities and different cognitive capabilities.

    Pioneering inclusivity: A glimpse of U.S. legislative efforts

    While the United States has long been a trailblazer in legislating for a more inclusive work environment, further refinements and initiatives are essential to achieve absolute inclusivity.

    • Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA): Enacted in 1990, the ADA stands as a bulwark against prejudice towards individuals with disabilities in various aspects of public life, spanning employment, education and transportation. A key feature of the ADA is its directive for employers: They must provide reasonable accommodations to eligible candidates or workers with disabilities unless such accommodations cause significant difficulty or expense to the employer.

    • Rehabilitation Act of 1973: Prior to the ADA, the Rehabilitation Act was a groundbreaking stride in combatting disability-related systemic biases, especially within federal entities. Section 504 and Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act stand out. While Section 504 champions accessibility and equal opportunity to federally funded program benefits and services, Section 508 mandates that electronic information and data should be made available to disabled individuals in the same manner as it is to those without disabilities.

    • Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC): Serving as an incentive to encourage diverse hiring, the WOTC provides financial rewards to employers that hire people from specific demographics, including those with disabilities. The underlying goal? To pave smoother career paths and more accessible employment opportunities for those who might otherwise grapple with significant challenges in the job market.

    • State-centric legislations: Venturing beyond the purview of national laws, numerous states have carved out their own set of rules. Some have tightened accessibility norms for infrastructure, while others incentivize inclusive hiring practices.

    2. Structural amendments

    The physical and digital infrastructure of workplaces often needs adjustment to be truly inclusive.

    • Accessibility first: Companies need to ensure that all office facilities are wheelchair-accessible, offer sign language interpreters for meetings and provide materials in braille if needed. Digital platforms should meet web accessibility guidelines, ensuring all employees can access and engage with content.

    • Dedicated resource groups: Putting together teams or committees focused on inclusivity can be beneficial both immediately and in the long run. These groups can offer insights, recommend changes and act as an organic support system for neurodivergent and disabled employees.

    Related: How to Create a More Inclusive Workplace

    3. Innovative practices

    I strongly believe that beyond policy and infrastructure, a shift in organizational culture is pivotal.

    • Awareness and training: Many of our biases are deeply ingrained in our psyche and operate unconsciously. Regular training sessions on neurodiversity, autism and disability awareness can help both employees and employers recognize, confront and counteract their preconceived notions.

    • Mentorship programs: It helps to pair neurodivergent and disabled employees with mentors who can guide, support and advocate for them.

    • Inclusive recruitment strategies: Businesses may consider partnering with organizations and institutions that work with disabled individuals to create pipelines for potential hires. This not only broadens the talent pool but also demonstrates a company’s commitment to inclusivity.

    • Tailored onboarding processes: Recognizing that a one-size-fits-all approach does not work, we must design onboarding processes that can be tailored to individual needs. This might involve providing additional training resources, establishing peer support systems or giving new hires more time to adapt to their new environment.

    • Flexible job descriptions: A rigid job description might exclude talented individuals who could perform the core responsibilities of a role but might struggle with one or two “standard” requirements. Flexibility in job descriptions ensures a broader pool of potential candidates and a more inclusive workforce.

    4. Feedback and continuous improvement

    • Anonymous feedback channels: Let us allow employees to anonymously share their experiences, challenges and suggestions without fearing retaliation or reprimand.

    • Regularly review and adapt: The journey to inclusivity is ongoing. It is important to regularly assess policies and practices, ensuring they remain relevant and effective.

    An inclusive workforce is not just a moral imperative; it’s a business one. Neurodivergent individuals and those with disabilities often approach problems differently and offer innovative solutions. By investing in policy reforms, making necessary structural amendments and adopting innovative practices, businesses can ensure they are tapping into the full spectrum of human potential.

    Building an inclusive future is not just about hiring practices. It is about creating an environment where every employee, regardless of their neurodivergence or disability, feels valued, understood and empowered.

    Related: The Difference is Difference — How to Harness the Power of Neurodiversity for Your Business

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    Nish Parikh

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  • A test case of another kind for the Supreme Court: Who can sue hotels over disability access

    A test case of another kind for the Supreme Court: Who can sue hotels over disability access

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    WASHINGTON — A few years back, Joseph Stramondo was a last-minute replacement as a conference speaker in Salt Lake City. He went online and made a reservation for a room accessible for people with disabilities.

    “I figured, ‘OK, I should be set,’” Stramondo said.

    But when he checked in, the room he was given looked like a standard room, without bars in the bathroom or a door wide enough to accommodate his wheelchair.

    Returning to the front desk, Stramondo learned the room was accessible — for people with hearing loss.

    The Supreme Court is taking up a case Wednesday that Stramondo, his wife, Leah Smith, and other people with disabilities worry could make it harder to learn in advance what accommodations are available that meet their needs.

    The justices are being asked to limit the ability of so-called testers to file lawsuits against hotels that fail to disclose accessibility information on their websites and through other reservation services.

    The information is required by a 2010 Justice Department rule. People who suffer discrimination can sue under the landmark Americans with Disabilities Act, signed into law in 1990.

    The issue in the Supreme Court case is whether Deborah Laufer, a woman with disabilities, has the right to sue a hotel in Maine that lacked the accessibility information on its website, despite having no plans to visit it. Laufer, who would not agree to an interview for this story, has filed some 600 similar lawsuits.

    A district court dismissed her complaint, but the federal appeals court in Boston revived it. Appeals courts around the country have issued conflicting rulings over whether ADA testers have standing to sue if they don’t intend to go to the hotels.

    Acheson Hotels and the business interests supporting it argue that Laufer’s admission that she wasn’t planning to visit the hotel should end the case. Acheson owned the hotel, the Coast Village Inn and Cottages in Wells, Maine, when Laufer filed her lawsuit, but has since sold it.

    “What we’ve seen for the last 20 years is that people just sit at their house and troll through websites. Small businesses in particular have been targeted,” said Karen Harned, executive director of the Center for Constitutional Responsibility.

