1. 2022 Rotaract Preconvention #Rotaract22

2. 2022 Rotaract Preconvention #Rotaract22
Let’s Celebrate
Inclusion by
amplifying our
Abilities
By: Stephanie Picazo & Yaneli Pena
Rotaract Club Of Mission, Texas

3. Do you know
someone with a
disability?
2022 Rotaract Preconvention | #Rotaract22

4. 61 Million
People with Disabilities
in the United States
That 1 in 4 adults in
the U.S. has a disability

5. Stephanie Picazo
• I am a Proud Hispanic Women, with a
disability and my pronoun are She/Her.
• Founding President of the Rotaract Club of
Mission, Texas in District 5930
• Bachelor’s Degree in Rehabilitation Services
and double minored in Psychology and
Criminal Justice from the University of Texas-
Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV).
• Currently a Graduate Student pursing a degree
in Clinical Rehabilitation Counseling
• Program Coordinator & Trainer for Advocates
Searching for Independence LLC., (ASI)
providing Pre-Employment Transition Services
to young adults with disabilities, between the
age 14-22.

6. Yaneli Pena
• I am a Proud Hispanic Women, with a
disability and my pronoun are She/Her.
• Yaneli Pena is currently serving as
President of the Rotaract Club of Mission.
• Bachelor’s in Social Work from the
University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley
• Pre-ETS Trainer for (ASI) Advocates
Searching for Independence LLC
providing Pre-Employment Transition
Services to young adults with disabilities,
between the age 14-22.

7. —Helen Keller
“Alone we can do so little but
together we can do so much.”
2022 Rotaract Preconvention | #Rotaract22

8. Rotaract Club of
Mission, Texas!
We are the first community/cause-
based Rotaract Club to focus on
ensuring individuals of all abilities
and backgrounds in D5930

9. • Our club’s mission is that we believe that
creating a culture that celebrates diversity and
treats everyone with dignity and respect is a
step forward to increasing understanding and
peace in the world.
• 75% of our club members have disclosed that
they have a disability

10. What is disability?
According to the Center of Diseases Control
(CDC), a disability is any condition of the body
or mind (impairment) that substantially limits
one or more major life activity.
Making it more difficult for the person with the
condition to do certain activities, and interact
with the world around them.
2022 Rotaract Preconvention | #Rotaract22

11. What is accessibility and inclusion?
Accessibility means a
person with a disability is
afforded the opportunity to
acquire the same
information, engage in the
same interactions, and
enjoy the same services as
a person without a
disability in an equally
effective and equally
integrated manner
Being inclusive is about
giving equal access and
opportunities to everyone
wherever possible.

12. What’s new on the
American Disability Scene
● 80% of all American will
experience a disability in some
point in their lives
● Advances in medicine and
increased life expectancies mean
that people with disabilities are
living, often more comfortable
lives than ever before
● Disabilities communities is
becoming both younger and older

13. Emerging Disabilities
Emerging disabilities result
from diseases or health
conditions that are either (a)
recently recognized and
increasing in prevalence in a
population

14. Examples of Emerging Disabilities
 Autism Spectrum Disorder
& Other
Neurodevelopmental
Disabilities (eg. non-
verbal learning
disabilities, cerebral
palsy)
 Environment-related
conditions
o Asthma
o Allergies
o Multiple Chemical
sensitivity
 Rare Disorders
 Autoimmune Diseases
o Multiple sclerosis
o Lupus
o graves’ disease
o Crohn’s disease
 Age-related health
conditions
o Dementia
o Hearing loss
o Low vision
o Orthopedic
impairments
o Parkinson’s disease
o Rheumatoid Arthritis
 Covid-19
 Lifestyle-related
conditions
o Diabetes
o Heart Disease
o Cancer
 Chronic Pain
 Post-Traumatic Stress
Disorder and other
stress and trauma-
related disorders
 Disabilities caused by
violence, including
military
 Traumatic Brain
Injury

15. What do
you see?

16. Friends, Rotaractors, Rotarians,
neighbors, coworkers, dad, grandma,
Joe’s sister, my big brother, our cousin,
George, husband, wife, colleague,
employee, boss, reporter, driver, dancer,
mechanic, lawyer, judge, student,
educator, home owner, man, woman,
adult, child, partner, participant,
member, voter, citizen, amigo or any
other word you would use for a person.
Who are
People with Disabilities?

