2016 Conference Accessibility Initiative

Last year, the World Institute on Disability (WID) and JPMorgan Chase & Co. partnered with 10 civil rights and community development organizations to make 2016 the first year ever that conference accessibility had a national spotlight.

WID and JPMorgan Chase achieved this by providing accessibility enhancements, such as sign language interpreters, open captioning, accessible transportation, rented mobility devices, sighted guides, scholarships for Disability Ambassadors, and a disability concierge desk, as well as support and training for conference organizers, hotel staff, and A/V teams.

Also, be sure to read about our primary captioner, Deanna Baker, who ensured thousands of people experienced open captioning for the first time in 2016 and who will continue her great work with us in 2017.

Organizations Served in 2016

If you haven’t already, be sure to visit our main Conference Accessibility Initiative page to learn about the conferences we’ll be partnering with in 2017.

Photo Galleries by Conference

National Community Reinvestment Coalition (NCRC), March 16-19

Six people with varied disabilities and two service dogs

WID staff members, Chase staff members, panelists with disabilities, and Disability Ambassadors | Photo by WID

A man stands on stage in a dimmed room, one jumbotron screen filled with open captioning on either side

John Taylor, President and CEO of NCRC, surrounded by closed captioning | Photo by WID

One PowerPoint screen, one screen with open captioning

Open captioning in a workshop | Photo by WID

A video of Elizabeth Warren with yellow captions on the bottom

Elizabeth Warren video with open captions | Photo by WID

President & CEO Brooks of NAACP speaks | Photo by WID

A panel of five people at a long table with microphones

Panel discussion of disability and banking | Photo by WID

Disability Ambassador, Jessica Jimenez | Photo by WID

Disability Ambassador, Becky Tuttle | Photo by WID

Disability Ambassador, Ryan Easterly | Photo by WID

National Housing Conference (NHC), June 3

Five people sit on stage under a chandelier, a screen of open captions to their right

General panel with open captions | Photo by WID

Two WID staff members stand behind a desk

The Disability Concierge Desk | Photo by WID

Two people sit in the back of the room monitoring many screens and computers

Behinds the scenes technology | Photo by WID

Six people with varied disabilities and one service dog

WID staff members, Chase staff members, and Disability Ambassadors | Photo by WID

A laptop in the back of the room displays live open captions

The laptop running the open captioning program | Photo by WID

Open captions on the main screen | Photo by WID

Disability Ambassador, Samantha Dannick | Photo by WID

Disability Ambassador, Shileta Gorham | Photo by WID

Disability Ambassador, Angel Miles | Photo by WID

National Fair Housing Alliance, June 26-28

Nine people with varied disabilities and one service dog

WID staff, Chase staff, and Disability Ambassadors | Photo by WID

A woman stands on stage, a large screen of open captions to either side of her

President and CEO Murguia speaks to the crowd with open captioning on either side of her | Photo by WID

The Disability Concierge Desk | Photo by WID

Disability Ambassador & Speaker, Wayne Dawson | Photo by WID

Disability Ambassador, Melissa Allman | Photo by WID

Disability Ambassador, Emily Munson | Photo by WID

Disability Ambassador, Conchita Hernandez | Photo by WID

Disability Ambassador, Megan Confer-Hammond | Photo by WID

A woman sits in front of the camera, speaking, while another films

Behind the scenes video filming | Photo by WID

An ASL interpreter sits in the front of the room near a screen of open captions

ASL interpreting and open captions in action | Photo by WID

A woman sits in front of a stenograph and a computer

Our live in-person captioner, Deanna Baker | Photo by WID

A long ramp leads up to a stage for a panel discussion

An accessible ramp to the stage | Photo by WID

NAACP, July 16-20

Disability Ambassador, Ashli Owen | Photo by WID

Disability Ambassador, Andraea LaVant | Photo by WID

Disability Ambassador, Kamilah Martin-Proctor | Photo by WID

Ten people with varied disabilities and one service dog

WID staff, Chase staff, and Disability Ambassadors | Photo by friendly stranger

A woman on stage in a pink dress talks to the audience, a screen of open captioning to her left

NAACP Chairman Roslyn Brock speaks, open captioning to her left | Photo by WID

President Brooks stands in the audience, open captions play on the screen

The audience cheers for President & CEO Brooks | Photo by WID

A woman stands on the side of the stage, hands in motion

An American Sign Language interpreter | Photo by WID

Two people and a service dog stand beside a desk

The Disability Concierge Desk | Photo by WID

Policemen and young men join together near the foot of the stage, open captions play on the screen