    On the other side of the case, civil rights groups fear a broad ruling for the hotel could limit the use of testers who have been crucial in identifying racial discrimination in housing and other areas.

    It’s possible the Supreme Court could dismiss the case as moot without even reaching the main issue, though the hotel is urging the justices to reach a decision.

    In the context of disabilities, testers can’t sue for money, just to get facilities to change their practices. That’s a critical role, Stramondo and Smith said.

    Stramondo, a philosophy professor at San Diego State University, and Smith are each under 4 feet, and even a hotel room deemed accessible “doesn’t mean that it’s accessible for us,” Smith said, adding that they often turn over a room’s trashcan to use as a stepstool. Smith is the director of the National Center for Disability Equity and Intersectionality.

    There’s no federal agency dedicated to enforcing the ADA. “And so we need to have some kind of enforcement mechanism. And the best one that I’ve seen is testers,” Stramondo said.

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  • 2 Massachusetts moms made adaptive clothing for kids with disabilities. They hope to bring it to the masses.

    2 Massachusetts moms made adaptive clothing for kids with disabilities. They hope to bring it to the masses.

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    They say necessity is the mother of invention, and this invention came from two Massachusetts mothers with a need: clothing for those with disabilities. Nikki Puzzo and Joanne DiCamillo founded befree, an adaptive clothing brand — inspired by Puzzo’s daughter, Stella.

    “I don’t let anything stop me in life — and that’s pretty cool,” Stella told CBS News. 

    The eighth-grader likes to swim, do gymnastics and work out with a trainer, her mother said. 

    stella-zipons.jpg
    Nikki Puzzo’s daughter, Stella, models befree’s ZipOns for the company. 

    befree


    Born with spastic quadriplegia cerebral palsy, Stella was 5 when she had double hip surgery that left her with casts on both legs and a bar between them — making it impossible for her to wear traditional pants.

    Surgeons told Puzzo that her daughter would have to wear dresses or a long T-shirt for three months while she recovered. 

    “She doesn’t like to look at any type of brace or Band-Aids or anything like incisions,” Puzzo told CBS News. “So, I decided to go out and make her a pair of pants.”

    Using a pair of brightly colored pajama bottoms, she took them apart at the seams and sewed in Velcro. It was a simple fix, but it was a “game changer” for her daughter, she said. 

    slide-1-pants1.png
    Nikki Puzzo’s first-generation prototype — with Velcro — in what would eventually become the company’s pants.

    befree


    “And then at her post-op appointment, she was wearing them,” Puzzo added. “And the doctor at [Boston] Children’s [Hospital] said, ‘You need to make these. So many parents ask us all the time what to dress their children in, and you basically solved that problem.’”

    When she recounted what the surgeon said, Joanne DiCamillo was shocked.

    “I was just really blown away by that,” DiCamillo told CBS News. “This was just something that was missing from the market and just something that didn’t exist.”

    It was there that befree was born. But with neither woman having fashion experience, they enlisted the help of a third mom: DiCamillo’s 85-year-old mother, who can sew.

    All three women worked on the next prototype, eventually making a switch from Velcro to zippers after consulting with medical experts. They were granted utility and design patents for their pants and launched their website in 2022.

    “We want people to ‘dress with less stress,’” Puzzo said, which is the company’s motto.

    While befree did raise money through a crowdfunding campaign, the company is mostly self-funded, according to DiCamillo. They haven’t sought outside investment yet. 

    Even though other companies sell adaptive clothes, DiCamillo hopes their company will be the one to take it mainstream. Their dream is that in five years, their adaptive clothes will be common in stores and be sold alongside traditional clothes. 

    DiCamillo noted that potential buyers are not limited to just children with disabilities, but adults with disabilities and other people recovering from surgeries. “The market is really huge,” she said.

    “We started getting a lot of requests as people saw the kid’s pants,” DiCamillo said. “We got a lot of requests for adult sizes.”

    The next piece of clothing on their list? 

    “So, leggings [are] in the works — as well as shorts and joggers,” Puzzo said. 

    “And jeans,” her daughter added. 

    Like any mother, Puzzo wants her daughter to grow up to be independent. She made a promise to Stella to do anything in her power to give her that freedom — no matter what. 

    “I want to instill in her that she is beautiful, powerful, strong, no matter what,” she said. “And she can always do whatever she puts her mind to, and I believe that, you know, whether she is able-bodied or not.” 

    Michael Roppolo

    Michael Roppolo is a CBS News reporter. He covers a wide variety of topics, including science and technology, crime and justice, and disability rights.

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  • Fire in vacation home for people with disabilities in France kills at least 9

    Fire in vacation home for people with disabilities in France kills at least 9

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    Paris — A fire ripped through a vacation home for adults with disabilities in eastern France on Wednesday, killing at least nine people, the head of rescue operations said.

    Lt. Col. Philippe Hauwiller, who was leading the rescue work of firefighters, said crews were searching for the bodies of two others who were feared dead in the fire. Authorities said 17 people were evacuated, including one who was sent to a hospital with serious injuries.

    Eleven missing after fire in vacation home in eastern France
    Firefighters battle a blaze that broke out in a vacation home used by a group of people with disabilities, in Wintzenheim, France, August 9, 2023.

    Patrick Kerber/picture alliance/Getty


    Hauwiller said only those who were staying on the ground floor of the private accomodation in the town of Wintzenheim were able to escape the fire, which the local administration of the Haut-Rhin region said broke out at 6:30 a.m. The 11 remaining occupants were trapped on the upper floor and in a mezzanine area that collapsed, according to Hauwiller.

    Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne said on social media that she was heading to the site of the fire.

    Christophe Marot, the secretary general of the local administration, said on news broadcaster France Info that the vacationers included adults with “slight intellectual disabilities.” Ten people with disabilities and and a person accompanying the group were believed to be among the dead.

    FRANCE-FIRE
    Firefighters work to extinguish a fire that erupted at a home for disabled people in Wintzenheim, eastern France, August 9, 2023.

