Theme: "The Right of People with Disabilities to Live in a World of Pandemics, Political Polarization, and Natural Disasters”
Learn more about our 2022 presenters and facilitators.
Thursday, March 24, 2022
11:00–11:15 AM: Welcome, Introductions, and Opening Remarks
Mark Riccobono, President, National Federation of the Blind
11:20 AM–12:50 PM: Accessing the Fundamental Right to Vote
Facilitators:
- Brian Dimmick, Senior Staff Attorney, Disability Rights Program, American Civil Liberties Union;
- Lia Sifuentes Davis, Senior Litigation Attorney, Disability Rights Texas;
- Jennifer Holmes, Assistant Counsel, LDF;
- Julia Longoria, Staff Attorney, Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund
- Shira Wakschlag, Senior Director, Legal Advocacy & General Counsel, The Arc of the United States
12:55–2:10 PM: Lunch Keynote Speaker
Ronza Othman, Director, EEO Compliance, US Department of Health and Human Services
2:20–3:50 PM: Workshops
1. Protecting the Rights of Parents with Disabilities in Massachusetts – A Conversation with US Department of Justice Attorneys and Coalition Advocates
Facilitators:
- Adam Lewis, Trial Attorney, Disability Rights Section, Civil Rights Division, US Department of Justice (DOJ);
- Cheryl Rost, Trial Attorney, Disability Rights Section, Civil Rights Division, DOJ;
- Katherine S. Nemens, Supervising Attorney, Mental Health Legal Advisors Committee;
- Jeannie M. Rhinehart, Attorney-In-Charge, Children and Family Law Division, The Committee for Public Counsel Services;
- Megan Schuller, Trial Attorney, Disability Rights Section, Civil Rights Division, DOJ
2. Restorative Justice: Building Relationships in Schools and the Juvenile Justice System
Facilitators:
- Darren Aitchison, Director of Training and Support, Restorative Justice Alliance International;
- John A. Inglish, Program Director, Conflict and Dispute Resolution Master’s Program, University of Oregon Knight Law Center;
- Seema Gajwani, Special Counsel, Restorative Justice Section, Office of the Attorney General for the District of Columbia;
- Kevin Gilbert, Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, Howard County Public School System
3. Long COVID–the Challenge of Managing Claims for a Condition with Limited Scientific Data
Facilitators:
- Morissa S. Fregeau, Senior Associate Counsel, Aflac, Inc.;
- Marvalee Harris, Clinical Director, Premier Life, Absence and Disability, Aflac, Inc.;
- Corey Welch, LTD Product and Appeals Director, Aflac, Inc.
4. Litigation Strategies and Techniques in Olmstead Actions
Facilitators:
- Elizabeth D. Edwards, Senior Attorney, National Health Law Program;
- M. Geron Gadd, Senior Attorney, National Health Law Program
5. Disabled Attorney Pipeline: The Coelho Law Fellowship from Creation to Pandemic Challenges and Opportunities
Facilitators:
- Katherine Perez, Director, Visiting Professor, The Coelho Center for Disability Law, Policy and Innovation (Coelho Center), Loyola Law School;
- Angelica Vega, Coelho Law Fellow, Coelho Center, Loyola Law School;
- Michael Waterstone, Dean, Loyola Law School;
- Matthew Yanez, Law Student; Syracuse University College of Law
6. Community-Based Behavioral Health Services for Native American Children: Challenges and Opportunities
Facilitators:
- Deena Fox, Deputy Chief, Disability Practice Group, Special Litigation Section, Civil Rights Division, DOJ;
- Patrick Holkins, Trial Attorney, Disability Practice Group, Special Litigation Section, Civil Rights Division, DOJ;
- John VanDenBerg, Founding Partner and Former President, Vroon VDB, LLC;
- Amy Elizabeth West, Clinical Child Psychologist and Professor of Clinical Pediatrics, Psychology, and Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, University of Southern California, Keck School of Medicine;
- Catherine Yoon, Trial Attorney, Disability Practice Group, Special Litigation Section, Civil Rights Division, DOJ
4:00–5:30 PM: Centering DisCrit and Disability Justice into the Disability Rights Framework
Presenters:
- Natalie M. Chin, Associate Professor of Law, City University of New York School of Law; Co-Director, Disability and Aging Justice Clinic;
- Jamelia N. Morgan, Assistant Professor of Law, University of California, Irvine, School of Law;
- Robyn M. Powell, Bruce R. Jacob Visiting Assistant Professor, Stetson University College of Law
Friday, March 25, 2022
