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DCEO

disabilityworks Staff at the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce

Karen McCulloh:  Executive Director
disabilityworks
(312) 494-6713 ed@disabilityworks.org

  • Karen is a registered nurse (RN) who specialized in neurosurgery, emergency room and community health nursing prior to becoming disabled. In 1990, Karen wanted to continue her nursing career so she set up her own for-profit consulting business and continued her practice until the fall of 2005 when she accepted the disabilityworks executive director position. Karen specialized in a practice directed to Community Health Disability Education, a field of nursing that she developed herself. She has extensive experience in staff and business management, has developed and implemented numerous cross-disability educational and support programs for people with disabilities. Most programs that Karen developed integrated education for people with disabilities on the importance of developing strong self advocacy skills.  She provided education on the Americans with Disabilities Act and worked to empower and encourage people with disabilities to move forward with their lives by obtaining further education and to seek employment.  She is recognized nationally for her work in developing educational programs directed to teaching nonverbal communication skills to people who are sight impaired. Karen has consulted with non-profit organizations, corporations and government agencies at the local, state and national levels.  After becoming disabled, Karen returned to school and received a B.S. in Applied Psychology. She is a co-founder and first immediate past president of the National Organization of Nurses with Disabilities (NOND). 

 

La Keisha Adams: disabilityworks Resource Coordinator (dRC)

  • La Keisha hails from East St. Louis, Illinois. She attended the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff where she obtained her Bachelors degree in Psychology. She went on to National-Louis University where she acquired her Masters Degree in education. As a facilitator of disability issues La Keisha has a background which includes over nine years of experience in the mental health and social service field. Within that time frame she has acquired such positions as child sexual assault counselor, mental health therapist and substance abuse counselor. Three of those years were as a Disability Program Navigator. La Keisha has also been a volunteer for the Sexual Assault unit of Call For Help Inc. for the past five years.

 

Selima Ani, Managing Director, CBLN
Chicagoland Business Leadership Network
(312) 494-6726 cbln@disabilityworks.org  

  • As the Managing Director of the CBLN, Selima unites her experience in working for both the disability community in the private sector. In the 1990s, Selima managed residential and recreational programs for the developmentally, physically, and learning disabled. She also directed the Illinois Specialized Services program in Lake and Cook counties, a first-of-its-kind socialization program for nursing home residents with developmental disabilities. Following the completion of her MSW from the Jane Addams College of Social Work at the University of Illinois, Chicago, she lived and worked abroad in Japan for one year promoting intercultural understanding. Upon returning the U.S., Selima worked in the private sector in Chicago and Los Angeles in management at a financial software developer and a prominent architectural firm. She started her own photography studio in 2001, which she successfully merged with another long-standing and highly respected studio in Chicago area in 2004. Selima is a volunteer for Chicago's Belle Center, and in her spare time is an avid guitarist and yoga practitioner.

 

Joe Chiappetta: Managing Director, CPLN
Chicagoland Provider Leadership Network
(312) 494-6729 cpln@disabilityworks.org

  • Joe Chiappetta is an award winning entrepreneur in the arena of graphic novel writing, cartooning, marketing and publishing. He has been in the disability/employment educational field since 2001, helping businesses find qualified workers with disabilities, as well as providing training to businesses and non-profits throughout Illinois. As one of the founders of the EmployAlliance statewide network of workforce developers and their former statewide coordinator, Joe currently facilitates their Chicago Chapter. He has served on Chicago's Mayoral Task Force on the Employment of People with Disabilities and was one of its key work group members who helped promote the formation of disabilityworks and the Chicagoland Provider Leadership Network (CPLN).

 

L. M. Pepper Curington: disabilityworks Resource Coordinator (dRC)

  • Pepper is a 20 veteran of the United States Air Force, retiring from the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, CO. in 1994. Upon her departure from the Air Force she returned to Chicago, were she attended the University of Illinois at Chicago and earned her Bachelor Degree in Social Work in 2002. Then in 2004, she was awarded her Masters Degree in Social Work from Chicago State University. She was a Disability Program Navigator from July 2004 until the project ended in June 2007. Pepper currently is the dRC serving the Chicagoland area. Nowadays, Pepper serves as a mentor with AbilityLinks mentorship program and during her off time she enjoys singing in the church choir, reading, working with elderly and taking long walks.

 

Christy Herzing: disabilityworks Resource Coordinator (dRC)

  • Christy is a dRC serving 19 counties in Southern Illinois, including Local Workforce Investment Area 25 and 26.  She has a B.A. in Speech Communications and a minor in Journalism from McKendree College.  While at McKendree she served as a student assistant to the Office of College Relations helping to coordinate events and create marketing materials and press releases.  In 2002 Christy did an internship with KMOX 1120 in St. Louis.  She was involved with the Disability Program Navigator initiative from its inception in October 2003 until June 2007.

