Hammerstrom/Davis: The Bender Leadership Academy Prepares for Disability Mentoring Day 2025

Welcome to Disability Matters with your host Joyce Bender. All comments, views, and opinions expressed on the show are solely those of the host, guest, and callers. Now the host of Disability Matters, here's Joyce Bender.

Hi everyone, welcome to the show. This is Joyce Bender with Disability Matters. And it does matter. And right now in this climate, it really matters. So I'm just so thankful and happy to have all of you listeners. You all know that a few weeks ago I had my 1,000th episode. Do you know why? Because of you. That's why. We've been on 22 years. HiMark's the sponsor. Thank you, HiMark. But if it weren't for you, this all would not have happened. You know, I love all of you. I wish I knew all of you, but thank you so much for your dedication. And not to forget all of our listeners around the world, uh, from Australia to Brazil, you know, thank you. And Germany, wow. You have a big listening audience there. Thank you so much for following us. And I just want to say, remember, if you know anyone around the world, if you know anyone with a place that you can listen to the show with English-speaking ability, make sure you go there. As a matter of fact, I've traveled around the world and I know there's an American embassy in the different— I mean, an American center, not embassy, in the different countries. So that would be a good place to go if you want to hear the show. And then, hey, Yoshiko Dart, special shout out to you and to Richard Roberts in Brazil and Gang Young in South Korea. All such great people. Yoshiko, you know I love you. Lead on, Yoshiko. I know you're yelling it back to me. I know it for a fact. So, um, won't forget her and Justin. I'm going to remind everyone, and I have for every show for years, because, you know, our history is important also. So, oh, we're gonna have a great show today. I'm so excited to have Sabrina Davis. Joyce Bender, Megan Schuler, and our own Scott Hammerstrom, who runs the show at the Bender Leadership Academy. So, Scott, we're going to be talking about Disability Mentoring Day. So how about if we start with you? Because I want everyone everywhere to know about Disability Mentoring Day.

Well, thank you, Joyce, and thank you so much for having me on the show. And hello to Sabrina and to Megan. And yes, Disability Mentoring Day is one of my favorite things to do each year. This is going to be my 19th year helping to coordinate Disability Mentoring Day here in Pittsburgh. And DMD, as we call it, is just an exciting opportunity for high school students with disabilities to explore various career paths and learn about the world of work. This special day is designed to inspire and empower students by allowing them to explore an array of potential career paths. They get to go to a local business or an organization to learn about the different employment opportunities at that site. You know, when I was in high school, I had no idea what different types of jobs were out there, and I always said I say the example of a bank, you know, when I was in high school, I thought of the teller and maybe the manager, but there's so many other opportunities between HR and IT and accounting and, you know, all those different types of jobs that are out there. And you don't know until you get the opportunity to research the company. And Disability Mentoring Day gives that opportunity once a year for high school students to, to go to a location.

Oh, that is my day. Just so everyone knows, Disability Mentoring Day started with Jonathan Young, who reported to President Clinton from the— at the White House from the Public Affairs Office, and he was there when I received the President's Award at the White House way back, 1999. Jonathan called me and said, "Hey, Joyce, I have this idea. We're not going to get a month, but let's get a day. And if we get a day, let's have it revolve around employment." So Disability Mentoring Day started at the White House in D.C. and right here in Pittsburgh. And we are the largest group convener of Disability Mentoring Day. I just love that day. But we're going to take a quick break because Mathis on the Mic with our own Jennifer Mathis is on at 2:30. But because she couldn't be with us, you know, we're all about Baselon here, so we have asked the prestigious Megan Schuler, who is the superstar legal director at Bazelon, to come aboard and give us the news. And let me tell you, she is brilliant. We're lucky to have her at Bazelon. As you know, I'm on the board at Bazelon. Megan, welcome.

