ACCESS BOARD - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Director
- Manager of the U.S. Department of Transportation 's Disability Resource Center
Alison Levy most recently served as the Manager of the U.S. Department of Transportation's Disability Resource Center (DRC). The DRC is a centrally funded office that supports internal supervisors and employees in creating an accessible and inclusive workplace through recruitment, hiring, outreach, education, and reasonable accommodations.
Previously, Alison served at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), providing leadership over the recruitment, hiring, advancement, and retention of individuals with disabilities, including reasonable accommodations. She developed and implemented policies, procedures, and strategic plans, and facilitated programs through a diverse team of more than 50 contacts across USDA's 34 mission areas, agencies, and staff offices. Her efforts with a team of diversity and inclusion colleagues yielded USDA's six-level rise in the Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey to #2 for Large Federal Agencies in Diversity Support.
Alison was one of the founding leaders of the Federal Disability Workforce Consortium (FDWC), a volunteer, interagency organization that grew from 20 to more than 900 federal points of contact with monthly webinars, meetings, and collaborations with the Office of Personnel Management, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and the Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy.
As a person with disabilities, and with over 30 years of experience in the disability profession, Alison has worked toward improving workplace attitudes and accessibility, and in providing equal opportunity in the post-secondary, public, and private sectors. Alison earned her B.A. in Public Communication from The American University, and her Master's in Special Education from Johns Hopkins University. She is fluent in American Sign Language.
Job Titles:
- Executive Director
- Public Affairs Specialist
Amy Nieves serves as the Public Affairs Specialist in the Office of Executive Director at the Access Board. As a neurodivergent and disabled individual who is unilaterally deaf, Amy has built her career in the non-profit advocacy space as well as within local, state, and federal government by centering on accessibility and disability justice. She is a nationally recognized facilitator, keynote speaker, and community leader. Prior to her appointment to the Access Board, she was the Executive Director of the Mayor's Office for People with Disabilities for the city of Philadelphia. Additionally, Nieves is a Governor-appointed Council Member of the PA Developmental Disabilities Council and the PA Statewide Independent Council for the state of Pennsylvania. She completed her undergraduate degree at York College of PA and her Master's in Human Relations: Diversity, Equity, & Strategic Impact at the University of Oklahoma. She is currently pursuing a PhD in Organizational Leadership at Eastern University. Nieves has long advocated that access, equity, and opportunity are rights for all people.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Federal
- United States Postal Service
- Vice President of Facilities
Benjamin Kuo was named vice president of Facilities in October 2021. Kuo reports to the Chief Commerce and Business Solutions Officer and Executive Vice President and is responsible for all aspects of managing one of the largest civilian facility inventories in the U.S. He heads the department responsible for all Postal Service properties, covering more than 275 million square feet in more than 8,000 federally owned and approximately 23,000 leased facilities. He oversees the planning, leasing, purchase and sale, design and construction, repair and alteration and redevelopment of facilities that contain postal operations. Kuo also oversees the day-to-day operating and administrative support for Postal Service Headquarters facilities.
Kuo has more than 30 years of experience in engineering and facilities management. His experience includes the management of general construction, landscaping, maintenance, utilities, transportation, custodial activities, sustainability, and waste management. He has a record of success in planning and directing the delivery of services to large institutions as well as managing budgets and inventory worth more than one billion. Kuo has held management and executive positions at Toyota Motor Engineering and Manufacturing North America, Cornell University, and Georgetown University. He has a bachelor of science degree in chemical engineering, with a concentration in engineering and public policy.
Bruce Bailey (he/him) has lead responsibility for the Access Board website and with providing Technical Assistance on Section 508, especially as that regulation relates to websites, software, and hardware. Bruce supports Access Board members serving on Election Assistance Commission (EAC) boards and committees. Bruce also serves as the Access Board 508 Program Manager.
Bruce Bailey has worked for thirty years in the field of assistive technology, with the last ten years at the Access Board. Since 2001, Bruce has been an invited expert with the W3C WAI Accessibility Guidelines Working Group (AG WG). Prior to joining the Access Board, Bruce worked at U.S. Department of Education (ED) and, prior to that, with the State of Maryland, Division of Rehabilitation Services (MD DORS).
Bruce Bailey has a B.S. from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) and an M.Ed. from State University of New York at Albany (SUNYA). Bruce lives in Frederick, Maryland.
