Disability Employment

A former business owner, Debbie has spent over 20 years advocating for societal change and creating pathways to make it happen. In addition to building vision and aptitude within Easterseals Southern California’s Employment Division, she works with stakeholders throughout the country to build capacity, and create urgency, around customized employment and employment first. Her concurrent roles as an Easterseals Vice President, board member on both CA APSE and Foundation for Developmental Disabilities boards of directors, and membership in numerous coalitions connect Debbie with some of the country’s best minds and allow her to continue working with, and on behalf of, others committed to ending segregation and building brighter futures for people with disabilities.

Carli Friedman, CQL Director of Research will join us and discuss behaviour support and all things CQL. Carli oversees all CQL data analyses and research projects research, while focusing on quality of life, community integration and social determinants of integration and ableism.

Tamsin Cottis, co-founder of Respond, a UK based counselling service for people with learning disabilities talks about counselling and learning disabilities.

Richard Luecking, Ed.D., is Co-Director of the Center for Transition and Career Innovation for Youth with Disabilities and is a Research Professor in the Department of Counseling, Higher Education, and Special Education in the College of Education. He previously served for 28 years as President of TransCen, Inc., a national non-profit organization dedicated to improving employment success of people with disabilities. During his tenure at TransCen he was responsible for the implementation of numerous model demonstration and research projects related to school-to-work transition and competitive integrated employment of individuals with disabilities.

Sara is the Director of WorkLink, TransCen’s San Francisco-based employment program for job seekers with disabilities. Sara is also a key contributor to the training and technical team where she works with employers, school districts, parent groups, and service providers. She also provides field support for many of TransCen’s federal and state initiatives. Currently, she is a subject matter expert for ODEP’s Employment First State Leadership Mentoring Program, where she provides technical assistance and consultation to state agencies and providers in capacity building in effective practice, system/provider transformation, school-to-work transition and employer engagement. For the past 30 years, Sara’s focus has been on school-to-work transition and employment for individuals with disabilities. She has extensive experience in direct service, policy and program development, and system transformation.

When asked what her passion is and what she can’t stop talking about, Sara will respond: “My work. My work. My work.” She also loves music, traveling to exotic locales, cooking/baking, taking her dog to the beach, and reading the New York Times on Sunday mornings.

Professor Keith McVilly talks about the application of Positive Behaviour Support principles to Customised Employment and how by bringing behaviour support principles to the employment process and post placement support we can enhance employment and career longevity. This is about adopting clinical principles to the job development process and adding a new skill set to the employment consultant armoury of skills.  

David Petherick is the highly regarded Deputy CEO of Valid, the Victorian based advocacy group with a long history of championing the rights of people with intellectual and developmental disability. David talks about Valid's work and provides valuable insights into advocacy, employment, the NDIS and all things empowerment.

In this podcast we are joined by Mike Callahan, President of Marc Gold & Associates to talk about Systematic Instruction, Natural Supports and the legacy of Marc Gold. An inspiring conversation that gives us something to pause and think about. June Alexander will join us to discuss her thoughts and practices in SI, Families and mentoring.

Jeannie Hodges - Director Economic Outcomes discusses employment supports within the context of the 20/21 NDIS Supports funding and the future of disability employment. Time to innovate and think differently. The discussion is general in nature and not specific to any one person and participants should consider their own circumstances and seek advice. 

Evan Dean, Investigator - Beach Center and Assistant Professor University of Kansas talks about self-determination and employment. Career Design and transition, along with how we work to promote choice and control.