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Jessica Hein
What is something that people with disabilities have to deal with that you want to fix?
People with disabilities have to deal with a lot of assumptions and stereotypes. For instance, the assumption that disabled people cannot have a good “quality of life”. This idea promotes the stereotype that people with disabilities will not be able to have a family, get a good job or take on responsibilities. The focus is on the person’s impairment rather than on the person’s abilities. People with disabilities are capable of participating fully in community life just like their non-disabled peers.
What’s your past experience?
I volunteered for many years in Guatemala working with women and children that were victims of domestic violence and in schools of children with disabilities. This led me to applying and finishing my degree in masters of social work. While obtaining my degree I worked with The Department of Child Services as a family case manager and as a contract case manager assisting in the reunification of children with their parents. While in graduate school, I interned at the VA as a medical social worker then worked as a medical social worker at a local hospital prior to starting at In-Pact.
What are the values that drive you?
In this field the sense of community and compassion, serving and supporting a purpose that overrides personal desires and makes a difference in people’s lives, is what drives me.
Name your top 3 favorite podcasts or books
This is hard but the most recent books I’ve read and loved are:
Nightingale by Kristin Hannah
My Lovely Wife by Samantha Downing
Daisy Jones & the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid
What do you enjoy doing when you’re not working?
“What we know matters, but who we are matters more.”