Thank you so much, Joyce. It's great to be here with all of you, uh, and Hard to fill in the shoes of Jennifer Mathis, but happy to do my best. Well, I can tell you, you know, some of the things that we continue to watch in the news and advocate around are Congress's attempts and threats to cut Medicaid. I know you've heard about this before, but it's important to make sure folks are aware that in April the Senate and the House passed a budget resolution directing $880 billion in budget cuts. Much of that has to come from the Medicaid program, and one of the primary ways that they're going to make these cuts are through something they call work requirements. The idea of work requirements is mandating that people work or engage in volunteer activities in order to receive Medicaid. But we know that this has been tried before and it doesn't work. It doesn't increase employment. And what it leads to is many thousands of people, when this was tried in states in the past, lost their health coverage because of confusion about how to report that they were working or about exemptions from the requirements. They were very difficult to implement. They didn't cause any increase in employment. And they cause lots and lots of people who really need and rely on Medicaid for their home and community-based services, for their health coverage, to lose their care. So again, I really encourage folks to reach out to your senators, to your representatives, and tell them to please not cut Medicaid, including through work requirements. Another thing that we're watching right now is the reorganization that is being planned and major cuts to the Department of Health and Human Services. HHS incorporates a lot of different, um, subparts, and it's hard to navigate and understand all of the things that fall under HHS. But part of what we are very concerned about is that the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration, SAMHSA, as well as the Administration on Community Living, ACL, are part of ACS. And in what is being proposed, these very critical agencies that we rely upon to fund and guide the operation of 988, the National Suicide and Crisis Line, for example, that's SAMHSA. SAMHSA plays a critical role in advancing community mental health and substance use disorder services. They have put out critical guidance on providing a mental health response to mental health emergencies for jurisdictions around the country to do a better job and help save lives. And the proposal would take SAMHSA and fold them into a larger agency along with a bunch of other agencies that have largely unrelated functions and could lead to basically the elimination of huge number of programs that SAMHSA does. That are really critical and important. Similarly, they're trying to also with the Administration for Community Living, ACL, scatter its functions through other agencies that would eliminate having any Administration for Community Living that wouldn't exist anymore. And this is an entity that is supposed to coordinate efforts to advance independence and inclusion of older adults and people with disabilities. It funds a lot of key community services for older adults and people with disabilities. And these cuts could be really devastating to the key functions that SAMHSA and ACL does. And so we have been sending a letter to HHS, we've sent a letter to members of Congress to really encourage them to please not to do this reorganization because it's going to have devastating effects. Um, also, many people may have heard about or seen in the news that there is a lot going on at the Department of Justice Civil Rights Division, and it is shrinking rapidly, and a lot of actions are being taken to really fundamentally change the mission and goal of the Civil Rights Division to further the president's agenda, to politicize it, to change the mission of every section within that department, which includes the Disability Rights Section. It includes the folks that enforce Olmstead and community integration for people with disabilities so that they're not unnecessarily segregated and put into institutions. And it is really heartbreaking for me as someone who worked there for over a decade to see what is happening, um, and how the department is shrinking. This is a part of the Department of Justice that in the past was referred to by Attorney General Eric Holder as the crown jewel of the Department of Justice, and now it is being shrunk and manipulated and repurposed in ways that are really saddening to see and concerning for the protection of our civil rights. So I don't wanna be all negative. There's a lot happening. There are things people can do. And I really do, you know, encourage folks to reach out about Medicaid, reach out about these reorganization plans, and that these community services are really, really critical to people with disabilities. We all deserve healthcare. We all deserve to be able to live in the community and thrive with the services we need. And unfortunately, a lot of these executive orders and reorganization is not making things more efficient, and it's going to cause a lot of harm to people with disabilities.

May I ask, is there a place you can go, or where can you go to find the— who your senator or who your representative is?

