Karen Leventhal, MS :: Director of the Tarjan Center Service Inclusion Project
kleventhal@mednet.ucla.edu

Karen is the Director of the Tarjan Center Service Inclusion Project (TCSIP). She sees her role as Catalyst, Community Organizer and Insight Generator. TCSIP has successfully delivered on $1.75 million in grants and contracts related to the inclusion of individuals with disabilities in service and volunteerism. TSCIP has distributed more than 30 seed grants, provided approximately 10, 000 instances of technical assistance, established service inclusion coalitions in 10 cities, which engaged more than 1000 community stakeholders. These activities led more than 5000 individuals with disabilities to give 65,000 hours of service to their communities, and led 500 community-based organizations to show demonstrated improvements in accessibility. Since 2003, TCSIP has helped people with and without disabilities come together to solve community problems. Karen holds an M.S. in Community Development from the University of California at Davis and a B.A. in Psychology from the University of Rochester. She is an AmeriCorps*VISTA alumnus and former AmeriCorps outreach consultant. She has a background in training and program management. The Service Inclusion Project combines some of her major interests, including: inclusive communities, public service, and the collaborative process. In her off time, she is a creative writer and fitness enthusiast.

Olivia Raynor, PhD :: Co-Director Tarjan Center and Principal Investigator, Alliance for Inclusion Advancement.
oraynor@mednet.ucla.edu

Olivia Raynor, is the Co-Director of the Tarjan Center and Director of the National Arts and Disability Center at the Semel Institute, University of California Los Angeles. Dr. Raynor holds degrees from Boston University and the University of Southern California in Occupational Therapy and a doctorate from the University of California Los Angeles in Educational Psychology. For over 25 years Dr. Raynor has been engaged in projects addressing the inclusion of individuals with disabilities in employment, volunteerism and service, post secondary education, and the arts. Dr. Raynor has a particular interest in how federal and state policies actually play out in practice and their impact on individuals with disabilities and their families. Dr. Raynor is also the founding Director of the National Arts and Disability Center (NADC) at the University of California Los Angeles. Under her direction, the NADC produces a highly trafficked Internet based information, resource and conference center for artists with disabilities, arts administrators, educators and policy makers. Recently she revised and updated The Accessibility Planning and Resource Guide for Cultural Administrators for the National Endowment for the Arts. Since 2002, Dr. Raynor has administered the Statewide Forums on Careers in the Arts for People with Disabilities initiative for the NEA and VSA arts. Now in its 5th year, twenty states will have conducted statewide forums by the end of 2006. Dr. Raynor educates a wide range of constituencies in the arts regarding audience outreach, accessibility to the arts, and the career development of emerging artists with disabilities. Dr. Raynor is a governor appointed member of the State Council on Developmental Disabilities and sits on the Executive and Program Planning Committees of the Council. She chairs the Strategic Planning Committee for the Council. In 2000 she received an award from the Corporation on Disabilities and Telecommunication, and the World Institute on Disability for providing opportunities for people with disabilities in the arts.