Grebner Symposium: Inclusion Drives Innovation and Creates Opportunity

The Second Grebner Endowment Symposium will feature three speakers with varied expertise on inclusion in employment.

Here are their bios and presentation titles.

Personal and Programmatical Benefits of Inclusion in Business and Employment

Supreme Court Justice Richard Bernstein

Justice Bernstein is a Michigan Supreme Court Justice. Prior to joining the bench, he served as an adjunct professor at the University of Michigan, and on the Wayne State University Board of Governors. He graduated from Northwestern University School of Law, and is licensed to practice law in Michigan and New York. Much of Justice Bernstein’s work focused on legal issues in the protection of the rights of individuals with disabilities, particularly in accessibility, accommodations and mobility issues in the community. He has received many recognitions and awards. He won CNN’s “Keeping Them Honest” award for his legal work on behalf of wheelchair users in Detroit. He was selected by the State Bar of Michigan as the 2003–2004 Regeana Myrick Outstanding Young Lawyer Award recipient. He received the University of Michigan James T. Neubacher Award for exceptional leadership in generating acceptance for the rights of people with disabilities. He won the Special Recognition Award from the Macomb Intermediate School District for advocacy on behalf parents and students with disabilities.

The Role of Vocational Rehabilitation Services in Enhancing Successful Employment for Individuals with Disabilities

Jenny Piatt

Ms. Piatt is the business services division director for Michigan Rehabilitation Services. She is a certified rehabilitation counselor and a licensed professional counselor. She has extensive experience working as a rehabilitation specialist and disability management consultant/manager in the private and public sectors. In her current role, she drives new policies, education, and programming to improve employment outcomes for individuals with disabilities and strategically respond to the business customer and the demand-driven workforce system. She has expertise in disability awareness, cultural competency, equal employment opportunities, ergonomics, and key employment legislation. She is an ad-hoc member of the Michigan Industry Liaison Group, and past president of the Job Placement and Development Division of the Michigan Rehabilitation Association. She also has been agency lead for the Michigan Lieutenant Governor’s Hidden Talent Tour and Workshop and the State of Michigan Focus on Ability Training for civil servants.

The Role of Occupational Therapy in Identification of Accommodations and Technology to Increase Successful Employment

Claudette Reid

Ms. Reid is a licensed occupational therapist who has extensive experience providing occupational therapy services within a vocational context. She works for the Business Network Division (BND) of Michigan Rehabilitation Services. BND is a support unit for the dual customers of MRS: the Business customer and the District Office Client customer. She specializes in assistive technology accommodations that allow persons to perform the essential functions of their jobs through the use of commercial and alternative technology. She provides accommodation assessment to clients transitioning from high school to college, vocational training or job placements. She has provided consultative service to Michigan Medicaid Program, and the Able II Project, a grant program to assist adults with severe physical disabilities in developing the skills needed for successful vocational placement. She has taught the OT Administration course at Western Michigan University and lectured at the OT departments of Western Michigan University, Wayne State University and the Medical College of Ohio.

Continuing Education Credits will be granted from the Commission on Rehabilitation Counselor Certification. Certificate of attendance available.

RSVP via education.msu.edu/cepse/rehab/grebner.