11:00 AM–12:30 PM: Workshops
1. Policy and Litigation Strategies for Pandemic Challenges
Facilitators:
- Zainab Alkebsi, Policy Counsel, National Association of the Deaf (NAD);
- Ana Bitencourt, Legal Intake Director and Litigator, NAD;
- Marc Charmatz, Senior Attorney, NAD Law and Advocacy Center;
- Howard Rosenblum, Chief Executive Officer, NAD;
- Brittany Shrader, Staff Attorney, NAD;
- Leah Wiederhorn, Staff Attorney, NAD Law and Advocacy Center
2. The ADA’s Integration Mandate: A Year in Review from the US Department of Justice
Facilitators:
- James Fletcher, Trial Attorney, Disability Rights Section, Civil Rights Division, DOJ;
- Jillian Lenson, Trial Attorney, Disability Rights Section, Civil Rights Division, DOJ
3. Disabled in Court: Bringing a Disability Framework to Technology Adoption in the Civil Legal System
Facilitators:
- Qudsiya Naqui, Officer, Civil Legal System Modernization Initiative, The Pew Charitable Trusts;
- Darcy White, Senior Officer, Civil Legal System Modernization Initiative, The Pew Charitable Trusts
4. Change Begins at Home: Engaging Voters with Disabilities
Facilitators:
- Christina Asbee, Program Director, P&A for Voting Access, Disability Rights New York;
- Erin Haire, Voting Rights Specialist, Voting and Outreach, Disability Rights South Carolina
5. Accessible Technology under the ADA and the Role of the US Department of Justice
Facilitators:
- Christine Kim, Trial Attorney, Disability Rights Section, Civil Rights Division, DOJ;
- Elizabeth Johnson, Senior Trial Attorney, Disability Rights Section, Civil Rights Division, DOJ
12:30 – 1:30 PM: Lunch Break
1:30–3:00 PM: Access to Nondiscriminatory and Equitable Healthcare for People with Disabilities and the Continued Lessons of the COVID-19 Pandemic
Presenters:
- Amy Nicholas, Senior Attorney Advisor, National Council on Disability;
- R. Larkin Taylor-Parker, Staff Attorney, Disability Rights, North Carolina;
- Amged M. Soliman, Senior Attorney Advisor, National Council on Disability;
- Ana Torres-Davis, Senior Attorney Advisor, National Council on Disability
3:15–4:45 PM: Workshops
1. Fraihat v. ICE: Litigation Lessons Learned from the Community, Clients, and Other Advocates
Facilitators:
- Rosa Lee Bichell, Staff Attorney, Disability Rights Advocates;
- Chloe Holzman, Staff Attorney, Disability Rights Advocates;
- Elizabeth Jordan, Staff Attorney, Disability Rights Advocates
2. Essential Legal and Practical Knowledge for Handling Disputes for Persons Living with LGBTQIA+ Identities, Persons Living with a Disability, and Persons Living at Their Intersections
Facilitators:
- M. Geron Gadds, Senior Attorney, AARP Foundation Litigation;
- Shelly L. Skeen, Senior Staff Attorney, Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund, Inc.
3. Federal Laws that Protect the Voting Rights of Persons with Disabilities
Facilitators:
- Richard Dellheim, Deputy Chief, Voting Section, Civil Rights Division, DOJ;
- Elizabeth Johnson, Senior Trial Attorney, Disability Rights Section, Civil Rights Division, DOJ
4. HUD’s Use of the Administrative Law Process to Enforce Disability Rights in Public and Assisted Housing
Facilitator:
- Shira Gordon, Trial Attorney, Fair Housing Compliance Division, Office of General Counsel
5. ADA Accommodations for High-Stakes Testing
Facilitator:
- Steve Gordon, Assistant United States Attorney, US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia
6. Remote Accommodations in Work and Post-Secondary Education
Facilitators:
- Mary Jenae Goodwin-Oquendo, Attorney, Jo Anne Simon, P.C., Adjunct Professor, Fordham University School of Law;
- Arlene S. Kanter, Professor of Law, Syracuse University College of Law
5:00–6:30 PM: A Broader Role for the ADA in a Post-Pandemic World
Presenters:
- Shirley Lin, Assistant Professor of Law, Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace;
- Pilar Gonzalez Morales, Director of the Accessibility Project, Civil Rights Education and Enforcement Center;
- Prianka Nair, Assistant Professor of Clinical Law, Co-Director, Disability and Civil Rights Clinic, Brooklyn Law School
- Britany Wilson, Associate Professor of Law, Director, Civil Rights and Disability Justice Clinic, New York Law School
6:30 PM: Closing Remarks
Thank you for your participation.
More Information
- Register now. Deadline is March 17, 2022.
- Review the bios of our 2022 presenters and facilitators.