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Mayor's Office for People with Disabilities
Houston Commission on Disabilities Biographies
- Michael Cottingham – Position 1
Dr. Michael Cottingham is an Associate Professor at the University of Houston. He conducts research on disability sport and perceptions of people with disabilities. He has published over 50 peer reviewed articles and over 100 presented over international presentations. He has conducted research and developed disability sport programs locally and in numerous countries including Mexico, El Salvador, Afghanistan, the Philippines, and Bangladesh. His work has been covered by national and international media organizations.
- Caitlin Conner – Position 2
Caitlin Conner is a commissioner on the Houston Disability Commission, a dedicated advocate for disability rights, a mother, and an adaptive athlete. She holds a Bachelor of Applied Arts & Sciences from the University of North Texas and is the founder and CEO of Be More AdaptiveTM, a nonprofit organization committed to creating global access by providing disability resources. Be More Adaptive’s mission is to promote inclusivity, access, and universal design, ensuring that people of all abilities have the resources and opportunities they need to thrive. Caitlin’s personal journey has profoundly shaped her advocacy. After surviving a motorcycle accident and undergoing amputation while pregnant, she faced immense physical and emotional challenges. Her daughter became her driving force, inspiring her to ensure the world is a better, more inclusive place for people of all abilities. This lived experience, alongside her seen and unseen disabilities, motivates Caitlin to break barriers and foster innovation. She has also participated as a research subject in numerous scientific studies aimed at advancing prosthetic technology for amputees, contributing directly to improving the quality of life for others with limb loss.
In addition to her advocacy, Caitlin volunteers her time supporting amputees and trauma survivors while also compiling resources for those in need. She provides disability consulting to various industries, helping them improve accessibility and inclusivity. Caitlin has lived in the City of Houston for a total of eight years and is deeply connected to its disability community. She is committed to connecting individuals and communities to vital resources and advocating for equal access, representation, and support for people with disabilities, both locally and globally. As a commissioner on the Houston Disability Commission, Caitlin works to advance initiatives that improve accessibility, promote inclusivity, and enhance the quality of life for the disabled community. Her goal is always to create a better world for all future generations.
- Annie Bacon - Position 3
NO BIO INFORMATION
- Katie Crouch – Position 4
Katie Crouch is a student at the University of Houston working towards a degree in Chemistry. She is passionate about helping increasing accessibility for individuals with disabilities in the greater Houston area, particularly for students in higher education. As an Access and Disability Services Mentor at the University of St. Thomas, she gained experience providing mentoring in a program that specifically held disabled students in mind, as well in disability advocacy. After she graduates college, she hopes to go into chemistry research to help provide better treatment options for individuals with chronic illnesses.
- Sashikala Nisankarao – Position 5 / Vice Chairperson
Sashi Nisankarao is the Senior ADA Compliance Manager at the Harris County Election Administrator's Office. A proud born-and-raised Houstonian, Sashi attended the University of
St. Thomas for her undergraduate degrees. After receiving Bachelors' degrees in both Political Science and Psychology in 2012, she received her Juris Doctor from South Texas College of Law in 2015. Sashi pushed her passion for the public interest throughout her academic career, advocating for public benefits and filing asylum claims for working and immigrant families. Sashi herself is part of a large Indian-American family, and she has always known the importance of service to her community. After law school, Sashi went on to work as a legal
specialist at the Southwest ADA Center, where she provided technical assistance and training on disability issues to various stakeholders in the disability community. After working there for four years, Sashi now works at Harris County to ensure equal access and participation in all county voting programs. Outside of work, Sashi's first love is music, and she is a classically trained vocalist who loves to spend time with her family and friends.
- Monique Mason – Position 6
Monique Mason has been a community outreach organizer since 1994. She is the Founder of SPADE – Supporting People to obtain Accessibility in the Disabled and Elderly Community. She
founded SPADE to ensure people with disabilities can accomplish and achieve their goals.
