Ruthie-Marie Beckwith, PhD, is the former Executive Director of TASH, Inc. and a national consultant who helps people with disabilities develop and implement strategies for greater autonomy in their daily lives. She is the the founder and principal partner of Blue Fire Consulting, Inc. and provides consulting services across the United States in areas of self-determination, community organizing, leadership development, and self-employment. Committed to grassroots approaches to empowerment and systemic change, she has served as the founder and Executive Director of the two statewide non-profit organizations dedicated to helping people with disabilities; The Tennessee Association of Microboards and Cooperatives, Inc. (TAMC) and People First of Tennessee, Inc.  She teaches advocacy, disability diversity, and disability history at CUNY as Adjunct Faculty. She has served as Adjunct Faculty at Vanderbilt University and Middle Tennessee State University. She received her PhD and MS degrees in Special Education from George Peabody College and her B.S. degree from the State University of New York at Geneseo.