National Advisory Panel

Dot Nary is completing her doctorate in Applied Behavioral Science at the University of Kansas. She is employed at KU by Project Workout on Wheels, a research study testing an intervention to increase physical activity among wheelchair users. She earned an M.A. in the Department of Human Development and Family Life at KU, and a BA in English at Rhode Island College. Her experience includes ten years working at several independent living centers in upstate New York, serving as a peer counselor, conducting community training on the Americans with Disabilities Act, and providing independent living services on-site in public housing. Ms. Nary is a lecturer on disability and health at in the Occupational Therapy Department at Rockhurst University in Kansas City and at Kansas University Medical Center. She currently serves on the executive council of the Disability Section of the American Public Health Association (APHA), and on the board of Kansas Accessible Sports.

Her research interests include a range of independent living issues for people with disabilities, with an emphasis on health promotion, and advocacy as an essential life skill for people with disabilities.