Keynote Speaker

 

Joey Ramp-Adams, Empower Ability Consulting, Inc

Joey Ramp-Adams is a Biocognitive Neuroscientist who relies on a service dog to help manage her disability after a traumatic brain injury. Her service dog allows Joey to be an effective advocate and business owner; She is the founder of the disability access firm Empower Ability Consulting, Inc. (EAC), formed in 2017, and now serves eight countries. The company advocates for disabled students and STEM industry professionals. Joey has been instrumental in enacting changes in the American Society of Microbiology and the American Chemical Society’s laboratory safety guidelines to include inclusive guidelines for service dog handlers. Joey is a published author and public speaker on service dog access to science laboratories and the Vice-president of the International Alliance for Ability in Science (IAFAIS), a non-profit organization that provides scholarships for disabled student scientists.

Opening Speaker: Coming Soon!

Keynote: Joey Ramp-Adams, Empower Ability Consulting, Inc

Service Dogs in Science Labs: Barriers to Inclusion

People with disabilities who rely on service dogs are often prohibited from bringing their working dogs into teaching and research laboratories, biomedical careers, and employment opportunities in STEM fields. This one barrier can prevent them from pursuing careers in science. There is nearly a century-long history showing the efficacy of a service dog in providing independence and medical assistance for a disabled handler. This, in conjunction with the documented increase in the enrollment of students with disabilities in post-secondary education, people with disabilities in biomedical sciences, both academic and careers, and the documented increase in placement of service dogs to people with a wide variety of disabilities over the last four decades, illustrates that it is time we take a hard look at the importance of accessibility options and inclusion policies for service dog handlers in STEM fields. 

Special guest: Pax

Service Dogs in Science Labs: Policy and Procedures Discussion

Policies, procedures, and benchmarking tools establish guidelines by providing a basis for informed decision-making and giving faculty and staff tools for accommodating service dog handlers in science laboratories. These tools provide the knowledge needed to remove mystery and ambiguity. Joey Ramp-Adams outlines policies and practices that will make science laboratories accessible to people with service dogs. Proactively developing inclusive guidelines and policies for individual service dog handlers in science academic or industry laboratories is a step toward a diverse, inclusive, and accessible science culture, climate, and environment.

Joey Ramp-Adams, Empower Ability Consulting, Inc