Keynotes and Noted Speakers

Accessible Worlds

Joel Snyder is a member of Actors’ Equity Association, the American Federation of TV and Radio Artists, and the Screen Actors Guild, and he is a 20-year veteran of the National Endowment for the Arts where he coordinated funding for the nation’s arts presenters. Throughout his NEA tenure, he worked closely with the Office of AccessAbility to build access to all art forms for people with disabilities. Learn more

Advocacy

Mariah Rose Kilbourne, of Texas, is Ms. Wheelchair America 2013. She will serve as an advocate, spokesperson and role model for those with (dis)ABILITIES throughout America! As a Summa Cum Laude graduate of Texas Lutheran University, Mariah majored in Communication Studies and minored in the Spanish Language. As a 23 year old published writer, successful advocate, and avid adaptive sports enthusiast, Mariah cannot help but express her love for photography, public speaking, and fundraising. She can’t wait to use these talents and abilities as Ms. Wheelchair America. Learn more

Being in Community

Tony Antosh has spent almost 45 years with people who have disabilities. He has served in a variety of roles including direct support staff, teacher, administrator and advocate. He believes strongly in community membership and has developed inclusive community programs in early intervention, in school, and in adult communities. Learn more

Disability Rights

Dr. Kamal Lamichhane is a researcher at the research institute of Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) in Tokyo. He did his postdoctoral work under the prestigious fellowship of Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) of the Government of Japan for two years from April 2010. Learn more

John Wodatch is a disability rights attorney who recently retired after 42 years of Federal government service. He authored the Federal government’s first comprehensive disability rights regulations, the regulations implementing section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. He is one of the drafters of the Americans with Disabilities Act as he served as the Department of Justice’s chief technical expert during the writing and passage of the ADA. Learn more

Disability Studies

Petra Kuppers is a disability culture activist, a community performance artist, a wheelchair dancer, and Professor of English, Women’s Studies, Art and Design and Theatre at the University of Michigan. Her books include Disability and Contemporary Performance: Bodies on Edge (Routledge, 2003), The Scar of Visibility: Medical Performance and Contemporary Art (Minnesota, 2007) and Community Performance: An Introduction (Routledge, 2007). Learn more

Early Childhood

Mary E. Young, MD, DrPH, Senior Advisor to Harvard University’s Center on the Developing Child. She is pediatrician and specialist in global health and child development with broad experience in both developed and developing countries. For the past three decades, she worked at the World Bank, guiding efforts in international public health and child health and development. During her tenure at the World Bank, she led global efforts to inform world leaders and policymakers about Early Childhood Development (ECD). Learn more

Jen Brecker always had a passion for tumbling and gymnastics. Despite being born without legs. She competed in power tumbling, volleyball, and softball... all against able-bodied athletes. Jen’s achievements have been featured on Glee, HBO Real Sports, 20/20, Good Morning America, and a featured acrobat on the Britney Spears World Tour. Learn more

More than a decade after first gracing the Olympic stage, 1996 Olympic Gold Medalist Dominique Moceanu continues to inspire countless fans and young athletes all over the world. Proudly recognized as the youngest U.S. National Champion in the history of the sport, Dominique remains active in the gymnastics and beyond. She delivers personal messages of motivation, focus, and healthy living. Learn more

Gender and Sexuality

Karen Ward has over 30 years of experience as an educator, practitioner, and researcher in the field of intellectual and developmental disabilities. She has been involved in disability victimization issues, including training and research, for many years. Julie Atkinson is a Research Professional at the University of Alaska Anchorage Center for Human Development, a University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities. She is the project coordinator for the Friendships & Dating Program (FDP) overseeing training, implementation, evaluation, and technical assistance. Learn more

Human Rights

Gopal Mitra works as a Programme Specialist- Children with Disabilities in the Disability Section, Programme Division at UNICEF HQ since March 2012. As part of the Disability Section’s mandate, his work involves mainstreaming disability across UNICEF’s policies and programmes. He also supports UNICEF’s engagement with the Inter Agency Support Group on Disability and with the UN Partnership on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and its Multi-Donor Trust Fund. Within the Disability Section he acts as the focal point on inclusive humanitarian action, assistive technology and on adolescents and young people with disabilities. Learn more