    SEBASTIEN BOZON/AFP/Getty


    The fire department deployed 76 firefighters, 4 fire engines, 4 ambulances to contain the blaze and treat the victims. Forty police officers were also mobilized.

    The fire was quickly brought under control, the statement said.

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  • How to Embrace People With Disabilities In Your Workplace | Entrepreneur

    How to Embrace People With Disabilities In Your Workplace | Entrepreneur

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    People with disabilities face several barriers to entering the workplace and frequently face discrimination and exclusion. To develop an institution of inclusivity, people with disabilities must be represented and embraced at every level. According to the World Health Report, an estimated 1.3 billion people — or 16% of the global population — experience a significant disability today. Unfortunately, people with disabilities face mistreatment and discrimination just for having a disability.

    Based on the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, a 2004 survey found that only 35% of working-age persons with disabilities are employed, compared to an employment rate of 78% in the rest of the population. Two-thirds of unemployed respondents with disabilities said they would like to work but could not find jobs.

    I have been a disability advocate for several years, and I have the experience of growing up with one. I am currently the co-chair of the disability inclusion network where I work, and I’ve volunteered for many organizations focusing on disability rights. I’ve advocated for people with disabilities at the White House during the first-ever Mental Health Youth Action Forum.

    People with disabilities have more difficulty finding work because they are perceived as less than others or assumed to be unable to work, which is a common misconception. The pandemic’s move toward remote and hybrid was a positive step toward providing more flexibility and accommodations for people with disabilities. Before the pandemic, many people with disabilities weren’t offered a role due to requesting to work remotely. Offering these options isn’t enough, and more changes need to continue to embrace them fully.

    Related: How Hiring People With Disabilities Will Make Your Business Stronger

    Addressing ableism and sanism

    Ableism is discrimination against people with disabilities based on just having a disability, and sanism is the same, except for people with mental health conditions. Other forms of discrimination often dominate conversations about diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility (DEIA) more than ableism and sanism.

    Based on the Harvard Business Review, only about 4% of DEI programs include disability. Even DEI programs designed to address workplace discrimination still fail the disability community, which is why ableism and sanism commonly perpetuate in the workplace. This statistic is concerning as people with disabilities significantly face barriers in the workforce, like low labor force participation rates, higher unemployment rates and pay inequality.

    On top of that, many organizations don’t incorporate the “A” in DEIA — accessibility — because they don’t view it as an issue of equity. For example, issuing two people the same equipment doesn’t achieve anything if someone with a disability cannot use the technology to perform.

    Invest in accessibility

    It isn’t enough to announce that your organization prioritizes hiring more people with disabilities if your institution is inaccessible. If any practices are inaccessible, people with disabilities must navigate and maneuver additional barriers. It will be substantially more difficult for them to be seen, hired, considered and celebrated. Accessibility is a growing need every organization should invest in to create the best experience for its users, customers and staff members.

    Accessibility transforms information, content and anything else in your business into something sensible, meaningful and easier to use. Are you thoughtfully investing your resources into accessibility or treating it as an afterthought when someone comes forward with an issue? Accessibility should begin before someone requests an accommodation by approaching accessibility proactively. It would help if you devoted a sizeable fraction of your budget to assemble a dedicated team or position to accessibility, e.g. chief accessibility officer. Consider also working with a consulting agency if you want a third-party perspective.

    If you have a team in accessibility, is it being evaluated across the company rather than specific areas like technology and infrastructure? Assessing accessibility at every business function, like recruitment, job descriptions, content, social media, operations and events, will upscale and streamline more remarkable results. An example of this is clearing any ableist language on job applications because that already excludes a talented pool of candidates with disabilities.

    Accessibility isn’t only making work equitable for people with disabilities — it makes it easier for everyone. People with disabilities should be your target demographic for creating the most equitable products for them to enjoy and use. However, if you lead with accessibility in your organizational strategic plan, everyone will systemically benefit.

    Related: How We Can Redefine the Word “Disability” One Superpower at a Time

    Celebrate disability pride

    Based on the National Organization on Disability (NOD), while recently, more people with disabilities are entering the workforce over the last 12 months, self-identification (self-ID) rates have decreased from 4.09 in 2020 to 3.68 in 2021. Supporting people with disabilities must move from only offering accommodations to celebrating disability pride.

    Disability pride is the concept that disability isn’t just a medical condition but a social identity with enriching intersectionality, community and culture. Disability pride affirms that people shouldn’t be ashamed of their disabilities. Disability Pride Month is in July, and the National Disability Employment Awareness Month is in October. Because disability has been stigmatized and shamed for centuries, diverting that shame to pride is the future of disability inclusion.

    These are paramount organizational-wide moments to address disability, tell meaningful stories of their lived experiences and show your actionable commitment to DEIA. While those are noteworthy times to prioritize the disability community, disability pride should be distributed throughout the whole year because people with disabilities don’t stop existing and living outside of those months.

    There are limitless choices to include people with disabilities in the workplace by hosting workshops on disability inclusion, encouraging self-identification, outlining legal resources, facilitating open discussions on disability pride and history, establishing an employee resource group (ERG) to invite people with disabilities, caregivers and allies to join forces and hold the organization accountable and cultivate a more positive culture, work with other networks to showcase the intersectionality of disability and different social identities, appointing board members with disabilities and monitoring how your organization is operating.

    Related: 5 Ways Employees With Disabilities Help Maximize a Company’s Growth

    Diversity without disability is not diversity

    Suppose your organization does not include people with disabilities in your mission, decisions, products and leadership. In that case, your organization will never be diverse, and ignoring a substantial and vital population segment will only negatively influence your performance and impact. People with disabilities have the right to work and belong to an organization valuing their contributions and ensuring they have opportunities to thrive as much as everyone else.

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    Zane Landin

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  • How to Use Technology to Run Your Company as an Executive with a Limitation | Entrepreneur

    How to Use Technology to Run Your Company as an Executive with a Limitation | Entrepreneur

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    If you suffer a limiting condition, such as fading eyesight, mobility issues or total vision loss, technology can be the difference between leading in business and falling behind. Many executives experience common ailments such as farsightedness or broken limbs, temporary setbacks such as recovery from eye surgery or more permanent disabilities like hearing loss or blindness. In these situations, knowledge is power. I wouldn’t be able to run my company without technology.

