Heumann Education advisory Council

Victor Calise is an internationally recognized diversity inclusion champion. As Director of Global Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in Walmart's Accessibility Center of Excellence, he spearheads disability inclusion and accessibility throughout all aspects of the company. Previously, Victor dedicated more than two decades to public service. His culminating role was as Commissioner of the New York City Mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities under three different Administrations (2012-2022). He currently serves on the Board of Trustees for the Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum.

An avid athlete, Victor was a member of the first U.S. national sled hockey team and represented the U.S. at the 1998 Paralympic Games in Japan.

Alanna Flax-Clark, a trained special educator, now works for the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee as its Athletes Services Education and Grants Specialist. A Team USA ParaEquestrian athlete, she has years of working experience across multiple industries.

Alanna worked closely with CPF developing Just Say Hi! 3.0’s stellar Lesson Plan Compendium; has co-led trainings on disability inclusion with school-age students; mentored newly injured and disabled athletes; consulted with TD Bank on disability inclusion; acted as an Athlete Speaker for The Challenged Athletes Foundation; and speaks at events for girls that aim to increase female athletic participation.

Nicole Homerin, M.Ed. (she/her) is the Director of CVI Education in The CVI Center at Perkins School for the Blind. Nicole formerly served as a special education teacher for students with a variety of disabilities, and as the Inclusion Communities Manager at Partners for Youth with Disabilities. She was named the 2023 Steve Bartlett Award recipient and was the recipient of the 2023 Trailblazer Award from Boston University Wheelock School of Education and Human Development. Both awards recognized her work in disability advocacy, leadership, and empowerment. Nicole holds a Master’s Degree in Special Education from Boston College and a Bachelor’s Degree in Early Childhood Education from Boston University.

Janet LaBreck was confirmed in 2013 by the U.S. Senate to serve as the Commissioner of Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) within the United States Department of Education, where she served for four years. In 2007, LaBreck was appointed Commissioner of the Massachusetts Commission for the Blind. (Janet became legally blind by the age of ten.) The Commission’s award-winning internship program is replicated throughout the country.

Janet is now the Founder and Executive Director of the nonprofit organization, Alliance for Inclusive Design and Experiences (AIDE); is the Co-Founder of Synergy Consulting Partners; has established Janet L. LaBreck Consulting LLC; holds an Honorary Doctorate; and is a board member for Positive Exposure.

Emily Ladau is a passionate disability rights activist, having authored Demystifying Disability: What to Know, What to Say, and How to be an Ally. NPR named it one of 2021’s best books, and it is a 2021 Booklist Editors’ Choice. Demystifying Disability is an actionable guide to become an informed ally to disabled people.

As a child, Emily appeared on Sesame Street, educating children about disability. She has a B.A. in English from Adelphi University where she is now a trustee. Emily received the Paul G. Hearne Emerging Leader Award (2018); the Disability Advocate of the Year Award (2022); and the Frieda Zames Advocacy Award (2022).

In 2024, Donna Meltzer took over as CEO of Brain Injury Services: empowering adults, teens, and children impacted by brain injury. Prior to this role, she was CEO for 11 years of the National Association of Councils on Developmental Disabilities, promoting independence, productivity, and integration of people with developmental disabilities. Earlier roles include Senior Director of Government Relations for the Epilepsy Foundation; Director of Legislative Affairs for the Association of University Centers on Disabilities; and working for the Honorable Tony Coelho (D-CA), “Father of the Americans with Disabilities Act.”

Donna currently serves on the National Advisory Board for the College of Director Support/Direct Course; RespectAbility’s Board; and the UnitedHealthCare’s National Advisory Board on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities.

Haley Moss, Esq. is an attorney, pop artist, author and advocate for people with disabilities. She is also an adjunct professor at Taylor University.

Haley’s books include: Middle School: The Stuff Nobody Tells You About (2010); A Freshman Survival Guide for College Students with Autism Spectrum Disorders (2014); and The Young Autistic Adult’s Independence Handbook (2021); and Great Minds Think Differently: Neurodiversity for Lawyers and Other Professionals (ABA Book Publishing, 2021).

In the legal industry, Haley is a consultant for disability inclusion, accessibility concerns, compliance, policy, and neurodiversity in the workplace, delivering tools and resources they can use to grow.

