Advisory Board on Disability

Delta’s Customer Advisory Board on Disability promotes accessibility for all our customers by providing leadership in achieving our sustainable goal: making Delta, carrier of choice for customers with disabilities in all aspects of our business.

Mission Statement:

“Making Delta, carrier of choice for customers through operational excellence, “second mile” service and building emotional connections with the disability community.”

Shanti Aaron

Georgia Department of Labor
Atlanta, Georgia
Shanti Aaron is the Social Security programs manager for Georgia Department of Labor Vocational Rehabilitation Services. She holds a MS degree from the University of Wisconsin-Stout in Vocational Rehabilitation, as well as post graduate certification in Management. She has worked in all facets of Vocational Rehabilitation for twenty plus years. Ms. Aaron has served on a variety of Boards and Committees as an advocate for persons with disabilities. She currently resides in Atlanta.

Lydia Graber

Michigan Commission on Disability Concerns (MCDC)
Lansing, Michigan
Ms. Graber has served as a board member since April 2002. She has been a member of the Michigan Commission on Disability Concerns since 1993 and served as chair from 1996 to 2003. MCDC has twenty-one governor appointed commissioners who serve in an advisory capacity and provide the perspectives of people with disabilities, the business community, and professional service providers. She resides in Belleville, Michigan.

J. R. Harding, Ph.D

External Affairs Manager, Agency for People with Disabilities
Tallahassee, Flroida
JR Harding received his doctorate in education from Florida State University. He is a nationally recognized disability expert on ADA regulations, work, transportation and independent living. He is the external affairs manager for the Florida Agency of Persons with Disabilities currently serves on the US Access Board (two-time presidential appointee), Chairman of the Commission for Transportation Disadvantage and Vice Chairman of the Gov.'s Commission on Disabilities. He has extensive rulemaking experience with both the federal and state governments regarding disability policy. He is recognized as the first person with a significant disability (quadriplegia) to graduate from Leadership Florida and Leadership Tallahassee. He co-founded the Florida Disability Mentoring Day initiative. He frequently volunteers for the Big Bend Business leadership network and the various leadership programs throughout the city and state.

Michael Harris

Paralyzed Veterans of America (PVA) - Michigan
Novi, Michigan
Michael F Harris is Executive Director of the Michigan Paralyzed Veterans of America. PVA members are honorably discharged veterans of the United States Armed Services who have incurred spinal cord injury or disease resulting in paralysis and are dependent upon the use of a wheelchair for mobility. He has served on the Customer Advisory Board at Northwest Airlines since 2001. He resides in Westland, Michigan.

Minna Hong

Shepherd Center
Atlanta, Georgia
Minna A. Hong is the SCI (Spinal Cord Injury) Peer Support Coordinator at Shepherd Center in Atlanta, Georgia. She is also a Board Member of Disability Resource Group and distribution committee member for Brain and Spinal Cord Injury Trust Fund, GA. She also serves as a guest lecturer for Emory University, the University of Georgia, Mercer University and Georgia State University's physical therapy, occupational therapy and physician assistant students. Minna is a spinal cord injury survivor, wife and mother of two young adults.

Patrick Maher

National Spinal Cord Injury Association
Chicago, Illinois
Patrick Maher is the President of the National Spinal Cord Injury Association's board of directors. As Managing Director for nAblement of SPR, an IT solutions firm, Pat develops opportunities for organizations to hire qualified IT professionals with disabilities for a wide range of IT support needs. He also serves on the Spinal Cord Leaders Council, Illinois Institute of Technology Rehab Psychology Advisory Board, Illinois Technology Foundation Advisory Board, and Abilitylinks Steering and Education committees, Pat resides in Westmont, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago.

David Nelson

National Association of the Deaf (NAD)
Washington, DC
David Nelson is President of the DC Association of the Deaf and has been with NAD since 1978. He has received the organization's most prestigious award, the Fred C. Schreiber Distinguished Service Award. David is Disability Outreach Officer in Government Affairs & Corporate Communications at the National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak). He is responsible for providing accessibility information and outreach activities to the disability community. He holds a bachelor's degree from Rochester Institute of Technology as well as degrees from National Technical Institute of the Deaf (NTID) and Florida School for the Deaf and Blind. He resides in Washington, DC.