Job Titles:
- Assistant Secretary
- Member of the Federal
- Assistant Secretary for Transportation Policy / Department of Transportation
- Department of Transportation
Christopher Coes serves as the Assistant Secretary for Transportation Policy in the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Transportation Policy. Coes previously served as Vice President for Land Use and Development at Smart Growth America (SGA), Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institute, Professor at George Washington University, and Deputy Director and Senior Advisor for the Transportation for America campaign.
Chris Kuczynski works with the Office of Technical and Information Services and other agency attorneys to develop guidelines concerning access to facilities, transportation, and information and communication technology for people with disabilities; reviews internal policies for legal sufficiency; handles ethics, privacy, and Freedom of Information Act matters; and oversees the agency's Architectural Barriers Act compliance program. Kuczynski was previously Assistant Legal Counsel at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, overseeing development of regulations and guidance interpreting Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and other laws prohibiting employment discrimination. Before that, as a trial attorney for the Department of Justice, Kuczynski helped to enforce the ADA's requirements concerning access to state and local government facilities and places of public accommodation. Kuczynski also worked as a litigation associate at a major Philadelphia law firm. Kuczynski earned a B.A. in English from Villanova University, a J.D. from Temple Law School, and an LL.M. from Yale University.
Job Titles:
- Events and Communication Specialist
David O'Keefe serves as the Events and Communication Specialist in the Office of Executive Director at the Access Board. His work involves planning and coordinating logistics for virtual and in-person public events, as well as managing the Board's social media content and engagement. He previously served as a Team Leader for FEMA Corps (AmeriCorps NCCC) and as the Cultural Affairs Assistant for the State University of New York (SUNY) at Orange County Community College. O'Keefe holds an M.A. in Technical and Professional Writing from Middle Georgia State University and a B.A. in Digital Media Production from SUNY New Paltz.
Job Titles:
- Training Coordinator
- Specialist
Debra Martins is the Training Coordinator and an Accessibility Specialist at the Access Board. Martins began her role as an Accessibility Specialist, providing technical assistance and training on design standards for accessible buildings, facilities, and public right-of-way. In 2024, Martins took on the additional role and responsibilities of Training Coordinator to oversee the agency's training program where she fields training requests, coordinates educational sessions and webinars, and assigns Board staff for those presentations.
Martins brings occupational therapy experience as a clinician, educator, and business owner. She brings a diverse skill set consulting on projects within healthcare, public health, education, employment, housing, and mobility/transportation industries with a focus on accessibility and/or Universal Design. She earned a Master's in Education degree from Bowling Green State University, a graduate certificate in assistive technology from Johns Hopkins University, and a Bachelor of Science degree in occupational therapy from Elizabethtown College. Martins has been named a Fellow to the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA), has earned the AOTA Specialty Certification in Environmental Modifications, is a Rehabilitation Engineering and Assistive Technology Society of North America certified Assistive Technology Professional, a National Association of Home Builders Certified Aging-in-Place Specialist, and International WELL Building Institute WELL Accredited Professional.
Job Titles:
- Designer
- Member of the Public
- They / Them
Dr. Aimi Hamraie (they/them) is a disabled designer and scholar, with expertise in architectural and digital media accessibility. They are the author of Building Access: Universal Design and the Politics of Disability (University of Minnesota Press, 2017), a history of the Universal Design movement and accessibility standards in the United States. Hamraie has also published numerous other articles on the topics of disability access, architecture, and urbanism in academic journals. They are quoted in the New York Times, the Chronicle of Higher Education, National Public Radio, the History Channel, and other news sources. Hamraie works as Associate Professor of Medicine, Health, & Society and American Studies at Vanderbilt University, where they train students in the pre-medicine and pre-health professions in the field of disability studies. Hamraie also directs the Critical Design Lab, a collaborative of disabled designers and researchers located in three countries. The Critical Design Lab was recognized with a United States Artists Fellowship in Media for 2022.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Federal
- Department of Veterans Affairs
- Executive Director for the Office of Construction
- Executive Director, Office of Construction and Facilities Management / Department of Veterans Affairs
Dr. Brennan is Executive Director for the Office of Construction and Facilities Management (CFM) at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). CFM plans, designs, constructs, and leases facilities for the Veterans Health Administration, our nation's largest integrated health care system, the Veterans Benefits Administration, and the National Cemetery Administration. He is responsible for planning, design, and construction of major construction projects greater than $20 million, and acquires real property for VA elements through the purchase of land and buildings, as well as long-term lease acquisitions. CFM executes construction and real property programs to provide Veterans with high quality buildings, additions, large scale renovations, and structural enhancements. Dr. Brennan also manages the crucial areas of facility sustainability, seismic corrections, physical security, and historic preservation of VA's facilities. Replacement plant value of VA facilities exceeds $87 billion, with new construction and major improvements approaching $2 billion per year.
