About Us

Our Board of Directors

Alan Holdsworth A.K.A. Johnny Crescendo - President

Alan has been an educator on disability rights for 30 years as part of the first vanguard of educators through his music and poetry. He was schooled by the giants of the disability rights movement.

His major achievements include creating the first independent living program for people with learning disabilities, developing a comprehensive training for Educators and Care Coordinators, being central to the passing Disability Discrimination Act in the UK., leading a grassroots movement, DAN the Direct Action Network, to make public transport accessible. He has also been a freelance consultant and policy advisor. Alan has been educating others and himself for almost 40 years about disability. Issues. He is also a world-famous disability rights singer-songwriter and one of the forefathers of the Disability Arts movement.

"My first love is education, be it in the classroom with young people or in the walls of power with those who can set disabled people free from the discrimination that persists.”

“I am so proud of this project and I see it as my last mission to pass on to all young people our Ideas and our history to create the perfect union between disabled and non-disabled people that shapes societies and communities for the better in the future."

“I do hope that all educators will embrace this idea of opening up the conversation, use our resources and teach us how to make it more relevant to your experience and the children you teach.”

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Lisa Aquila - Vice President

Lisa is an advocate for the independent living movement since the early 1990s. Lisa has worked as a personal care attendant for Home & Community based services since 2006. Lisa is an active volunteer for the Disability Equality Education project since 2017. She is working with the Coalition on Disability Inclusive Curriculum to build awareness and support for Pennsylvania’s Disability Inclusive Curriculum Legislation.

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Deirdre MacDermott - Treasurer

Deirdre MacDermott currently works at Liberty Resources, Inc as a senior accountant. She is deeply involved in their mission of inclusivity and justice for disabled people. She has also been active in the struggle for decent and affordable housing for low-income people and has spent many hours in Philadelphia City Hall, protesting for increased funding for affordable housing. She looks forward to a day when inclusion and equal access for all will be the norm.

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Stacy McCafferty - Secretary

Stacy McCafferty is the Business Administrator for the Disability Equality Education project and works to challenge disability stigma in schools and colleges throughout PA. Stacy has been with DEAN since it was founded in 2017. Stacy earned her Master’s Degree in Clinical-Counseling Psychology from La Salle University with honors. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with family and friends.

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Dr. Christa Bialka

Dr. Christa S. Bialka is Associate Professor of Special Education and Director of the Undergraduate Teacher Education Program in the Department of Education and Counseling at Villanova University. Dr. Bialka received her M.Ed. in Moderate Special Needs Education from Boston College and her Ed.D. in Teaching, Learning and Teacher Education from the University of Pennsylvania. She is a former English and Special Education teacher who currently teaches classes on diversity, equity, and inclusion, and Disability Studies in Education. Her research interests include understanding the development of teacher dispositions and raising disability awareness in K-12 and higher education.

Tony Brooks

Tony has been a disability activist and advocate since 2013. He’s an active member of ADAPT and proud to part of the Disability Education and Advocacy Network Board.

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Caitlin Chaser

Caitlin Chasar was selected as the 2022 Ms. Wheelchair Pennsylvania Titleholder. and is a woman living with spina bifida Her platform is advocating for accessible recreation centers. Caitlin has been involved in wheelchair sports from the age of ten and helped start the first women’s wheelchair basketball team at Edinboro University. Caitlin currently serves as the Executive Director of Bucks County Center for Independent Living. She considers herself to be a disability rights advocate.

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Christian Huber

Christian Huber is a Social Work and Music major and President of the Disability Pride Club at Bucks County Community College. He is passionate about fostering a safe and welcoming Zoom-based virtual club environment where he, along with other disabled students and their allies, authentically share and discuss the impact their disabilities have on their lives.

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Dr. Thomas Neuville

Thomas Neuville is Professor of Special Education and Disability Studies in the Department of Educational Foundations at Millersville University in Millersville, PA. He has more than forty years’ experience in education, community, and organizational development. Dr Neuville’s current work is centered on designing coherent models of planning and program development within the systems of Education. Specifically, he is working with teacher candidates to develop strategies that are founded on social justice and focused on true personalization.

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Sharon Pennock

Sharon Pennock is a volunteer and board member with Disability Equality in Education and DEAN since its inception in 2017. She loves listening and making connections to bring more awareness, acceptance, understanding, visibility and representation surrounding disability.

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About Us