Trainings & Presentations

Since 2014, I've presented and developed trainings on topics of disability through a social model of disability and a social justice framework. Trainings and presentations are always tailored to the work that your organization, workforce, or corporation engages in to make all sessions relevant and engaging to your team.

Examples of sessions I've facilitated:

 Rico, N. (2015, November 7). Disabled by Campus and Society [Powerpoint Presentation]. University of California Students of Color Conference, Berkeley, CA, United States. 

Examined the barriers, attitudes, and policies on campus and society at-large that cause inaccessibility and ableism against disabled individuals. Mentioned campus resource shortcomings and offered suggestions to better support disabled students on campus.

Rico, N. (2019, February 2). “WHO IS SEXUALLY ASSAULTING CRIPPLES”: #4Out5 Disabled Womxn Disregarded in the #MeToo Movement [Powerpoint Presentation]. UCSB  Womxn of Color Conference, Santa Barbara, CA, United States. 

Reviewed Imani Barbarin's Twitter hashtag "4Outof5" as a response to the exclusion of disabled people's narrative from the #MeToo Movement by Dr. Tarana Burke. 4 out of 5 disabled women are survivors of sexual assault, a statistic much higher than able-bodied women. This session includes an intersectional analysis through looking at how disabled women of color and/or women with intellectual and developmental disabilities are impacted. 

Rico, N. (2019, September 17). Don't Leave Us Behind! Including Disability in College Access and Persistence Practices [Powerpoint Presentation]. National College Access Network National Conference, Indianapolis, IN, United States. 

Presented best practices and pointers for high school educators and education agencies to provide appropriate support for disabled students seeking to enroll in college. I included infographics with timelines and accessibility factors to consider.

Rico, N. (2019, March 2). She Can’t Walk Like A Boss or Talk Like A Boss: The Miss Independent Trope [Powerpoint Presentation]. UCI Womxn’s Leadership Summit, Irvine, CA, United States.

Facilitated a workshop presentation on leadership qualities and expectations of women and how they generally exclude women with disabilities from being considered leaders. We reviewed workplace tropes that are generally and examined the ways sexism is elevated and perpetuated more against women with disabilities. 

Rico, N. (2020, November 10). Disability Justice & Disability Culture [Powerpoint Presentation]. Mexican American Studies 295a Special Topics in Mexican American Studies, (Online Lecture) University of Arizona.

Guest lectured and introduced students to disability justice and disability culture including the disability justice principles. I connected these topics to perceptions of disabilities in Mexican American cultures based on my own knowledge and lived experiences.  

Rico, N. (2021, March 30). Ableism & Disability Justice [Powerpoint Presentation]. Education H311: Issues of Diversity in Cross-Cultural Counseling and Advocacy, Harvard Graduate School of Education (Online Lecture). 

Guest lectured and gave an introduction on Ableism and Disability Justice which included pointers around advocacy and counseling for education practitioners. Examined how ableism is perpetuated in education settings and how it is linked to other systems of oppression that impact student well-being and student success.

Rico, N., (2023, May 11th) Disability Justice and Design [Powerpoint Presentation] Disability Studies 365: Access Design, City University of New York Lehman College (Online Guest Lecture)

Guest lectured online for Lehman College introducing students to disability justice and design. Upon reviewing the disability justice principles, we used those to inform the ways design can create a proactive approach to accessibility and meeting disabled people's access needs without relying on laws and policy which often fall short. 

Lucchese, D., Rico, N., (2024, November 18th and 25th ) Ableism 101 2-Part Training  [Powerpoint Presentation]. City of Tucson Office of Equity, Tucson, AZ., United States

Facilitated a 2-part session on the UA Disability Cultural Center's Ableism 101 series which introduces audiences to concepts of disability, language, disability history, access and design, and disability justice. These sessions brought together various leaders across departments throughout the City of Tucson, to explore their practices serving disabled populations across the city. This session brought revenue to the UA Disability Cultural Center.