September 2003 U.S. DOT ACAA Complaint

Jerry Kerr filed and successfully pursued a complaint with the United States Department of Transportation against Continental Airlines for violating the Air Carriers Access Act by charging people with disabilities who were using the Segway as an assistive device for its transportation, and Continental Airlines’ refusal to allow people with disabilities to gate check their Segway.

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February 2004 Formation of Disability Rights Advocates for Technology “DRAFT”

Disability Rights Advocates for Technology, DRAFT, a 501(c) (3) nonprofit organization representing people with disabilities who refuse to be defined by their disability and whose passionate enthusiasm for participating in the activities of life is supported by Universal Design and New and emerging technologies.

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March 2004 City of San Francisco, California

Worked with the city of San Francisco's Mayor's Office on Disabilities on the issuance of guidance, in compliance with title II of the ADA, exempting people with disabilities who use Segways as assistive devices from the ordinance restricting the use Segways in the city of San Francisco.

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May 2004 August 2005 - United States Department of Transportation

Worked with the United States Department of Transportation's Office of Civil Rights regarding the issuance of ADA guidance for the transportation of people with disabilities who use Segways as an assistive mobility device in the United States.

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May 2004 Zoological Society of San Diego, California

Worked with the Office of Risk Management and the Office of Security of the Zoological Society of San Diego in the development of a policy that allows the use of Segways by people with disabilities while visiting the San Diego Zoo, Wild Animal Park and their other venues.

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October 2004 Alaska Community Transportation Conference, Anchorage, Alaska

Featured speaker and presenter on the transportation of people with disabilities using Segways aboard buses and para-transit vehicles at the Alaska Community Transportation Conference in Anchorage, Alaska.  This included conducting workshops with nationally recognized safety experts on securing Segways aboard vehicles and the behavior of the devices during emergency situations.

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June 2004 City Attorney's Office Seattle, Washington

Provided guidance to the City Attorney's Office in Seattle, Washington for the development of ADA compliant ordinances regulating the use of EPAMD's (Electrical Personal Assistive Mobility Devices).

 

May 2005 National Exposition, Community Transportation Association of America

Featured speaker and presenter on the transportation of people with disabilities using Segways aboard buses and para-transit vehicles at the Community Transportation Association of America's National Exposition.

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July 2005 No Barriers Symposium, Cortina, Italy

Featured speaker and presenter at No Barriers/Dolomiti an international symposium on new and emerging technologies and their benefit to people with disabilities.

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February 2006 Colorado Senate, Denver, Colorado

Offered testimony before the Senate Transportation Committee of the State of Colorado on the use of Segways by people with disabilities.

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April 2006 Courtroom 21, William and Mary Law School, Williamsburg, Virginia

Provided training and equipment for the first-ever use of a Segway in a courtroom as a mobility device by an attorney with disabilities in the presentation of their case and in the delivery of their closing remarks.

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May 2006 Testimony before the United States House of Representatives

Offered testimony before the United States House of Representatives Committee on Resources, Subcommittee on National Parks during an oversight hearing on disability access in the National Park System.

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July 2006 United States Access Board, Washington, DC

Offered testimony before the United States Access Board with regard to the use of Segways aboard transportation vehicles and proposed changes for design requirements in the issuance of new ADAAG Guidelines for Transportation Vehicles.

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October 2006 National Park Service, Yosemite National Park

Conducted a 3-day training and assessment conference with the staff of the National Park Service at Yosemite National Park, Yosemite, California for the development of a system-wide policy for the National Park Service on the use of Segways by people with disabilities.

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November 2006 Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois

Keynote Speaker on the role of Universal Design and new and emerging technologies which benefit people with disabilities at the annual meeting of the Machines Assisting Recovery from Stroke National Advisory Board at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago.

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November 2006 United States Congress-Conference on the Responsiveness of the National Park Service to Issues of Access

Provided commentary with regard to the responsiveness of the National Park Service to issues raised with regard to accessibility by people with disabilities at the May 2006 Congressional Hearings.

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April 2007 St. Louis University, St. Louis, Missouri

Guest Lecturer on the role of Universal Design and new and emerging technologies which benefit people with disabilities.

