March Disability Awareness Breakfast

Join us for our March Disability Awareness Breakfast Finding Your Next Great Hire! Hear from a diverse panel on debunking disability myths, what resources are available to you and your business, how to create an inclusive work environment, and finding your next great hire. 

Agenda
8:30am         Registration & Breakfast Open
9am              Program Begins
9:45am         Q&A
10am            Event Concludes

Key Takeaways:
- Why disability inclusion is so important
- How to create an inclusive environment for employees with disabilities
- How to utilize your resources and find great talent
 

Meet Our Panelists & Moderator:

Meet Kellie Freeman

Kellie Freeman has served as the Transition Coordinator for Carmel Clay schools for the past 10 years.  Before working exclusively for Carmel, she served at the Transition Coordinator for the Hamilton Boone Madison Special Services Cooperative(which included Carmel Clay Schools) for 10 years.  Previous to her work as a Transition Coordinator, Kellie was a classroom special education teacher for 16 years….which is a total of 36 years in the world of special education and vocational training.

Kellie lives in Greenfield and is in her third term on the School Board for Mt. Vernon Community School Corporation. She has been married for 32 years and has two children.  Her son teaches at Mt. Vernon Middle school, and her daughter attends DePauw University in Greencastle.  Her husband retired from teaching after 41 years at the end of the 2020 school year.  Kellie plans to join him soon!

Meet Kristina Blankenship

Kristina began working at the State of Indiana Family and Social Services Administration in 2011. She currently directs Business & Community Engagement for the Bureau of Rehabilitation Services Vocational Rehabilitation program. This program assists individuals with physical or mental impairments to prepare for, secure, retain or regain employment. The focus of her work is dedicated to connecting resources with Indiana businesses that will assist them with creating disability hiring initiatives.

Meet Kara A Critchlow

Kara is an Anderson, IN native with 15 years experience working with individuals with disabilities in various capacities including Employment, Residential, Community Services, and Direct Care. She began her path in these fields by chance accepting a part-time job coaching position in 2008 and hasn't looked back since. Over her all-star tenure with Abound Community Services, she has formed many partnerships within her communities served and has consistently looked for new and creative ways to expand the horizons for everyone she serves. Kara is a Certified Employment Specialist and BIN Liaison, leading the Employment Services team throughout all of Indiana. She also serves on various committees supporting individuals with disabilities and those in recovery, speaks regularly on Disability Employment Awareness, and is on track to become a nationwide surveyor for CARF International. When not focusing on work, she enjoys spending time with her husband and three children.

Meet Jordan Dickey

Jordan Dickey is a Fishers resident who lives with distal spinal muscular atrophy and uses an electric wheelchair for mobility. For his undergraduate studies, Jordan majored in sports business at Arizona State University. After graduation, Jordan found it challenging to find a career, so he decided to go back to school and get his MBA at the University of Indianapolis. During his last semester at UIndy, Jordan interned with Statwax, a digital marketing company from Fishers. After the end of his internship, Jordan was offered a full-time position as the first data team member at Statwax. Fast forward five years, and Jordan is now the Executive Data Director at TrendyMinds after its acquisition of Statwax at the end of last year. Jordan is currently the leader of the four-person data team at TrendyMinds.
Outside of work, Jordan plays Power Soccer and is on Team USA, which will be traveling to Sydney, Australia, for the Power Soccer World Cup in October of this year.

Moderator: Kelly Hartman

Kelly has been working with people with intellectual and developmental disabilities for more than 33 years.  As the President & CEO of Insights, she is a leader in the industry known for innovation and passionate advocacy.   Insights provides residential, behavioral and music therapy services to more than 1200 people statewide.  While she wears many hats, here at home she currently serves as the Co-Chair of the Fishers Advisory Council on Disability with City Councilwoman, Cecilia Coble. 

Kelly is also the co-founder of Outside the Box, Inc. (OTB). A curriculum based program that focuses on skill development, job training and expressive arts through small, peer matched groups.  OTB supports more than 350 individuals who have intellectual and developmental disabilities at their Indianapolis campus – but are planning to expand their programming into the Fishers community.