- Adam Farris – Position 7
Adam Farris, based in Houston, Texas, is an inspiring figure in the world of public speaking and autism advocacy and disability advocacy, Adam is a small business owner, chief technology officer for a non-profit organization that deals with anti-bullying, Adam wears many hats. Living with Autism and Tourette syndrome has not stopped Adam from imagining possibilities and overcoming challenges. As a passionate advocate, he spreads a message of kindness, encouraging others to make at least one person smile each day, setting off a chain reaction of joy and positivity.
Adam’s journey as an advocate began with the Speaking Advocates program at Art Spark Texas. This rigorous training helped him refine his skills, allowing him to share his empowering message across various platforms, including schools, corporate events, and community organizations.
A proud graduate of the Monarch School, Adam now attends The HUB Houston, a relationship - centered program where he continues to enrich his life and understanding of community and
connection. Throughout his journey, Adam has never let labels define him, believing that every person has unique abilities that set them apart.
With the support of his loving family, Adam’s work continues to inspire hope, spread awareness, and promote inclusivity in society.
- Amie Jean – Position 8
Amie is a young exuberant student of life and recently began a fellowship with the Fox Family Foundation. Amie is a proud and vibrant young adult, focused on civic engagement and
mindfulness. She is currently pursuing a certification to become an adaptive yoga teacher. AMIE. The A stands for advocate, M for motivational, I for impactful, and E for encouraging. She to move through different places and spaces carrying this energy.
- Mary Sias – Position 9
Mary Sias brings over twenty years of experience in event planning, fundraising, administration, small grant writing, and publicity for non-profit organizations, including ten years office experience in government, small business, human resource experience. Diagnosed January 1993 with lupus and rheumatoid arthritis, she became an advocate for lupus in 2006. She has spent the past 18 years volunteering on behalf of other lupus warriors with congressional leaders to fund lupus research. She has been appointed to several local boards to include the Sunnyside Community Redevelopment Organization - Community Health Advisory Committee. She is active with Complete Community Sunnyside, is a graduate of Complete Communities University (CCU), Complete Communities Citizens Leadership Development (CCCLD) and Citizens Emergency Response Team (C.E.R.T.). Her service has led to collaborations with local health entities to include area hospitals, City of Houston Heath, and Harris Health to bring health information to the southside.
Mary was reappointed to the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Program where she participates in the evaluation of research applications submitted to the Lupus Research. In 2023, she was selected by the American College of Rheumatology to advocate for them in Washington DC. In 2015, she published Scholarship Prep 101 and hosted numerous workshops in the Houston area and Louisiana. She has one adult son, Julius James Jackson, and enjoys sewing, reading, dancing, and baking.
- Meridith Silcox – Position 10 / Chairperson
Meridith Silcox is the ADA and Accessibility Administrator for ASM Global at NRG Park in Houston Texas. Silcox serves as the Chair of the Houston Commission on Disabilities and the
Chair of the Project Development Committee for Texas Council for Developmental Disabilities. She has 16 years of disability rights and accessibility advocacy experience. Her early career experience ranges from early interventions to supported employment within the autism and developmental disability communities. Her career focus is now in advocacy within community access and local and state policy work.
- Lydia Nunez Landry – Position 11
Lydia Nunez Landry is a disabled disability justice activist whose advocacy work centers on the human rights of all disabled people, particularly the right of disabled people to live flourishing lives in their own communities rather than in institutions. Lydia graduated magna cum laude from the University of Houston-Clear Lake with a degree in social work and a certificate in women’s studies.
She is an independent scholar, and among her work is the chapter “Chronic Illness, Well-being, and Social Values” from Routledge’s 2022 The Disability Bioethics Reader. She is co-founder of the grassroots disability rights group Gulf Coast Adapt, a board member of Not Dead Yet, a regional representative for Rev-Up (a coalition to advance the disability vote), a former certified long-term care ombudsman, a participant in The Arc of Texas’ Partners in Disability Leadership class, and a mother and grandmother.
