Recently, the Partnership for Public Service announced Joshua (Josh) Josa as the winner of the 2022 Samuel J. Heyman Service to America Medal People's Choice Award. Josh serves as the Disability Inclusive Education Specialist in the Center for Education at USAID. This award honors Josh’s dedication and commitment to opening access to quality and equitable education for all children and youth, and we are proud to congratulate him on this achievement and the work he continues to do to advocate for children around the world.
Worldwide, fewer than three percent of children living with disabilities can read. At the Agency, Josh is working to change that. As USAID’s resident expert on education for learners with disabilities, he has worked with USAID Missions, foreign government ministries of education, and other groups around the world to design and implement programs to deliver quality, equitable, and inclusive education. Josh has helped facilitate USAID’s commitment to include persons of disabilities in all of our humanitarian assistance, and to partner with organizations led by and assisting persons with disabilities. His critical work has helped improve access to education for children and youth in nearly 50 countries where we work.
The award is a testament to Josh’s tireless work on behalf of children living with disabilities and a wonderful example of USAID’s values and commitment to impacting lives around the world for the better.