DisCourse is a consulting and coaching group dedicated to helping businesses, educational institutions, and nonprofit organizations craft comprehensive strategies of accessibility and inclusion. Through careful review of existing institutional missions and goals, instructional workshops, communication and marketing review, and systematic access planning, DisCourse helps multiple types of communities create standards of accessibility that move beyond ADA compliance. This work is informed by findings and experiences associated with DisArt and its public programming.
DisCourse Competencies
- Disability Cultural Competency
- Access-Forward Communication
- Access-Forward Design
- Exhibition Planning
- Conference and Event Planning
Sample DisCourse Offerings:
- Keynote and Other Public Presentations
- Trainings/Workshops
- Coaching for Leadership, Staff, Volunteers, Funders, and/or Board Members
- Website Review
Past and Current Engagements
2014
Panel | Critical Discourse | ArtPrize |Grand Rapids, MI
2015
Panel | Critical Discourse | ArtPrize |Grand Rapids, MI
2016
Keynote | International Art Brut Conference | Shiga, Japan
2017
Coaching |Stryker Medical | Kalamazoo, MI
Event Planning, Media Coaching | Local First | Grand Rapids, MI
Keynote | International Art Brut Conference |Shiga, Japan
Panel | Art Brut Network Forum | Shiga, Japan
Panel | Break It Down.Make It Better | Grand Rapids, MI
Workshop | Habitat for Humanity | Grand Rapids, MI
2018
Coaching | Little Space Studio | Grand Rapids, MI
Event Planning |Frey Foundation | Grand Rapids, MI
Exhibition and Event Planning, Docent Workshop | Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park | Grand Rapids, MI
Keynote |National Council of Arts Administrators |Grand Rapids, MI
Keynote | Disability Art: International Dialogues about the Lived Experience of Disability | International Art Brut Conference | Shiga, Japan
Keynote |Awareness, Understanding, Belonging: New Thinking on Education, Access, and Participation |Michigan Association of Arts Educators | Kalamazoo, MI
Panel | ArtPrize Critical Discourse | Grand Rapids, MI
Panel | Break It Down.Make It Better | Grand Rapids, MI
Presentation | Art of Celebrated Service |Celebration! Cinema| Grand Rapids, MI
Website Review| Experience Grand Rapids | Grand Rapids, MI
2019
Keynote | MI-AHEAD 2019 Spring Conference | Grand Rapids, MI
Keynote | Advancing Our Communities Symposium |Creative Growth| Oakland, CA
Panel |Critical Infrastructure | Project 1 | Grand Rapids, MI
Panel | Disability and the Art of Drag | Grand Rapids, MI
Disability Drag and the LGBTQ Community | September 6 | Grand Rapids, Michigan
Panel |Disability Sexuality and Agency | Grand Rapids, Michigan
Panel |Disability Arts and Civil Rights | Grand Rapids, Michigan
Presentation and Volunteer Training Podcast |LaughFest | Grand Rapids, MI
Presentation | Creative Mornings | Grand Rapids, MI
Presentation | Association of Midwest Museums | Grand Rapids, MI
Workshop |Grand Rapids Art Museum | Grand Rapids, MI
Workshop, Consulting, Volunteer Training Podcast, Website Review| ArtPrize | Grand Rapids, MI
2020
Panel | Break It Down.Make It Better | Grand Rapids, MI
Panel |”Crip Camp” | Disability Arts Cymru | Cardiff, Wales (virtual)
Presentation | 30th Anniversary of the ADA | Upgrade Accessibility | Michigan (virtual)
Presentation | ADA Every Day | ADA 20 Michigan |Michigan (virtual)