    I was sixteen when the doctor told me I would be blind by forty. A devastating retinitis pigmentosa diagnosis brought a drastic new vision of my future. I knew the disease was progressive, so I had some time to research companies and products supporting people with vision impairments. As I’ve adapted to new tech, I am sharing some tools and in a small way, paying my knowledge forward. Programs have evolved, and I rely on several key software apps and devices to support me in my role as a blind CEO. Here are a few that get me through each day.

    Related: What Vision Loss Has Taught Me About Balancing Extremes in Business

    Screen enhancement

    Computer accessibility solution technology, such as Zoomtext, makes it possible for anyone with vision impairments to use their computer screen, assuming they can still use their mouse as well. Freeware and shareware programs are cheaper, but Zoomtext is more than a screen magnifier.

    The screen readability at high zoom levels is made possible by AI Squared technology that eliminates blurry text on freeware programs. With Zoomtext, you also get color-changing and enhancement capabilities. Vision impairment can strike anyone at any time. Looking into screen enhancements before you need them can help preserve your vision, preventing simple eye strain.

    Related: 5 Types of Technology All Entrepreneurs Need Access to in the Digital Age

    Voice accessibility technology

    My partner in running my company is JAWS or Job Access With Speech. Like Zoomtext, JAWS is a screen reader, but the advantage is that it works without a mouse, either with text or Braille. As long as the information is on a Word document or Microsoft Outlook email, JAWS will read it; in fact, JAWS and I get up early in the morning to start reading emails.

    The voice access tech allows you to send replies and compose Word documents. There are several levels of service at a variety of price options. Someone with significant vision loss or a legally blind business leader can still bring their heart, mind and talent to corporate teams, keeping communication channels open.

    Related: Employers Need Workers. Now They’re Realizing The Untapped Talent of These People.

    Tech readers

    Be My Eyes provides volunteers who can help visually-impaired persons “see” their environment. You can be connected to a live person who can see through the camera via your phone, assisting with navigating your surroundings or helping you do your work. If you’re having trouble finding a suite number or rooms at a conference, they can help. As a legally blind person, I might need help crossing a street, especially if my guide dog, Frost, can’t go with me someplace.

    AIRA, a paid service, can pull up a GPS map to pinpoint your location to help in navigation. AIRA uses screenshare; a remote person can take control of your computer to help do things directly, such as conducting research or filling out online forms. Tech readers can reveal what a piece of mail says, what a sign says, or read a document. Be My Eyes is developing a virtual assistant via the new Chat GPT4 language model. Both tech readers can help the visually impaired and business leaders with broken limbs or fingers to keep the recovery period productive.

    Orcam is about two inches in length, and it is tied to your sunglasses. After it magnetizes to the glasses, you can tap the Orcam, and it will take a picture of what you’re looking at, reading out everything it sees, from items on a shelf to the pages of a book; all ages can use it. Orcam can read bills as well as what’s being shown on TV. This is especially important if the announcer says, “Call the number on your screen,” without reading the digits. Now, you won’t miss out on infomercial purchases.

    Another tool, Cashreader, works with the iPhone camera. You can put any dollar bill up to the camera, and Cashreader will tell you the denomination. The tool reads not only dollars but all foreign currency.

    If you’re traveling, you now have options to get quick visual support, and on days you work long hours, you can lean on these tools to help you complete projects, work seamlessly in multiple locations, and always feel in charge of your environment.

    Labeling

    I invested recently in barcode labels and ID Mate; the latest version is I.D. Mate Galaxy. I can’t see the contents of closets and storage areas in my workplace. Something as simple as finding a file in a cabinet is a breeze with I.D. Mate. The barcode system takes a bit of time investment: You can have an assistant record the contents of storage bins, filing cabinets, boxes of documents, etc.

    All you do is point a reader at the barcode, and you will hear your assistant’s voice reading the information you need. This tech makes organizing your life a reality. You can now keep track of model and serial numbers on hardware or other information in fine print on machinery, equipment or containers. Barcoding and labeling save time, taking the mystery out of finding the things you need when you need them.

    Related: 5 Ways ChatGPT Is Empowering People with Disabilities

    Always new tools to try

    Companies and university engineers are developing new tools daily to help disabled persons to do things they couldn’t do before. There is technology to help quadriplegic people use their cell phones, response-to-text tools for people who are deaf or hard of hearing, and tech to help wheelchair users find accommodating facilities.

    Universities are embracing assistive tech on campuses across the country. Hundreds of technology aids and new products come out every day, designed to help you get through each day’s challenges. Anyone injured or dealing with low mobility, vision loss, or hearing impairment can work smarter; you can run your company, keeping the flow of work moving forward. If you’re open to new technology, you can emerge from the learning curve with a new sense of freedom that allows you to take charge of every area of your life.

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    Nancy Solari

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  • Why Investing in the Accessibility Space Is a Smart Business Move | Entrepreneur

    Why Investing in the Accessibility Space Is a Smart Business Move | Entrepreneur

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    As entrepreneurs, we’re always looking for ideas on how to effectively run our businesses, launch new ventures, raise more capital, be better leaders and attract incredible employees. Investing in the accessibility space is one surefire way to accomplish many of these goals at once.

    Six years ago, I launched a startup, Verbit, which quickly grew into a $2 billion company that’s leading the way in accessibility. Many of my entrepreneurial peers and our partners are building and running thriving businesses and attributing their success to greater investment in access.

    Everyone from Google to Microsoft to Harvard University has an accessibility policy or inclusion arm. Microsoft launched a neurodiversity hiring program, while Apple is giving prescription hearing aids a run for their money with its AirPods’ hearing aid feature.

    Here are some tips on how and why entrepreneurs like you should commit more resources to accessibility for business longevity and financial success.

