Throughout her life and professional career, Dawna Callahan has consistently been a trailblazer for people and athletes with disabilities. After incomplete paralysis at the age of three from transverse myelitis, a neurological disorder that causes inflammation of the spinal cord, Dawna was the first student with a physical disability in her hometown to be mainstreamed into public school at the age of five.

Dawna has dedicated much of her professional career to advancing the adapted sport movement to create more access and opportunities for people with disabilities to experience sport. She is driven by the belief that sport has the power to change all aspects of a person’s life from physical and emotional health to employment opportunities and social integration. Her own life has been a testament of its positive impact.

She has been involved with adapted sport professionally for more than 20 years. In 2017, she founded ALL IN SPORT CONSULTING, a consulting firm that leads organizations in creating life-changing opportunities for people with disabilities through adapted sport. She has worked with numerous nationally and internationally known clients including the U.S. Center for SafeSport, Augusta Sports Council, Endeavor Games Series, Lakeshore Foundation and The World Games Inclusion Initiative, USA Boxing, USA Para Powerlifting, and USRowing. Her career also includes positions with the Challenged Athletes Foundation (CAF), the United States Olympic Committee, Paralympic Division, Disabled Sports USA, and Adaptive Sports USA.

In 2022, All In Sport Consulting was named one of only 77 organizations globally to be recognized as a Business Disability Expert and partner with The Valuable 500. The Valuable 500 is the first global community of its kind to be created for the purpose of advancing disability inclusion in business and creating a forum for global collaboration among disability experts.

In 2020, Dawna conceived of and presented the inaugural Adapted Sport Leadership & Business Symposium (LABS), an annual conference that connects leaders from the adapted sport industry and beyond for progressive sessions and meaningful conversations to advance the adapted sport movement and expand its impact. As a part of LABS, she established the first-ever economic impact study for the adapted sport industry.

A competitive wheelchair racer, Dawna has completed numerous road races and marathons including four Boston Marathons. She is a frequent keynote speaker, recently speaking at events including – Sports Business Journal, All In DEI conference, Laureus Sport for Good, and Sports Events & Tourism Association (ETA), and serves on the Lakeshore Foundation Advisory Council and the Sports ETA DEI Task Force. She is an adjunct professor for Southern Connecticut State University, Recreation, Tourism, and Sport Management Department, and is also on the faculty of the Sports & Entertainment Impact Collective.

Dawna obtained her master’s degree in Recreation Management at San Jose State University while completing graduate studies in Industrial/Organizational Psychology at San Francisco State. She also received an Executive Certificate in Sport Philanthropy at George Washington University.