 

Earl Jordan: disabilityworks Resource Coordinator (dRC)

  • Earl is a dRC serving the Chicago Metropolitan Area covering the north, west and northwestern Chicago suburbs, including Cook, Lake, McHenry and DuPage counties. Earl has a B.A. in Psychology from Southern Illinois University at Carbondale and has a total of 8 years experience in disability advocacy. In his spare time Earl enjoys wheelchair basketball, wheelchair softball and kayaking. Earl has been involved with the Disability Program Navigator initiative from its beginning in 2003 and its ending in 2007.

 

Michael Killebrew: disabilityworks Resource Coordinator (dRC)

  • Michael is a dRC in the Quincy Workforce Area comprising the western portion of Local Workforce Investment Area (LWIA) 4, and all of LWIA 12, 13, and 14. He has a B.S. from Truman State University and a graduate degree from Washburn College of Law. He is a licensed attorney in KS and has some mediation experience. He was a Disability Program Navigator from October 2004 until the initiative ended in June 2007. Prior to this, he was a licensed minister and worked as a substance abuse counselor.  

 

Misti Neal: disabilityworks Resource Coordinator (dRC)

  • Misti is a dRC serving 18 counties in Central Illinois, including Local Workforce Investment Areas 17, 18, 19, 20 and 21. She has a B.S. in Education from Eastern Illinois University. She possesses an Elementary Education, Type 3, Teaching Certificate. She worked as the Disability Program Navigator for Local Workforce Area 23 from March 2006 until June 2007.

 

Mary Peterson: disabilityworks Resource Coordinator (dRC)

  • Mary has worked as a change agent, advocate, educator, trainer, administer for well over 20 years in various capacities. In 2004, she assumed the position as a Disability Program Navigator to champion the issues/causes of persons with disabilities and recently has become a disabilityworks Resource Coordinator, based out of Peoria, covering the One-Stop Career Resource Centers throughout Illinois in LWIA 10, 11, 15, 16 and 19. This position has allowed Mary the opportunity to continue her crusade of helping others through the initiation, development, organization, implementation and assessment of services and programs. The main objective of these services and programs are designed to assist individuals in the development of skills and a mind-set necessary for the attainment of their educational, employment and personal goals. Her educational background includes Master's Degree in Educational Administration with an emphasis in College Student Personnel and Bachelor's in Economics both from Illinois State University (ISU).

 

Joshua Scanlon:  Executive Assistant
(312) 494-6714

  • Joshua Scanlon is a recent graduate of Loyola University Chicago with a B.A. in Political Science and Classical Studies. As the Executive Assistant at disabilityworks he manages the office, oversees correspondence, and produces marketing materials for the staff. His volunteer experience includes after school tutoring at the South East Asia Center with Loyola 4 Chicago, fund raising for St. Jude's Children's Hospital with the Loyola University Karate Club, and planning service learning trips while working as a Resident Manager at Loyola. In 2006 he was the On-Site Producer for the Saturday morning radio program "Live from the Heartland" on 88.7 WLUW. He is also currently a Black Belt and Assistant Instructor at the Gendai Budo Karate Dojo in Chicago with over five years of experience in Tai Chi, Ju-Jutsu, and Okinawan Karate and Kobudo.

 

Linda Sullivan: disabilityworks Resource Coordinator (dRC)

  • Linda is a dRC located in Rockford, Illinois, and serves the northern state line area. She is responsible for seven counties, including Stephenson, Ogle, Winnebago, Boone, DeKalb, Kendall and Kane Counties. Previously, Linda worked in manufacturing for 17 years as a Production Planner/Buyer until she was wrongfully terminated by her employer. This was the beginning of Linda's career in social services, and she was hired as a Disability Program Navigator in October of 2004, and remained there until the grant ended in June of 2007. Linda has a lifetime of personal experience with a disability, and is one of only a few recipients in Illinois who has bilateral implants. Linda graduated from Illinois State University in Normal, IL, with a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Education. Currently, Linda is serving on the board of directors for RAMP, an independent living center, is an active member of EmployAlliance (JobsNow) and is chairman of the Disability Action Coalition committee in Rockford.  

 

Jonathan Wheat:  Managing Director, Special Projects
(312) 494-6702

  • As the managing director of special projects, Jonathan oversees the day to day operations of the disabilityworks statewide expansion initiative. He has extensive experience with various providers that serve individuals with disabilities in the Chicago area as well as with United Way and Chicago Housing Authority. A Texan native, he moved to Chicago after having completed post-graduate studies in counseling at the University of Toronto. Jonathan is also a volunteer with Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Chicago, a piano instructor, and an avid member of the American Coaster Enthusiasts.

 

disabilityworks Mailing Address:
Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce - disabilityworks
200 E. Randolph St., Suite 2200
Chicago, IL 60601-6436