    Related: How Accessibility Teams and Executives Can Work Together for Disability Inclusion

    Why entering the accessibility space is such a smart move

    One key indicator of business success is the total addressable market, the size of the audience you can appeal to. Apple and other tech giants are pushing resources toward accessibility-focused innovations because they understand the statistics

    More than 1.5 billion people have some form of hearing loss globally. Projections suggest that by 2050, that number will rise to over 2.5 billion. That reality has boosted the over-the-counter hearing aid market, one ripe for innovation, to over $1 billion.

    Hearing aids, and now even assistive technology in cars that helps people continue to drive as they age, are examples of innovations that improve people’s lives by helping them maintain autonomy. It’s lucrative for entrepreneurs to start businesses that give people more control, freedom and better quality of life. Businesses that open themselves up to accessibility are attracting more talent, customers and best of all, investors.

    Start by looking internally: Your current hiring practices and employees

    Filling positions can come with a price tag of $15,000 for each employee who earns around $45,000. It only goes up from there. Being unable to fill positions also puts existing employees at risk of burnout.As an entrepreneur building your startup into a functioning business, you need to eliminate opportunities for turnover. Enlisting inclusive hiring practices is one place to start.

    Studies at CVS and Microsoft showed that their initiatives aimed at hiring employees with disabilities improved their bottom lines. People with disabilities are underemployed, even in job markets with low unemployment levels. Start by training your team to prevent ableism — the idea that candidates with disabilities may not be able to perform — when they are more than qualified. Educating hiring managers and ensuring that your process is an accessible one is a great place to start. From the CV submission process to the interview, make sure your team is trained and platforms are accessible to all applicants.

    I’d also recommend hiring someone or making a current team member responsible for accessibility and inclusion to orchestrate these efforts, review your processes and hold you accountable. Creating a leadership position to address accessibility and inclusion highlights the importance of them to your startup, which investors will find attractive as well.

    Related: Employing Individuals with Disabilities May Solve Your Talent Crisis

    How an accessibility focus can help you attract investors

    Investors are paying attention to what startups and companies are doing for the common good. You’ve likely seen the term “ESG” pop up. Environmental, social and government (ESG) considerations evaluate a company’s impact on the natural world and humanity. These metrics are vital for many investors and accessibility is an important part of the equation.

    Inaccessible businesses neglect the social component of ESG and expose themselves to legal risks. As a result, even if they aren’t put off by the lack of accessibility, risks of costly lawsuits can deter would-be investors. To prevent this, even newer founders should be in discussions ESG consultants. Consultants, even if you don’t have enough funding yet to hire them, can help you identify areas to focus on. Is your website accessible? Are you contributing to air pollution? Investors will be impressed by your efforts to track changes in these areas.

    ESG reporting is all about transparency. Investors will want to see your scores and showing them the proactive steps you’re taking to develop a responsible corporate culture will attract them.

    Doubling down: How to start an accessibility-minded business or arm

    There are so many barriers impacting the lives of individuals with disabilities. As an entrepreneur, you’re gifted at identifying key problems. Why not find one that they’re facing and solve it to create a positive impact?

    My product was initially developed for the legal industry. I started considering additional use cases and the TAM. I founded my company in Israel, which is home to 1.8 million people with disabilities. However, even from the startup stage, our prospecting and growth efforts were focused on selling abroad to serve the 61 million adults with disabilities in the US. Putting out Verbit in the US meant an exponential increase in our TAM. Now, our solutions are making it easier for people worldwide — not just those with disabilities — to study, work and live their lives more efficiently. That’s why entrepreneurs are poised to enter the accessibility space — we think big and can have big impact.

    My advice to you is to keep finding ways to pair your ideas and startup’s capabilities with greater problems in need of solutions. Investors need to understand that your mission will be lucrative, but if they also buy in to the “why” with the good you can do for the world, their commitment and mentorships will extend beyond the financial investment alone. The same goes for your team — if they buy into your mission or see how you’re reinventing your hiring processes, they’re going to stay. They won’t see it as just another job.

    Creating something that’s able to improve the lives of millions rather than a “nice-to-have” offering makes for smart business. Get into the accessibility space if you’re interested in doing just that.

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    Tom Livne

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  • Protests for disabled rights in France before Paris Olympics

    Protests for disabled rights in France before Paris Olympics

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    PARIS — Angry about decades of unmet promises, people with disabilities protested Wednesday in France by showing how difficult and frustrating it is for them to travel alone by train into Paris, delivering a stinging rebuke of government inertia before the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

    In the town of Melun on the outskirts of the French capital, Babou Sene, 31, had to get out of the wheelchair he uses and shuffle with help down and then up two flights of stairs to catch the 11:15 suburban train to Paris’ Gare de Lyon, which connects to the only fully accessible Metro line in the future Olympic host city.

    Other people with disabilities had to stay behind, continuing the protest with placards denouncing limited access to public services. Their electric-powered wheelchairs were too bulky to be carried to the Paris-bound train platform. Helpers carried Sene’s smaller hand-pushed chair and assisted him on the stairs and navigating the gap between platform and train.

    “It’s frustrating, really frustrating, not being able to get around,” Sene said. “The feelings are of anger, frustration, revolt and resignation. Because in fact, despite the fights undertaken, the impression we have is that we’re not listened to, despite all of our efforts.”

    Sene works for APF France Handicap, which lobbies for disabled rights and organized the protest. It was among the groups invited to a national conference on disabilities that French President Emmanuel Macron was hosting later Wednesday.

    Amid frustration over slow progress on disabled rights, another organization, Collectif Handicaps, an umbrella association of more than 50 campaign groups, said it would boycott the conference. Collectif Handicaps had asked for an opportunity to speak in front of Macron and said it was refused.

    The group said it worries that fresh pledges of improved accessibility Macron was expected to make would fall short of what is needed.

    Just getting to the conference at the presidential Elysee Palace is an ordeal for many of the people the event is focused on because of very limited accessibility on the Paris Metro and frequent frustrations for people with disabilities on the French capital’s supposedly fully accessible buses.

