WITH Foundation believes that individuals with disabilities are disability experts.
We are pleased to announce two new members of our Self-Advocate Advisory Committee. The Advisory committee works with the Foundation to review the proposals that WITH receives and provides input on whether or not applicants should receive funding, whether a proposal is designed well for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and whether a proposal includes self-advocates in the implementation of a proposed project.
Katie Murphy, Chair of WITH’s Advisory Committee, shared that “We are pleased to welcome these two outstanding advocates to the Committee. Their experience and expertise will be of value as the Committee continues to ensure that WITH’s grantmaking is shaped by adults with developmental disabilities”.
The two new members of the committee are:
DIEGO MARISCAL, Washington DC
Image Description: Smiling Latino with short dark hair wearing a blue shirt.
Diego Mariscal is passionate about the relationship between disability advocacy, entrepreneurship, and sustainable impact. At the age of 18, Diego started “Limitless Prepa Tec” a disability education program for students in Monterrey Mexico. In four years, the program expanded to seven high schools across the country, reaching more than 3,000 students nationwide. To this day, Limitless continues to be one of the largest youth-led programs in Monterrey Mexico, working to educate students about disabilities.
In 2015, Diego founded 2Gether-International, a non-for-profit startup that supports entrepreneurs with disabilities and moves us closer to a world where disability is recognized and valued as an asset for business and entrepreneurship. In his role as CEO and Chief Disabled Officer, Diego has collaborated with multinational organizations such as the U.S. Department of State, the Organization of American States, the Inter-American Development Bank and corporate companies like Blackboard and McKinsey to help them better understand disability as an asset for performance.
Diego has been internationally recognized for his work, most noticeably by the Waldzell Institute in Vienna as an Architect of the Future and by the British Council as a Global Changemaker. In 2014, he was also a Youth in International Development and Affairs Fellow for the U.S. International Council on Disabilities. In 2016, Diego was invited to the first United Nations World Humanitarian Summit held in Istanbul.
In 2017, Diego became the first entrepreneur with a disability, from the US delegation, to participate in the Global Entrepreneurship Summit held in Hyderabad, India. Diego has also been an honorary guest and spokesperson of the US Embassy of Panama and the US Consulate in Cd Juarez Mexico. He also received the Global Leadership in Equitable Development Award from the World Trade Credit & Risk Summit in Washington, DC.
Born with Cerebral Palsy in New Orleans but raised in Monterrey, Mexico, Diego also represented Nuevo Leon in the Mexican National Paralympics from 2004-2009.
LOU PANICCIOLI, New York City, NY
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Lou Paniccioli is a college graduate with a passion for politics and social justice. He recently completed core training in Kingian Nonviolence by the Selma Center for Nonviolence, Truth, and Reconciliation and earned a certificate in Disability Advocacy from American University with the American Association of People with Disabilities.
Lou is on the Executive Board of the Young Democrats of Richmond County and a member of the New York State Young Democrats and is the Secretary of the Disability Issues Caucus. Lou hopes to become an attorney fighting for civil rights of people with disabilities and possibly to venture into the non-profit industry or politics.
Lou believes that all people with disabilities have a right to be treated with dignity in all aspects of life– especially in regards to healthcare.
Existing Committee Members:
KATIE MURPHY – SAAC Committee Chair, Daly City, CA
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Katie Murphy (M.A., Women and Gender Studies) is an autistic self-advocate, higher education professional, and freelance audio describer. An alum of the Autism Campus Inclusion (ACI) Leadership Academy, Katie uses her institutional privilege to engage directly with funders, serving on the WITH Foundation’s Self-Advocacy Advisory Board and the Stakeholder Advisory Group of Ability Central. In connection with her career in higher education, she serves as a member of San Francisco State University’s All-University Committee on Students, Faculty, and Staff with Disabilities, and as a union steward and chapter officer for the California State University Employees Union. As an undergraduate and graduate student, Katie researched film and television’s depiction of disability in relation to gender, race, and sexuality. She’s translated that academic training into writing freelance audio description that foregrounds social context, and serving on the jury for Superfest International Disability Film Festival. She lives on the Peninsula.
IVANOVA SMITH, Tacoma, WA
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Ivanova Smith is a leader in advocacy in Washington State. They are currently the Co-chair of Self-Advocates in Leadership (SAIL), a legislature advocacy organization run by self-advocates. They are currently a part of UW LEND Faculty. They are very passionate about medical advocacy for people with I/DD. Ivanova is excited to share their perspectives as an autistic person to help make the medical community more inclusive to our care.
YOLANDA VARGAS, Sacramento, CA
A smiling light brown skinned woman with black hair pulled back wearing glasses,a white shirt and dark sweater.
Yolanda Vargas has dedicated her life to helping people in marginalized communities. She is a part of Y. O.! Disabled & Proud! She believes in fighting ignorance with information and understanding. Society shouldn’t just “tolerate” people with different backgrounds, but celebrate them and make sure that they have equal opportunities to participate in the things that affect them. Yolanda hopes to show people with all types of disabilities that self-advocacy is the key to creating a more inclusive society. Our voices matter, it’s time we start using them.
REBECA AGUIRRE, Torrance, CA
A smiling light skinned female with short black hair wearing a black shirt.
Shortly after starting at a “regular” high school Rebeca began struggling with uncontrollable mood swings. She would start crying for no reason, then feel indestructible– believing that everyone was conspiring against her. She dealt with these feelings and episodes for over 30 years. “Surely that many people with Developmental Disabilities as well as Intellectual Disabilities have had similar situations in their own lives growing up”, says Rebeca, “A person just wants to be seen merely as a person, certainly not the sum of their disability.”
KECIA WELLER, Santa Monica, CA
A light skinned female with shoulder length brown hair wearing a bright blue shirt.
Ms. Weller is an accomplished disability rights and a sexual assault awareness and prevention advocate that has worked in the field for more than 20 years. Her current advocacy work is with the California State Rehabilitation Council (SRC) and the UCLA Tarjan Center. She was on the State Council on Developmental Disabilities, where she worked with colleagues to create the popular PSA: Abuse of People with Disabilities: A Silent Epidemic at https://youtu.be/yhLsATwO0o4 (over 15,700 views!) Ms. Weller is fond of mentoring other people with disabilities to be outstanding leaders in the civil rights movements for disabilities.
Note of thanks
We’d like to thank Brent White, who has stepped down after 4 years of service on the Committee. We appreciate his work and wish him continued success in his endeavors.
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We appreciate each of our Advisory Committee members and the ways in which they strengthen WITH’s grantmaking!
To learn more about the Self-Advocate Advisory Committee, visit: withfoundation.org/self-advocate-advisory-committee