July 01, 2026 

Welcome to the July 2026 newsletter!

Summer is in full swing, and we are excited to share a fresh round of updates with you. From upcoming events to celebrations, this month's issue highlights opportunities to connect, grow, and make an impact.

In this issue, you'll find photos of the Tools for Life team in action, awareness days and highlights of upcoming events, and the latest research and educational resources. We hope these updates keep you informed, energized, and inspired as we continue to make an impact across Georgia!

July is Disability Pride Month, a result of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990. Though initially celebrated as a single day on the anniversary of the ADA, Disability Pride now spans the entire month of July!

Ann Magill designed the first Disability Pride flag in 2019. Flags raise awareness and serve as symbols of solidarity, pride, and acceptance. The Disability Pride flag is no exception.

Each color has its own meaning: red for physical disabilities, gold for neurodiversity, white for invisible disabilities and disabilities that haven't been diagnosed, blue for emotional and psychiatric disabilities, including mental illness, anxiety, and depression, and green for sensory disabilities, including deafness, blindness, loss of smell, loss of taste, auditory processing disorder, and all other sensory disabilities.

The faded black background symbolizes the loss of those who have been victims of ableist violence. The diagonal placement of the color stripes is a metaphor for cutting across barriers that separate people with disabilities from society.

You can learn more about Disability Pride Month by visiting the link below!

On June 11, Christie George, Program and Outreach Manager, and Rachel Scarboro, TFL Occupational Therapist, provided an informative and engaging presentation and tour for students at South College Atlanta. Students explored assistive technology and learned how it supports independence in daily life. 

Hunter McFeron, AT Lab Manager, provided an informative and engaging presentation and tour for the College of Design Pre-College Summer Camp on June 15. Students experienced a hands-on look at innovative tools for inclusive design in action.

Hunter presented at the Georgia Virtual Tech Summit on June 2, delivering an informative and engaging session on assistive technology and its impact on accessibility and innovation. This virtual event was part of the Georgia Technology for Independence Training Series focused on practical, hands-on ways to use technology to build skills, increase independence, and strengthen self-determination.

The TFL team participated in the Georgia Council for Exceptional Children Annual Conference, "All Means All – Georgia On My Mind," where the team hosted an exhibit table and delivered multiple presentations on June 5 and 6. Jennifer Ro, TFL Director, presented on developing early access skills for AAC and technology for students with complex motor impairments; Hunter presented insights on avoiding common assistive technology mistakes in executive function support; and Ben Satterfield and Michelle Ramsey, both CIDI researchers, highlighted applications of assistive technology mastery in K-12 settings. Christie, Justin Fuller-Green, AT Specialist, and Tori Adamson, Outreach Coordinator, also hosted an informational exhibit table both days, showcasing education-focused devices and resources.

On June 12, Tori Adamson co-presented "Innovations for Independence – Assistive Devices, Technology & Parkinson’s" with Cindy Lourie, an occupational therapist with EnABLE Home Solutions. The presentation was given to community members living with Parkinson's disease and their families and provided practical strategies and tools to support independence.

On June 12 and 14, TFL participated in the Water Memory Opera, where Tori Adamson, Karen Milchus, and Justin Fuller-Green hosted an exhibit table. Gerontologist Sal Kibler served on a panel following the second performance, provided expertise in assistive technology, and raised awareness of its role in the arts. 

TFL provided a presentation and tour for Grady Health System on June 17 that included assistive technology demonstrations and education for staff and stakeholders. The session focused on increasing awareness of available tools, supporting patient independence, and identifying practical applications of assistive technology in clinical and community-based care settings, while also strengthening collaboration between TFL and healthcare providers.

All Month

Disability Pride Month

National Minority Mental Health Awareness Month

Saturday, July 4

Independence Day

Sunday, July 26

36th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act

Tuesday, July 14

ACCESS for Aging Well: an Online AT Resource to Help People Age in Place webinar

Wednesday, July 15

Cognitive Empowerment Program public webinar

Thursday, July 23

ADA 36th Anniversary Rally, hosted by the Fulton County Department of Diversity and Civil Rights Compliance

Monday, July 27 to Wednesday, July 29

Georgia Gerontology Society conference at Lake Lanier

For additional information on upcoming TFL tours, visits, and presentations, visit the Tools for Life website or click the button below!

As people age, they experience increasing physical and cognitive limitations, and many need more care and support. Most older adults want to remain in their current homes, but most require significant updates to do so. This is where assistive technologies (AT) come into the picture, as they can help them age in place and live in their homes longer.

Join us and the Center for Inclusive Design and Innovation on Tuesday, July 14, at 2:00 p.m. for a webinar exploring ACCESS for Aging Well, a tool that service providers, older adults, and their care partners can use together to find AT solutions for aging in place. The tool asks users questions about their abilities and the access problems they are trying to solve. It then offers suggestions for AT or strategies that might help.

This session will demonstrate ACCESS for Aging Well while discussing its unique features and potential applications.  The development of the tool will also be described.  

CEUs and CRCs will be provided to attendees who request them. Registration will close at the start of the session.

Tikkun Olam Makers (TOM)* is seeking people of all ages in the Atlanta area to partner with engineering and design students in a collaborative workshop to brainstorm and develop creative solutions for real problems encountered by people with disabilities!

You'll be able to share your experience as a person with a disability or a family member of a person with a disability and work with Makers to begin to solve challenges you are facing. There is even an option to continue project development when the workshop ends!

This Need Knowers Workshop will be held on Tuesday, August 11, at the Emory Conference Center Hotel, starting at 4:45 p.m. and concluding by 6:30 p.m. Any expenses related to transportation will be covered, and light refreshments will be provided.

For more information or if you're interested in participating, contact Arielle Kaye at arielle@tomglobal.org today!

*TOM (Tikkun Olam Makers) is a global movement of communities dedicated to creating open-source, affordable and accessible solutions for the daily challenges of people with disabilities and the elderly.

The Flavin Neuromachines Lab is conducting a study on wearable devices that augment a person's ability to sense obstacles in their surroundings. Researchers are recruiting volunteers through the Center for Inclusive Design and Innovation, the Georgia Tech Home Lab, the Center for the Visually Impaired, and Georgia Tech.

English-speaking individuals between 18 and 50 years old are eligible to volunteer. Participants will be asked to complete at least one survey, and you may be asked to wear devices while performing perception or virtual-reality navigation tasks.

The study will take about two hours per session and will be conducted at the Van Leer Building on the Georgia Tech campus. Compensation is available.

For more information, contact Dulani Wijayarathne at dwijayarathne3@gatech.edu or Aaron Huang at aghuang@gatech.edu. 

Visit our Research, Education, and Resources webpage to learn more about other community opportunities! 

Although based in Atlanta, Tools for Life serves the entire state of Georgia. Through our free demonstrations and loans, our team helps Georgians of all ages and disabilities access assistive technology solutions and services, so they can live, learn, work, and play independently in the communities of their choice.

Contact the Tools for Life team by email at info@gatfl.gatech.edu or by phone at (404) 894-0541 for more information about our services.

Tools for Life | Center for Inclusive Design and Innovation | College of Design

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