    This month, an arm of the Council of Europe, the continent’s foremost human rights body, found France in violation of a European treaty on social and economic rights, citing multiple failings in meeting the needs of adults and children with disabilities.

    The looming deadlines of the July 26-Aug. 11, 2024, Olympics and Aug. 28-Sept. 8 Paralympics also risk highlighting how inaccessible France is, in contrast to advances in other rich countries.

    For the Paris Games, France needs “to press on the accelerator” because “a catastrophic scenario is in the offing if we don’t,” APF France Handicap President Pascale Ribes said, citing concerns about accessibility, hotel accommodations and other issues for spectators with disabilities.

    Olympic organizers say the host city will “provide the best possible conditions for para-athletes and visitors with disabilities.” They say they’re aiming for “an obstacle-free experience for all,” with 100% of venues to be accessible for people with disabilities and all volunteers to be trained in serving their needs so as to “avoid users feeling that they have any kind of disability.”

    But other Olympic cities have done better on improving accessibility in their subways. In Tokyo, more than 90% of the 758 subway and rail stations were already wheelchair-accessible when it hosted the Olympics in 2021.

    At the Melun railway station, protesters’ placards denounced difficulties navigating schools, housing, transport and other services. Sene’s placard read: “When buildings aren’t accessible, we can’t access our rights.”

    A sports fan, Sene has signed up as a candidate to work as an Olympic volunteer. He said he hopes the Paris Games “will serve as a take-off ramp for accessibility.”

    Protesters said improvement works at the Melun station have been repeatedly pushed back and that difficulties there for people with mobility challenges are mirrored across the Paris region.

    “There’s a generation that’s seen the trains go past and hasn’t been able to get on board,” said Pascal Aubert, of APF France Handicap.

    Salima Yenbou, a French member of the European Parliament, representing Macron’s centrist party, rode the train with Sene to Paris and told him that his struggle to get on board is “like house arrest.”

    “It’s unacceptable,” she said.

    ___

    AP journalist Nicolas Garriga contributed in Melun, France.

    More AP coverage of the Paris Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

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  • 5 Ways ChatGPT Is Empowering People with Disabilities | Entrepreneur

    5 Ways ChatGPT Is Empowering People with Disabilities | Entrepreneur

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming our world in myriad ways, and one of its most significant impacts is on the lives of people with disabilities. AI-driven programs like ChatGPT are helping to bridge communication gaps, facilitate access to information and foster independence for individuals with various impairments.

    While AI has many applications, today we will explore five ways AI is capable of helping people who disabilities may hinder work more efficiently and comfortably.

    Related: What Is Artificial Intelligence (AI)? Here Are Its Benefits, Uses and More

    1. Cognitive enhancement

    As someone who was diagnosed with ADD as a child, I have found AI to be a great tool for staying organized. For individuals with cognitive impairments, memory loss or conditions like Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), staying organized and remembering essential tasks can be a daily struggle. In these instances, artificial intelligence, particularly AI programs like ChatGPT, can serve as a valuable and personalized assistant. Some of the ways I have personally used ChatGPT that have personally helped me are:

    • Customizable reminders: ChatGPT can be programmed to deliver personalized reminders for a wide range of essential tasks, such as taking medication, attending appointments, or completing daily chores. By tailoring these reminders to each user’s specific needs and preferences, AI-driven chatbots can help users better manage their schedules and responsibilities.

    • Motivation and encouragement: In addition to providing practical organizational support, ChatGPT can be set up also to offer motivational messages and encouragement to users as they work towards their goals. This emotional support can be invaluable in helping individuals overcome challenges and stay committed to their personal growth and development.

    • Routine establishment: Establishing routines can be critical for individuals with cognitive impairments, as routines can provide structure and stability. ChatGPT can assist users in developing and maintaining daily, weekly or monthly routines, offering guidance and support to help them adapt to new habits and stay on track.

    Related: What Does ChatGPT Mean for the Future of Business?

    2. Enhancing communication

    Communication is essential for everyone, and AI chatbots like ChatGPT can significantly improve it for people with hearing or speech impairments. By converting speech to text and vice versa, these chatbots enable seamless communication, allowing users to engage in conversations with ease and participate in social interactions they might have otherwise found challenging.

    Various disabilities may hinder one’s ability to communicate how they want to. However, GPT 4 is now available to the public and streamlining effective communication just got easier for everyone. People across multiple categories may have difficulty speaking, communicating effectively or expressing themselves properly.

    However, with the assistance of AI, disabled people can utilize GPT4 to help them communicate more effectively, provide clarity and offer communicative insights that help disabled people efficiently express themselves and their ideas with ease.

    3. Reading and writing assistance

    AI chatbots can make reading and writing more accessible for individuals with visual impairments, dyslexia or fine motor skill difficulties. By reading aloud text-based content or providing writing suggestions, ChatGPT can help users compose emails, essays and other documents with greater ease and efficiency.

    It is well known that AI is also a great writing tool and thus can help disabled people write easier. While some argue that AI is taking jobs away, some might see it as an opportunity to create more job opportunities for disadvantaged and marginalized people. As a business owner diagnosed with ADD, I can say that using AI has helped me with proofreading, spelling and writing.

    Related: Employers Need Workers. Now They’re Realizing The Untapped Talent of These People.

    4. Personal reminders and organizational support

    AI can be a valuable assistant for those with cognitive impairments or memory loss. ChatGPT can be programmed to remind users of essential tasks, such as taking medication, attending appointments or completing daily chores.

    This support can be instrumental in helping users maintain their daily routines and stay organized. Isolation and loneliness can be significant issues for people with disabilities, especially those with mobility or communication challenges.

    GPT-based AI technology can provide companionship through conversation, offering a listening ear and comforting responses. This interaction can be a source of solace and help alleviate feelings of isolation.

    Related: Unlock the Powerful Gifts Your Disability Taught You About Being a Better Leader

    5. Supporting education and learning

    AI-driven programs can play a vital role in helping students with disabilities access education. By answering questions, providing explanations and offering alternative learning materials, ChatGPT can serve as an invaluable resource for learners who may require additional support or accommodations. Everybody learns differently, and as someone who has personally faced the challenges of a learning disability, I can affirm that the way I process information is different.