17. Disability should increasingly
be viewed as a natural,
normal part of the human
experience…

18. How can
ROTARY/ROTARACT Clubs
be more
Inclusive and Accessible?
2022 Rotaract Preconvention | #Rotaract22

19. We will share 5 strategies
1: Person First-Language/ Identity-First
2: Optimizing our club meetings to be
more Accessible
3: Providing Mentoring Oppurtunities
4: Building Partnerships
5: Being more Empathetic and Creating
Awareness

20. • Person-first language is language
that puts a person before their
diagnosis, such as being a person
with a disability. Identity-first
language is language that leads
with a person’s diagnosis, such as
being a disabled person.
• As part of the effort—it’s important
to eliminate prejudicial language.
• Every individual regardless of sex,
age, race or ability deserves to be
treated with dignity and respect.
1: Person First-
Language/
Identity-First

21. • Avoid negative words that imply tragedy, such as
afflicted with, suffers, victim, prisoner, and
unfortunate. Which has stain the Disability
Community.
• Recognize that individual should be in control and
that the best practice is to ask the individual how
he/she prefers to be identified.
Ex: Person with Autism (Person-First Language)
Autistic (Identity-First)
2022 Rotaract Preconvention | #Rotaract22

22. 2: Optimizing our club meetings to
be more Accessible
• We live in a World that is not accessible to everyone
due to architecture design and in fractures not
welcoming to all.
• Adopting a universal design, it refers to the design
of buildings, products and environments that are
accessible to everyone, regardless of age or ability.
• However the best practice when scheduling an in-
person or virtual meeting, its beneficial to ask if
anyone need an accommodation

23. Ex: Building Accessibility for
In-Person Meetings
2022 Rotaract Preconvention | #Rotaract22
Accessible Buildings Space for Movement

24. 2022 Rotaract Preconvention | #Rotaract22
Ex: Building Accessibility for
Virtual Meetings
Large
Print
Video
Recorded
Close
Captioning

25. 3: Providing
Mentoring
Oppurtunities
• Studies confirm that quality
mentorship positively affects
young people in various personal,
academic, and professional
situations.
• Ultimately, mentoring connects a
person to personal growth,
development, social and economic
opportunity.
• By the way are sponsoring Rotary
club mentors Rotaractors by
providing them Vocational
guidance, Career change,
Leadership and Educational
Opportunities. #teameffort

26. 4: Building Partnerships
● First hand Learning is a great
opportunity to learn, engage, and
interact with individuals with
different needs.
● Providing opportunities for members
with disabilities to have a seat at the
table
● Collaborating with organization in
community that promote disability
awareness
● Ex: Workforce Centers, Foundations
and Organizations 2022 Rotaract Preconvention | #Rotaract22

27. 5: Being more Empathetic and
Creating Awareness
• Equality means each
individual or group of people
is given the same resources
or opportunities.
vs.
• Equity recognizes that each
person has different
circumstances and allocates
the exact resources and
opportunities needed to
reach an equal outcome.
2022 Rotaract Preconvention | #Rotaract22

28. By Following this Strategies
● There are many benefits of fostering inclusive
clubs. These benefits include
○ Increased Membership
○ Better Morale
○ More Diverse Thinking
○ Greater Community Activities
○ Improved Membership Retention

29. Lets end this endless cycle of debate
were we are unable to come to a
common ground on how to make our
clubs more accessible…
disAbilities
2022 Rotaract Preconvention | #Rotaract22

30. If we, as Rotaractors, can
fulfill the strategies shared
today, we believe that we can
advance in diversity, equity
and inclusion.
2022 Rotaract Preconvention | #Rotaract22

31. What is something you can take
away from this presentation?
2022 Rotaract Preconvention | #Rotaract22

32. Join us in Good Trouble!
2022 Rotaract Preconvention | #Rotaract22

33. CREDITS: This presentation template was created by
Slidesgo, including icons by Flaticon, and infographics &
images by Freepik
THANKS
Do you have any questions?
stephaniepicazo01@gmail.com
+1 956-789-1915
Rotaract Club of Mission, Texas