- Melisa Rosario-Diaz – Position 12
Dr. Melisa Rosario-Díaz is a Puerto Rican mother of two children with autism and other disabilities. She holds a doctorate in special education and transition services from the Metropolitan University of Puerto Rico, with a specialization in higher education. Her master's degrees are in commercial education and special education in autism from the Central University of Bayamón, Puerto Rico. He also holds numerous professional and educational certificates related to special education in the areas of invisible and neurological disabilities. She holds the professional title of Certified Advocate from the Board in Special Education of the National Association of Special Education Teachers, NASET. Since 2010, he has been actively advocating for the rights of people with disabilities through nonprofit organizations such as the Autism Alliance of Puerto Rico, and she served as the board's chairwoman from 2015 to 2017. Her passion has always been to help and guide families in need, especially with the special education program and other educational services. She is currently the vice president of the board of directors of the Pro Bono services of the Puerto Rico Bar Association, and she continues her involvement on the Puerto Rico Department of Education's Special Education Advisory Committee. When she relocates to Houston in January 2023, she starts to be actively involved in various educational roles, such as tutoring, substitute teaching, and instructional coaching. She was also actively looking for volunteer opportunities and got involved with the College of Education
Parent Education Project—Families CAN, University of Houston, where she conducts a three-part webinar on autism for the Spanish-speaking community. Currently, she is a parent
advocate at the Arc of Harris County and an adjunct professor for the LifePATH Program at Lonestar College, Tomball Campus. Her love for her children led her to adopt a black Labrador in 2020 as emotional support and later as a guide dog for them. However, she believes that Onix is her own emotional support system.
- Osvaldo Capmany – Position 13
Osvaldo Capmany currently leads The Living Hope Wheelchair Association as an Executive Director in Houston, Tx.
Ozzy is also a Volunteer Counterpart for Diversity Equity and Inclusion of the Red Cross HQ, a Mission Board Member TGCR and Board Advisor at Houston Immigration Legal Services Collaborative.
He has served at the National Association of Christian Churches (NACC) as a Senior Director of Disaster Services and other non-profit organizations focused on Inclusion and Disaster Services. During his humanitarian path, he has led and participated in many humanitarian projects. His multicultural experience and professional skills were a substantial factor in saving lives and leading the recovery of numerous families affected by disasters. Ozzy’s philanthropic passion has led him to participate in national and global humanitarian projects, protecting children, elderly, refugees, vulnerable people, people with disabilities, and long-term recovery programs as his primary focus. Ozzy is Argentine American and holds a CPA degree and other postgraduate studies at Belgrano University in Buenos Aires, Argentina. He is fluent in English, Spanish, and Portuguese and can communicate in other languages. He and his family are based in North Houston.
- Adele Henry – Position 14
Adele Henry serves as the Senior Patient Safety Specialist on the Quality Patient Safety and Infection Control Team for TIRR Memorial Hermann and the Memorial Hermann Rehabilitation Network. Adele earned her Bachelor of Science in Athletic Training at The University of Texas at Austin in 2006 and completed her Doctor of Physical Therapy from Texas Woman's University in 2010.
Adele began working for TIRR Memorial Hermann in 2010. From 2010 to 2022, Adele served as a Physical Therapist (PT) on the inpatient Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) and Neuromuscular Rehabilitation Programs for TIRR Memorial Hermann. Adele is a Board Certified Clinical Specialist in Neurologic Physical Therapy. In 2024, Adele became a Certified Professional in Patient Safety (CPPS) through the Institute for Healthcare Improvement and a Certified Professional in Healthcare Quality (CPHQ) through the National Association for Healthcare Quality.
Clinically, Adele specializes in community re-integration following catastrophic injury. Adele enjoys working to promote a transdisciplinary approach to patient care, improving patient safety and outcomes, and improving the employee experience. In her spare time Adele enjoys volunteering in the community and traveling with family and friends. She is a volunteer for the Walk and Roll for SCI foundation. She and her wife have a four-year-old son Luke who keeps them busy!