Dr. Brennan is a retired Colonel, U.S. Army Medical Service Corps serving in multiple senior health facility planning, design and construction positions over his 27-year active duty career. Between 2013 and 2019 he consolidated leadership of all Army health facility capital investment and operations and maintenance programs by serving simultaneously as Commander, U.S. Army Health Facility Planning Agency; Director of Facilities - G9, U.S. Army Medical Command; and as the Army Surgeon General's Health Facility Planning Consultant. He is a Veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom with awards and decorations including the Legion of Merit (3 awards), Bronze Star, Combat Action Badge, Parachutist Badge, Expert Field Medical Badge, Army Staff Badge, and Order of Military Medical Merit among numerous others. Dr. Brennan is a native of Kirkland, Illinois. He holds Doctor of Philosophy in Architecture, Master of Science in Civil Engineering, and Master of Architecture degrees from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign; a Master of Strategic Studies from the U.S. Army War College in Carlisle, PA; and a Bachelor of Architecture from the University of Notre Dame. Dr. Brennan is a licensed architect in the State of Illinois, in the District of Columbia and is certified by the National Council on Architecture Registration Boards (NCARB). He is affiliated with the American Institute of Architects (AIA), American Society for Healthcare Engineering (ASHE), the Society of American Military Engineers (SAME), Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), and the American Legion.
Dru Gordon serves as the Chief of Staff at the Access Board. She serves as the operational and strategic advisor to the Access Board Chair and the Executive Director and participates in all aspects of cross functional special projects, studies, and operational programs with an agency-wide impact. She provides advice and guidance on sensitive issues essential to the Agency's strategic plan and mission. Gordon has over 30 years of experience as a public servant and has previously worked at the Department of Justice, the Department of Agriculture, and the Department of Homeland Security in key leadership roles.
Edson Carneiro serves as IT Specialist in the Office of Information Technology at the Access Board.
Elver Ariza-Silva is active in advocacy efforts for all people with disabilities, with a focus on those who are Latino in the District of Columbia. Originally from the Republic of Colombia, Ariza-Silva is a polio survivor and a professional with more than 20 years combined experience in human and social services and in the food industry. Ariza-Silva has served as a research assistant for a Johns Hopkins University study that focused on preventing child trafficking from Latin America and has held leadership roles in the food industry. Ariza-Silva was appointed by Mayor Vincent C. Gray and Mayor Muriel Bowser to serve as Chairman on the Statewide Independent Living Council. Ariza-Silva served as Vice-chair of the Accessibility Advisory Committee Board of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, advising Metro on ways to improve Metro Rail, Metro Bus, and Metro Access.
Job Titles:
- Administrative Staff Specialist
- Contracting Officer Representative and Board Members
Gainna Ellis serves as a Contracting Officer Representative and Board Members Liaison. Ellis' duties include coordinating travel, timekeeping, and managing contracts and procurement.
Job Titles:
- Assistant Secretary
- Member of the Federal
- Assistant Secretary, Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services / Department of Education
- Department of Education
Glenna Wright-Gallo is the assistant secretary in the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services at the United States Department of Education. In this capacity, she serves as advisor to the U.S. secretary of education on matters related to the education of children and youth with disabilities, as well as employment and community living for youth and adults with disabilities. The mission of her office is to improve early childhood, educational, and employment outcomes, and to raise expectations for all people with disabilities, their families, their communities, and the nation.
Wright-Gallo has more than 25 years of experience supporting students and adults with disabilities. She served as the assistant superintendent of special education in the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction in Washington from 2017-2022 and previously as the state director of special education for the Utah State Board of Education for seven years. In her state-level education leadership roles, Wright-Gallo provided expertise in the improvement planning, data analysis, and monitoring of public pre-K through 12th grade+ special education programs. Before her state-level education leadership roles, Wright-Gallo worked as a classroom teacher and administrator.
Wright-Gallo has a Bachelor of Science and a Master of Science degrees in special education; special education teacher and administrative licenses; endorsements as a program administrator, principal, and superintendent; and a Master of Business Administration.
