Sue Ackerman

​

Sue has been the Director of the RIT Disability Services Office since 2005.  Its mission is to “provide equal access to programs, services and physical facilities to students with disabilities” and to “strive to foster an environment where all students are welcomed, valued and respected.” Her office also offers support to students who choose to study abroad or who are ready to transition into the career environment, providing tools to empower a student’s confidence and skills for self-advocation.

​

 

Dan Higgins

​

Dan is both owner and Assistive and Rehabilitation Technology Consultant at Poplar Hill Technology, providing services and technology to help people “overcome the challenges of traumatic brain injuries, learning disabilities, spinal cord injuries and communication disorders.”  Dan has over 34 years of experience as a Specialist in Augmentative and Alternative Communication device selection and use for Monroe #1 BOCES, where he helped children with disabilities identify, obtain, and use technology to improve their access to education and where he formed the Office of Assistive Technology Services. 

​

 

Peter Bertram

​

Peter has been an assistive technology provider for Webster Central Schools for the past five years.  He worked as a teacher at Monroe #1 BOCES for eight years and spent five years as an AT Specialist on their OATS team (Office of Assistive Technology Services).  In addition, Peter currently works with another panel member, Dan Higgins, to provide AT evaluations and services for adults with disabilities.  He has worked with students with learning disabilities, physical disabilities and visual impairments, and offers assistance with several tools to help individuals with reading, adaptive tools (including eye gaze and laser pointers) to help students with access in their daily life and environment, and with various communication devices and software apps.

 

​

Joe Kelly

​

Joe has a professional and personal connection with Advocacy and Education relating to individuals with disabilities. He is a retired Assistant Superintendent for Instructional Programs at the Monroe 2-Orleans BOCES where he served 27 years, 10 of those years as the Director for Exceptional Children. He is also the father of a young man, Ryan, who has Down Syndrome and is almost 29 years old.  Currently he is the President of the Monroe 2-Orleans Educational Foundation. Their mission is to award annual scholarships worth $5,000 each to students who have successfully graduated from “alternative” or “non- traditional” programs and intend to go to college or pursue further career training.  Joe also serves on the Arc of Monroe Board. 

 

 

Nikki Llewellyn

​

Nikki is a Certified Orientation & Mobility Specialist at the Association for the Blind and Visually-Impaired at Goodwill Industries of Greater Rochester and has worked with students of all ages for almost 30 years.  She is also an upstate regional representative for the NYS Deaf Blind collaborative out of Queens College.  Nikki is also a nationally certified audio describer who provides audio description for national touring Broadway shows that come to the Rochester Auditorium Theatre as well as at Geva Theatre for theatergoers who are blind or have low vision.

​

 

Juilee Decker  

​

Juilee is an Associate Professor of Museum Studies with in the Department of Performing Arts and Visual Culture in the College of Liberal Arts at RIT.  She is “trained as an art historian, her research and scholarship are at the intersection of museum studies, public history, and public art. She has a passion for objects and seeks ways to facilitate dialogues between communities and the objects, spaces, places, and practices that they hold dear.”  Juilee has an interest in thinking about accessibility as it relates to museums and pedagogy, and stresses the importance of discussing such topics both for students and for the community at large.

 

​

Ammina Kothari

 

Ammina is an Assistant Professor and the Director of Undergraduate Studies in Journalism at RIT.  “Her research focuses on issues related to health, gender, technology and religion that are situated within the contexts of global communication, journalism and media studies.  Some of her ongoing research explores “effective channels for message transmission based on topics and target demographics.” Ammina has interest in considering intersections between media and accessibility.

 

​

Ericka Jones

 

Ericka is a Systems Advocate within the Center for Disability Rights in Rochester. She is a supporter of ADAPT, which works to “protect the civil rights of people with disabilities to live in freedom in the community.”  Ericka has a great interest in improving transportation accessibility for Monroe County, and collaborated with Floating Home Films recently on a transportation related piece entitled, “Rochester Street Films: Getting Around with a Disability.”

 

 

Chris Hilderbrant

​

Chris Hilderbrant’s journey with disability began in March of 1990 when he broke his neck in a diving accident.  Since then, he’s used a manual wheelchair and “had to deal with accessing junior and senior high at a time when the Americans with Disabilities Act had just been signed into law and wasn't even yet in effect.”  Chris worked for almost 15 years at the Center for Disability Rights, in Rochester and now has his own consulting business, which focuses on several aspects of community access for people with disabilities (more at www.ChrisHilderbrant.com).  Chris teaches a class at MCC as an adjunct in the Human Service department, with a focus on preparing students for careers in professionally supporting people with disabilities. He helped establish, and serves as a captain for, the local wheelchair rugby team “The WNY Wreckers.

​

 

David Grace

​

David had a career at Eastman Kodak in IT for 34 yrs.  He retired shortly after a hunting accident at the age of 51, when he fell from a tree stand, severing his spinal cord at the level of T4-5. He remains independent, using a manual wheelchair, and is still quite active and enjoys many of the activities he did before. Since his accident, he has jumped out of an airplane, traveled to Africa twice on bowhunting safaris, traveled around the USA hunting assorted game, performed skeet/trap/target shooting, deep sea fishes regularly, gardens, and enjoys woodworking.  He plays sled hockey, pickleball, and rides a handcycle.  He also enjoys volunteering at Nazareth College and Ithaca College or anywhere he can encourage others with spinal cord injuries.

 

 

Christine Sheffer

​

Christine is the Superintendent and Director of School Programs at Mary Cariola Children’s Center, which provides “education and life skill solutions for individuals with complex disabilities.”  Christine believes special education should be a continuum of services. “Students need different things at different times,” she states. “Not all students should be in general education with no supports; neither should they all be in self-contained classrooms.”  She feels one of the biggest barriers to successful inclusion is the “lack of teacher education and experience with students who have low incidence disabilities.” Her dream is for many of their students to be educated within their districts with appropriate supports.  Christine notes a growing population of young children with significant health needs, and believes that the education system is lagging in skill to address the needs of these complex youngsters.

​

 

Jeiri Flores

 

Jeiri has worked to make SUNY Brockport more accessible and is part of the Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental Disabilities (LEND) program at the University of Rochester.  LEND offers “collaborative interdisciplinary training focused on improving the health of children with neurodevelopmental disabilities and special healthcare needs.” Jeiri is described by her friends as “an amazing Latina” who has cerebral palsy.  She is an active supporter of equal rights and increased accessibility for people with disabilities.