Absolutely. Um, so to reach your senators you can call 202-224-3121. So you can just use that phone number to call and get connected to your senator. For the House of Representatives and finding your representative, you can call 202-225-3121. Um, so you can use those phone numbers We also have an explainer on Bazelon.org that explains more about this work requirement, Medicaid cuts, as well as what I talked about with SAMHSA and ACL, and provides more links and information about how you can help and how you can reach out to your representatives in Congress and share your thoughts on how you feel about what's happening.

Let me make it clear, you've got to do it. You've got to do it. You have to contact them because this can impact you or someone you love, someone close to you. I mean, even the Medicaid, the part about, you know, that you would have to work. Why do you think you're on Medicaid? You know what I mean? You don't have money. Now, how are you going to have the wherewithal to get the clothes, to get the transportation, and to find the job? I mean, in this economy. So I'm telling you, folks, listeners, you know, just so you know, our listeners had an impact, uh, when Perry Jude had a call for action. So my listeners are awesome. Please Go call your senator or representative or send an email, but don't sit back. Do something. And I have the most powerful listeners, so make sure you do something. And, uh, Bazelon.org.

That's right. And there's a lot more information. These work requirements have caused a lot of confusion. The reality is, is most people on Medicaid want to work and are working if they are able to, and that really what this does is makes it harder for them to work because people need their healthcare coverage and their Medicaid services to be able to work and succeed in their communities.

Oh yeah, it's a total disaster across the board. So remember, make that call. And Megan, thank you for being on Math is on the Mic.

Thank you so much. Great to be here.

All right, we'll see you. Bye-bye. So, you know, Scott, what do you think about that?

Um, the Bazelon Center just does amazing work, and there's so much going on as far as the executive orders and different, uh, um, areas in within the government. You, you just got to stay informed, pay attention, and, and she gave you the numbers. We need to call.

And you know, so you all know this show is on demand. In other words, tomorrow you can go to Spotify or almost any social media platform, including voiceamerica.com, and hear the show. So if you were listening, said, oh my goodness, you went over all this, I have to hear it again, or send it to someone that that you know would really take action, make sure you send the show, make sure you send that podcast. Um, and you know, the other thing we just talked about, children with disabilities, you know, and they're also wanting to remove funding of the Department of Education, and that would be for services such as mental health professionals. All the extra services the children get. So make the calls, make the calls, make the calls. Can't stress it enough. And Disability Mentoring Day is the third Wednesday of every October. Third Wednesday of every October. Sabrina Davis, it is a pleasure to have you with us. Could you, Sabrina, tell our listeners what you do, what your job is, where you're from, a little bit about you.

Yeah. Hi, Joyce. Thank you for having me. I'm really excited to be here. My name is Sabrina Davis, and I am proud to represent EQT. We are North America's largest natural gas producer. So our mission goes beyond energy. We're working to power a more sustainable and inclusive world. And I first got involved with Disability Mentoring Day at a previous company, and it was such a meaningful experience for me there that I brought the initiative with me to EQT, actually. So it's been fulfilling in every way, and I'm excited to see— I was excited to see it take root at EQT as well.

And what do you do at EQT?

Yeah, so at EQT, I started out in talent acquisition, right? So I was managing all of our open reqs truly just full-on recruiting. But I've since kind of changed roles, and now I'm in a recruitment marketing role. So what I do is I kind of brainstorm and come up with strategies to get more eyes on our, on our website, on our open positions, and kind of get our culture seen so that we're bringing in more applicants. And it's been really fun. And then I also do events like Disability Mentoring Day.

So, what, um, how does that work at your company, or even in the past? How does, you know, how do you set up Disability Mentoring Day at your company? Do you have activities? You know, what do you do with the students?

Yeah, um, so what we do is we, um, we try to be strategic, right? We, we kind of handpick who who we want to initially participate from the business. And something that I've been doing in recent years is coming up with a theme for the day. And what we'll do is design hands-on activities instead of lengthy presentations so that it can be dynamic and memorable. And an example of that was in last year we did We're All Superheroes, and the year before that we did Rock Stars. So kind of everything, the theme, the swag we gave out all was surrounded around those themes. And it, it makes it really fun for the kids too, and for photo opportunities and things like that.

