County Legislator Delia DeRiggi-Whitton (D-Glen Cove) applauded the appointments of Port Washington community leaders Dr. Joel Ziev and Stella Spanakos to Nassau County’s newly formed Advisory Council on People with Disabilities. Both were unanimously appointed to the Council by the Nassau County Legislature on Monday, Sept. 19.
During Dr. Ziev’s five-decade career of advocating for the rights of disabled people, he has served as the Director of Instructional Services from 1977-79 for the Henry Viscardi School in Albertson; Executive Director for the New York Society for the Deaf from 1980-97 and as a Certified Impartial Hearing Officer for the New York State Department of Education from 1979-2022.
In 1997, he established the Port Washington-based Partners for Access LLC, which provides disability access, consulting and support services to public and private agencies, schools, hospitals, and law firms on meeting Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requirements for addressing the special programmatic and access needs of people with disabilities.
Spanakos founded The Nicholas Center in 2010 with the mission of delivering robust services to young adults like her son, Nicholas, who is on the Autism spectrum. In many cases, people like Nicholas struggle when at age 21 because they transition from a supportive educational setting into adulthood with limited opportunities for engagement and employment.
The Nicholas Center is dedicated to ensuring that adults on the Autism spectrum have access to the resources and support they need to thrive in the communities where they live and work. Today, the Center provides daily support to over 120 individuals, and the Spectrum Designs Foundation, a custom apparel and promotional items business, is the largest employer of people with autism in Nassau County.
Dr. Ziev and Spanakos were appointed to the Advisory Council on Monday alongside Nadia Holubnyczyj-Ortiz, of Floral Park, and Lora Webster, of Point Lookout.
“Joel and Stella’s friendship has probably been one of the best gifts I’ve had as a Legislator,” DeRiggi-Whitton said. “Joel’s lifelong mission of advocating for the disabled really began with his son, and you can tell the passion he carries in his heart for this cause, and Stella’s persistence and advocacy on behalf of people living with Autism make her an inspiring beacon in our community. I thank them and all of our volunteers for agreeing to join Nassau County’s Advisory Council and volunteering their time and expertise to make our county a better place for everybody.”
