Episodes

Joyce is so excited to start 2021 with a champion of competitive employment for Americans with disabilities. David Holmberg, president and CEO of Highmark Health will be her guest. Mr. Holmberg launched an initiative in 2020 to hire 30 people with disabilities from Bender Consulting Services to honor the 30th anniversary of the signing of the ADA, called the Highmark 30/30. Even during the pandemic, Highmark was able to achieve the goal becoming a national example. During the show, David will ta...

Joyce welcomes back two disability leaders, Maria Town, president and CEO of American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD) and Kelly Buckland, executive director of the National Council on Independent Living to the show. The guests will discuss issues, accomplishments, and trends in the community to keep Joyce's listeners apprised of what is happening on a national basis in the area of disability. They will reflect on the past COVID-19 year of 2020 and what to look forward to in 2021.

Joyce welcomes back, Charlie LaVallee, CEO of Variety the Children’s Charity to the show. Variety – the Children’s Charity is a non-profit organization that strives to enable children with disabilities to live life to the fullest with a focus on mobility, communication, and social interaction / inclusion throughout 71 counties in PA and WV. They will discuss the programs and services of this non-profit organization, and the importance of giving to this cause during the holiday season.

Joyce welcomes Judith Heumann, internationally recognized leader in the disability rights independent living movement, back to the show. Judy has worked with a wide-range of activist organizations (including the Berkeley Center for Independent Living and the American Association of People with Disabilities), NGOs, and governments since the 1970s and has contributed greatly to the development of human rights legislation and policy benefiting disabled people. Judy will discuss her new book, Being ...

Joyce welcomes Andy Imparato, executive director of Disability Rights CA ( DRC) to the show. Andy is a highly respected disability rights advocate known nationally and internationally. He served as the CEO of AAPD and CEO of AUCD and worked closely with Senator Harkin. Disability Rights of California is a federally funded legal services agency that serves Californians with all disabilities across the age spectrum. Andy will further explain the mission of the organization and issues that people w...

Joyce welcomes Samantha Evans, certification manager, for the International Association of Accessibility Professionals (IAAP); Christopher Lee, managing director, IAAP; and Jay Wyant, member of IAAP Global Leadership Council to the show. IAAP’s mission is to define, promote and improve the accessibility profession globally through certification, education and networking in order to enable the creation of accessible products, content and services. The guests will discuss the importance of IAAP’s ...

Joyce welcomes Peggy Beem Jelley is the president & CEO of the Epilepsy Association of Western and Central PA. to the show. With November as National Epilepsy Awareness Month, Ms. Beem Jelley will talk about the programs and services of the organization to bring greater awareness to epilepsy and how to live with the condition.

Joyce welcomes Mick Malec, president, Highmark Health Solutions and Enterprise Technology Officer, Highmark Health to the show. Mr. Malec will discuss his commitment as well as the organization’s commitment to the employment of people with disabilities.

Joyce welcomes Shawn Harris, U.S. veteran employment specialist with the Wounded Warrior Project (WWP) to the show. The WWP is a charity and veterans service organization that offers a variety of programs, services and events for wounded veterans of the military actions following September 11, 2001. It operates as a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization. Mr. Harris will discuss applying 10+ years of recruiting and recruiter management experience to provide resume writing, interview preparation, and c...

Joyce welcomes back Peri Jude Radecic, CEO of Disability Rights PA. The organization protects and advocates for the rights of people with disabilities so that they may live the lives they choose, free from abuse, neglect, discrimination, and segregation. Voters will have the chance to call in and share any problems they may have faced while voting in the 2020 election.

Joyce welcomes the Honorable Tony Coelho, author of the American with Disabilities Act, and Ted Jackson, a disability and LGBTQ+ advocate who currently serves as the DNC’s senior advisor for Accessibility and Disability Engagement. They will be discussing the importance of the disability vote in 2020, and voter accessibility.

Joyce welcomes Wells Fargo’s Regina Heyward, senior vice president and head of supplier diversity and Kathy Martinez, senior vice president, head of disability and accessibility strategy to the show. Founded in 1852 and headquartered in San Francisco, Wells Fargo provides banking, investment and mortgage products and services, as well as consumer and commercial finance, through 7,200 locations, more than 13,000 ATMs, the internet (wellsfargo.com) and mobile banking, and has offices in 31 countri...