Oh, that is, that is great.

Yes.

How did you see that impact the people that worked at EQT?

Um, I mean, from my perspective, everybody who was involved with it, um, left feeling like it was a really meaningful day. And after the first year, um, we didn't even need to really handpick anybody because we had so many people volunteering. Because word got around about how the day went and what we did, and more people want to get involved now. So overall, it's been a very positive experience.

Good, good. So see, anyone listening, you know, Sabrina is here in— headquartered here in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where we are. But you heard how large of a company this is. So it is a great investment for you to participate in Disability Mentoring Day. And you know, S. Hammerstrom, H-A-M-M-E-R-S-T-R-O-M, S. Hammerstrom is Scott S. Hammerstrom at benderconsult.com. If you're listening, you're thinking, I'm sorry, Bender, you're Bender Leadership Now. Shammerstrom@benderleadership.org. In case you're interested in, you know, and you have questions about participating. And of course, I'm jbender@benderconsult.com. So, get in touch with either one of us. So, back to you, Scott. I'm really proud of this in Pittsburgh. How big is Disability Mentoring Day in Pittsburgh? You know, for example, how many students, how many organizations, how many schools? What is the breadth of this?

Yeah, absolutely. So this is a national event, as you mentioned, and the American Association of People with Disabilities run it nationally. But in Pittsburgh, you know, we, I think, have the largest Disability Mentoring Day program in the country. Last year we had 8— I'm sorry, 28 businesses and other organizations, college, universities, state government, local government, county government participate. So 28 businesses and there's like 30 different locations. And we had over 47 school districts and like 5-county area were involved and we had over 500 students with disabilities participate. And as you mentioned, it's always on the third Wednesday of every October. This year is going to be October 15th. So we'll have probably similar numbers this year than we did last year. So, you know, our job is to coordinate to make sure all 500 students get to the proper business, like a great organization like EQT, and get there at the same time and have a wonderful event and have fun and learn about the business.

World. Yeah, and they love it. The students love it. They really look forward to this. And usually what happens is they'll go in early in the morning, 9 o'clock, around 9 o'clock, and then they leave around 1 o'clock. And every company does this differently. Some have, like, maybe bagels or something in the morning, and they have an executive come and speak. Some just kick it off and get it going. Some have lunch. Sometimes they have lunch with the mentee, the mentor and mentee. So it's different everywhere, but it's really great. One of the things I love when they come to our office is when we have Pam go in and teach them the alphabet, or she is deaf and teaches them in sign language. But I mean, I just love when they come here, and you will also. Remember, when you have a student with a disability, you're giving them hope. Oh my God, look at this job. I could do this. They would consider me. And with the hiring manager, why have we not been hiring people with disabilities? So, or, hey, we can have this student for our long-term internship. You know, just today, Scott, I was in touch with Justice, who was a graduate of the Bender Leadership Academy from Fox Chapel.

Oh, that's awesome.

He's now in grad school taking data analysis. Wow. Now, if you had had him, you could have brought him in on an internship every summer and been an employee. So remember, Disability Mentoring Day, 3rd Wednesday of every October. And, um, Sabrina, what's something you personally have learned over the years from the students?

Um, I would say that, you know, the students constantly kind of remind us that labels don't really define potential, right? Um, their resilience and, and curiosity and ambition are really inspiring. And I've learned to see people for their strengths, not their limitations. And it's, you know, a lesson that has stayed with me and everybody in my company who has participated in Disability Mentoring Day.

Oh, that is awesome. Awesome. Well, hey, we're going to get ready to go to break, but if you just tuned in, we are talking to Scott Hammerstrom, who runs the Bender Leadership Academy right here in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. This is a not-for-profit that I did volunteer work after I created this for over 20 years. And now, let's see, I'm trying to think of the year— 2018. 2018, you know, we created it as a 501 not-for-profit. It is the best program. And by the way, the Highmark Walk is coming up. If you're here in Pittsburgh, what day is that?