Native Hawaiian Education

Dr. Kū Kahakalau is a native Hawaiian practitioner, educator, scholar, researcher, Hawaiian language and culture expert and composer, residing with her ‘ohana above Waipi‘o Valley on Hawai‘i Island. Over the past 25 years, Dr. Kahakalau has developed a successful bi-lingual Pedagogy of Aloha, which has enabled thousands of Hawaiian students to reach their highest potential in an atmosphere of aloha and mutual respect. Learn more

Public Health, Diversity and Disability

Patricia Welch Saleeby holds an academic position at Southern Illinois University—Carbondale, School of Social Work. Her primary professional interests include disability and chronic conditions, health disparities, health and mental health policy and practice, and international health systems. Learn more

Ms. Heather Oglesby has a lifelong career of helping others. She began working for Americorps on the lower Eastern Shore of Maryland in 1997, helping hundreds of pregnant teens finish high school and achieving their career goals. As she uncovered the issues surrounding poverty and underachievement, she decided to pursue a Master in Counseling. Beginning her work in an outpatient mental health facility, she headed up programs for children in the community as well as in the school system. She partnered with the court systems, social service agencies, health departments, juvenile systems and educational institutions to provide prevention and intervention programs to underserved youth. Learn more

Ready to Learn, Ready to Teach

Melissa Storm Edmiston, PhD, is a Senior Research Analyst at the American Institutes for Research. Dr. Edmiston has over 18 years of experience in education, training, technical assistance (TA), and evaluation work related to students with disabilities. Dr. Edmiston currently serves as TA Lead for the National Center on Intensive Interventions (NCII). In this role, she coordinates TA and coaching efforts for 12 districts, nationwide. Learn more

Research

Peter Mataira is from Aotearoa New Zealand and is of Maori descent. His tribal affiliations are to Ngatiporou and Kahungunu on the Eastern Coast of the North Island. He earned his PhD in social policy and social work from Massey University, Albany Auckland. Dr. Mataira’s doctoral research focused on Maori entrepreneurial leadership in the context of growing antagonism between tribal social obligation and economic imperatives towards shareholder profit. Learn more

Resiliency

Alvin Wong is a retired Hospital and Group Practice Administrator and served over 25 years as a Hospital Administrator and physician recruiter in Honolulu. Alvin helped start two brand new hospitals on Oahu and spent more than 15 years as administrator for two group practices with more than 20 physicians. He also owned a company that managed two radiation treatment facilities on Oahu. Learn more

Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics (STEM)

Stephanie Ortoleva, an international human rights lawyer, is the President and Founder of Women Enabled, Inc., which advocates and educates to advance the rights of women and persons with disabilities, with a special focus on women and girls with disabilities, in collaboration with organizations of women and girls with disabilities worldwide. Women Enabled, Inc.also engages with multilateral organizations, governments, NGOs, among others and conducts precedent-setting legal and policy research. Learn more

Wellness and Mental Health

Linea Johnson and Cinda Johnson are the co-authors of perfect chaos a daughter’s journey to survive bipolar, a mother’s struggle to save her. Linea Johnson is a recent graduate from Seattle University, with a major in English and Creative Writing. Cinda Johnson, PhD, is a professor and director of the special education graduate program at Seattle University. She is also the principal investigator and director of the Center for Change in Transition Services. Learn more

Youth

Daniel “Nane” Alejandrez—Escalating problems of violence, crime and social breakdown among young people cry out for meaningful programs and sound policies. Although the United States has the highest rate of incarceration in the developed world; media and policy makers continue to remain oriented toward punishment strategies. Offering a different model is the National Coalition of Barrios Unidos, acknowledged as one of the nation’s most impressive grassroots organizations addressing issues of youth, violence, and gangs. Learn more