Hannah Raissa Ibañez, Esq., is a Deputy Public Defender II at the Los Angeles County Public Defender's office; the first public defender agency in the United States. Prior to joining LACPD, she was a Senior Staff Attorney at Inner City Law Center in Skid Row, providing litigation defense to marginalized Angelenos seeking to either avoid or move out of homelessness. Before moving to California, she was an Assistant Public Defender for Florida's Sixth and Twelfth Judicial Districts, serving in both Misdemeanor and Felony divisions. She served on the board for the Red Tent Women's Initiative, a Florida non-profit focused on providing resources that assist incarcerated women with their transition back into society. She developed a pro-bono clinic between the Sixth Judicial Circuit Public Defender's office and her alma mater, Stetson Law school's Social Justice Advocacy Program, to provide support to Public Defenders and their clients, while giving young lawyers the opportunity to consider a career in social rights advocacy. She attended Simmons University in Boston, MA for her undergraduate education.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Public
- She / Her
With fifteen years of experience developing and demonstrating accessible technology in mobile, web and artificial intelligence, Heather Dowdy is passionate about connecting the dots across disability, race, tech, and faith. She currently leads Accessibility at Netflix, leveraging technology to connect people with disabilities to their next favorite story. Previously, Dowdy served in several accessibility leadership roles at Microsoft and Motorola Mobility, including being named Chair of the Accessibility Working Group of the Mobile & Wireless Forum As the oldest daughter of Deaf parents, Dowdy is fluent in American Sign Language (ASL). Dowdy has served as a Board Member of the World Institute on Disability (WID), deaf kids CODE, and Billion Strong. She loves using the design thinking process to create solutions that improve usability for everyone. Dowdy holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Job Titles:
- Director
- Financial Program Manager
India Thomas serves as Financial Program Manager in the Office of Administration. She administers and manages the full scope of fiscal services for the agency and serves as the lead agency official in the preparation of Office of Management and Budget and Congressional Budget Justifications.
Job Titles:
- Acting Chief Financial Officer
- Assistant Secretary
- Member of the Federal
- Principal
- Department of Commerce
Jeremy Pelter currently serves as the Acting Chief Financial Officer and Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Administration.
As the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Administration, Mr. Pelter is the principal deputy to the Chief Financial Officer and Assistant Secretary overseeing management and administrative service functions for the Department.
Prior to this role, Mr. Pelter served as the Deputy Under Secretary for Industry and Security, managing the daily operations of the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) and advising the Under Secretary of Industry and Security on a broad range of management and policy issues.
Mr. Pelter previously served at the Department-level as the Senior Advisor to the Deputy Secretary of Commerce, advising the Deputy Secretary on issues related to policy and program implementation. Mr. Pelter entered the career senior executive service as the Chief Financial Officer and Director of Administration for the Economics and Statistics Administration (ESA). Before the Department of Commerce, Mr. Pelter served at the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) in several financial and operational positions. Additionally, Mr. Pelter was an inaugural Fellow of the White House Leadership Development Program, supporting trade policy. Prior to his federal career, Mr. Pelter worked in the non-profit sector in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area.
Mr. Pelter earned his BA in Political Science from Indiana University and his MS in Management from the University of Maryland University College. He holds certificates in Public Leadership and Program Management from the Brookings Institution and American University, respectively.
Job Titles:
- Coordinator
- Technical Assistance Coordinator
Josh Schorr is the TA Coordinator and an Accessibility Specialist in the Office of Technical and Information Services at the Access Board. Schorr began working for the Access Board in 2010 as a contractor to create animations to help explain ADA Standards in 2010. After completing work on the animations, Schorr was hired directly by the Access Board to continue working on guidance documents. In 2019, Schorr began his role as an Accessibility Specialist, providing technical assistance, training on ADA and ABA design standards, and future rulemaking in addition to his work on the guides. In 2023, Schorr took on the role of Training Coordinator for a year before transitioning to the TA Coordinator position to oversee the agency's technical assistance and guidance programs. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Multimedia Design from the University of Oregon.
Job Titles:
- Transportation Systems Engineer
Juliet Shoultz joined the Access Board's Office of Technical and Information Services in 2017 as a Transportation Systems Engineer. She has fifteen years of experience in transportation planning and engineering for state government. Prior to working at the Access Board, she worked as the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Policy Engineer at the Illinois Department of Transportation, where she led development and implementation of the department's ADA transition plan, and served as the department's accessibility expert, providing technical assistance and reviewing plans for state projects. She previously served as a member of the Illinois Accessibility Code Revision Committee, which was tasked with revising the Illinois Accessibility Code. Shoultz has been an active participant as a member of a National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) panel and Transportation Research Board (TRB) standing committees.