United with black and blue | Photo by WID

Six people stand on stage with a large photograph, open captions play on the screen

Gift presentation by Mr. Brooks and Ms. Brock | Photo by WID

Morgan Freeman speaks on screen, open captions below

Special video from Morgan Freeman | Photo by WID

Four young women smile from their seats in a large crowd

Disability Ambassadors smiling in the audience | Photo by WID

National Council of La Raza (NCLR), July 23-26

Disability Ambassador, Danielle Trevino | Photo by WID

Disability Ambassador, Karen Reyes | Photo by WID

Disability Ambassador, Horacio Esparza | Photo by WID

Disability Ambassador, Angelica Guevara | Photo by WID

Two WID staff members hand out flyers from behind a desk

The Disability Concierge Desk from afar | Photo by WID

A woman stands on stage and speaks to the audience, a group of other speakers to the left of her and captions above her head

President & CEO Murguia speaks to the audience, open captions on the main screen above her | Photo by WID

Seven people with varied disabilities and one service dog

WID staff and Disability Ambassadors | Photo by a friendly stranger

Wheelchair accessible bus to the reception at Epcot | Photo by WID

Many screens and computers flash in a dark space behind the curtain

A backstage view of the technology setup | Photo by WID

A young man stands on stage, captions above his head

Actor Wilson Cruz discuss the Orlando Pulse tragedy| Photo by WID

Five people with varied disabilities stand around a large body of water, lit up by an organge glow

WID staff and Disability Ambassadors enjoy fireworks at Epcot | Photo by WID

Twelve people with varied disabilities and one service dog

WID staff, Chase staff, and Disability Ambassadors | Photo by WID

National Urban League (NUL), August 3-6

Disability Ambassador, Keri Gray | Photo by WID

Disability Ambassador, Kamilah Martin-Proctor | Photo by WID

Disability Ambassador, Ryan Easterly | Photo by WID

A man speaks into a microphone, open captions below him

Welcome to Baltimore! | Photo by WID

A man and a woman on stage sit in armchairs and talk to one another

Talk with Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, Mayor of Baltimore | Photo by WID

A woman in pink speaks to the audience, open captions below her

Michelle Miller at the Women of Power Luncheon | Photo by WID

Many screens and laptops glowing in the dark behind the stage

A backstage view of the technology setup | Photo by WID

A young woman speaks into a microphone, open captions below her

A student talks about freezing tuition fees | Photo by WID

WID staff, Chase staff, and Disability Ambassadors at the Disability Concierge Desk | Photo by WID

A young man speaks into a microphone, open captions below him

CEO & Co-Founder Chesky of AirBnB | Photo by WID

A dark, large room, crowded with round tables, flowers bouquets, and people

The Awards Gala | Photo by WID

A woman speaks into a microphone, open captions below her

Lela Wingard of JPMorgan Chase & Co. discusses the Conference Accessibility Initiative | Photo by WID

Florida Housing Coalition (FHC), September 11-14

WID staff and Disability Ambassadors at the Disability Concierge Desk | Photo by kind stranger

A woman leans over her laptop, a stenograph to her right

Our live in-person captioner, Tess Crowder, sets up her equipment | Photo by WID

The laptop that runs captioning at the A/V table | Photo by WID

A sign in front of Salon 1 lists several disability-focused sessions

Salon 1 houses sessions with a disability-focus | Photo by WID

Three WID staff members smile at the desk

The Disability Concierge Desk | Photo by a kind stranger

A woman stands in front of a podium with captions on a screen to her left

A speaker discusses homelessness while the live open captions roll | Photo by WID

A woman stands in front of a podium, a PowerPoint and a screen of captions beside her

Disability Ambassador and Subject Matter Expert, Camille Wallace, presents on disability and housing | Photo by WID

A room of several dozen people with a woman in a wheelchair raising her hand

A packed room inspires great questions | Photo by WID

Four people stand together at the front of a room

Camille Wallace and other panelists for the Housing for Persons with Developmental Disabilities session | Photo by WID

Disability Ambassador and Subject Matter Expert, Camille Wallace | Photo by WID

Disability Ambassador, Natalie Alden | Photo by WID

Disability Ambassador, Denise Valkema | Photo by WID

Corporation for Enterprise Development (CFED), September 28-30

Seven people with varied disabilities and two service dogs

WID staff and Disability Ambassadors at the Disability Concierge Desk | Photo by Ben Miller

