Pat: Gina, I know you have been running a ton of free learning events over the last two years for people who work in human services and, in particular, the disability “industry”. I am excited to hear all about that but let’s start with a little bit about you. Tell me a little about who you are!
Gina: Thanks Pat, I am happy too. You are correct I have been running many events over the past two years! I have spent most of the last 35 years in human services supporting people with IDD. It truly has been my career. I started as a direct support professional and continued in operations for the first half of my career. I discovered during that time that I loved to support my team members to grow and develop their talents. I am a teacher at heart! I ultimately found my way into the learning and development space so I could more fully support team members and the organizations I was working with to grow their talent and plan for succession.
So, for the past 17 years or so, I have been able to do what I love – develop talent!
Pat: That’s great, I got my start as a DSP too! In a nutshell, tell me about the last two years and your community- Experience Human.
Gina: Absolutely, I would love to! At the start of the pandemic, like so many people, I felt called to do something more. I wasn’t sure what it would be. I just knew I wanted to do something. I asked myself, “what are you good at that other people might benefit from?” This forced me to take stock of my strengths. You have to understand that technology has been my friend for many years. Particularly video conferencing. I have been using video meetings in my coaching business for the last ten years. I meet with leaders all over the country via Zoom, so meeting via the digital space was comfortable for me. So, I came up with a few strengths; I was good at using a digital platform to hold meetings and events, I was a teacher and facilitator, and I have a lot of wonderful professionals in my life! This led me to create Experience Human.
Pat: That is so cool, you were using online video conferencing before everyone was pushed into it. I bet that gave you quite the edge!
So you figured out what you are good at and felt called to do something for those working day in and day out during the pandemic to support people with disabilities. So, what exactly is Experience Human?
Gina: Experience Human is a beautiful community that grew organically by me offering free learning events and guest speakers to anyone working in human services. I called on my friends and colleagues to donate their time and expertise, and they did! Initially, I was offering a session almost weekly. Now I offer 1 or 2 a month, and I plan to continue them.
The coolest part about these events is the community that now exists. We have people from all over the US and Canada attending these sessions. Because our sessions are very engaging and interactive, they have gotten to know one another well! They love seeing one another in the breakout rooms!
Pat: That is awesome! You mentioned having many sessions, and I also know you enjoy technology. Maybe you can explain how you share the importance of technology with this community through the sessions you offer?
Gina: Sure! I believe that for our field to continue to progress, we must become adept at using various technologies. Those of us working in human services need to keep ourselves updated on what is new on the tech front to continue to innovate and do an even better job at supporting others. If we do not do that, we will fall behind, and those we support will also fall behind. As you know Pat, there are so many wonderful technologies that exist today that can be used to help people learn, be more independent, and live more fully. We need to know those technologies exist to explore them with the people we support. I love inviting experts in the tech space to come and present to our community. Dustin Wright has been on twice, and the group just loves what he has to share. It is fun to watch the group while he is speaking; they are all feverously taking notes! The tech space is a space I will continue to explore with our community, and we will continue to invite tech experts to share their wisdom with us!
Pat: That’s great, Gina! I appreciate you making time for this and most importantly. I really appreciate that you continue to advocate for this field to become tech-savvy!
