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Disability-Forward Housing Futures Summit

Mon, Nov 03
Disability Cultural Center
An image of people with and without disabilities, some standing and some in wheelchairs, putting large and colorful building blocks together.
November
03

Time & Location

Nov 03, 2025, 8:30 AM–6:00 PM PT

Disability Cultural Center
165 Grove St.
San Francisco, CA 94104
*The Disability Cultural Center is co-located on the ground floor of The Kelsey Civic Center.

Text on image reads “Featured Presenter, Alice Wong, Author.” Digital portrait by Jen White-Johnson featuring a photo of an Asian American woman with honey blonde hair. She is in a wheelchair and there is a tracheostomy at her neck connected to a ventilator. She is wearing a silky multicolored shirt and a bold red lip color. She is looking intently at the camera with the heat of a thousand suns. Behind her are red and purple flowers with a red circle in the background framing her face like a warm sun. The background of the portrait is purple. Text on image reads “MC of Summit, Keah Brown, Author.” A photo of Keah, a black woman with long dark brown hair and black glasses, wearing a grey sweater, is next to the text. Headshot of Rebecca Cokley, a white woman with straight, shoulder-length reddish-brown hair, smiling slightly. She is wearing a black snakeskin-patterned top with a black leather jacket over it, along with small hoop earrings. On the left side of her headshot, bold black text reads, “Featured Presenter: Rebecca Cokley, Program Officer, U.S. Disability Rights, Ford Foundation.” Text on image reads “Featured Presenter, William Scott, Artist, Creative Growth.” William Scott, a dark-skinned man with a moustache is pictured wearing a cowboy hat and a red, blue and white plaid shirt. Text on image reads “Featured Presenter, Jessica Lehman, Community Organizer.” Jessica is a white woman pictured in a wheelchair, with shoulder-length brown hair and dangly silver earrings. She is smiling and wears a turquoise sweater. Text on image reads “Featured Performer, Lateef Mcleod, Writer and Scholar.” A black man with cerebral palsy with a low cut fade and a mustache wearing a black zip up sweater. He is sitting in a permobile wheelchair with his headrest behind him and his arms resting on his tray. Text on image reads “Featured Moderator, Julie Plasencia, Creative Growth Art Center, Professional Development Coordinator.” Julie is pictured wearing earrings. Her hair is pulled back into a braid. She is wearing a light colored denim jacket and a black shirt underneath. She is also wearing a brown leather bag. Text on image reads “Featured Presenter, Dancer Octavia Hingle, AXIS Dance Company.” Octavia Hingle poses in a grey suit and silver earrings; he lifts one leg off the floor while supporting his body with a black crutch and his other leg. He is a white-presenting person with curly brown hair and mustache, rosy cheeks, and a tall slim build. Text on image reads, “Featured Presenter: Anne Riggs, Inclusive Design Lead, David Baker Architects.” A woman with long, wavy blonde hair smiles at the camera. She is wearing a teal top. Text on image reads “Featured Moderator, Erick Mikiten, Mikiten Architecture and The Art of Access.” Erick is a light-skinned man with glasses, a beard, and short hair. He is pictured wearing a purple sweater. Text on image reads “Featured Moderator, Cecile Chalifour, Head of Community Development Real Estate, West Region, Managing Director, Chase.” Cecile is a light-skinned woman with dark curly hair. She is pictured wearing a black shirt and a gold necklace with a pendant on it. Text on image reads “Featured Presenter, Ed Mendoza, Metropolitan Abundance Project Research Associate, California YIMBY.” Ed Mendoza, a Hispanic man with black curly hair in a grey suit, looking sternly out into the distance, is pictured. Text on image reads “Featured Presenter, Sarah Vaccaro, Principal Architects FORA.” A blonde-haired woman in black jacket smiling with black framed glasses. A promotional graphic with the text, “Featured Presenter: Kelechi Ubozoh, Nigerian-American writer, mental health advocate, and psychiatric survivor.” A picture of Kelechi, a Black woman smiling with dark brown locks wearing an orange jacket, a silver undershirt, and blue jeans, is next to the text. Text on image reads, “Featured Presenter, Kristi Malone, Housing Supply Specialist, Jackson/Teton County Affordable Housing Department in Wyoming." Kristi Malone, a white woman with blonde hair and a green winter hat, smiling in front of a snowy background, is pictured. A promotional graphic with the text, “Featured Moderator: Eli Gelardin, Director of the San Francisco Office on Disability and Accessibility.” A headshot of Eli, a white person with blonde hair and a beard, smiles and wears a dark brown collared shirt and a black blazer. Text on image reads, “Featured Presenter, Micaela Connery, Co-Founder and CEO, The Kelsey.” Micaela is a white woman with long brown hair, pictured wearing a dark green button-down shirt with brown flowers on it. Text on image reads, “Featured Presenter: Brittanie Hernandez-Wilson, California Lead Homecare Organizer, Hand in Hand: The Domestic Employers Network.” Brittanie, a person with tan skin and long curly hair, is pictured smiling in their wheelchair and wearing a yellow t-shirt that says, “Support Domestic Worker Rights.” Text on image reads, “Featured Presenter: Kunal Modi, Chief of Health & Human Services for San Francisco.” A headshot of Kunal, a person with tan skin and dark hair wearing a zip-up sweater and a white collared shirt, is pictured next to the text. Text on image reads, “Featured Presenter: Allie Cannington, Managing Director, The Kelsey.” Allie, a white queer person smiling in their manual wheelchair with short brown hair, round glasses, earrings, and a blazer, is pictured next to the text. A promotional graphic with the text, “Featured Presenter: Jeffrey Yasuo Mansfield, Principal, MASS Design Group.” A headshot of Jeffrey, a middle-aged white male with brown hair in a black jacket, looking at the camera with a slight grin and the background blurred, is next to the text.

