Inclusive Communities Institute
ICI Self-Advocates
ICI Self-Advocates
Clearing paths to inclusion.
Our training and resources have been shaped, co-designed and developed with a team of New Brunswick self-advocate consultants. ICI prides itself for being inclusive, flexible and responsive and is designed to provide real opportunities and choice for learners to feel engaged and empowered.
The team of Self-Advocate consultants have shared their stories and experiences in the Leading the Way video. Take a look!
Our Self Advocate Team
Together with our team of Self-advocate consultants we have created foundational guiding documents to ensure we build respectful, inclusive learning opportunities for all.
The work done by our Self-Advocates has included:
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Developing a language guide that provides the how-to on inclusive language to inform all of our course development.
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Guide the development of our design guide with accessibility standards and guidelines to ensure our courses meet the needs of a wide range of learners.
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Provide in-depth course feedback and plain language suggestions to allow our courses to remain accessible and engaging for ICI learners.
“I was told because of my disability I couldn't learn, but I fooled them!”
Patty O’Donnell
Consultant/Self Advocate
Inclusive Communities Institute
Meet Patty
Patty lives in Saint John, NB. Her favourite part of working as a consultant for ICI was helping people and working to see that things are getting better for people with disabilities, meeting new people, sharing her experiences, and learning from those of others. Patty loves to read, shop with others and is also an online DJ extraordinaire during the week.
“After participating in a couple meetings, I started to feel very happy to be a part of a group. It’s very rewarding in the end if it helps others."
Michel Vienneau
Consultant/Self Advocate
Inclusive Communities Institute
Meet Michel
Michel lives in Fredericton, NB. His favourite part of working as a consultant for ICI was the new experience of consultant work and meeting new people. Michel enjoys cooking and going for walks around Fredericton.
"I want people to know who we are, we don’t want to be excluded, we want to be included”
Donna Brown
Consultant/Self Advocate
Inclusive Communities Institute
Meet Donna
Donna lives in St. André, NB. Her favourite part of working for ICI was being able to provide her expertise and experiences to help shape what ICI is doing. Donna is the First Vice President for People First of Canada and she is a crochet artist creating sweaters, hats, and more!