Diagnosed with juvenile idiopathic arthritis as a child, author and 2020 Bush Fellow Jenna Udenberg turned lifelong challenges into a mission: make accessibility the norm, not the exception. She shares how “Within My Spokes” captures resilience, why “committed over compliant” changes everything, and how her nonprofit Above & Beyond With U helps businesses and communities design with disabled people from the start. Expect practical truths on housing, travel, education, and what true inclusion really requires.
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Guest Bio:
Jenna Udenberg is an accessibility advocate, author of Within My Spokes: A Tapestry of Pain, Growth and Freedom, founder of the nonprofit Above & Beyond With U, and a 2020 Bush Fellow. A wheelchair user and bugler for veteran funerals, she consults with communities and organizations to go “above and beyond code,” centering lived experience to create spaces where everyone belongs.
Main Topics:
· Juvenile rheumatoid → idiopathic arthritis: what changed and why it matters.
· Growing up disabled pre-ADA: school, IEP/504 gaps, and systemic ignorance.
· “Committed vs. compliant” accessibility; housing and new-build failures.
· Travel barriers (airlines breaking wheelchairs) and policy change needs.
· Bush Fellowship: investing in leadership, learning from disability history hubs.
· Adaptive movement, diabetes management, and aquatic training.
· Above & Beyond With U: funding, rural access, and promoting accessible events.
· The book Within My Spokes: writing trauma with care; audiobook in progress.
Resources mentioned:
· Above & Beyond With U
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