Disability and Entrepreneurship: Models of Success
Disability and Entrepreneurship: Models of Success (DEMOS)
DEMOS is a partnership between College of Charleston (Dr. Cindi May, Psychology; Dr. David Wyman, Management and Marketing) and Tommy and Victoria Baker School of Business at The Citadel (Dr. David Desplaces). Special thanks to Professor Lancie Alfonso for including his students.
PURPOSE
The Disability and Entrepreneurship: Models of Success (DEMOS) initiative supports the development of new entrepreneurial endeavors that fully incorporate principles of Universal Design in students’ business models. Successful applications are those that (a) offer a viable, competitive business model, and (b) utilize Universal Design principals to develop a workforce, work environment, product, service, or system that is fully inclusive and universally accessible; particularly for workers and individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. A core element is the emphasis on educating entrepreneurs about the genuine value that individuals with disabilities bring to the workplace and their value as customers.
D.E.M.O.S. was originally funded through the US Department of Education’s TPSID Project (Transition and Postsecondary Programs for Students with Intellectual Disabilities).
For more information about the principles of Universal Design, visit the Centre for Excellence in Universal Design or this PowerPoint presentation.
