Bryan Neider, AbilityPath and Via Services CEO

10/30/2026

🎉 250 Editions. Five Pillars. A Century of Lessons in Leadership.

What makes an organization endure? After decades in the technology industry and a decade leading AbilityPath, I've come to believe the answer isn't strategy alone. It's culture.

Today, I'm celebrating the 250th edition of my TEAMS! newsletter with Hundred Years of Heart, the introduction to a new leadership playbook built around five essential pillars: Talent, Engagement, AI & Technology, Mission, and Stewardship.

Next week, I'll share the complete playbook on LinkedIn, one chapter each day, with practical lessons and tools for anyone leading a team or organization.

I'd love for you to follow along, share your thoughts, and join the conversation.
📖 Read the introduction on LinkedIn:
https://lnkd.in/p/dxPD6GZw

🎉 250 Editions. Five Pillars. One Leadership Playbook. Great leadership isn't built on a single skill. It's built on how we bring people, purpose, technology, and resources together. Today marks the 250th edition of TEAMS!, and we're celebrating by introducing The Leadership Playbook, a collectio...

10/26/2026

🎉 Congratulations, Keri Johnson!

Keri was named Employee of the Year at San Andreas Regional Center’s 28th Annual Service Above Self event! This spring, Keri also received our Neal Poppin Award at the Power of Possibilities, honoring the determination and spirit she brings to everything she does.

Her achievements reflect her hard work and the power of inclusive workplaces. A huge, heartfelt shout-out to her job coach and her team at Safeway, whose encouragement and partnership help Keri shine.

Stories like Keri’s show what’s possible when talent meets opportunity. We’re so proud of you and can’t wait to see what’s next! 💙

10/19/2026

Thirty-five years. More than 100 authors. One extraordinary community. 📚💙

At Saturday’s 35th Annual Authors Luncheon, we raised $140,000 for Fund-a-Future, beating our $125,000 goal. With our generous sponsors, the day raised more than $400,000 in total for children, adults, and families served by AbilityPath.

Thank you to Laurie Jarrett and our 35th Anniversary Circle, to our Diamond Sponsors George Kellner & Arleen Agricola and Judy & David Richardson, to our Platinum Sponsors Rachel & Simon Segars, to our generous anonymous sponsors, and to every sponsor and donor in the room.

Your gifts help a toddler find her voice, help an adult land a first job, and help a family know they’re not on this road alone. Here’s to writing the next chapter together. 💙

10/18/2026

At AbilityPath, we see every day how art gives a voice to the people we serve. A brushstroke can say what words sometimes can’t. The artist is saying, "I am here, and I have something to say."

That’s why I’m proud that AbilityPath is a founding partner of Creative Spotlight: An Art Collective for Change, alongside our friends at Helpers Community and Futures Explored.

Please join us for The Story Continues: Art Connects
📅 Thursday, November 13, 6–8 PM
📍 Minnesota Street Project, 1275 Minnesota St., San Francisco

Come meet the artists, experience their work, and celebrate creativity that builds belonging. Bring a friend, and help us show what inclusion looks like. Donations aren’t required but are always appreciated.

RSVP: https://tinyurl.com/mr33pemz

Bryan

10/18/2026

Grateful to have completed Designing Your Human-Centered AI Strategy: The Social Sector Cohort, a three-day program from Stanford HAI and the d.school. The instructors, speakers, and fellow social sector leaders made it an exceptional experience.

My biggest takeaway: having a human-in-the-loop isn’t enough. With AI, we need humans in the design, so the people we serve shape the outcome from the start. That insight is already guiding our work at AbilityPath and Camp Via West, including the new tools we’re designing for families.

Technology should help people belong, not leave them behind.

Bryan

10/18/2026

A huge THANK YOU to the three amazing authors who joined us for the 35th Annual Authors Luncheon!

📖 Evelyn Skye, NYT bestselling author of 11 novels. Pick up her latest, Ideal Life.
📖 David Pogue, seven-time Emmy winner and CBS Sunday Morning correspondent. Read his 2026 NYT bestseller Apple: The First 50 Years.
📖 Alka Joshi, author of The Henna Artist (a Reese’s Book Club pick). Her latest novel is Six Days in Bombay.

Thank you for your stories, your humor, and your heart, and for supporting our mission. We're grateful you shared your time with us today.

Buy their books at your local independent bookstore, like our friends at Fireside Books & More in Redwood City! 📚

10/10/2026

Three days at Stanford reminded us that good technology starts with people.

I just completed Human-Centered AI for Social Impact, a program from Stanford HAI and the Stanford d.school. The biggest lesson: listen first, test early, and always protect trust.

We are applying these principles at AbilityPath, focusing on supporting parents, caregivers, participants, and staff, ensuring they can access and participate in the right AbilityPath programs.

I highly recommend this program to any social sector leader. Exploring AI for their mission. It was an action-packed three days with lots of hands-on learning! It was worth every minute.

10/09/2026

🎉 Yesterday we celebrated the official opening of Learning Links Redwood City at Elco Yards, our fifth inclusive preschool on the Peninsula, with 74 new spots for infants, toddlers, preschoolers, and TK students of every ability.

A heartfelt thank you to Supervisors Lisa Gauthier and Jackie Speier for championing the County’s $200,000 grant; Vice Mayor Kaia Eakin and the City of Redwood City; Christine Padilla and Build Up San Mateo County; and our own Carol Miller and the Learning Links team.

We're excited to welcome new families to this beautiful, brand-new preschool. Interested parents and caregivers can attend open houses on Oct. 23 and Nov. 13. nd for questions just Text (650) 509-2695 or email [email protected].

Together We Grow 💛

10/06/2026

California just set new guardrails for AI in the workplace. Starting in 2027, employers can't let an algorithm discipline or fire someone on its own, can't use AI to read employees' emotions, and must disclose when AI drives mass layoffs.

At AbilityPath, these principles are already how we work. People make our people decisions. Our Board AI Governance Charter, AI Oversight Working Group, and staff AI training keep humans accountable for every tool we use.

For more than 100 years, our mission has been built on human connection. AI helps us do that work better. It never replaces the important work our teams do

10/03/2026

In 1999, two women with developmental disabilities, Lois Curtis and Elaine Wilson, won a Supreme Court case called Olmstead. They had spent years in a Georgia institution, and they wanted what most of us take for granted: a home in their own community. The Court agreed that needlessly segregating people with disabilities is discrimination.

For 27 years, the federal government enforced that right. This year it stopped.

In June, the Department of Justice issued a memo stating that federal law does not require states to serve people in the community. In July, it set aside its Olmstead guidance. On September 23, a federal judge in Texas, at the joint request of the DOJ and five states, removed the community integration rules from the federal Section 504 health regulations. That order applies in every state. The case is closed, and because both sides requested the outcome, no appeal is expected.

To the families and caregivers we serve, here is where things stand:

Olmstead, the ADA, and Section 504 remain the law. Your loved one's services are not changing today. Families can still go to court to defend the right to community living. In California, the Lanterman Act separately guarantees community-based services.

What we are watching next: The Justice Department still has its own community integration rule under the ADA, and advocates expect it could be the next to be challenged. DOJ has also begun stepping back from cases it once brought against states.

If you are a parent wondering who will stand up for your son or daughter when you can no longer, this matters. Stay informed. Share your family's story. Tell your elected officials that community living is a civil right. Please share this so other families know.