Established in 1805, the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (the NYC Health Department) is the oldest and largest health department in the country. Our mission is to protect and improve the health of all New Yorkers, in service of a vision of a city in which all New Yorkers can realize their full health potential, regardless of who they are, how old they are, where they are from, or where they live.

As a world-renowned public health agency with a history of building transformative public health programming and infrastructure, innovating in science and scholarship to advance public health knowledge, and responding to urgent public health crises from New York City’s yellow fever outbreak in 1822, to the COVID-19 pandemic we are a hub for public health innovation, expertise, and programs, and services. We serve as the population health strategist, and policy, and planning authority for the City of New York, while also having a vast impact on national and international public policy, including programs and services focused on food and nutrition, anti-tobacco support, chronic disease prevention, HIV/AIDS treatment, family and child health, environmental health, mental health, and racial and social justice work, among others.

Our Agency’s five strategic priorities, building off a recently-completed strategic planning process emerging from the COVID-19 emergency, are:
1) To re-envision how the Health Department prepares for and responds to health emergencies, with a focus on building a “response-ready” organization, with faster decision-making, transparent public communications, and stronger surveillance and bridges to healthcare systems 2) Address and prevent chronic and diet-related disease, including addressing rising rates of childhood obesity and the impact of diabetes, and transforming our food systems to improve nutrition and enhance access to healthy foods
3) Address the second pandemic of mental illness including: reducing overdose deaths, strengthening our youth mental health systems, and supporting people with serious mental illness
4) Reduce black maternal mortality and make New York a model city for women’s health
5) Mobilize against and combat the health impacts of climate change

Our 7,000-plus team members bring extraordinary diversity to the work of public health. True to our value of equity as a foundational element of all of our work, and a critical foundation to achieving population health impact in New York City, the NYC Health Department has been a leader in recognizing and dismantling racism’s impacts on the health of New Yorkers and beyond. In 2021, the NYC Board of Health declared racism as a public health crisis. With commitment to advance anti-racist public health practices that dismantle systems that perpetuate inequitable power, opportunity and access, the NYC Health Department continues to work in and with communities and community organizations to increase their access to health services and decrease avoidable health outcomes.

PROGRAM AND JOB DESCRIPTION:

The New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (NYC DOHMH) is one of the largest public health agencies in the world, serving 8 million New Yorkers from diverse background” including New Yorkers with disabilities.

DOHMH is seeking a motivated, experienced Director of Accessibility / Disability Services Facilitator (DSF) to engage with members of the public and staff to elevate disability justice throughout the agency.

DUTIES WILL INCLUDE BUT NOT BE LIMITED TO:

Under the general direction of the Deputy Commissioner of Administration, with very wide latitude for the exercise of independent judgment and initiative, the DSF will perform the mandated functions of the DSF per Local Law 27 of 2016, including:

Serve as the primary contact for persons with disabilities requesting auxiliary services;

Coordinate auxiliary services for persons with disabilities; respond to inquiries from members of the public concerning accessibility;

Develop agency policies and procedures to ensure full programmatic and communication accessibility for persons with disabilities;

Conduct periodic training for agency staff on disability access issues;

Provide accessible notices to members of the public advising them of their rights under the ADA, the New York State Human Rights Law, the New York City Human Rights Law, and regulations promulgated by such agency related to persons with disabilities, as well as the agency's ADA grievance procedure;

Assist in the investigation of any complaint communicated to such respective agency alleging its noncompliance with the ADA and/or other applicable federal, state, and local laws relating to people with disabilities, or alleging any actions that would be prohibited by such laws;

Document and maintain records of complaints made pursuant to the ADA and other applicable federal, state, and local laws relating to people with disabilities, and forward such complaints to the Mayor's Office for People with Disabilities (MOPD);

Analyze and make recommendations to the head of each agency and to the MOPD to resolve physical and programmatic access issues; and perform other functions as may be assigned.
Incorporate accessibility and disability justice in emergency preparedness and response, including pandemics and other disease outbreaks, extreme weather conditions, bioterrorism, mental health disaster response, and continual public health emergency preparedness activities. This includes high-level strategy for deploying the Accessibility Triage Center, and assessing emergent emergency planning and response training needs with regards to disability accessibility.

Provide vision and strategic planning for DOHMH's accessibility work agency-wide;

Liaise with key external partners including community-based organizations and represent Agency with other City agencies;

Engage with bureaus/units throughout the Agency to build an inclusive culture and incorporate accessibility into planning for communications, programs (including emergency response), policies, and research;

Supervise internally-facing staff responsible for supporting accommodations for staff and job applicants, supervise other staff assisting in the performance of public health emergency preparedness;

Work with vendors and DOHMH's Information Technology team to improve experience design to ensure web resources are accessible for staff and the public;

Research and evaluate interventions, follow best practices in the scientific literature, coordinate research efforts regarding interventions for people with disabilities, and disseminate findings on success of interventions

1. A baccalaureate degree from an accredited college with emphasis in disability access, social justice, city or urban planning, political science, community engagement, urban studies, emergency preparedness, business or public administration, research, or a related field; and two (2) years of satisfactory, full-time experience in an area related to the described job duties; or

2. A satisfactory equivalent of education and experience. However, all candidates must possess at least two years of the experience as described under “1”.

Interest in, and demonstrated capacity in, working directly with people with disabilities. Experience evaluating data and scientific literature and best practices related to disabilities and accessibility. Capacity and willingness to learn City policies and procedures. Strong understanding of disability etiquette and social justice. Familiarity with federal, state, and local disability-related laws and standards. Pro-active and self-motivated individual with the ability to work in teams, manage staff, and execute projects in a highly dynamic environment with multiple stakeholders and timelines. Fluency in Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook, and PowerPoint. The ideal candidate will have excellent judgment and problem-solving skills, and exceptional interpersonal skills including empathy and responsiveness. Experience working for or with City government agencies, and knowledge of local community-based organizations serving people with disabilities, is preferred. Certification of accessibility expertise, such as certification by the International Association of Accessibility Professionals (IAAP) including Certified Professional in Accessibility Core Competencies (CPACC), is a plus. Lived experience with a disability or acting as a caregiver for someone with a disability is welcome.

As a prospective employee of the City of New York, you may be eligible for federal loan forgiveness programs and state repayment assistance programs. For more information, please visit the U.S. Department of Education’s website at https://studentaid.gov/pslf/

New York City residency is generally required within 90 days of appointment. However, City Employees in certain titles who have worked for the City for 2 continuous years may also be eligible to reside in Nassau, Suffolk, Putnam, Westchester, Rockland, or Orange County. To determine if the residency requirement applies to you, please discuss with the agency representative at the time of interview.

The City of New York is an inclusive equal opportunity employer committed to recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce and providing a work environment that is free from discrimination and harassment based upon any legally protected status or protected characteristic, including but not limited to an individual's sex, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation, veteran status, gender identity, or pregnancy.