Meet Marissa Bergman, Public Health Specialist at the Access Center for Independent Living (ACIL).
Educating residents of Dayton and surrounding communities with and without disabilities about the importance of emergency preparedness is a major part of Marissa’s position.
“I became Public Health Specialist at ACIL after graduating with Bachelor of Science in Public Health from Ohio State University. Public Health looks to address the problems a population may have and figure out why they are happening so that they can be prevented. Emergency Preparedness is an important part of prevention,” said Marissa.
Building and maintaining relationships between ACIL and local public health departments and emergency response agencies is something else Marissa focuses on. She has established important connections focused on the public health of local communities through the Access and Functional Needs Committee.
People that have conditions, temporary or permanent, that limit their ability to respond before, during, and/or after an emergency have access and functional needs.
“The Access & Functional Needs Committee was established in February 2024 in hopes of ensuring that access and functional needs will not be overlooked during future disasters,” Marissa explained.
While a large part of Marissa’s role is to help educate residents of local communities about how to prepare for disasters like tornadoes, another facet of her role centers around a different type of disaster preparedness.
Marissa is pursuing a Master of Science in Public Health at Wright State University. Despite her busy schedule while working at ACIL, she is a very dedicated employee and student. Her hard work resulted in the two organizations partnering to publicize a survey she created to determine the needs of Ohioans with disabilities that went unmet during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“A lot of public health departments and emergency response agencies noticed that many people with disabilities fell through the cracks during the COVID-19 pandemic and determining the causes of these cracks is important when preparing for future disasters and determining responses. I hope my survey will help public health departments and emergency response agencies do so effectively.” she said.
While Marissa is not a person with a disability, working at ACIL and attending school at WSU has taught her a lot about those with disabilities and helped her to become a strong advocate.
“The advocacy issues that I am most passionate about relate to the overall health of community members with and without disabilities,” she said.
Marissa’s experiences have shaped her advocacy, but she finds being an advocate challenging sometimes.
“The aspect of advocacy that I find most challenging is learning how to communicate with many different groups about the topics ACIL is working on so that everyone is at an equal understanding both at a general population level and the professional level,” she said.
‘Wife’ was added to the list of Marissa’s roles when she married her husband, Nick, in April 2024. When not busy with school or work, the newlyweds love to cook, go on walks, and try new things together, especially traveling.
“I love to learn how to cook new foods and try different types of foods, especially when I get the opportunity to travel,” she said.
Going boating at a Northern Kentucky lake has been a tradition in Marissa’s family since her father was a child.
“I enjoy getting to ride around on the boat with Nick, watching people tube, and then going on night rides to see fireworks or stars,” she said.
Need to get in touch with Marissa? Reach out to her at 937-341-5202 Ext 105 or [email protected].