Grover Evans, Ph.D

Evans & Associates of Arkansas
Little Rock, Arkansas
Grover Evans is the founder and CEO of Evans and Associates of Arkansas. He served as special consultant for system design for Arkansas Rehabilitation Services and Department of Health and Human Service. He is the former Director of Disability Determination for the Social Security Administration for Arkansas. Grover was inducted into the Arkansas Black Hall of Fame, Arkansas Swimming Hall of Fame, publisher and author of numerous articles on wellness, goal setting and other health related issues. He and his wife, Helen have two children and a granddaughter.

Jay Stiteley

The Seeing Eye
Morristown, NJ
Jay serves with "The Seeing Eye" staff in Morristown, NJ. as Associate Manager, directing field representatives. He speaks throughout the United States and Canada, about the program, policies, and working philosophy of The Seeing eye.  Jay was the Director of the National Technology Program for the American Foundation for the Blind for three years assisting education and rehabilitation professionals in the field of blindness promoting effective use of computer access technology. Prior to joining AFB, Jay worked for The Seeing Eye as Field Representative for six years.

Glen W. White, Ph.D

RTC/IL University of Kansas
Lawrence, Kansas
Glen is Director of the Research & Training Center on Independent Living at the University of Kansas, serving as Principal Investigator of the Research and Training Center on Full Participation in Independent Living. He conducts research on housing, advocacy, developing community support for Independent Living Centers, and for the past several years he has been developing a systematic line of research in the area of prevention of secondary conditions. He is past president of the National Association of Rehabilitation Research and Training Centers, past Chair of the American Public Health Association's Disability Forum., and serves as an advisor and consultant to many national organizations. Dr. White is Professor of Applied Behavioral Science, where he teaches behavioral, community psychology, and disability studies.

Michell Haase

Travelin'Wheels, LLC
Little Rock, Arkansas
Michell Haase is founder and CEO of Travelin'Wheels, created to advance Accessible and Inclusive Tourism by educating consumers with disabilities on the resources and facilities available to them, as well as providing consultation to the hospitality industry on how to increase consumer satisfaction and marketing reach in the disability community. Prior to the creation of Travelin'Wheels, Ms. Haase served in a variety of strategic and operational roles within Motorola and Ticketmaster for over 20 years while participating actively in the disability community. Ms. Haase is the mother of a young adult who is a Paralympic hopeful that uses a wheelchair full time. She and her family live in Schaumburg, Illinois.

Catherine Graham

University of South Carolina – School of Medicine
Columbia, South Carolina
Ms. Graham is the Rehabilitation Engineer for the University of South Carolina inter agency Office of Disability and Health and as such conducts accessibility assessments for primary care providers, instructs 2nd and 3rd year medical students on health care for people with disabilities, instructs architects and building code officials on ADA codes and works with emergency management to ensure people with disabilities are incorporated into preparedness plans and responses. As owner of her ADA Consulting group for 20 years, Ms. Graham provides assessments and transition plans for businesses and organizations throughout the United States. She is an active member of the South Carolina Spinal Cord Injury Association as well as the SC Spinal Cord Injury Research Fund which promotes research to develop better understanding of causes and effective treatment strategies for paralysis, sensory loss, and other consequences of spinal cord injury and disease. Catherine is a volunteer with PAALS (Palmetto Animal Assistance Life Services), the only ADI accredited service dog training organization in South Carolina and a previous service dog owner. Catherine has been a manual wheelchair user since 1987 and resides in Blythewood, South Carolina.

Carol Gray

Gray Center for Social Learning & Understanding
Zeeland, Michigan
Carol Gray is the director of the Gray Center for Social Learning and Understanding in Zeeland, Michigan. She has completed over 22 years of employment with Jenison Public Schools in Jenison, Michigan, initially as a teacher with students with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and in recent years as a consultant to students with ASD in inclusive educational programs. In 1991, Carol developed Social Stories and Comic Strip Conversations, strategies that are used worldwide with children, adolescents and adults with autism spectrum disorders. She has published several resources on topics related to children and adults with ASD, including bullying, death and dying and how to teach social understanding. Carol is the recipient of the Barbara Lipinski Award for her international contribution to the education and welfare of people with ASD.