Career Diaries – What’s It Like Working As an Accessibility Consultant?

Buildings and Beyond - Steven Winter Associates, Inc.

Accessibility consultants work at the intersection of architecture and social justice. It’s much more than checking the boxes on accessibility requirements of laws and codes; it takes precision, dedication, and creativity to solve problems and remove physical barriers to access that have historically marginalized people with disabilities.

To mark the anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) on July 26, we invited three members of the accessibility team at Steven Winter Associates (SWA) on the Buildings + Beyond podcast. Combined, they have almost 40 years of experience as accessibility consultants! We hope you’re as inspired as we are by their wisdom (yes, wisdom; we talk a lot about this), lessons learned, and stories from the field.

Episode Guests

Carlos Sevillano

Carlos is a Senior Accessibility Consultant at SWA focusing primarily on residential projects. His key responsibilities include conducting plan reviews, field inspections, and providing technical guidance to ensure compliance with federal, state, and local regulatory and building code requirements for accessible design and construction.

Jeff Heitert

Jeff is an Accessibility Consulting Director and a 15+ year veteran of the team at SWA. He has specialized expertise in the complex scoping and technical requirements of federal, state, and local regulations and building codes that require accessible design and construction. Jeff oversees quality control and consulting services for large multifamily and mixed-use projects throughout the country.

Jennifer Low

Jennifer is a Senior Accessibility Consultant at SWA. She provides accessibility compliance and consulting services through plan reviews, field inspections, due diligence and barrier removal surveys, remediation development, litigation consulting, technical assistance, and training with focus on healthcare.

Host: Kelly Westby

Kelly leads the Building Operations, Decarbonization, and Efficiency (BODE) team at SWA. She has a wide range of experience in building science, commissioning, and energy efficiency retrofitting.

Kelly’s commissioning, energy code, and efficiency projects cover millions of square feet of commercial buildings along the East Coast. She also speaks at events and conferences, sharing her expertise on industry best practices.

Episode Resources

More podcast episodes about accessibility:

• (ENCORE) ‘All-Access’ with Peter Stratton
• The Devil’s in the Details: Common Accessibility Oversights

Blog posts about accessible design and construction:

• 5 Misconceptions About the Americans with Disabilities Act & 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design
• Trends in Healthcare: The State of Accessible Medical Diagnostic Equipment Standards
• 5 Misconceptions About Fair Housing Act (FHA) Design and Construction Compliance
• Top 10 Accessible Design Oversights: Hotels
• VIEW ALL

The book by Peter Stratton, Managing Director of Accessibility Services at SWA, discussed in this episode:

• “A Basic Guide to Fair Housing Accessibility – Everything Architects and Builders Need to Know about the Fair Housing Act Accessibility Guidelines”

Interested in joining our team?

• Careers at Steven Winter Associates

Sponsor

Passive House Accelerator

Thank you to our episode sponsor, Passive House Accelerator!

Passive House Accelerator is an online community and media company dedicated to accelerating the transition to clean, resilient, zero-carbon buildings.

Every week, Passive House Accelerator produces new original content, including Passive House Accelerator LIVE! online educational events, Passive House Podcast episodes, articles about low-carbon building, video content, and a newsletter. In addition, it also publishes a magazine twice a year and hosts the acclaimed Reimagine Buildings online conference series.

Visit passivehouseaccelerator.com to subscribe to the newsletter, register for an upcoming event, and browse the latest podcast episodes, articles, and videos.

We Want to Hear From You!

Send your feedback and questions to [e-mail].

About Buildings and Beyond

Buildings and Beyond is the podcast that explores how we can create a more sustainable built environment by focusing on efficiency, accessibility, and health.

Buildings and Beyond is a production of Steven Winter Associates. We provide energy, green building, and accessibility consulting services to improve the built environment. For more information, visit swinter.com.

Hosts: Robb Aldrich | Kelly Westby

Production Team: Heather Breslin | Dylan Martello | Tricia Carr | Ian Slakas

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