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May 2007 Human 2.0, New Minds, New Bodies, New Identities

Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts

Provided training and the use of a modified Segway for John Hockenberry, a host and the master of ceremonies at a symposium dedicated to ushering in a new era for human capability through the use of a new category of tools and machines poised to radically change humanity at a velocity well beyond the pace of human evolution.

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June 2007 No Barriers Symposium, Squaw Valley California

Featured speaker and presenter at the No Barriers Festival, an International Symposium, in Squaw Valley, California on “Universal Design, Technology, and Common Sense, A Fresh Approach for People with Disabilities and an Aging America.” He was also a featured participant in the roundtable discussion of creative solutions for the funding and affordability of new and innovative technology.

In addition, DRAFT provided assessment and demonstration for more than 400 people with disabilities allowing them to experience the use of the Segway.

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April 24, 2008, Institute for Human & Machine Cognition, Pensacola, Florida

Evening Lecture “2012 The Coming Crisis in America: Universal Design and new technologies, common sense solutions for America’s aging baby boomers and People with Disabilities”.

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April 22, 2008, National Council on Disability, Washington, D.C.

Testified before the National Council on Disability on the use of Segways as mobility devices by people with disabilities and the prevalence of civil rights violations through denial of access by companies, including the Disney Corporation, regulated under title III of the ADA

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July 15, 2008, U.S. Department of Justice Public Hearing, Washington, D.C.

Testified before the Civil Rights Division of the United States Department of Justice on their Notices of Proposed Rule Making to amend regulations under Titles II and III of the ADA.

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March 12, 2009, 25th International Seating Symposium, Orlando, Florida

An International Symposium which includes the presentation of scientific and clinical papers, research forums, in-depth workshops, panel sessions, and extensive exhibit halls. Presentations addressed the wheeled mobility and seating challenges and solutions for people with disabilities across the lifespan and conditions such as neuromuscular disorders, spinal cord injury and diseases of the spinal cord, orthopedic conditions, systemic conditions, obesity, or polytrauma.

General Session – Papers Presentation – Great Hall

Jerry Kerr addressed the symposium on the subject of “2012: Universal Design and Common Sense Mobility Solutions for Aging Baby Boomers and People with Disabilities”

Instructional Course:  Stand Up & Ride ~ Experiential Exploration of Upright Power Mobility Options

A team consisting of Kendra L. Betz, MSPT, ATP, Office of Prosthetics & Clinical Logistics, A Central Office, Washington, DC, Jerry Kerr Disability Rights Advocates for Technology (DRAFT), St. Louis, MO, Bonita Sawatzky, PhD, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada Ian Denison, PT, ATP,GF Strong Rehab Centre, Vancouver, BC, Canada

Presentation of an interactive session for more than 70 clinicians, therapists, and physicians.  In addition to discussing the current pertinent published research on upright power mobility options, the participants learned to operate the Segway and upright scooters in varied indoor and outdoor environments and familiarize themselves with the features and limitations of upright power mobility options.

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June 6, 2009, No Barriers Symposium, Miami, Florida

As a member of a panel addressing “Robots for Mobility” moderated by Bart Chernow, M.D., Jerry Kerr addressed “Wheeled Vehicles that Balance”; Hugh Herr, Ph. D. Associate Professor, MIT Media Lab & MIT-Harvard Division of Health Sciences and Technology, addressed “Powered Leg Prosthesis” and James Patton, Ph.D. Assistant Professor, Northwestern University will address “Therapeutic Practice: the Help of Robots”.

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October 13, 2010, U.S. Department of Interior National Park Service, Washington, D.C.

Addressed the National Park Service’s Regional Accessibility Coordinators, Facility Managers and Concession Managers regarding the ADA revised regulations as they related to “Other Power Driven Mobility Devices”.

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December 10, 2010, U.S. Department of Justice Public Hearing, Washington, D.C.

Testified before the Civil Rights Division of the United States Department of Justice on their Notices of Proposed Rule Making to amend regulations on Accessibility of Web Information and Services Provided by Entities Covered by the ADA.

 

June 8, 2011, National Center on Accessibility

Provided training to Access Coordinators from The National Park Service, National Forest Service, United States Army Corps of Engineers, and representatives of International and National Botanical Gardens on Policy Considerations for Wheelchairs and Other Power-Driven Mobility Devices, under the new ADA regulations focused on issues surrounding use of such devices in parks and facilities; and the development of agency/facility policy.

