With decades of experience serving clients — and, in some cases, personal experience living with a disability — the staff and board members of The Center for Independent Living embody leadership and service in the local community.
Staff
Elizabeth Howe, Executive Director
Liz began working at CIL in May of 1994. She brings over 20 years of experience in the nonprofit sector, primarily in the areas of finance and administration. Her experience includes working for Hospice, from January 1989 to May 1994, as well as being a member of FACIL- Florida Association of Centers for Independent Living and serving as a member of the FACIL Legislative Committee, and serving on the board of the FAAST- Florida Alliance for Assistive Services & Technology. She started with CIL in the Finance Department, and moved on to become Associate Director. She became the Executive Director in 2001.
“At its core, our mission is about Human Rights, and about acknowledging the dignity we all have as people, regardless of our abilities.” – Elizabeth Howe, Executive Director
Dan Ryan, Program Director
Dan has been at CIL since February of 2006. He began his career with an interest in early childhood education, and became a pre-school teacher. After moving to Florida, he returned to school and studied business management. His first role with CIL was as the Outreach Specialist. One of his numerous responsibilities during this time was distributing FTRI telephones (Florida Telecommunication Relay, Inc.- volume controlled phones for those who are hard of hearing) after gaining experience in many of the programs at CIL, he worked his way up within the organization to become the Program Director.
“It’s rare to have a job where you actually see the difference you are making in people’s lives. Working here, you see the individuals you help on a daily basis. It’s rewarding to see the process go full-circle – they tell you what they need, and you help them gain access to the tools that help them become independent. It’s a great feeling.” –Dan Ryan, Program Director
Jason Venning, Operations Director
Jason started his tenure at CIL in February of 2001, in the Finance Department and was promoted to operations director. He left CIL in 2004 in an effort to enrich his base of knowledge in the business world. During that time, he worked for a local attorney as the firm’s accountant and controller, often assisting the senior partner in his many business ventures. From there, Jason worked for a local Department of Defense contractor, picking up the government billing side of accounting and multi-state payroll and reporting. Jason had the chance to rejoin the CIL staff in 2009 and welcomed the opportunity to return to non-profit, again, as operations director. Jason is currently concentrating on building a successful Development Department and reaching out to the community with presentations on CIL services and various trainings.
“I like working at CIL because, at the end of the day, regardless of what personal role I’ve taken, CIL helps people in need.” –Jason Venning, Operations Director
Luana Kutz, Administration Director
Luana started with CIL in January of 1997. She began her career in the nonprofit sector with United Way; first in Volusia County, and then Heart of Florida for a total of about 6 years. During that time, she became familiar with the member agencies, and always felt it would be extremely fulfilling to work directly for an agency. CIL was one of the agencies that she was drawn to, so she sent a letter to the executive director explaining her interest. Fortunately there was an opening, and she was hired as the administrative assistant. During her 15 years with CIL, she has gone from administrative assistant to HR administrator, then HR director and currently administration director.
“My sister was very involved in the civil rights movement in the 60s. I was too young at the time to get involved but through her, the movement had a huge impact on me and my beliefs. The mission of CIL is what the civil rights movement was all about – equality for all. Along with that is the added bonus of being able to go home at the end of the day knowing that what you did that day wasn’t about how much money was made, but about how someone’s life was impacted.” – Luana Kutz, Administration Director
Jascinth Lawrence, Employment Program Manager
Jascinth began working at CIL in January of 2012. She has a long history of working with individuals with disabilities beginning with her training as a special education teacher in Jamaica. After immigrating to the United States she worked as a remedial reading teacher until she was hired at Goodwill industries of Greater New York and Northern New Jersey as a job coach for individuals with developmental disabilities. Her passion for the work earned her two promotions over the eight years with the agency. She continued her objective of finding competitive employment for persons with disabilities as vocational case management supervisor with Federation Employment and Guidance Services (FEGS). At FEGS Jascinth worked with individuals with a variety of medical and developmental disabilities by assisting them to find employment and financial independence. Upon moving to Florida, she accepted the position as the employment program manager with CIL .
“My passion is in educating the public and potential employers about disability issues. I aim to teach the public that an individual is not defined by her/his disabling condition or medical diagnosis. There is an individual behind the label who will surprise you with what s/he can do. My goal is to get people to interact with the individual, to hire that person and finally to see how ABLE s/he is. . CIL’s mission to facilitate independence for differently able individuals is very much in alignment with my personal philosophy” – Jascinth Lawrence, Employment Program Manager
John Hurt, Lakeland Site Manager
John started with CIL in July of 2007. He served in the Army from October of 1982 to September of 1994. He first got involved in the non-profit sector by volunteering at the Stuart Circle Center Adult Day Care in 1994 as part of his application at Virginia Commonwealth University’s physical therapy program. After that, he worked at Stuart Circle Center for 3.5 years as a work study student. He also ran a Project with Industry (PWI) Grant for Abilities of Florida which provided job placement for people with disabilities from2002 to 2005; and still sees some of these individuals working in their career fields. He is currently the site manager at CIL’s Lakeland Office.
“I believe that everyone deserves an opportunity to be independent and have the freedom of choice. CIL has provided a platform that allows me to interact with the community and empower people with disabilities at the same time!” – John Hurt, Lakeland Site Manager
Board
Kim Byerly, Chair
Kelly Jones, Treasurer
Peggy Kelley, Secretary
Cheryl Stone, Past Chair
Jim Bowden
Jim Diaz
Kathryn Garcia
Linda Grant
Paul Odham
Sandy Osborn
Peter Schoemann
Faye Warren