Dr. Pearson is Vice President for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at the University of Texas, Dallas. A Fellow of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) and the American Society for Engineering Education, she is recognized globally in higher education and engineering organizations.

Dr. Pearson is a Commissioner for The Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology; hosts a podcast, Engineering Change; is a musician; and has cerebral palsy. Her book, Making a Difference: How Being Your Best Self Can Influence, Inspire, and Impel Change, chronicles her journey and outlook.

Dr. Pearson’s awards include ABET's Claire L. Felbinger Award for Diversity and Inclusion; ASCE's Professional Practice Ethics and Leadership Award; and the Society of Women Engineers’ Distinguished Engineering Educator Award.

Dr. Pineda is the Executive Director of the Center for Independent Living in Berkeley, California. A social impact entrepreneur, he is a globally recognized human rights expert, and a leading scholar on inclusive and accessible smart cities. He is a two-time presidential appointee and serves as the president/founder of Pineda Foundation / World ENABLED.

Dr. Pineda is a highly sought-after speaker and senior advisor to governments and fortune 500 companies. He is a Senior Fellow at the Mohammed Bin Rashid School of Government in Dubai; directs the Inclusive Cities Lab at UC Berkeley; founded the Global Network for Disability Inclusive and Accessible Urban Development; and co-founded the Smart Cities for All Global Initiative. Dr. Pineda holds a Ph.D. in Urban Planning from UCLA's Luskin School for Public Affairs.

Dr. Swenor is an associate professor at The Johns Hopkins School of Nursing, the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine Wilmer Eye Institute and in the Department of Epidemiology at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. She is the founder and director of the Johns Hopkins Disability Health Research Center, which aims to shift the paradigm from ‘living with a disability’ to ‘thriving with a disability’ through research, education, and policy.

Dr. Swenor’s research is motivated by her personal experience with low vision. Her work takes a data-driven approach to advancing health equity for people with disabilities, and her advocacy for equity for disabled people in the STEM ecosystem is far-reaching.

Alhassan Susso is a world-renowned educator, transforming the lives of young people. He is the New York State Teacher of the Year (2019); a two-time recipient of Rockefeller Foundation’s Social-Emotional Learning Innovation Award for Teachers and NEA’s Horace Mann Award (2020).

Alhassan’s memoir, The Light of Darkness (2016), traces his immigration and journey as a nearly blind teenager, becoming American while maintaining African roots. He teaches Government, Economics, and Personal Development at the International Community High School in NYC’s South Bronx; earned his Master of Arts in Teaching from Bard College; is Founder/Director of the Inspiring Teens’ Future program; and created high school lesson plans for Just Say Hi!’s Lesson Plan Compendium, focused on Disability History & Law.

Dr. Thompson-Ochoa is an Associate Professor at Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C., and the first deaf woman from Trinidad and Tobago to hold a Ph.D. She returns annually to empower both deaf children and adults to excel in academics.

Dr. Thompson-Ochoa holds a Ph.D. in Behavioral Health; is a National Certified School Counselor (N.C.S.C.) in the U.S. She served as a school counselor for the Department of Education Honolulu District, and was also a mental health clinician at the Learning Center for the Deaf in MA. Dr. Thompson-Ochoa is the author of Elsa and The Motmot (2019), a children’s book addressing deafness.

Dr. Thompson-Ochoa’s collaboration developing Just Say Hi! 3.0, ensured that the curricular integration of Deaf Studies and American Sign Language (ASL) was done in a culturally competent manner.

Dr. Walton is a leader for equal rights for persons with disabilities. She founded The Divas With Disabilities Project, (DWD), which advocates for the inclusion of disabled Black and brown women and girls in media and has published a book about her journey as a woman living with disability, called Shattered Dreams, Broken Pieces (2017). She holds an Ed.D. in Rehabilitation Counseling/Leadership.

During the Obama Administration, Dr. Walton was an inaugural member of the White House Disability Liaison’s Disability-African American Kitchen Cabinet, and served as a Subject Matter Expert (SME) for the White House’s workgroup on accessibility and inclusion. Having been a civil servant for decades, Dr. Walton is now pursuing a flourishing career as an actress.