Robyn Lewis

Robyn Lewis, Ph.D., has over 25 years of experience advocating, educating, and supporting individuals with disabilities. She currently works for the Illinois Institute for Rehabilitation and Employment Research at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign as the assistant director. As assistant director, she serves as liaison to the State of Illinois and national governmental organizations, assists with the administration of the Institute’s grant projects, and works with the director on the overall management of the Institute, ensuring alignment of the Institute’s projects with the mission.

Robyn spent three years as the senior policy advisor for the Illinois Department of Human Resources (IDHS) Division of Rehabilitation Services (DRS), where she worked to reform policy supporting employment for persons with disabilities. Notably, Robyn participated in writing the Dignity in Pay legislation to phase out subminimum wage for persons with disabilities in Illinois. While at DRS, she also served as the project manager for the SWTCIE Illinois grant project. Robyn is also a retired special education teacher, spending 22 years teaching transition-related life and vocational skills to students ages 18-22 diagnosed with intellectual and developmental disabilities and autism spectrum disorder. Through teaching and advocacy work, she established relationships with employers and the community at large, working to meet the demands of the local labor market. Robyn specializes in customized employment, job development, job matching, and job carving, as well as pairing people’s unique skills and interests with employer needs. Her tenure in the field was dedicated to providing quality, fully immersed, community-based training, bridging the transition gap between secondary education and adult services.

Robyn’s work intends to change society’s views of and expectations for individuals with disabilities while leveling the playing field through policy and legislative changes. By increasing knowledge, understanding the needs of workers and employers, and creating allies, she intends to create a culture where the value of workers with disabilities in the workforce is fully realized.     

Education

• Ph.D., Special Education, Saint Louis University, 2021
• M.B.A., Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, 2005
• B.S., Special Education, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, 2000