That is going to be— give me 1 second because we have so many different events that are coming up here. But that is going to be in June, and it's a Saturday, or maybe in May. Give me 1 second. Well, first off, Joyce, we have the Strawberry Jell-O Pretzel Salad Standoff where we're partnering up with Cookie Cookie on May 10th. And if we get voted, voted by the consumers who try off all the pretzel salad, Bender Leadership Academy wins some money and gets some publicity. So that's a very exciting event that's happening. And then June 14th is the Highmark Walk for a Healthy Community down at the North Shore here in Pittsburgh, early in the morning, 8:00, 8:30 in the morning. And it's a blast. There's a great, a bunch of great nonprofit organizations who participate. Please go to our website, benderleadership.org, and there's information on how to sign up to be a walker for and support Bender Leadership Academy. I know Sabrina and her team at EQT were gigantic supporters last year and came full force to the walk. And we'd love to see more people down there this year in June.

All right, right here in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Well, with that, we're gonna go to break. If you joined us, we are talking to Scott Hammerstrom and Sabrina Davis. This is Joyce Bender. America's Voice, where disability matters, at voiceamerica.com. Don't go away, we'll be right back.

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You're listening to Disability Matters, Now please welcome back the host of Disability Matters. Here's Joyce Bender.

Hi everyone, welcome back to the show. Oh, my favorite topic, Disability Mentoring Day, third Wednesday of every October, when high school students with disabilities go to different corporations or organizations to see what it's like to go to the world of work. I love it because when you go on site, these students are seeing how people dress, how they act, how you go through security. I mean, it's just a great thing. And then they spend the day with mentees and mentors the company has set up with these mentees. So it's just really great. Third Wednesday of every October. If you have any questions, get in touch with us. S Hammerstrom at benderleadership.org. S Hammerstrom at benderleadership.org. Hammerstrom, H-A-M-M-E-R-S-T-R-O-M. And we will be sure to get back in touch with you. Scott, we have all such a great event. Everyone loves this event. I would have to say it's a highlight of the year for many, definitely for young people. But, you know, also the county executive, the speakers. I'm gonna let you talk about it. Would you tell everyone where it is, when it is, and why do we have it?

Oh, absolutely. So we love a good party. And so I think 18 years ago we started our Disability Mentoring Day kickoff reception. So usually we've had it like a couple of days prior to our Disability Mentoring Day. But last year we started doing a week before and this year it's going to be a week before. So it is going to be on Monday, October 6th. And it is going to be at the Heinz History Center. So last year we had about 160 people in attendance, another 40 or 50 people watching virtually. You mentioned Jonathan Young, who created Disability Mentoring Day back in 1999. He was our featured speaker. But the highlight every single year is we ask 4 or 5 of our students who are part of the Bender Leadership Academy or participated in one of our programs, including Disability Mentoring Day. We ask them to speak, and, and that is always a highlight for the people in the crowd. They just love hearing our students. And we also recognize our Linda Dickerson Scholarship Award winners at this reception. So last year we gave 14 $1,000 scholarships in recognition for their achievements in Bender Leadership Academy and also honored your good friend Joyce Bender, Linda Dickerson. And we, we have an Educator of the Year. We give it to one of our educators who helped with one of our programs at Bender Leadership Academy. We give one called the Bernita Buncher Award to a business and so many other great things. And we raise money from great sponsors, companies who participate in Disability Mentor Day, and partial proceeds do go to help fund those scholarships that we do give out every year.