Job Titles:
- Senior ICT Accessibility Specialist
Kathy Eng serves as a Senior ICT Accessibility Specialist with the Access Board. Eng provides technical assistance on Section 508 with a focus on conformance testing. Eng is co-lead of the ICT Testing Baseline Portfolio, co-facilitator of the W3C Accessibility Conformance Testing Task Force, and chair of the Best Practices subcommittee in the Accessibility Community of Practice (ACOP) of the Chief Information Officers' Council. Prior to joining the Access Board, Eng developed the Trusted Tester process and training program. Eng has worked in federal accessibility and accommodations since 1999 and has a Master's degree in Rehabilitation Engineering.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Federal
- Deputy Administrator / General Services Administration
- Deputy Administrator of the General Services Administrator
- General Services Administration / Vice - Chair
Katy Kale is the Deputy Administrator of the General Services Administrator under the Biden-Harris Administration.
In this capacity, she leads a staff of more than 11,200 GSA employees nationwide, overseeing more than 370 million square feet of property, approximately $75 billion in annual contracts, 4.9 million government credit and purchase cards, and 225,000 leased vehicles within GSA's fleet.
Prior to serving as the Deputy Administrator and Acting Administrator of GSA, Katy was President and Chief Operating Officer of Elevate. There she led growth strategy, operational process, financial planning, and performance management, and ensured all were aligned with the broader purpose of serving the nonprofit sector.
A public servant at heart, Katy was a senior leader in the Obama Administration, serving as Assistant to the President for Management and Administration, Director of White House Operations, and Chief of Staff of the US General Services Administration. She also served 10 years in the United States Senate working on operational and legislative issues for several senators.
Katy is a graduate of George Mason University.
Job Titles:
- Leader
- Member of the Public
KR Liu is a leader in the area of disability inclusion and LGBTQ rights. She has been on the forefront of issues blazing a trail towards inclusive design and marketing for almost 20 years. Diagnosed with severe hearing loss at the age of three, she's made it her life's work to be a strong advocate for disabled people. As the Head of Brand Accessibility at Google, Brand Studio she drives innovation of representation for diverse disabled audiences, a segment that historically has been overlooked. She successfully lobbied on Capitol Hill with Senator Warren's team and helped pass legislation called the Over-The-Counter Hearing Aid Act of 2017. She is on several boards such as the Consumer Technology Association Foundation, Deaf Kids Code, and the American Association for People with Disabilities. She is a nationally awarded advocate, with a strong reputation in inclusive design, brand marketing, policy, and inclusion.
Job Titles:
- Assistant
- Member of the Federal
- Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights / Department of Justice
- Department of Justice
Kristen Clarke is the Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights at the U.S. Department of Justice. In this role, she leads the Justice Department's broad federal civil rights enforcement efforts and works to uphold the civil and constitutional rights of all who live in America. Assistant Attorney General Clarke is a lifelong civil rights lawyer who has spent her entire career in public service.
Assistant Attorney General Clarke began her career as a trial attorney in the Civil Rights Division through the Department of Justice's Honors Program. In 2006, she joined the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, where she helped lead the organization's work in the areas of voting rights and election law across the country. Ms. Clarke worked on cases defending the constitutionality of the Voting Rights Act, presented oral argument to the D.C. District Court in Shelby County, Alabama v. Holder, and has provided testimony on federal and state voting rights legislation. In 2011, she was named the head of the Civil Rights Bureau for the New York State Attorney General's Office, where she led broad civil rights enforcement actions. Under her leadership, the Bureau secured landmark agreements with banks to address unlawful redlining, employers to address barriers to reentry for people with criminal backgrounds, police departments on reforms to policies and practices, major retailers on racial profiling of consumers, landlords on discriminatory housing policies, school districts concerning issues relating to the school-to-prison pipeline and more. In 2015, Ms. Clarke was named the president and executive director of the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, one of the nation's leading civil rights organizations founded at the request of John F. Kennedy. There, she led the organization's legal work in courts across the country addressing some of the nation's most complex racial justice and civil rights challenges.