Joyce welcomes Priscilla Koranteng, vice president global talent and chief diversity officer at Kellogg. Ms. Koranteng will discuss her role in the organization, as well as its commitment to employ people with disabilities throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. Also discussed will be the changes that have taken place at the company due to COVID-19.

Joyce welcomes Cindy Hundorfean, president and CEO of Allegheny Health Network (AHN) to the show. Ms. Hundorfean will discuss her role as president and CEO of this health organization, as well as its commitment to continue to employ people with disabilities throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. Also discussed will be the changes that have taken place in the practice of healthcare and business at AHN due to COVID-19.

Joyce welcomes back Dr. Sharrelle Barber, ScD, MPH to the show. Dr. Barber is the national advisor and coordinator for the Poor People’s Campaign COVID-19 Health Justice Advisory Committee, comprised of a group of public health experts from Harvard (FXB Center for Health and Human Rights), UCLA (Center for the Study of Racism, Social Justice, and Health), and other academic institutions across the country. She serves on this advisory committee with her father, Rev. Dr. William Barber. Discussed ...

Joyce welcomes Makito Kamiya, CEO and founder of Associa, which provides social skills training at Associa Social University for people with cognitive disabilities, so they are more readily employable and Takanori Sai, Assistant to the Chairperson, DPI International to the show. Mr. Sai has overseen Japan’s dealing with the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), anti-discrimination law and disability inclusion in the workplace and education. Aside from his current job, he ...

Joyce welcomes Madonna Crosthwaite Long, CEO Eco Elite Group/founder of 360 ACCESS and Kelly Buckland, executive director of the National Council on Independent Living (NCIL) to the show. Both guests will discuss how important it is to encourage voting participation for the upcoming election for those individuals in the disability community.

Joyce welcomes Chris Ann Phillips, military affairs liaison and Mike Clark, business analytics consultant, for the Advanced Data & Analytics team in Internal Audit, for PNC Bank to the show. Both guests will be discussing the support that PNC gives to the Guardian Angels Medical Service Dogs, Inc. and its Community Mutt Strutt fundraiser. Community partners and foundations join to fund the training of medical service dogs for veterans struggling with PTSD Traumatic Brain Injury, and other combat...

Joyce welcomes Judy Heumann, author and disability rights leader to the show. Judy is an American disability rights activist. She is recognized internationally as a leader in the disability community. Her memoir, Being Heumann: An Unrepentant Memoir of a Disability Rights Activist,” published by Beacon Press and audio recorded by Ali Stroker, available on IndieBound, Barnes&Noble, and Amazon. Heumann is a lifelong civil rights advocate for people with disabilities. Through her work at the World ...

Joyce welcomes Sara Oliver-Carter, Duquesne Light Company’s (DLC) first chief diversity officer to the show. Ms. Oliver-Carter is responsible for creating and advancing DLC’s diversity and inclusion (D&I) strategy and associated initiatives. She will discuss how the company is addressing the circumstances surrounding COVID-19 and the needs of its workforce with disabilities.

Joyce welcomes Danielle Filip MBA, NIC-Advanced, vice of operations, Sign Language Interpreting Professionals (SLIP) and Emmai Alaquiva, Emmy-winning writer, producer and director to the show. . Danielle and Emmai will discuss “Unspeakable” a one-minute video public service announcement charged with bringing awareness to the voices of the deaf community and their support for the Black Lives Matter movement. Danielle (who served as co-producer and script consultant on the project) and Emmai will ...

Joyce welcomes Michele Erwin, president and founder of All Wheels Up, Inc. and Kelly Buckland, executive director of the National Council on Independent Living (NCIL) to the show. All Wheels Up, Inc. is currently the only organization in the world crash testing wheelchair tie downs and wheelchairs for commercial flight. Ms. Erwin will discuss the organization’s progress in this area and Mr. Buckland will share NCIL’s mission and support of the need for accessible air travel.

Joyce welcomes Elaine Katz, senior vice president of Grants & Communications at Kessler Foundation to the show. Kessler Foundation is a nonprofit organization in the field of disability, and a global leader in rehabilitation research that seeks to improve cognition, mobility, and long-term outcomes - including employment - for people with neurological disabilities caused by diseases and injuries of the brain and spinal cord. Ms. Katz will discuss the foundation's work in disability employment an...

Joyce welcomes The Honorable, Tony Coelho to the show. The former congressman from CA is an author of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). He will reflect on the significance of the 30th Anniversary of this landmark legislation and share with us the history behind making it the law of the land.