Episodes

Joining Joyce is Marsha Blanco, President and CEO of Achieva (achieva.info). Tune in as they discuss the programs and services provided by Achieva to people with disabilities. Achieva is a non-profit organization, founded in 1951 as ARC Allegheny, and supports over 6,000 children and adults with disabilities in Pennsylvania through advocacy, community services, education, and family supports. Achieva is committed to excellence in lifelong services for people with disabilities and families.

Joining Joyce is Cinda Hughes, Legislative Associate with the National Congress of American Indians (http://www.ncai.org) in Washington, D.C. An enrolled member of the Kiowa Tribe, Ms. Hughes was Miss Wheelchair America 2004, which is a position of national public advocacy on behalf of people with disabilities. She was also a delegate in the 2000 Democratic National Convention. Tune in as Joyce and Cinda discuss disabilities in the Native American community.

IDAR Sloan Dart joins Joyce to talk about her late father, Justin Dart Jr. This episode is dedicated to honoring the life and work of her father, the late, disability rights leader Justin Dart Jr.. The day after IDAR’s appearance, we celebrate the 16th anniversary of the landmark Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) legislation signed into law by President George H.W. Bush on July 26, 1990. Best known as the father of the ADA, Justin Dart Jr. is often referred to as the Martin Luther King of th...

Joining Joyce is Christine M. Griffin, Commissioner of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC ). Tune in as they discuss employment of people with disabilities within the Federal government.

To celebrate the ADA’s 16th Anniversary, Andy Imparato, President and CEO of the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD), joins Joyce on “Disability Matters”. Mr. Imparato discusses how far people with disabilities have come since the Americans with Disabilities Act was signed into law on July 26, 1990, by President George H.W. Bush.

John Lancaster, Executive Director of the National Council on Independent Living (NCIL), makes his third appearance with Joyce Bender on “Disability Matters”. Tune in as Joyce and John discuss the impact that budget cuts in Washington, DC will have on programs and services effecting people with disabilities. Headquartered in Washington, DC, NCIL is a membership organization that advances the independent living philosophy and advocates for the human rights of, and services for, people with disabi...

Senator Carl Andrews, D-NY, joins Joyce to discuss his efforts to increase awareness within the state of New York to hire people with disabilities.

Joyce welcomes Steven G. Zylstra, President and CEO of the Pittsburgh Technology Council. Since 1983, the Pittsburgh Technology Council has been the principal point of connection for companies from four primary clusters of the technology industry that are represented by a critical mass of businesses in southwestern Pennsylvania including Information Technology, Biomedical, Advanced Manufacturing/Materials and Environmental Technology. The Council is the largest regional technology trade associat...

Congressman Steny Hoyer, of Maryland’s 5th congressional district and Democratic Whip in the U.S. House of Representatives joins Joyce. Congressman Hoyer is recognized by members on both sides of the aisle as an effective leader and committed consensus builder who knows how to get things done. He is also the recent recipient of the 2005 Tony Coelho Award.

Dr. Tapan Banerjee, Executive Director of the U.S. International Council on Disabilities (USICD) joins Joyce to discuss the mission of the USICD. USICD brings together many of the disability-oriented agencies, as well as associations, facilities and individual consumers in the country. Members include: government agencies, consumer associations, non-profit organizations, service providers, employers with exemplary employment policies, and individuals interested in furthering the full integration...

Joining Joyce is Dr. Mary Hines, President of Carlow University. In addition to Dr. Hines’ impressive academic leadership background, she has a very strong relationship to the community personally and professionally. Tune in as Joyce and Dr. Hines discuss the mission, vision and goals of Carlow University, a Catholic liberal arts university.

Joining Joyce are Senior Executives from companies that have received the Bush Administration’s New Freedom Initiative Award. Tune in as they discuss the purpose of the award and each company’s commitment to hiring people with disabilities. Guests include Ralph Baker, Vice President; Financial Management for Computer Science Corporation’s (CSC) Federal Sector; and Deborah Dagit, Executive Director of the Diversity & Work Environment department of Merck and Co.