 

May 31, 2012, National ADA Symposium in Indianapolis, Indiana

Provided training on Policy Considerations under the new regulations of the ADA for Wheelchairs and Other Power-Driven Mobility Devices, under the new ADA regulations focused on issues surrounding the use of such devices in parks and facilities; and the development of agency/facility policy.

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July 9-12, 2015 No Barriers Symposium, Park City, Utah

Mr. Jerry Kerr and DRAFT team members attended this amazing event to bring awareness and training for disabled veterans for the Segs4Vets program. This was also a great opportunity to spread awareness for the Ally Chair program. This event allowed the DRAFT team to be able to spread awareness for the use of Segways, and their ability to provide a great mobility solution for those with a wide array of disabilities.

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May 14-17, 2017 National ADA Symposium in Chicago, Illinois

Providing training and guidance on Universal Design and considerations, on Other Power Driven Mobility Devices. Continued Disability Rights training for five DRAFT Advocacy Team Members in Universal Design, Department of Justice Update, Standards for Accessible Design, Impact Advocacy, and ADA & Taxis, Uber, and Lyft regulations.

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June 21-22, 2017 Securing America's Future Energy Conference in Washington D.C.

Providing guidance on Autonomous vehicles and the provided benefits of this technology for those with disabilities. Including considerations for Universal Design, and future public transportation regulation considerations regarding Autonomous Vehicles.

 

June 17-20, 2018 National ADA Symposium in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 

DRAFT Vice President Alan Maccini and DRAFT Advocate Sgt. Pete Sutherland USA (Ret) will be providing Advocacy and outreach on the ALLY Chair program during this great event. We look forward to seeing you there.

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July 2018 - April 2021,  9147 Clayton Multi-Generational Housing for aging in place.

DRAFT President and Co-Founder Jerry Kerr along with Advisory Board Members Jere Fabick and Dennis Auping designed and built 9147clayton. This home was created to inspire architects to design, homebuilders to build and homeowners to insist upon a Renaissance in living that will accommodate them throughout their entire lives. This paradigm shift in design allows the benefits of multi-generational living to be enjoyed by families across America.​The project is focused on creating a highly desirable residential solution for all people with an environment which will enhance the quality of life of the aging baby boomer population, people with disabilities, and their families and extend their ability to live independently.​ We have collaborated extensively with people who have a broad range of disabilities; including multiple amputations, traumatic burn injuries, cognitive impairments, and aging Americans.  By combining the latest in technologies with the elegant use of universal design, 9147 Clayton is a tangible solution to overcome their real-life challenges and experiences. 9147 Clayton Outreach, Advocacy, and Tours provided by DRAFT Advocates Sgt. Pete Sutherland USA Ret. and SSG. Jay Fondren USA Ret.

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September 2019, CAT Command For Dozing Program Testing, Training, and Feedback

DRAFT President Jerry Kerr along with Draft Advisory Board Member and Fabick Cat President Jere Fabick teamed up with the Cat Command For Dozing Program to train and test the remote operation of Cat equipment to test it's capabilities when being operated by the disabled. 7 DRAFT Advocates and Disabled Veterans attended the training and provided invaluable feedback with unique injuries including multiple amputations, spinal cord injuries, traumatic brain injuries, and various loss of use in extremities.

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April 2021 - April 2023, Continuing Advocacy in Disability Rights

DRAFT is continuing to provide advocacy and education on disability rights, and working to improve Title II and Title III access. This includes public education, social media awareness, and complaint guidance for businesses, City and State governments, federal departments, and the U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division. We've had a large increase of complaints against the Air Carriers Access Act with denial of Access based on the type of mobility device, and have been working to educate, advise, and guide complainants in filing a formal complaint with the DOT. We've also been proactively advising several different types of temporary events as to their responsibilities under the ADA, and filing official complaints as necessary.

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May 2023 National ADA Symposium, Kansas City, Missouri

DRAFT ADA Coordinator / ACTCP SGT. Pete Sutherland USA Ret. will be representing the organization and completing ongoing annual training at this year's ADA Symposium in Kansas City. This great event also allows for networking and discussions of Universal design, and case updates from the Department of Justice.

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