Hi I’m Jenn! I’m excited to be able to contribute my unique skill set and program management
experience to help Central Washington Disability Resources due to my lived experience with disability. In
addition to growing up with a sibling who had Down Syndrome, I feel I’m a true case study in how
people with disabilities are often underestimated by society. Despite being told I would never read at
the high school level or have a job due to having cognitive disabilities, including severe dyslexia and
ADHD, I’ve managed to have an exciting career working in various safety related jobs that culminated in
executive level experience directing the research safety and compliance program at a large research
university. I also managed to earn a Masters degree in Safety Science from Embry Riddle Aeronautical
University in addition to a Ph.D. in Industrial and Organizational Psychology and Human Factors.
After 20 plus years of action-packed safety pursuits and being diagnosed with a progressive
neuromuscular disease, I made the decision to slow down and pursue a life of the mind. Which is how I
ended up where I am now, loving my role mentoring the next generation of safety professionals as an
Associate Professor and the program coordinator of the Safety Health Management programs at Central
Washington University. As an academic, I’m best known for my research in accident causation, bias, and
human factors and the development of Raconteuse Learning which combines storytelling, perspective
taking, bias mitigation, and research methodology to increase learning from accidents.
I’ve lived in Eastern Washington for most of my life and when I’m not teaching or doing research you can
find me sticking close to my roots attending electronic dance music events at the Gorge with my
husband, slowly walking the trails with one of my four dogs, or as a passenger on one of my Tennessee
walking horses.