DRNC’s Board of Directors is a diverse group of individuals who are passionate about the rights of people with disabilities. All or most of our board members are disabled or have a family member with a disability. The DRNC Board of Directors seeks to reflect the ethnic, racial, geographic, socioeconomic and disability diversity of North Carolina.
Selection of board members is based on current diversity and skills needed, as well as knowledge, connection and commitment to advancing the human and legal rights of people with disabilities.
DRNC Board Members
Ed Rizzuto joined the DRNC Board of Directors in February, 2020. He initially became involved with DRNC in 2017 as a pro bono attorney, providing assistance to clients seeking to pursue discrimination claims with the EEOC. He obtained his…
Juvencio Rocha-Peralta, Jr., a native of Veracruz, Mexico, has lived in North Carolina since 1980 and has been a community leader and advocate for the past 35 years. Juvencio is the founder and, since 2001, executive director of the Associ…
Jill has lived in North Carolina for more than 35 years. She lives in Greenville with her husband and has three grown children. She graduated from East Carolina University and is a licensed marriage and family therapist. She has worked in pu…
Kenneth Schorr joined the DRNC board of directors in June 2022. He served as Executive Director of the Charlotte Center for Legal Advocacy from 1988 to his retirement in April 2022. He practiced previously in Arkansas from 1975 to 1979 repr…
Ellysa Smith joined the DRNC board in December 2022. She resides in the Clayton area and serves as the HR Director for Carolina Small Business Development Fund (CSBDF) a nonprofit that supports underserved small business owners in the sta…
Cheryl is a Registered Nurse with a master’s degree in nonprofit organizational management. She lives with her husband, Dick, in Waynesville, in the beautiful Smoky Mountains. Most recently, Cheryl was VP of Quality Management for East…
Sheila joined our board in March of 2019. Her education includes a Bachelor’s of Science, with a Biology major and Chemistry minor, from Johnson C. Smith University; a NC Teacher Certification from UNC-Charlotte; an Associate’s Degree i…
Sabrina Willis is a nurse entrepreneur whose passion for quality and patient safety drives her to be a change agent and transformational leader. Her multifaceted career has provided a solid foundation in which she consults, educates, ad…