YTI Newsletter - August 2026

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that suicide is the tenth most likely cause of death in the US, accounting for over 48,000 deaths per year. “If we’re struggling at home, when we get to work those struggles do not go away,” says Ashley Bryant, licensed professional counselor and YTI extension associate. 

Bryant recently co-presented the webinar From Awareness to Action: Suicide Prevention in the Workplace for the Employer Assistance Resource Network on Disability (EARN), which is housed at YTI. This research-backed webinar, which was recorded, provides tools for suicide prevention at work, and adds disability to the conversation about this important topic. 

Read the Suicide Prevention Article

Employers can make data-informed decisions to strengthen disability employment outcomes and create more accessible and supportive workplaces using BenchmarkABILITY®, a free, online self-assessment tool from YTI that helps organizations evaluate their disability-related workplace policies, practices, and outcomes. Employers answer questions across six areas: Recruitment and Hiring, Career Development and Retention, Compensation and Benefits, Workplace Disability Support, Accessibility and Accommodation, and Metrics and Analytics. 

BenchmarkABILITY® generates a custom report for each area, highlighting organizational strengths, identifying opportunities for improvement, and comparing current practices to research-based leading practices. The reports can be used to establish benchmarks, guide strategic planning, and track progress over time.

Visit BenchmarkABILITY®

“Our goal is to help individuals spend less time searching for data and more time doing work our communities need,” says Camille Lee, project lead on YTI’s Disability Statistics website. The site provides free access to national, state, and local disability statistics from the American Community Survey. Available in map, chart, and tabular formats, users can copy or download these statistics for use in their own reports and presentations. Want to know more? Watch the recent webinar, 30,000+ Places! 2026 Updates for DisabilityStatistics.org.  

Watch the Statistics Webinar

Justice-impacted individuals with disabilities are nearly 11% less likely to be employed than people with disabilities who have not interacted with the criminal justice system, according to a study led by YTI researcher Jennifer Brooks. The study found a compounding disadvantage for people with disabilities and criminal records.

Read the Study Article

YTI researchers are recruiting participants for the study Making Work Work: Quality Work and Quality Care, which considers how disability and care work affect employment for care recipients and care workers. The study’s first phase focuses on people who use care services. 

If you are an adult who relies on personal assistants or other home care workers in New York, Oklahoma, or Washington state, please take our online survey. One in 10 people who finish the survey will receive a $50 Tango gift card. Some survey participants will be invited to a 90-minute focus group or individual interview, to discuss how relying on home care workers can affect finding or keeping a job. In addition, participants who complete a focus group or interview will be sent a $50 gift card. For more information, contact bcg54@cornell.edu.

Take the Survey