Award–winning author, Edwin Black, joins Joyce to talk about his book “War Against the Weak”, which assembles the gripping story of America’s decades-long campaign to create a white, Nordic master race through a sham science called eugenics. Some 60,000 Americans, including those with disabilities, were forcibly sterilized in eugenic campaigns organized by American corporate philanthropic organizations. In 2003, Mr. Black received the International Human Rights Award from the World Affairs Counc...

Encouraging Angels is a music ministry designed to raise awareness to the plight of disabled children and their families, and specifically to encourage the church to assimilate them into the local body of believers. Joining Joyce is Stan Szymanski, Christian Recording Artist and Chief Executive Officer of Encouraging Angels and dad of Hannah Rose Szymanski who is living with 2 rare diseases affecting only one in 2 billion children. It is out of his personal experience and need to reach out to ot...

Jim Dickson, Vice President of Government Affairs for the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD) (http://www.aapd.com), joins Joyce Bender on “Disability Matters”. Tune in as Joyce and Jim discuss his role within the AAPD. The AAPD promotes the economic and political empowerment of all 56 million adults and children living with disabilities in the U.S., and to be a national voice for change in implementing the goals of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Al Condeluci, Chief Executive Officer of United Cerebral Palsy of Pittsburgh (UCP) joins Joyce to discuss the mission of United Cerebral Palsy of Pittsburgh, which services individuals with severe disabilities, a segment of the population that is particularly vulnerable to neglect and community isolation. Through Community Living and Support Services (CLASS), UCP of Pittsburgh services more than 200 individuals daily with all types of disabilities, including acquired brain injury retardation, sp...

The President and CEO of Leadership Pittsburgh Inc., Aradhna Dhanda, joins Joyce to discuss the mission of this organization. Leadership Pittsburgh Inc (LPI), a premier resource for leadership development in southwestern Pennsylvania, seeks to strengthen regional leadership through programs, partnerships, and connections. Over its twenty-year history, LPI Inc. has produced over 1,300 informed and engaged leaders working diligently to help our region maximize its potential.

Blind since birth, Kathy Martinez, Executive Director of the World Institute on Disability, is an internationally recognized disability rights leader specializing in employment, asset building, independent living, international development, diversity and gender issues. Currently, Kathy oversees Proyecto Visión, WID’s National Technical Assistance Center to increase employment opportunities for Latinos with disabilities in the U.S. Tune in as Kathy talks with Joyce about the mission of the WID.

Dr. Joseph Lagana, Founder and CEO of the Homeless Children’s Education Fund, a 501(c) 3 not-for-profit organization joins Joyce Bender. Tune in as they discuss the mission of the Homeless Children’s Education Fund, which is to serve as a voice for the homeless children of Allegheny County in the Pittsburgh, PA area, and to ensure that they are afforded equal access to the same educational opportunities and experiences as their peers.

Karen Wolk Feinstein, President of the Jewish Healthcare Foundation (JHF) of Pittsburgh joins Joyce. Tune in as they discuss the mission of the Jewish Healthcare Foundation, a regional foundation funding a broad range of activities to advance the health of the residents of Western PA.

Joyce’s guests are Veronika Ivanova and Jenan Mahmoud Barghhouthi, two foreign exchange students with disabilities at the University of Pittsburgh’s School of Health Rehabilitation Sciences Counseling Program. Tune in as they discuss their experiences as persons with disabilities and what they have learned here in the U

Tobias Forrest, a theater actor who uses a wheelchair due to a diving accident, will be the honored guest of Joyce Bender. After diving off of a waterfall into shallow water at the Grand Canyon, he broke his neck. Instantly, he was paralyzed and as he was drowning, knew that this was the end of his life. Fortunately, he was saved through the efforts of many strangers and has bounced back with a positive sense of humor. He has had parts in the TV shows “Malcolm in the Middle” and “Six Feet Under”...

Tom Tabor, Vice President and Chief Information Officer of the Information Services Group for Highmark, Inc. is Joyce’s guest. Tune in as they discuss the successful business partnership between Bender Consulting Services, Inc. and Highmark, Inc.

Rex A. Althoff, President of Federated Services Company - Technology and Chief Information Officer of FSC’s Business Information Services Division (BISD) is featured with Joyce Bender on “Disability Matters”. Discussed on the show is the successful business partnership between Bender Consulting Services, Inc. and Federated Investors, Inc.