The Disability-Forward Housing Futures Summit, a first-of-its-kind gathering hosted by The Kelsey is designed as a single-room experience that takes participants on a linear journey, guiding attendees through a coherent learning and visionary experience, rather than a series of isolated panels.

The day begins by examining “How did we get here?” Then, it moves through the themes of accessible, affordable, and inclusive housing, unpacking what each of these terms means. The summit concludes with “What’s possible,” affirming that we can achieve this and here’s what the future can look like.

The summit will bring together thought leaders, community advocates, designers, and housing professionals committed to building a future where disabled people and all people can access quality housing and community. Join us for an inspiring day of conversation and collaboration.

The Disability-Forward Housing Futures Summit Agenda:

  • How Did We Get Here?
    Opening session that grounds participants in the historical and systemic context of disability and housing.
  • Accessible
    Explores practical, cross-disability design strategies, and policy innovations to reimagine what truly accessible, inclusive, and creatively designed housing can look like.
  • Affordable
    Introduces foundational concepts of affordable housing finance, explores how funders and city leaders are integrating disability into housing and justice frameworks, and highlights opportunities, challenges, and creative pathways toward funding inclusive, disability-forward housing solutions.
  • Inclusive
    Centers resident voices, explores how formal and informal supports—especially Medicaid-funded services—can be integrated into housing, and uplifts visionary perspectives like confirmed presenter Alice Wong’s to reimagine community-based care and belonging beyond institutional models.
  • What’s Possible
    Closes the summit by focusing on actionable strategies, examples from the field, and a forward-looking policy framework to show how we can build the disability-forward housing future envisioned throughout the day.

Tours of The Kelsey Civic Center and participant Learning Lounges will be held throughout the day.

Tickets

Standard Registration: $500

Virtual: $75

Venue Details

We’re proud to host our first Disability Forward Housing Futures Summit at the nation’s first Disability Cultural Center (DCC), on the first floor of The Kelsey Civic Center. Holding the Summit at the DCC underscores our commitment to — and celebration of — disability-led culture, design, and access. You can read more about the DCC in this recent KQED article.

FAQs

Will the Summit be accessible?

Yes! Accessibility is a priority. The event will include ASL interpretation and CART captioning, wheelchair-accessible facilities, and sensory-friendly options. Masks will be provided for anyone who wants them.

Where can I find the agenda?

A full agenda will be shared via email to all registrants and posted on our website.

Are there hotel blocks or recommendations?

We have a courtesy block of rooms at the Holiday Inn San Francisco – Golden Gateway by IHG at 1500 Van Ness Avenue. It is a short bus ride or walk/roll to the summit venue. We are awaiting the hotel link for the booking code. We will email that to all registered summit attendees when that is available. An alternative accessible hotel option is Phoenix Hotel located at 601 Eddy Street.

What are the transportation options?

The venue is accessible via public transit (both BART and Muni), parking options, and ride-share drop-offs, etc. The closest BART Station is Civic Center / UN Plaza (4 block walk) and the closest Muni train station is Van Ness (2 block walk) or the 49 Bus (½ block walk.

What is The Kelsey?

The Kelsey is a national nonprofit that advances disability-forward housing solutions that open doors to homes and opportunities for everyone. Co-led by people with and without disabilities, we both co-develop affordable, accessible, inclusive housing and lead advocacy and field-building efforts to create market conditions so inclusive housing becomes the norm. In addition to our own housing communities, we support projects, advocates, and public agencies to advance disability-forward housing solutions through technical assistance, open-source resources, and advocacy.