Kathy Sheppard-Jones
Executive Director, University of Kentucky Human Development Institute
Dr. Sheppard-Jones (she/her) is the Executive Director of the Human Development Institute at the University of Kentucky, which is Kentucky’s University Center on Disability. She holds a doctorate in Educational Psychology from the University of Kentucky, where she also serves as faculty in the Counselor Education program in the College of Education. She leads 275 interdisciplinary staff in promoting the inclusion, independence and contributions of people with disabilities and their families throughout the lifespan. An active researcher with nearly $40 million in lifetime externally funded grants and contracts, she oversees projects around employment, higher education, quality assurance, leadership and universal design.
Dr. Sheppard-Jones is lead administrator for the state’s Employment First Council, and sits on the state’s KentuckyWorks Collaborative along with state Cabinets’ secretaries and leaders from business, industry and education, charged with operationalizing the state strategic plan for education and workforce development. She leads multiple statewide initiatives and develops resources that can lead to innovations benefitting all workers, and that will help grow and retain a workforce that is inclusive of all people. She is also a certified rehabilitation counselor.
Spotlight: Kathy Sheppard-Jones, Member of DEI Leadership Team
"I think universal design attends to diversity from the beginning and gives us a strong platform to add to the work being done. It's a way to be thinking about diversity from the very outset whenever we're planning something so it’s not necessarily just retrofitting. It’s about being very intentional from the beginning and recognizing that our audiences are broad, and we may need to make sure that we're doing everything we can to reach the widest array of people possible."
UK Human Development Institute
The Human Development Institute (HDI) seeks to promote the inclusion, independence and contributions of people with disabilities and their families throughout the lifespan. HDI achieves this mission through education, research and evaluation, information sharing, leadership, and advocacy across Kentucky and the nation.