Oh yeah, Linda Dickerson. If you don't know who she is, you should go to Google, read about her. She was one of my closest friends for years. And Linda had Werding-Hoffmann's disability. She was very small in stature, used a wheelchair. Her paralysis required that she was only using one hand, you know, with the wheelchair. And she just phenomenal, just a phenomenal individual. She's brilliant. First one to go to Carnegie Mellon in a wheelchair. Chair of the National Aviary, chair of the ballet, chair of the Pittsburgh Zoo. I mean, wonderful. So when she passed away, I decided we would have a scholarship in her name for young people. And it is wonderful, really wonderful. And I— Scott has them up on our website, the scholarship winners. Yes. So if you go to benderleadership.org, um, you know, you'll be able to see it. So, um, how about you, Sabrina? What's your favorite part of, of the VIP event?

Well, I think Scott hit the nail on the head when he said, you know, it's really exciting when the students get up and speak. You know, that's definitely my favorite part to see and to hear about their journey and what their future holds and hear about their accomplishments as well. So that's definitely my favorite part.

You know what, if you would do a poll here or a survey, what's your favorite part? 90% of the people would say when the students speak. Don't you agree with that, Scott?

Uh, it may be a little bit higher than 90%, but yeah, it's, um, always the highlight every single year.

Yeah, I mean, they're truly speaking, you know, from their experience. And I will say the food last year was a 10 out of 10.

Also always great food and, um, Getting back to the students, a lot of times I think some of these students do a better job speaking than some of the adults who speak because they go through our Bender Leadership Academy program and they learn about public speaking and it's old news to them. It's no big deal for them to get up there. Obviously they're nervous, but to be in front of 155 people at 15, 16, 17 years old, that's pretty brave.

Yes, every class, every class they have to give a speech up front, 2 minutes on things such as what does it take to be a good employee, or how can you help someone that's being bullied. By the time they graduate, I always tell them, okay, you're going to take my job, I can tell. I mean, they, they are authentic. It's powerful when they speak. And once again, it's at the Heinz History Center, which if you don't know is a Smithsonian. So Heinz History Center, the Monday before— what is that date?

This year is going to be Monday, October 6th at the Heinz History Center, 5:30.

5:30. Mm-hmm. So again, if you want to know more about it, you can get in touch. You know, Sabrina, when we're talking about Disability Mentoring Day, what all do you have to do to prepare for the day so people listening will have an idea?

Yeah, so it's definitely a process. We're really intentional in our preparation. You know, like I mentioned earlier, we offer, you know, to have people volunteer to participate, but we're also handpicking leaders who are enthusiastic and a good fit for the event, right? We do that, and we also like to learn about the students in advance so that we can provide personalized swag and have meaningful interactions. And most importantly, we design hands-on interactive activities, like I said, to make the, the day more memorable and not feeling so much like you're just right back in school, right? You're actually learning and participating in activities.

Yeah, that, that is great. Would you recommend this to other businesses listening right now thinking, oh, maybe I should consider doing that?

I absolutely would. And I wouldn't say, you know, you don't need to wait for the perfect year to start, you know, just start. Whether you're going to host 1 student or 50, the experience will transform, you know, your team in ways that you can't predict. And it's one of the most rewarding programs we've ever been a part of. and we encourage others to join in. And so, you know, from my experience, my first year doing it at EQT, I think we, I mean, we only had 4 students come and then, um, in 2024 we had 15. So I think, you know, play it by ear and, and do what you can and maybe grow the program down the road after you get comfortable.

Yes.

Yeah.

We always say to start small with it. Um, and cuz we want it to be successful for both of the, the organization and for the school district and the students.

So, yep. Right.

Yeah. Um, I wanted to ask you, uh, Scott, two questions. First, how does a school get involved? Like if, if someone's listening right now, they're thinking, oh, I wish our school was involved. How would you do that?

So they can do one of two things. They can connect with their— through the intermediate unit for their county, or if the school district wants to contact us directly, I know you gave my email address, or you can just go on our website. There's a Contact Us, and we'd be glad to set up a time to talk to the school about our Disability Mentoring Day program, but all of our programs, because we do student leaders, advanced student leaders, and all these different great things to help students with disabilities and prepare them for the world of work.

