TecAccess, LLC, Ruh Global Communications, AXSChat
Debra Ruh (born 1958) is an American business woman and advocate for the rights of persons with disabilities. She founded
TecAccess, which provides software and services for information technology accessibility for
people with disabilities and for
Section 508 compliance.
In 1994, Ruh was hired by SunTrust Mortgage, now
Crestar Bank, and worked into 1998 as vice president of training, development and quality control.[2][3] Beginning in 1998, she worked as a banking consultant until 2001, and was at Market Street Mortgage in
Tampa, Florida as vice president and distance-learning dean until 2000. She started Strategic Performance Solutions and was its chief executive officer (CEO) from 1999 to 2001.[2][4]
Ruh co-founded a social media venture –
AXSChat (access chat) with
Neil Milliken and Antonio Santos.[13][14] It is a social media site about providing access and inclusion to those with accessibility needs.[15] It was an event partner for the
Paralympic Games in 2016.[16] Ruh was coauthor of the article Helping Veterans with Disabilities Transition to Employment" with Paul Spicer and Kathleen Vaughan in a 2009 issue of Journal of Postsecondary Education and Disability.[17]
2009
White Paper – "Information Technology Accessibility: Yes We Can!" and her brochure "Making the World of Technology Accessible" are on the
White House website. They are two of about fifty posted documents in the
Open Government Initiative.[19][20]
Personal life
Ruh was born December 18, 1958, in
Pensacola, Florida. She is married to Edward Ruh and has a son and a daughter.[2] Edward, who worked in an IT department of a bank, joined TecAccess in 2006 and worked there for one year. He returned to TecAccess in 2008 and managed relationships with clients. Their working relationship featured in The Wall Street Journal article, "Married to the Job (And Each Other)" in 2011.[21]
Notes
^In 2005, she was on a "Disability News and Views" radio program with Roy Grizzard, the assistant secretary of the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy. They discussed employment issues for the disabled and adaptive technology.[9]
^Debaise, Colleen; Needleman, Sarah E.; Maltby, Emily (February 14, 2011).
"Married to the Job (And Each Other)". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved December 3, 2016.