FEED Meeting September 10, 2025

Wednesday, September 10, 2025
1:00 - 3:00 p.m. ET

Overview

The Employer Assistance and Resource Network on Disability (EARN) invites federal employees to the next virtual Federal Exchange on Employment and Disability (FEED) meeting on Wednesday, September 10, 2025, from 1:00–3:00 p.m. ET.

This session will feature updates from the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) and the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), including new developments on the Workforce Recruitment Program (WRP) and the 80th anniversary of National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM). Participants will also contribute to identifying FEED’s priority focus areas for fiscal year 2026 and engage in an interactive discussion designed to strengthen connections and foster collaboration within the FEED community.

The meeting will conclude with an open forum where members can share recent successes or ask for advice on challenges facing their agencies.

Agenda

Introduction (1:00-1:05 p.m.)

• Akinyemi Banjo, Senior Policy Advisor, Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP), U.S. Department of Labor (DOL)

Welcoming Remarks (1:05-1:06 p.m.)

• Brian Walsh, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy, Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP), U.S. Department of Labor (DOL)

Group Discussion of Priority Topic Areas for FY2026 (1:06-1:40 p.m.)

• Akinyemi Banjo, Senior Policy Advisor, Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP), U.S. Department of Labor

Workforce Recruitment Program (WRP) (1:40-1:55 p.m.)

• Colleen Doyle, WRP Program Manager, Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP), U.S. Department of Labor
• Frances Vhay, WRP Program Manager, Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP), U.S. Department of Labor

National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM) (1:55-2:10 p.m.)

• Michelle Barfield, Business Development Specialist, Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP), U.S. Department of Labor (DOL)

Chat with U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) (2:10-2:40 p.m.)

• Wendy Doernberg, Acting Assistant Director, Special Operations Division, Senior Attorney-Advisor, Federal Sector Programs, Office of Federal Operations, U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)
• Elyssa Santos-Abrams, Senior Attorney-Advisor, Outreach, Training, and Engagement Division, Federal Sector Programs, Office of Federal Operations, U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)

Open Forum: FEED Member Brag and Ask, Closing (2:40-3:00 p.m.)

• Akinyemi Banjo, Senior Policy Advisor, Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP), U.S. Department of Labor (DOL)

Real time captioning and ASL interpretation will be provided. Should you need additional accommodations, kindly submit your request via the registration form.

*You must be an employee of the U.S. Federal Government with a .gov, .mil, .us, or .edu email address to join FEED.

The Federal Exchange on Employment and Disability (FEED) is a federal interagency working group focused on advancing employment opportunities for people with disabilities in the Federal Government. Managed by representatives from the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) and supported by the Employer Assistance and Resource Network on Disability (EARN), FEED participants meet four times per year to share and develop information, resources, and best practices on a variety of topics related to disability employment in the federal sector.

FEED is open to Federal Government employees at any level. Federal employees whose job duties involve recruiting, hiring, retaining, or advancing people with disabilities are encouraged to join.

Visit EARN's page on FEED for more information.