Yeah. How about if a parent is listening and, you know, I hear this all the time, "Oh, what can I do so that my child could get involved?" Yeah, we love when the parents call us because they want their student to succeed or their child to succeed.

Same thing. You gave my email address. You can go to our website, go to Contact Us. And then, you know, we'll, we'll contact them directly and talk to them about their child and what grade they're in, what school district they're in, and what, if what program might be the best suited for that child as far as for Bender Leadership Academy. We could do it directly.

You know what I wanted to ask you is, Sabrina, you did this at another company and then you started doing it here. You, as you said, you brought it with you. May I ask why? Why did you do that?

I had just such a great experience doing it at my previous company. And even with that, one of those years that I participated at my former company was during COVID So it was a virtual Disability Mentoring Day session, and even that was super rewarding. And I knew it was something that, you know, would be meaningful and impactful to bring to my new company. And it was. And so many people are excited to get involved now.

Well, that is great. That is just great. Scott, do you— have you seen an increase in companies that want to join?

Yeah, I think we have, uh, the companies I think are the, um, easier part because so many companies want to participate. Um, and so, and we're definitely trying to expand. I know we're trying to expand north of like Butler County and get into Cranberry Township and all the different surrounding counties and, and to get the, the companies involved and get the new school districts to participate. So, uh, yeah, the— it's amazing, like, even with the companies who participate, a lot of them have been doing it for 10, 15, 18, 19 years. They do it year after year because they love this program. And we definitely get at least one or two new companies in each year as well.

And some companies have even asked you to expand to other areas, isn't that correct?

Yeah, so we have a lot of— we have a few Fortune 500 companies and they have locations in different areas and all throughout the country. And, you know, we try to partner up with AAPD to see if there's a program at that city and/or if it's something in Pennsylvania, we have some cyber schools we're trying to get across the state of Pennsylvania as well.

Yeah, and I think that says— I think that just is wonderful. That says a lot about the program. So, uh, Sabrina, you're really a great person, and, uh, you really have a great attitude, and you're a disability rights leader for high school students with disabilities. You obviously were impacted by someone in your life that gave you that servant leadership thing and the desire to give up Who was that? Who was your role model?

Yeah, um, so I would say I have two. Um, one, my mom has, um, worked with, you know, students with disabilities and special needs all the way back to when I was very young, and she would take me to work with her, and I just loved, you know, seeing her interact with the students and, and really making adjustments to fit their needs, right? So that was really impactful. And then also, my brother-in-law has a disability. And so seeing my father-in-law, you know, take care of him and, and make adjustments for his needs has really been impactful for me. And he's in human resources as well. So we talk about this day all the time.

That's great. Scott, would you mind just going over a couple, a few of the other, the programs that we provide for people listening to the show?

Oh, absolutely, Joyce. Yeah, we have, with Bender Leadership Academy, we have many different programs. I like to say it's a continuum of learning. And besides Disability Mentoring Day, that's one day a year, we have other programs that go throughout the school year. We have our Student Leaders Program, which can be done in person or virtually, and that usually starts in November and goes to April. And they learn leadership skills, they learn public speaking, resume preparation, job interviewing practice, and, and everything. And we teach them healthy mind habits. That program was going so well, students and the parents and the educators are asking, what else can we do after that program? Because we finished it. So we created an Advanced Student Leaders Program that goes into a little bit more detail, a continuation of our Student Leaders Program. They talk about entrepreneurship and community engagement and different things like that. And in the summer, we have a Work Readiness Program where we have our students, they do sort of like a career journey, like what they're— they create a vision board of like getting their ideas of what they want to do after they graduate from school. And we do that typically during the summer, but we have a school district that does it throughout the school year. We teach digital accessibility during the summer for those students who are interested in IT because, you know, as you know, Joyce Bender, over 95% of the websites out there are not accessible. So it's a great thing where you get some learning about how to make things accessible. And then there's a— we partner up with AudioEye. They can continue the training and then get paid to make documents, make websites to help them be accessible. So that is a wonderful program that we do as well. So yeah, so many different things that we do, all based on getting youth with disabilities prepared for the world of work. We also have our Bender Mentoring Initiative where we look for mentors and mentees. Mentees are between the ages of 11 to 17, and we're looking for adults to help mentor them, make sure they're making some good decisions and going to school and guide them towards the right path as far as what they want to do after they graduate.