    AI can assist as a resource of information, and GPT4 can break down information in different ways, depending on what is asked of it. For instance, you could ask chat GPT to help explain an idea or curriculum to somebody who has a learning disability in a specific way, or educators could use a guy to come up with creative ways to help people with learning disabilities excel.

    Artificial intelligence programs like ChatGPT can make a remarkable difference in the lives of individuals with disabilities (Myself included). By empowering people with enhanced communication, greater independence, and increased access to essential information and resources, AI is breaking down barriers and opening up new possibilities for those who may have previously faced significant challenges.

    As we embrace AI technology and continue to explore its vast potential, we must remain committed to developing inclusive and accessible solutions that can help all members of our society thrive. By doing so, we can work together to create a more equitable and connected world where everyone has the opportunity to succeed, regardless of their abilities.

    One great way to think about the current capabilities of AI is instead of comparing it to a search engine, think about something like ChatGPT as a thinking engine, where instead of it merely being a means to discover and search for data, it is also a technology that allows users to search for ways to think. AI isn’t perfect, but it certainly has positive use cases that have the potential to help those in need greatly.

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    Devan Leos

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  • What Is the Economic Impact of Hiring Autistic, Neurodivergent and Disabled Talent? Here’s What You Should Know. | Entrepreneur

    What Is the Economic Impact of Hiring Autistic, Neurodivergent and Disabled Talent? Here’s What You Should Know. | Entrepreneur

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Much as the world sings paeans of praise about how disability inclusion has become an integral part of workplace culture, concerns around return on investment remain a major deterrence for many organizations not to hire autistic, neurodivergent and disabled people at scale. These concerns stem from ignorance at best and ableism at worst. In this article, I am going to present nine compelling reasons why disability inclusion benefits not just workplaces but also the overall economy of a community or country in several ways.

    1. Increased productivity and decreased support costs

    Ever wondered why a workplace that is homogenous in terms of a lack of diversity seems to hit a productivity plateau every so often? Do people lack the motivation to push forward, or does the apparent sameness of thoughts and approaches breed an invisible culture of doing just enough to not get fired?

    Autistic, neurodivergent and disabled people can be the missing piece in the productivity puzzle. They often bring unique talents, strengths and perspectives to the workplace, leading to increased productivity, better problem-solving and innovation.

    In addition, employing autistic, neurodivergent and disabled people helps them become financially independent, which, in turn, decreases their dependence on government allowances while also lowering the cost of various community support services such as adult care, according to a PubMed Central® report.

    Related: Why Microsoft, Chase and Others Are Hiring More People With Autism

    2. GDP growth

    A study by Accenture, Disability:IN and the American Association of People with Disabilities revealed that closing the employment gap between people with disabilities and people without disabilities could help boost the GDP of the U.S. economy by up to $25 billion (about $77 per person in the US).

    Therefore, it is a no-brainer that promoting disability-inclusive hiring practices and reducing employment gaps can have a positive impact on the overall economy of a country.

    3. Increased consumer spending

    As I mentioned earlier, autistic, neurodivergent and disabled people bring innovation and creativity to the workplace. With innovation comes better and more intuitive products and services that cater to a wider range of consumers, leading to increased consumer spending within a given marketplace. It is also possible to create new revenue streams if those products and services are specifically designed for consumers from niche markets such as hearing and visual aids, weight loss supplements, telehealth services for rural populations, gaming, etc.

    Additionally, when neurodivergent or disabled people are employed, they often have more disposable income to spend on goods and services. This increased spending capacity can help revitalize the economy.

    4. Lower turnover

    Disabled employees tend to have lower turnover rates, which can bring down the costs associated with talent attraction, hiring and training.

    According to a Job Accommodation Network (JAN) survey, 44% of accommodations for disabled employees cost less than $500, and the rest of the accommodations cost nothing at all. These findings, when contrasted with the cost of replacing an employee, which can range from 50% to 200% depending on their annual salary, further this benefit as reported by Enrich citing a study by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM).

    5. Increased customer satisfaction

    By hiring employees who better represent the diverse population of customers, businesses provide better customer service and improve overall customer satisfaction.

    A ResearchGate publication found that 92% of customers were more inclined to buy products and services from businesses that hire people with disabilities, and 87% said they would prefer to support businesses that actively hire people with disabilities.

    This brings me to my next point.

    Related: 4 Ways Diversity Is Directly Linked to Profitability

    6. Improving brand reputation

    Companies that demonstrate a commitment to disability inclusion are often viewed more favorably by consumers. This leads to increased brand loyalty and investment. In addition, the disability community, along with their family and friends, is a significant market worth trillions of dollars. By sharing the success stories of disabled employees and their families, companies can create a satisfied and loyal customer base, happy employees and a positive brand image through word-of-mouth marketing.

    7. Tax benefits

    Employing disabled individuals can offer businesses numerous tax benefits, including the Work Opportunity Tax Credit, Disabled Access Credit and the Architectural Barrier Removal Tax Deduction — among other incentives. The extent of these benefits depends on the accommodation provided by the business for the employee, potentially resulting in substantial credits or returns.

    8. Local economic and environmental impact

    Sourcing disabled candidates locally stimulates the local economy through the creation of job opportunities in the immediate area — ones that may be impractical for people coming from distant locations due to transportation and relocation issues. When local people are employed, they are more likely to spend their money locally, which contributes to the growth of other local businesses. Working locally also means employees can avoid long commutes, which lowers their carbon footprints and helps build a more sustainable future.

    9. Social impact

    Hiring autistic, neurodivergent and disabled people helps break down stereotypes, reduce social stigma and discrimination, promote inclusion and create a positive social impact in the community. When individuals who are autistic, neurodivergent and disabled see others like them succeeding and achieving recognition in their community, it benefits not only them but everyone who supports them.

