Building Community Connections: Partnerships for Cultural Organizations

Tuesday, March 24, 2026 from 1:00-2:00 p.m. ET
Free for everyone

Would you like to involve more people with disabilities in programming, volunteer opportunities, and employment? Did you know that there are organizations that want to connect with cultural organizations, and may even offer supports?

Join us for an interactive panel discussion on creating connections between cultural organizations and local disability communities. Aliza Greenberg (Museum Access Coalition/Learning Spring School), Josh Taylor (Associate Professor of Special Education, Dept. of Teaching and Learning, Washington State University, and Karen Waltuck (The Consortium for Customized Employment, NYC) will discuss partnerships between cultural organizations and nonprofit and governmental entities that serve people with developmental disabilities, with time for Q&A.

Come learn practical ways to engage people with developmental disabilities more fully in both employment and programming!

Register Here!

Our panelists:

Aliza Greenberg (she/they) is the Community Outreach Coordinator at LearningSpring School, a school for autistic students, where she previously served as the Arts Enrichment Coordinator. Aliza is also a Project Advisor for the Supporting Transitions project with the Museum, Arts and Culture Access Consortium (MAC), a project she built alongside the MAC board as the Project Leader over the last 10 years. She is an Adjunct Professor at City College of New York and New York University and a Teaching Artist with CO/LAB Theater Group, a theater company for people with developmental disabilities. Aliza has consulted with theaters and museums across the country to develop accessible programming. Aliza earned an Advanced Certificate in School Building Leadership from St. John's University, a B.A. from Bryn Mawr College and an Ed.M. from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Aliza is currently a doctoral student at the CUNY Graduate Center in the Urban Education program.

Josh Taylor is an Associate Professor of Special Education in the Department of Teaching and Learning at Washington State University. His research focuses on promoting lifelong success for individuals with autism and developmental disabilities through implementation of evidence-based practices in inclusive school, work, and community settings. Dr. Taylor has published over 50 peer-reviewed articles and book chapters related to school, transition, and employment experiences and outcomes of individuals with IDD in addition to clinical experience as a K-12 special educator and autism specialist, as well as providing training and technical assistance at the state and national levels. Much of his work focuses on leveraging partnerships with various community, state, and national stakeholders in order to implement research-based recommendations in policy and practice. Dr. Taylor earned a PhD in special education from Virginia Commonwealth University with a focus on research-to-policy implementation, and a Master’s in special education from the University of Virginia.

From 1979-2009, Karen Waltuck was co-owner of the internationally acclaimed restaurant Chanterelle, responsible for fiscal and front-of-house operations. Recipient of four James Beard Foundation Awards including Best Service and Best Restaurant in the US. Karen set the standard of what has become the widely practiced modern style of service: professionalism without pretension, and the commitment to hiring that reflects New York City’s diverse communities. With 30 years of business experience, and as the proud parent of a young person with ASD, Karen knew firsthand the power of employment, and that workplace diversity makes smart business sense. In 2012, after the restaurant closed, and aware of this enormous untapped resource, Karen jumped at the opportunity to direct a new Job Path initiative, The Consortium for Customized Employment. The Consortium is composed of fourteen non-profits using the customized employment model to achieve long-term employment for skilled New Yorkers with developmental disabilities. As director, Karen’s focus has been twofold: strengthening the community of practice to create lasting job opportunities for this growing population, and establishing partnerships across a broad cross-section of businesses, industries, cultural and educational institutions to create truly inclusive workplaces that reflect the diversity of our great City. Full workplace inclusion is an important social justice issue and Karen is thrilled to continue to direct this innovative initiative.

Closed captioning and ASL interpretation are both available for all webinars. For the most accessible viewing experience, we recommend watching the webinar on a desktop computer or laptop screen. For more information or to request other access services, please contact the Office of Accessibility and VSA at (202) 416-8898 (voice) or [email protected].

The content of this program was developed under grant H421F240164 from the U.S. Department of Education (Department). The Department does not mandate or prescribe practices, models, or other activities described or discussed in this program. The content of this program may contain examples of, adaptations of, and links to resources created and maintained by another public or private organization. The Department does not control or guarantee the accuracy, relevance, timeliness, or completeness of this outside information. The content of this program does not necessarily represent the policy of the Department. This program is not intended to represent the views or policy of or be an endorsement of any views expressed or materials provided by any Federal agency (EDGAR 75.620).