The Future of Employment for People with Disabilities ARRT

The Advanced Rehabilitation Research and Training Program on the Future of Employment for People with Disabilities (ARRT FEPD)

Project Overview

The Advanced Rehabilitation Research and Training Program on the Future of Employment for People with Disabilities (ARRT FEPD) at the Burton Blatt Institute (BBI) at Syracuse University trains the next generation of highly qualified disability employment researchers. The program’s goal is to increase the number of researchers equipped to conduct rigorous, multidisciplinary research that improves employment policy, practice, and outcomes for people with disabilities.

Over three years, the program will recruit and train four postdoctoral fellows through a structured, twelve-month interdisciplinary curriculum grounded in active federally funded research, including the Disability Employment Policy RRTC and the Employer Disability Practices Center RRTC. Fellows gain hands-on experience with quasi-experimental causal inference models, experimental methods, qualitative approaches, mixed-methods integration, and secondary analysis of large administrative and survey datasets.

Applications for postdoctoral fellows are now open and will be reviewed on a rolling basis starting November 1, 2026.
Applications will be considered until position is filled.
Apply Now

Training Program

Each fellow completes four integrated didactic modules while embedded in ongoing research projects:

  • Disability Employment Policy and Legal Applications
  • Research Design and Scientific Methodology
  • Employer Practices and Workplace Experiences
  • Knowledge Translation, Scientific Writing, Grant Development 

Leadership and Mentors

Fitore Hyseni
Fitore Hyseni
PI, Director and Mentor
Peter Blanck
Peter Blanck
Co-PI and Mentor
John Cawley
John Cawley
Mentor
Emily Wiemers
Emily Wiemers
Mentor
Maria Zhu
Maria Zhu
Mentor
Chilukuri K. Mohan
Chilukuri K. Mohan
Mentor
Douglas L. Kruse
Douglas L. Kruse
Mentor
Lisa A. Schur
Lisa A. Schur
Mentor
Mason Ameri
Mason Ameri
Mentor
Ari Ne’emanr
Ari Ne’eman
Mentor
Purvi Sevak
Purvi Sevak
Mentor
Charles-Edouard Catherine
Charles-Edouard Catherine
Mentor

Contact Information

Principal Investigator and Project Director Fitore Hyseni
Email: fhyseni@syr.edu

Funding Agency

National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR).

Partners

Syracuse University Burton Blatt Institute. Syracuse University Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public AffairsDisability Employment Policy RRTC