Some autistic adults have difficulties in finding employment opportunities that match their interests, gifts, and talents. Many autistic adults are unemployed or underemployed. Continue Reading
New ADA Live podcast! Episode 112: A Successful Path to Employment with the Innovative Supports for Autistic Workers (ISAW) Project
Barry Whaley
Barry Whaley serves as Director of the Southeast ADA Center and BBI Director of Outreach. Funded by the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research, the Southeast ADA Center is one of ten regional centers that provide guidance, publications, research, and training on the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Barry brings extensive experience in disability employment and community integration. He previously served as Project Director of the Supported Higher Education Project at the University of Kentucky Human Development Institute, one of twenty-six original Transitional Programs for Students with Intellectual Disabilities, exploring supports necessary for students with significant disabilities to succeed in the post-secondary college environment. At the University of Kentucky, he also provided ADA Title I Employment Consulting and analyzed student outcome data for the Kentucky Post-School Outcome Center. He has served as a consultant for Atlas Research, providing technical assistance and training for the Homeless Veterans Supported Employment Project, and for many years was Executive Director of Community Employment, Inc., a nonprofit supported employment provider focused on integrated competitive and customized employment for people with significant disabilities. He has also worked for the Kentucky Office of Vocational Rehabilitation and began his career with the “New Neighbors” deinstitutionalization project. He is a founding board member and past president of Kentucky APSE.
Barry holds two Bachelor of Arts degrees from Indiana University and a Master of Science in Mediation, Arbitration, and Dispute Resolution from Sullivan University.
Pamela Williamson
Pam Williamson serves as the Assistant Director of the Southeast ADA Center, a project of the Burton Blatt Institute at Syracuse University. The Southeast ADA Center is a member of the ADA National Network and is funded by the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research, a Center within the Administration for Community Living located in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Ms. Williamson has expertise on the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), supported employment, including disability as part of diversity in the workplace, building effective grassroots networks, special education services, and aging populations.
Ms. Williamson contributed to the development and implementation of four online courses: Foundations of the Americans with Disabilities, Act, ADA Basic Building Blocks, At Your Service: Welcoming Customers with Disabilities, and the ADA Title II Tutorial. She also co-authored the curricula, Serving Customers with Disabilities in Air Travel and the ADA and Self-Advocacy for Youth – Train-the-Trainer Curriculum: An Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Roadmap, and the publication, The ADA and Face Mask Policies.
Ms. Williamson is a person with a psychiatric and neurological disability. She has a Bachelor of Science degree in Therapeutic Recreation from Georgia Southern University in Statesboro, Georgia.
Janice Baldon-Gutter
Janice Baldon-Gutter, MS-HRE, MBA, SHRM-CP, HCRI-PHR, has joined the Burton Blatt Institute (BBI) at Syracuse University as the Program Coordinator – outreach to underserved communities of the Southeast ADA Center.
Ms. Baldon-Gutter has over 25 years’ experience in human resources and 18 years teaching in higher education. She has certifications from: The Society for Human Resource Management – Certified Professional (SHRM-CP); and Professional in Human Resources (PHR) – Human Resources Certification Institute (HRCI).
Ms. Baldon-Gutter has a Master of Science in Human Resource Education from the University of Louisville, Master in Business Administration (MBA) from Bellarmine University and a Certificate in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) from the University of South Florida.
Prior to joining the Burton Blatt Institute, Ms. Baldon-Gutter was a Human Resource Generalist for DuPont Chemical Company. She taught for 18 years at the University of Louisville School of Business (Economics) and currently teaches online (16 years) for Purdue University Global. She is also the author of “Caregiving A Daughter’s Story” and “The Triangle of Discrimination – Physical, Age and Disability.”
Ms. Baldon-Gutter is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. – part of the National Pan Hellenic Council (Divine 9) and the Louisville Society for Human Resource Management. She is currently learning American Sign Language (ASL) and beginning Spanish.
