LILLY GROSSMAN
Making Disability Policy Human
Founder and CEO of Beyond The Box Advocacy
Disability Policy Researcher and Systems Strategist
Author of The Quiet Parts of Disability (Forthcoming)

Lilly Grossman is a disability policy researcher, systems strategist, author, and Founder and CEO of Beyond The Box Advocacy, a nonpartisan  disability policy organization dedicated to improving how disability systems function in practice.

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Her work examines how public policies, administrative structures, and support systems shape independence, mobility, economic participation, and opportunity for Americans with disabilities. She is the developer of the Disability Support Service Portability Framework and the concept of geographic lock-in, which explore how place-based service systems influence where Americans with disabilities can live, work, study, and build their futures. She also developed the concept of enforced barriers and the Structural Model of Disability, which examine how policy design, administrative fragmentation, and support system structures influence autonomy, stability, participation, and long-term outcomes.

In addition to leading Beyond The Box Advocacy, Grossman serves as an Independent Research Fellow with the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research, where she conducts research on disability mobility, continuity of support systems, and the relationship between policy design and  opportunity. ​Grossman was selected as the National Academy of Social Insurance's 2026 Eileen Sweeney Graduate Intern in Disability Policy, a nationally competitive internship program that places emerging social insurance policy leaders in Washington, D.C. She completed her internship placement with Elevance Health, where she contributed to disability and aging policy research examining how support needs, systems, and access barriers evolve across the lifespan. She was also selected as one of 100 participants nationwide for the inaugural National Disability Leadership Series (#MyRideAhead), a leadership development program focused on strengthening disability leadership, advocacy, and systems change capacity.

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Grossman is also the author of The Quiet Parts of Disability, a forthcoming book that combines lived experience, policy analysis, disability studies, and systems thinking to examine how disability policy shapes education, employment, healthcare access, relationships, geographic mobility, and long-term independence. The book has a foreword written by internationally recognized disability advocate and entrepreneur, Keely Cat-Wells. Introducing several original concepts and frameworks, such as geographic lock-in, narrative fixation, enforced barriers, and the Structural Model of Disability, Grossman explores the often overlooked ways administrative systems shape everyday life for Americans with disabilities.

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Drawing on her lived experience and policy expertise, Grossman combines research, systems analysis, and strategic communication to make complex disability policy accessible and human. Her work is grounded in the belief that Americans with disabilities should be able to pursue education, employment, relationships, and community participation without risking access to essential supports.

Through her research, writing, consulting, public speaking, and advocacy, Grossman contributes to national conversations about disability policy, systems design, community living, and the future of disability support services in the United States. She is currently pursuing a Master of Social Work degree at the University of Southern California and plans to pursue a PhD in health policy.