And we have the Student Leaders Program. Scott, if you could share with everyone, what is the difference with the students when they start the program to when they leave the program?

Yeah, so in person with you, 4 classes, and then virtually we do 5 or 6. So usually class 1, everybody is, um, shy, a little bit of hesitation. I'm not sure what this what the class is about and nervous. And then Joyce Bender, Liza Bender, and Bonnie Bender, some of our wonderful teachers, are in that class. And each class you see their confidence just build and build. They get more comfortable talking and doing speeches in front of their peers and learning. And everybody is super helpful with all the other students. We can even have 3 or 4 different school districts all in one class and they all support each other. They never knew each other before the class, but they got their back by class 2 and 3. And then by graduation, they have their speeches all typed out or written, prepared. Class 1, their attire is not that great, but we teach them about dressing for success. And by graduation, you'll see a lot of the students in shirts and ties, and they dress better than I do. It's just amazing, the transformation. And the confidence that they get throughout the school year and going through the, our student leaders program.

Oh, you don't know. I have had students that they were so afraid to go up front that they had to have someone go up with them to speak. And then by the end, they're saying they'll help other people and they are so confident. See, what you have to remember about high school students with disabilities You have to raise the bar, not lower the bar. You have to believe in their abilities, not label them. You know, the— I always say the only thing you should label is a jar, not people. And students with disabilities, they are often labeled, you know, oh, they can only do this much, and then their parents are told that. Don't do it. Don't do it. You have to know that they have great ability and that this program, we raise the bar and we will always raise the bar at the Bender Leadership Academy with this great celebration for Disability Mentoring Day, the third Wednesday of every October. Sabrina, Joyce Bender, thank you not only for being with us, but thank you for supporting students with disabilities and the Bender Leadership Academy. You know, if you're listening, you need to use her for your role model. We need more Sabrinas. We need more leaders in corporate America that say, I have time. I have time for this student. I have time to do this. And Sabrina, you know, you're a hero to me. I cannot thank you enough.

Thank you so much. That is so kind. No, I am very happy to be here, and I am so happy and very excited for the next Disability Mentoring Day coming up. So thank you.

Well, we love having you, Sabrina. Um, and Scott, as usual, um, great job. But we are so excited about Disability Mentoring Day. Oh, The keynote speaker, the keynote speaker will be the CEO of Disability:IN, one of the most recognized organizations in America by corporate America. Jill Houghton is the CEO, and she will be our speaker at the VIP kickoff that we just spoke to you about. So I hope to, if you're in Pittsburgh, We hope to see you. If you're in Pittsburgh, make sure you are participating in Disability Mentoring Day. And if you're anywhere else in the United States and you aren't doing this, you need to start now. And you can feel free to call us, and Scott will be free to give you some insight about how we got started and what you need to do to get started. So with that, uh, thanks again, Sabrina, We end every show with a quote, and today that quote is from John Dewey, who said, "Education is not preparation for life. Education is life itself." This is Joyce Bender, America's Voice, where disability matters, at voiceamerica.com. I will talk to you all next week. And when you go out today, tomorrow, every day, in the words of Mary Brooker, remember, choose joy.

Voice America would like to thank you for tuning in. Please join us next Tuesday at 11:00 AM Pacific Time and 2:00 PM Eastern Time for another installment of Disability Matters right here on the Voice America Variety Channel. We are the leader in live internet talk radio. VoiceAmerica.com.