Disability Ambassador, Laura Newell | Photo by WID

Disability Ambassador, Brad Martin | Photo by WID

Disability Ambassador, Jane Moore, and service dog, Mingo | Photo by WID

Disability Ambassador, Lori Siedman | Photo by WID

Two women stands on stage, while an ASL intepreter sits at an audience table interpreting to the woman across from her

ASL interpreters interpret CFED’s Director of Communications Kristin Lawton and Vice President of Strategy and Impact Leigh Tivol | Photo by WID

A woman stands against a blue background, hands on her hips, yellow captions beneath her

CFED’s President & CEO Andrea Levere talks about a life full of purpose | Photo by WID

Two WID staff members stand in front of a desk

The Disability Concierge Desk | Photo by WID

A manual wheelchair stands in front of the Hill Visits desk

Preparing for an accessible visit to Capitol Hill with on-demand wheelchairs and accessible buses | Photo by WID

A panel of five people sit in front of a screen of captioning, a young woman typing in the foreground on a stenograph

One of our live in-person captioner, Claire Baldi, captions a panel about low-income consumers | Photo by WID

A woman in black speaks dramatically into a microphone, yellow captions beneath her

Anna Deavere Smith talks about heaviness | Photo by WID

A panel of five people sit in the front of the room, captioning on one screen, a PowerPoint on another beside them

WID’s Deputy Director, Tom Foley, talks on a panel about disabilities and banking | Photo by WID

Opportunity Finance Network (OFN), October 24-27

Five people with varied disabilities and one service dog

WID staff and Disability Ambassadors at the Disability Concierge Desk | Photo by WID

A man stands onstage, captions on the screen to his left and the screen to his right

The Executive Vice President of Knowledge Sharing, Donna Fabiani, welcomes the crowd | Photo by WID

A woman stands on stage, flanked by two large screens, captions on both

OFN Connect brings potential board members to the stage | Photo by WID

Disability Ambassador, Gregory Pickett | Photo by WID

Disability Ambassador, Tom Swanston | Photo by WID

Disability Ambassador, Teresa Favuzzi | Photo by WID

Chase is happy to be a sponsor | Photo by WID

WID's favorite service dog stands in front of a desk

The Disability Concierge Desk | Photo by WID

A man stands onstage, flanked by two large screens, captions on both

The Mayor of Atlanta, Kasim Reed, discusses affordable housing | Photo by WID

The NEXT Awards celebrate financial innovation | Photo by WID

A woman in a long, white dress stands against a stage backdrop of trees, captions to her left and right

The Native Awards celebrate Native People’s financial institutions | Photo by WID

Laptops and screens glow in the dim light behind the stage

A backstage view of the technology setup | Photo by WID

NeighborWorks America Training Institute, December 12-16

Three WID staff members and one service dog stand in front of a desk

The Disability Concierge Desk | Photo by WID

A man stands behind a podium, two screens to his side, one with is picture and information, another with captions over a live-video of him speaking

Paul Weech, President and CEO of NeighborWorks, welcomes the seminar goers | Photo by WID

A man stands on stage, flanked by four large screens, images on the inner pair, and live video with captioning on the outer pair

Matthew Desmond speaks to the crowd | Photo by WID

A table full of technology; just beyond that a man stands on stage, flanked by four large screens, images on the inner pair, and live video with captioning on the outer pair

Behind the scenes technology shot with speaker David Simon on stage | Photo by WID

Disability Ambassador, Brenda Billins Muhammad | Photo by WID

Disability Ambassador, Meghan Moore | Photo by WID

Disability Ambassador, Susan Wang | Photo by WID

Disability Ambassador, Vash Turner | Photo by WID

Seven people with varied disabilities and one service dog, all in winter attire

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Organizations Served in 2016

Photo Galleries by Conference

National Community Reinvestment Coalition (NCRC), March 16-19

National Housing Conference (NHC), June 3

National Fair Housing Alliance, June 26-28

NAACP, July 16-20

National Council of La Raza (NCLR), July 23-26

National Urban League (NUL), August 3-6

Florida Housing Coalition (FHC), September 11-14

Corporation for Enterprise Development (CFED), September 28-30

Opportunity Finance Network (OFN), October 24-27

NeighborWorks America Training Institute, December 12-16

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