Janice Baldon-Gutter Joins the Burton Blatt Institute as the Senior Adviser on Multicultural Outreach at the Southeast ADA Center
Multicultural Outreach at the Southeast ADA Center
Janice Baldon-Gutter, MS-HRE, MBA, SHRM-CP, HCRI-PHR, has joined the Burton Blatt Institute (BBI) at Syracuse University as the Program Coordinator – Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion of the Southeast ADA Center.
Ms. Baldon-Gutter has over 25 years’ experience in human resources and 18 years teaching in higher education. She has certifications from: The Society for Human Resource Management – Certified Professional (SHRM-CP); and Professional in Human Resources (PHR) – Human Resources Certification Institute (HRCI). Continue Reading
New Episode Disability Rights Today! Karantsalis v. City of Miami Springs, Florida
Case Summary
The case of Karantsalis v. City of Miami Springs raises many questions about statutes of limitations, progressive disability, and advocacy. In 2008, Theodore Karantsalis, sued the city of Miami Springs, Florida, alleging the city was in violation of Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 because its facilities and infrastructure were inaccessible to him due to his multiple sclerosis. Later, he withdrew his lawsuit, believing he lacked constitutional standing because his symptoms at the time did not substantially limit his mobility. By 2019, Mr. Karantsalis’ multiple sclerosis had progressed and he required a wheelchair for mobility. He refiled his suit alleging the city and the city’s facilities, programs, and services were now inaccessible to him. The district court dismissed his suit, finding that Karantsalis was “barred by the four-year statute of limitations,” which was triggered before or during the 2008 suit when he was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. The district court decision was reversed by the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, noting that Karantsalis did not have to sue until his disability resulted in a loss of mobility. Continue Reading
New Episode ADA Live! Show Them How Smart You Are: Self-Advocacy, Parenting, and Autism
Episode 100:Show Them How Smart You Are: Self-Advocacy, Parenting, and Autism
On this episode of ADA Live!
Join us for episode 100 of ADALive! when our guests will be Clarise Shelby-Coleman and her son Chase Coleman who have championed the importance of self-advocacy through a non-profit they have begun, called ‘Show Them How Smart You Are”.
Of all the skills we can learn, being able to advocate for ourselves could very well be the most important. Knowing who we are, what we need, and how to share that information with others is important for all of us, but especially for people with disabilities who are often denied choice in their lives or opportunities to make personal decisions. It is vital that people with disabilities have the opportunity to learn self-advocacy skills and become aware of how to ask for an accommodation in the workplace, or the post-secondary classroom, or to make decisions about lifestyles, living arrangements, or everyday choices.
Disability Rights Today New Episode! Upcoming Supreme Court Term Critical Cases that Could Impact the Disability Community
Speakers
BBI Receives $6.2 Million Award for Southeast ADA Center to Advance Understanding of Disability Rights, Responsibilities
For the third time in 15 years, the Burton Blatt Institute (BBI) has been awarded a five-year, $6.2 million grant to advance and support understanding of rights and responsibilities under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) through its Southeast ADA Center.
The funding comes from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Administration on Community Living (ACL), National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR). Continue Reading
Southeast ADA Center Announces Launch of Disability Rights Today Podcast Series in celebration of the ADA 31st Anniversary
The Southeast ADA Center, a project of the Burton Blatt Institute at Syracuse University, is pleased to announce the launch of a new podcast series, Disability Rights Today –your source for in depth discussion about important court cases that shape the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). In celebration of the 31st ADA anniversary, please join us on July 26 for our next episode featuring the recently decided court case – Crawford v. Hinds County Board of Supervisors, (5th Circuit Court of Appeals, 2021). Topics include jury duty and courthouse access. Our guests will be the plaintiff, Dr. Scott Crawford and his lead counsel, Andrew Bizer, with the law firm Bizer & Dereus, New Orleans, LA. Continue Reading