Beth Butler Fadel J.D.
Executive Director
Beth has over 24 years of experience providing subject matter expertise to Fortune 50 companies in ADA Accommodations process and disability inclusion strategies. As a Disability Inclusion Consultant and Executive Director of DI-NC, Beth brings extensive experience in the private sector, including specialized expertise in balancing risk mitigation while promoting full accessibility to support the inclusion of people with disabilities in the workforce, marketplace and supply chain.
Beth began her pursuit of disability inclusion and equality for all earliy in her career, achieving her law degree from Samford University’s Cumberland School of Law in Birmingham, Alabama in 1993 and joining the AL State Bar in 1994.
In her early career Beth worked in the financial services industry supporting Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action Compliance programs with SouthTrust Bank in Birmingham, AL before her corporate relocation to Charlotte, NC in 2007 with Wachovia Bank. From there, Beth continued her career as a leader in Disability and Accommodations compliance while also serving as Board Chair of the Board of Directors for Disability:IN (formerly USBLN).
After leading the development and implementation of a centralized accommodation process at Lowe’s Companies, Beth joined the Disability:IN Inclusion Works team, (formerly USBLN’s Going For the Gold (GFG) team in 2016, as a Disability Inclusion Consultant. Working with companies like 3M, Qualcomm and Facebook, she focused specifically on guiding companies and building comprehensive disability inclusion strategies that began a transformation of their corporate culture.
Since assuming the role of Executive Director for DI-NC in 2017, she has focused on recruiting and developing an active Board of Directors, with diverse representatives from North Carolina’s corporate community. Companies like, Wells Fargo, Novant Health, Trane Technoligies and Biogen also represent the diverse industries seeking to achieve disability inclusion and equality for all. These efforts promptly led DI-NC to being recognized as Disability:IN’s Affiliate of the Year in 2020. Legally blind since birth, Beth leverages her experiences both personally and professionally to challenge companies to think, act and lead differently.
Patricia K. Keul (Pat)
Operations Director
A nationally recognized pioneer, innovator, and leader, Pat Keul, B.S., M.S, CESP brings over 35 years of experience developing and managing inclusive disability employment services.
As Operations Director for Disability:IN NC, Pat collaborates with our leadership, businesses, and stakeholders to advance innovative programs and expand existing programs to enhance disability inclusion and equality across the state. She served as the Director of our InRoads to Employment Initiative (a three-year project, funded by the North Carolina Council on Developmental Disabilities) to develop innovative employment models such as apprenticeships and mentoring programs for people with disabilities. As Coordinator of the North Carolina Employment Collaborative (also funded by the NCCDD), she worked with our leadership to identify best practices and policies in disability employment services to create a cross-cutting infrastructure, of businesses, employment agencies, school systems, community colleges and individuals with disabilities, acting in concert as champions for employment.
Prior to joining the Disability:IN-NC team, Pat worked extensively as a disability employment consultant. Her expertise was pivotal in the development of the
Certified Employment Support Professional (CESP) credential, the nation’s first independent certification process based upon national competency standards for Employment Support Professionals (ESPs). She has crafted sustainable Supported Employment and other inclusive initiatives with the NC Council on Developmental Disabilities, Vaya Healthcare, InReach NC, RHA Healthcare, and Alliance Behavioral Health, among others. Pat worked as the state coordinator with the Project SEARCH founders from Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, to establish the first Project SEARCH programs in North Carolina. Pat also co-founded the Employment Support Professional Council (ESPCC), administered by the Association for Persons Supporting Employment First (APSE), and served as its first director.
In her early career, Pat worked with Dr. David Test at UNC-Charlotte to establish the first federally funded supported employment demonstration project in North Carolina. She went on to found Supported Employment Training, Inc (SET INC), among the first of its kind, in North Carolina in 1987 and served as the Executive Director until 2002.
Pat brings her prior experience in the non- profit sector, to partner with businesses to connect them to resources and source talent through our signature programs.
Nils Skudra
Communication Specialist
Nils is a recent graduate of the master’s in library and information sciences program at the University of North Carolina- Greensboro, where he received a previous Master of Arts in History in 2018. Originally from Berkeley, California, he moved to North Carolina in 2016 for graduate studies in Civil War history, a subject that has been his lifelong passion. Nils has written numerous freelance articles relating to the Civil War, which have been published in various newspapers including The Roanoke Times and the Greensboro News and Record. He aspires to work as a full-time professional historian, and he enjoys visiting different Civil War landmarks across North Carolina and Virginia.
Prior to joining the Disability:IN-NC team, Nils acquired extensive advocacy experience in the disability community as a freelance writer, public speaker, and student group leader. His articles, which were published on the Art of Autism website and in Pittverse Magazine, addressed a variety of disability-related issues, including the representation of disabled protagonists in film and television; the growing demand for special needs individuals in the workplace; and famous historical figures who may have had autism. In addition, during his graduate studies, Nils co-founded Spectrum at UNCG, an organization for students on the autism spectrum. As president, Nils facilitated events and activities aimed at promoting autism awareness and acceptance on campus, including informational panel discussions, group meetings in which students were encouraged to share their experiences with autism and social outings that were meant to build a sense of community. Furthermore, Nils participated in several autism self-advocacy conferences in Greensboro and Winston-Salem, in which he elaborated upon his experiences of being on the spectrum and how it has influenced him.
Nils brings his expertise in research, information organization, detail orientation to working at DI-NC, together with a passionate commitment to promoting a more diverse, inclusive and equitable workplace for members of the disability community.
Debra Fretwell
Accountant
Debra Fretwell is an accomplished accounting and payroll consultant. An expert in Fund Accounting, which is used in the Nonprofit space, she provides accounting resources and support to Disability:IN North Carolina to ensure accurate record keeping for restricted Grant funding and expenses, as well as Donations received from our partners. As a QuickBooks ProAdvisor, Debra was instrumental in setting up our accounting structure to reflect these standards and continues to provide budgeting and reporting assistance.
Debra graduated from Wake Forest University in 1983 with a degree in Intermediate Education, concentrating in Mathematics and was in Education for 15 years. She studied Accounting at the University of Alabama at Birmingham and began her own bookkeeping and accounting resources company in 2010.