Nancy Ward

Advocacy Educator

At the national level, Nancy is the founding chair of Self Advocacy Becoming Empowered (SABE) and has had the honor of meeting five sitting Presidents. When Nancy was in Washington DC during the creation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), she spoke directly to President Clinton about the importance of People First Language. At the local and state levels, Nancy came to Oklahoma in 1997 to start Oklahoma People First, a statewide self-advocacy organization run for and by people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Over the years, she has acted as Chapter President, State President, and Board Member. Currently, Nancy serves on the committee for the annual Oklahoma Developmental Disabilities Awareness Day at the Capitol and The Center for Learning and Leadership’s Consumer Advisory Committee.

Nancy helped develop and continues to play a pivotal role in the Center for Learning and Leadership and the Office of Interdisciplinary Program’s SAME/ FAME (Self- Advocates as Medical Educators/ Family Advocates as Medical Educators) simulation training, utilizing her lived experience and perspective as a person with a disability to teach medical, nursing, and other health profession students the importance of communication and collaboration with patients with IDD and family caregivers through patient-centered care.