Conference 2020 – So You Want to Know About Sensory-Friendly Programming?

Roger Ideishi
Director and Professor of Occupational Therapy, The George Washington University

Roger Ideishi is Director of Occupational Therapy and Professor of Health, Human Function and Rehabilitation Sciences in the School of Medicine and Health Sciences at The George Washington University. His area of interest and research is community engagement for people with neurodevelopmental disabilities. He has advised arts organizations such as the Minnesota Orchestra, Philadelphia Orchestra, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Kennedy Center for Performing Arts, Pennsylvania Ballet, Yale Repertory Theatre, Smithsonian Institution, Andy Warhol Museum, Flint Institute of Arts, Pushkin State Museum, and other cultural arts organizations around the globe in creating accessible and inclusive programming, audiences, and employment.

Jessica Ryan
Director of Education and Community Engagement, Minnesota Orchestra

Jessica Ryan is the Director of Education and Community Engagement at the Minnesota Orchestra. She first became an accessibility advocate while serving as the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra’s Manager of Education and Community Programs. At the Pittsburgh Symphony, Ms. Ryan worked with a community advisory team to develop the organization’s Accessibility Initiative and to create its first sensory-friendly concert experiences. She has played a leading role in developing and expanding the Minnesota Orchestra’s Relaxed Family Concert offerings since moving to the Twin Cities in 2016. She has previously presented about sensory-friendly/relaxed programming at the Kennedy Center’s Leadership Exchange in Arts and Disability Conference. Ms. Ryan holds a Master of Arts Management degree from Carnegie Mellon University and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Music (violin) from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point.