Assistant Attorney General Clarke was born in Brooklyn, New York. After graduating from Choate Rosemary Hall, she received her A.B. from Harvard University and her J.D. from Columbia Law School.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Public
- Transportation Planner
Madeline Ruvolo is a transportation planner on the Accessible Services team at the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency. She specializes in the accessibility of active transportation and emerging mobility projects and programs. Previously, Ruvolo worked for the UCLA Institute of Transportation Studies, the Los Angeles Department of Transportation, and the Oakland Department of Transportation. Ruvolo has received many accolades for her work at the intersection of transportation and disability, including the prestigious Dwight David Eisenhower Transportation Fellowship and Myra L. Frank Memorial Graduate Scholarship. She holds a master's degree in Urban and Regional Planning from the Luskin School of Public Affairs at the University of California, Los Angeles and a Bachelor of Arts in American Studies from Scripps College, where she graduated summa cum laude. Ruvolo is from Silver Spring, Maryland and resides in Oakland, California.
Job Titles:
- Chief Information Officer
- Director of Office of Information Technology
Mannan Dasti serves as the Director of Office of Information Technology and the Chief Information Officer at the US Access Board. Mr. Dasti spearheads strategic IT initiatives and drives digital transformation across the organization. With over 25 years of experience in the technology sector, Mr. Dasti has a proven track record of leveraging innovative solutions to enhance operational efficiency and improve user experience. Prior to joining the US Access Board, Mannan held key leadership roles at National Institute of Mental Health, US Food and Drug Administration and other federal agencies, where he successfully implemented enterprise-wide systems and led cross-functional teams to achieve business objectives. Mr. Dasti attended Johns Hopkins University for the degree of Master of Science and is committed to fostering a culture of respect, open dialogue, collaboration, and continuous improvement within the IT department. Passionate about emerging technologies, Mannan actively participates in industry conferences and networks to stay ahead of trends, ensuring that the Access Board remains at the forefront of technological advancements.
Job Titles:
- Senior Compliance Specialist
Rose Marie S. Bunales serves as Executive Secretary in the Office of the Executive Director (OED) at the Access Board. Her major duties include executive correspondence, coordinating board meeting materials, maintaining board contacts, timekeeping, and official passports. Prior to joining OED, she served as Technical Unit Secretary and Reader/Clerk-Typist in the Office of Technical and Information Services at the Board. Her federal career began in 1985 as a clerk-typist at the Steam Distribution Complex, a field office under General Services Administration.
Sarah Presley is an Accessibility Specialist with the Access Board. Presley provides technical assistance and training on design standards for accessible buildings and facilities and accessible public rights-of-way. Before joining the Access Board, Presley served as a Reasonable Accommodations Coordinator at the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Presley previously worked at the D.C. Department on Disability Services as a Vocational Rehabilitation Specialist and at the U.S. Census Bureau as a Statistician. Presley also served in the Peace Corps in Morocco as an English instructor at a school for students who are blind. She holds a master's degree in Rehabilitation Counseling from George Washington University.
Job Titles:
- Contract Specialist / Records Officer
Job Titles:
- Human Resources Specialist
Job Titles:
- Member of the Federal
- Assistant Secretary of Labor for Disability Employment Policy / Department of Labor
- Department of Labor
Taryn Mackenzie Williams is the Assistant Secretary of Labor for Disability Employment Policy. In this position, she advises the Secretary of Labor on how the Department's policies and programs impact the employment of people with disabilities and leads the Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP), which works with employers and all levels of government to promote evidence-based policy that improves employment opportunities and outcomes for people with disabilities.
Previously, Williams was the managing director for the Poverty to Prosperity Program at American Progress, which works on progressive policies focused on a broad range of anti-poverty strategies. Before joining American Progress, she worked at ODEP on a variety of issues related to education, workforce policy, Social Security, Medicaid and civil rights. In her role as director of youth policy, Williams led agency efforts to coordinate education and employment policy in support of improved labor force outcomes for disabled youth. From 2014 through 2016, Williams served as ODEP's chief of staff. She also undertook detail assignments as associate director for public engagement and liaison to the disability community at the White House from 2014 through 2015 and as a policy adviser on the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions from 2012 through 2013.
Prior to joining the federal government, Williams worked as the research coordinator for leadership programs at the Institute for Educational Leadership and as the director of programs at the National Association of Urban Debate Leagues headquartered in Chicago. She holds a bachelor's degree in public policy from Brown University and a master's degree in education with a concentration in administration, planning, and social policy from Harvard University. She resides in Washington, DC.
Job Titles:
- Senior Compliance Specialist
Job Titles:
- Financial Program Manager
Job Titles:
- Support Service Specialist