    Hiring autistic, neurodivergent and disabled people goes beyond altruism. It strengthens the bottom line of an organization and provides numerous broader economic, social and environmental benefits that positively impact the well-being of any community or nation.

    Related: How Leaders Can Support and Embrace The Untapped Potential of Neurodiverse Talent

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    Nish Parikh

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  • Kansas plan keeping low wages for disabled angers advocates

    Kansas plan keeping low wages for disabled angers advocates

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    TOPEKA, Kan. — Kansas legislators are considering a proposal that many disability rights advocates say would encourage employers to keep paying disabled workers less than the minimum wage, bucking a national trend.

    A Kansas House bill would expand a state income tax credit for goods and services purchased from vendors employing disabled workers, doubling the total allowed to $10 million annually.

    Vendors qualify now by paying all of their disabled workers at least the minimum wage, but the measure would allow vendors to pay some workers less if those workers aren’t involved in purchases of goods and services to earn the tax credit. Supporters argue the bill would enable more vendors to participate, boosting job and vocational training opportunities for disabled people.

    The Kansas debate comes as employers nationally have moved toward paying at least the federal hourly minimum wage of $7.25. About 122,000 disabled workers received less in 2019, compared to about 295,000 in 2010, according to a U.S. Government Accountability Office report to Congress in January.

    Critics argue that below-minimum-wage jobs exploit workers such as Trey Lockwood, a 30-year-old Kansas City-area resident with autism, who holds down three part-time jobs paying more than the minimum wage. At one of them, The Golden Scoop ice cream shop, he greets customers and makes ice cream with a “spinner,” a machine he said is like a washing machine. He has money to buy clothes and other things.

    “I feel good about that,” he said.

    His mother, Michele Lockwood, said employers who pay less than the minimum wage aren’t fostering independence.

    Neil Romano, a member of the National Council on Disability, agreed, adding, “It is very much against the flow of history.”

    But other advocates and operators of programs questioned about their wages said the severity of some physical, intellectual and mental disabilities mean such programs can’t be eliminated without depriving people of valuable opportunities.

    Cottonwood Inc., in Lawrence in northeastern Kansas, handles packaging for some companies. Its wages are based on the prevailing industry standard in the area of more than $15 an hour, adjusted for a worker’s productivity. As workers get more productive, they earn higher pay.

    CEO Colleen Himmelberg said Cottonwood helps workers who need one-on-one support that other employers won’t provide.

    “They’re likely not going to help someone toilet or clean up an accident. There’s the reality,” Himmelberg said. “But that person can work here and still earn a paycheck.”

    Pat Jonas, president and CEO of the Cerebral Palsy Research Foundation in Wichita, Kansas, said the goal is a more “user friendly” tax credit program shorn of a big burden for some vendors. If employers currently want to participate, while also maintaining below-minimum-wage jobs as vocational training, they must set up a new, separate company or nonprofit paying workers at or above the minimum wage.

    “It’s just sad that everyone can’t be pulling in the same direction,” Jonas said, adding that the foundation has always paid at or above the minimum wage.

    Thirteen states bar below-minimum-wage jobs for disabled workers, including California, Colorado and Tennessee, according to the Association of People Supporting Employment First, which promotes inclusive job policies. Virginia lawmakers sent a bill last month to Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin, and there’s a bipartisan proposal for a national ban in Congress.

    Andy Traub, a Kansas City-area human resources consultant who works with The Golden Scoop and much larger businesses, said there might be a limited place for sheltered workshops, but “not as a default setting.” Groups serving the disabled ought to be required to help them try “competitive” jobs first, he said.

    The federal law allowing an exemption from paying the minimum wage dates to the 1930s. It is based on the premise that a lower wage offsets an assumed lower productivity among disabled workers and exempted employers must regularly study how quickly employees do their work. The January report to Congress said 51% of exempted employers’ disabled workers make less than $3.50 per hour and close to 2% earn less than 25 cents hourly.

    Some advocates argue they’re still battling traces of attitudes from decades ago, when many disabled people were put in institutions and not educated.

    They cite the mid-February meeting of a Kansas legislative committee that highlighted the tax credit proposal’s provisions. The chair of the committee handling the bill, state Rep. Sean Tarwater, a Kansas City-area Republican, defended programs paying below the minimum wage.

    “They are people that really can’t do anything,” Tarwater told his committee. “If you do away with programs like that, they will rot at home.”

    Days later, Tarwater said he was referring to severely disabled people. But his comments appalled national and state disability rights groups.

    Connecticut state Rep. Jane Garibay, a Hartford-area Democrat, said being paid fairly is “part of being valued as a human being.” She lives with an adult niece with Down syndrome and is sponsoring a bill that would require Connecticut employers to pay workers with intellectual disabilities the state minimum wage, $15 an hour, if they can do a job.

    “It’s as if, as a woman, I would get paid less than a man for doing the same job. We’ve been there, right?” Garibay said. “If you’re doing the same job, it should be the same wage.”

    In the Kansas City area, the nonprofit Golden Scoop ice cream shop opened in April 2021 paying its workers $8, plus tips — higher than the state’s $7.25 minimum wage. Amber Schreiber, its president and CEO, praises disabled workers as loyal and enthusiastic. Golden Scoop hopes to open another shop and a plant making ice cream to sell wholesale.

    In the Washington D.C. area, a nonprofit, Melwood, phased out below-minimum-wage jobs starting in 2016. President and CEO Larysa Kautz said Melwood had to shut down a print shop with disabled workers doing menial tasks, but it started a recycling sorting service. The organization does government landscaping jobs across the area, and between 900 and 1,000 of its 1,300 workers have significant disabilities, she said.

    The report to Congress in January said the number of employers with exemptions allowing them to pay below the minimum wage dropped to fewer than 1,600 in 2019 from more than 3,100 in 2010. Romano said it should fall to 1,300 this year.

    “It requires innovative thinking,” Kautz said. “But there are so many of us that have done it.”

    ___

    Associated Press writer Susan Haigh contributed to this report from Hartford, Connecticut.

    ___

    Follow John Hanna on Twitter: https://twitter.com/apjdhanna

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