John Kramer, PhD

John is a Clinical Assistant Professor in the Department of Occupational Therapy at the University of Florida. Dr. Kramer’s work focuses on involvement of families in employment for people with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (I/DD), Knowledge Translation and Aging family caregivers of people with I/DD. His previous projects at the Institute for Community Inclusion included the Employment First Florida project, a statewide effort in Florida to improve employment outcomes for people with I/DD. Dr. Kramer was awarded a Switzer research fellowship in 2011-2012 from the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (now National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR). Funded by this fellowship, his qualitative research study examined the roles that siblings play in supporting employment for people with I/DD. Dr. Kramer earned his PhD in Disability Studies while working in the Rehabilitation Research and Training Center on Aging with Developmental Disabilities at the University of Illinois at Chicago. His dissertation was on the mutual support roles between siblings and people with I/DD. Dr. Kramer co-founded the Sibling Leadership Network, Massachusetts Sibling Support Network (MSSN) and Supporting Illinois Brothers and Sisters, which connect brothers and sisters of people with I/DD, siblings with I/DD, and professionals interested in policy, services, and research related to siblings and disability both nationally and statewide, respectively. Dr. Kramer teaches Introduction to Health Sciences, Ethics and Legal Issues to undergraduates within the Bachelor’s of Health Science program and is currently designing a course on disability policy and culture.