DBTAC: Southeast ADA Center

Business Leadership Council

The Business Leadership Council (BLC) guides the DBTAC: Southeast ADA Center (Southeast DBTAC) in planning and implementing effective activities that promote the employment, retention and promotion of individuals with disabilities. Certain members also provide direct technical assistance and training support in implementing proposed activities and information customized to the needs of businesses about the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

We recognize and respect the importance of your inquiry and will respond as soon as possible. Information Specialists are available Monday - Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. ET. Inquiries from outside the eight U.S. Southeast states we serve will be directed to the DBTAC: ADA Center that serves your state.

Michael Morris (BLC Facilitator), Burton Blatt Institute

Mr. Morris has over 25 years of experience at a national and state level advancing social and economic freedom for Americans with disabilities. His leadership puts a focus on needed assistive technology and its essential role in accommodating people with disabilities in the areas of employment, education, housing, communications and daily living. Mr. Morris is currently the project director for the US Department of Labor funded Disability Program Navigator (DPN) Initiative to improve access to employment services through One-Stop Career Centers and the workforce development system. DPNs are funded in 30 states including 5 of the 8 southeastern states and are creating important new linkages with the Business community.

Lara Burnside, The Studer Group

Ms. Burnside is the Human Resources Director for The Studer Group in Florida. She oversees all HR functions in leadership role including recruitment, hiring, orientation, employee performance, development plans. The Studer Group represents a workforce of 95 people in fifteen states and currently employs three people with disabilities. Ms. Burnside is also the president of the Panhandle Chapter of Florida Business Leadership Network (BLN), and a committee leader for Society for Human Resource Managers. She has BA from the University of West Florida in Communications with emphasis on Public Relations.

Lillian Fawbush, Citigroup, Inc.

Ms. Fawbush is a Job Recruiter for Citigroup, Inc. in Louisville, Kentucky. She works closely with the Center for Accessible Living, the Southeast DBTAC’s Kentucky Affiliate. Citigroup Inc. is today’s pre-eminent financial services company, with some 200 million customer accounts in more than 100 countries. One of the most important elements of Citigroup’s leadership has been its longstanding commitment to diversity.

In recognition of Disability Awareness Month, Citigroup employees in New York mentored more than 20 students and professionals with disabilities on Disability Mentor Day. This program offers people with disabilities the chance to learn about career and employment opportunities in financial services and to meet one-on- one with mentors who offer insight and advice about career paths.

Ben R. Foster, SunTrust Banks, Inc.

Mr. Foster is the Region Staffing Manager Vice President for SunTrust Banks, Inc. in Atlanta, Georgia and has served 25 years in various corporate Human Resources capacities. Supporting the company’s diversity objectives is a business expectation and personal commitment. SunTrust, headquartered in Atlanta, is one of the nation’s top 10 commercial banking organizations and employs approximately 30,000 employees. SunTrust Banks, Inc. is one of the nation's largest commercial banking organizations with more than 1,600 branch locations and 2,700 ATMs in the southeastern U.S. The company operates an extensive distribution network primarily in Florida, Georgia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and the District of Columbia, and also serves customers in selected markets nationally.

Ben manages a team of 15 recruiters and support personnel who recruit for all types of positions within the Atlanta Region Bank and for corporate and functional departments. Ben’s team of recruiters fill 2000 open position requisitions per year. He and his recruiters actively recruit people with disabilities as successful hires for SunTrust, and various methods are used to source qualified candidates, including partnerships that are developed with the Department of Labor and various disability organizations. He is a member of SunTrust’s Diversity Site Council for the Atlanta Region and has served three years on the Board of Directors for Georgia’s Disability Resource Group, Inc. (a member of the Southeast DBTAC Affiliate Leadership Council). Ben is currently spear-heading a Project Search program in partnership with the Atlanta Public Schools, Brigg & Associates and SunTrust. The Project Search program is a work transition program for students with developmental disabilities. Ben holds a business degree from Clemson University.

Philip H Kosak, Carolina Fine Snacks

Mr. Kosak is President of Carolina Fine Snacks in Greensboro, North Carolina, a small manufacturer of snack foods. Kosak's employees have disabilities including schizophrenia, cerebral palsy, leaming disorders, and visual and hearing impairments. Mr. Kosak says the workers with disabilities do "everything" from working on the production line to operating high-technology equipment.

Valerie McLeod, Tennessee Valley Authority

Ms. McLeod is the 501/504/508 Program Manager for Corporate Responsibility and Diversity for the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA). TVA is the nation’s largest public power company, with 33,000 megawatts of dependable generating capacity. Through 159 locally owned distributors, TVA provides power to about 8.8 million residents of the Tennessee Valley. Ms. McLeod represents TVA at various public conferences and delivers presentations on disability and diversity issues. She has served on the Board of Directors of he Disability Resource Center of East Tennessee and is a Governor appointee to the Statewide Independent Living Council.

Buffy Smith, Alec Naman Catering, Inc.

Ms. Smith is the Human Resources Manager for Alec Naman Catering, Inc. , a private company in Mobile, Alabama whose event planners are experienced in all aspects of event planning. With three locations, they employ at workforce of over 230 people, several of whom are deaf including an Executive Chef.

WKRG.com News5 produced the "Def Chef " featuring Chef Tony Marcopulos of Naman's Catering who was born deaf and heads a crew consisting of hearing and hearing impaired workers. (Sources: Article and Video - wkrg.com/news/article/def_chef/7302/; Company website - namanscatering.com).

Ron Talley, Assistech Group

Mr. Talley is a Disability Specialist/Consultant and Group Manager for Assistech Group in Birmingham, Alabama. Assistech is an entrepreneurial company that represents a workforce of four in Alabama, Indiana and Pennsylvania and currently employs one person with disabilities. He is the former Manager for BellSouth Corporation. Mr. Talley provides workshops for employers on the benefits of hiring people with across disabilities and cultural backgrounds.

Gayel Wigfall, Blue Cross/Blue Shield

Mr. Wigfall is the Diversity Manager for Blue Cross/Blue Shield of South Carolina. Blue Cross and Blue Shield and its family of subsidiaries serve more than 8.3 million people. Mr. Wigfall is a member of the Columbia Mayor's Committee of Employment for PWD and Vice President of the SC Vocational Rehabilitation's Business Partnership Network.

Justin Williams, Home Depot

Mr. Williams is the Human Resource Manager with Home Depot in Florida and member of Jacksonville Business Leadership Network (BLN). Home Depot is the world's largest home improvement retailer which first opened in Atlanta, Georgia in 1979 and now operates 2,005 stores throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico. A new store opens on average every 48 hours. The Home Depot strives to be the best corporate partner possible in our communities. To be the Employer of Choice means creating an inclusive and associate-centered culture. At The Home Depot, that means providing meaningful and challenging work for our associates that creates opportunity for growth and development.

The Home Depot is committed to hiring a diverse work force. As a sign of its commitment, Home Depot has partnered with national nonprofit and government agencies and educational organizations. These partnerships allow us to reach out to the communities in which we operate, and provide our company with a broad range of qualified candidates with diverse backgrounds. Partnerships include AARP, US Department of Labor, The Art Institutes, and four of the country's leading national Hispanic organizations: The ASPIRA Association, Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU), National Council of La Raza (NCLR), and SER - Jobs for Progress National.

Top of Page