Danielle Stevens has several passions, many of which are rooted in accessibility and advocacy.
A native of Jacksonville, FL where she currently resides, Danielle was born with retinopathy of prematurity. But rather than being born blind, she actually had some sight up until she was three months old.
In terms of education, she learned independent living skills at the Louisiana Center for the Blind. She attended Florida State College to earn her associate’s degree and later graduated from Florida State University where she majored in family and child sciences with minors in education and social work.
Daniell’s interest in making a difference in the world came along at a young age. She was part of student government in high school and college and participated in a leadership program called Disability Trust. She has also been involved with local chapters of larger organizations, such as the Democratic Party, NAACP, and ACLU.
Professionally, she has worked as a freelance digital accessibility tester for several companies, including Fable and AllyADA. Danielle is currently in the process of starting her own business to help women entrepreneurs who may or may not have a digital presence that’s accessible. Last year, she participated in a program for entrepreneurs with disabilities in her local community.
“I hear people say accessibility takes so much time to implement, but it really doesn’t,” she says. “We have AI tools that can scan websites that can give you an accessibility report.”
She also hopes to get an AI certification in order to partner with AI developers to help ensure their products are accessible before they launch.
Danielle originally joined the Florida Council of the Blind in the 2000s. She left and then came back to ACB years later when she found out about ACB Next Generation in 2022. Since attending the Committee Showcase, she has served on the affiliate’s Public Relations and Advocacy Committees. In addition to ACB NextGen, she’s a member of Blind Information Technology Solutions (BITS) and Independent Visually Impaired Entrepreneurs (IVIE).
“I love the camaraderie and bond of our members,” she says. “I feel like ACB allows us to form relationships and actually get to know each other.”
She wants to continue to help get new members for ACB NextGen and hopes to see a Florida chapter come along someday.
Outside of ACB and advocacy work, her hobbies include reading, watching sports, listening to music, and playing accessible games. Some of her favorite games are Knight Manager, Crime City, Dice World, and Into the Cave. Experimenting with generative AI tools is another one of her passions.
“AI has leveled the playing field for people with disabilities. For example, we now see blind people making music, images, and other content with it.”
Danielle says she is a Christian. There is one verse that truly stands out to her, and regardless of whichever passion she is focused on in her life, she tries to live her life by it each day: “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”