JFActivist

Senate HELP Committee Seeks to Improve Employment for PWD

via The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee (6.8.11):
 

HELP Committee to Examine Strategies for Improving Employment for Americans with Disabilities

WASHINGTON — On Thursday at 10:00 a.m., Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, will convene a hearing to examine how to expand and improve job opportunities for people with disabilities. As the 21st anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act nears, Harkin seeks to assess the impact of current programs, and discuss ways to achieve the goal he set earlier this year of raising the number of Americans with disabilities in the labor force to 6 million by 2015.

This hearing will be webcast live with real-time captioning at: http://help.senate.gov

Testimony and archived videos will be posted at: http://help.senate.gov/hearings/

 

HEARING:  Lessons from the Field: Learning From What Works for Employment for Persons with Disabilities

WITNESSES:           
Panel I:
The Honorable Kathy Martinez, Assistant Secretary of Labor, Office of Disability Employment Policy, U.S. Department of Labor, Washington, DC
Panel II:
Governor Tom Ridge, Chairman, National Organization on Disability, Washington, DC
Deborah Dagit, Vice President and Chief Diversity Officer, Merck, One Merck Drive, Whitehouse Station, NJ
Amelia Wallrich, Law Student, Northwestern University, Frankfort, IL

DATE:           Thursday, July 14^th, 2011

TIME:            10:00 A.M.

LOCATION: 430 Dirksen Senate Office Building

 

 

 

 

For Some with Autism, Jobs to Match Their Talents

via the New York Times (6.30.11):

For Some With Autism, Jobs to Match Their Talents

by David Bornstein

Steen B. Iversen tests mobile phones for the Danish telecommunications firm TDC. Before landing his job two and a half years ago, Iversen, 50, who has been diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome, spent more than 12 years looking for work. “It’s always been somewhat traumatizing,” he said. “I have had jobs, but I always got fired. People would laugh about me behind my back and laugh at me to my face. Those problems have more or less been a problem for me from childhood.”

In the working world, Iversen said, his biggest problem was communication. “Most of the time it simply was that people didn’t understand me and I didn’t understand them,” he said...

>>>For the Full Article

 

How can we utilize Specialisterne's example to advocate for increased employment opportunities for PWD? Please share your thoughts below.

Watch AAPD's First Virtual Town Hall on YouTube

From AAPD (7.8.11):

Watch AAPD's Virtual Town Hall on YouTube

People with disabilities from across the country watched, listened to, and questioned AAPD's new President and CEO in our first ever Virtual Town Hall on June 29.  The event was also live tweeted at @AAPD.  If you were not able to participate on the day of the event, you can still watch and listen to the event which has been captioned and posted to YouTube.  Topics of discussion included voting, employment, Medicaid cuts, and more.  Viewers asked questions about getting involved in the legislative and electoral processes and how to improve educational access for kids with disabilities.  The discussion was lively and informative. Furthermore, Mark shared his vision for our organization and his plan include more town halls.  So check out this event and check back for information about the next town hall.

>>> To Watch the Virtual Town Hall

White House Hosts Disability Policy Town Hall and Announces NCD Nominations

From the White House:

Submit Questions for White House Virtual Town Hall Meeting

On Thursday, July 14th from 1:00 - 2:00 PM Eastern, Disability.gov will air a live "Virtual" Town Hall meeting to introduce the White House's top advisors on disability policy.

Do you have a question for President Obama's top disability policy advisors? Disability.gov is offering the chance to have it answered!

Participants during the virtual town hall who will be able to answer your questions include Kareem Dale, Special Assistant to the President for Disability Policy and Associate Director of the White House Office of Public Engagement; Jeffrey Crowley, M.P.H., Senior Advisor on Disability Policy and Director of the Office of National AIDS Policy at the White House; and Rebecca Cokley, Director of Priority Placement for Public Engagement, White House Presidential Personnel Office.

If you have a question that you would like to have answered during the Town Hall meeting, complete the form below by Wednesday, July 13th at 6:00 PM Eastern. Please understand that due to time constraints, not all questions that are submitted can be answered during the event...

>>> For More or to Submit Questions

From the White House (7.5.11):

President Obama Announces More Key Administration Posts

Today, President Barack Obama announced his intent to nominate the following individuals to key Administration posts:
 
•    Matan Koch, Member, National Council on Disability
•     Stephanie Orlando, Member, National Council on Disability...

Matan Koch, Nominee for Member, National Council on Disability Matan Koch is an Associate at Kramer, Levin, Naftalis, & Frankel LLP, where he focuses on Commercial Litigation and Advertising matters. He was born with Cerebral Palsy and has been actively involved in the disability community for many years. From 2001 until 2002, Mr. Koch served as the Vice Chairman of the New Haven Commission on Disabilities where he also chaired the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Subcommittee. In addition, he has served as a member of the Union for Reform Judaism-Department of Jewish Family Concerns' Disability Task Force and currently serves on the union's Special Needs Camping Committee. While working in the Legal Division of Procter & Gamble, Mr. Koch was a member of the company's People with Disabilities Network. Mr. Koch also served on the board of Jewish Vocational Services of Cincinnati. He has a J.D. from Harvard Law School and a B.A. cum laude from Yale University where he served as the President of the student disability community.
 
Stephanie Orlando, Nominee for Member, National Council on Disability Stephanie Orlando is the Director of YOUTH POWER! of Families Together in New York State, a statewide advocacy network comprised of young people who have disabilities and experience in state child-serving systems. After receiving children’s mental health, special education and residential services herself, Ms. Orlando has become a strong advocate for youth with disabilities on county, state and national levels. Beginning in 2006, she served a term as Chairperson of the Youth Advisory Committee to the National Council on Disability. Ms. Orlando serves on the New York State Commissioners’ Committee on Cross-Systems Services for Children & Youth, the New York State Commissioner’s Advisory Panel for Special Education Services, the New York Mental Health Services Planning Council, and the Board of Directors of the Children’s Mental Health Coalition of Western New York. She received the Diana Vietz Award in 2008 from the National Council on Independent Living, the mpower Award in 2006 from Mental Health America (formerly National Mental Health Association) and the 2004 Erie County Executive Award for Disability Employment Awareness Month. Ms. Orlando earned her Bachelor of Arts in 2005 from the State University of New York at Buffalo...

>>> For the Full Press Release

Building Bridges Across Movements: Domestic Workers and the Disability Community Partnering to Improve Care

AAPD is partnering with the National Domestic Workers Alliance, Jobs with Justice, and Hand in Hand: The Domestic Employers Association for the Caring Across Generations campaign: an initiative centered on transforming long-term care in the United States for our loved ones who count on the support of caregivers to meet their basic daily needs, the workers who provide the care, and the families who struggle to access and afford care for their loved ones. 

On Tuesday, July 12^th, the campaign will be hosting a Care Congress, where seniors, people with disabilities, family caregivers, home care workers, domestic workers, children and families of care workers and people who need care will be sharing their care stories.  

We need as many people with disabilities to be part of this important dialogue!

What the Care Congress program will include:

• Sharing care stories: sharing testimonies and vision for change between seniors, people with disabilities, family caregivers, home care workers, domestic workers, children and families of care workers and people who need care
• Giving voice to change: engaging elected officials and key members of the Administration on the need for change
• Growing a movement at home: workshops and skill sharing to support participants to build the Caring Across Generations movement in their home communities.

The Caring Across Generations movement is centered on promoting honest, productive discussion among all those invested in improving care. If we are to meaningfully improve the care system for everyone, it is crucial that people with disabilities share their stories.

We need you at the table on July 12th!

RSVP to the first ever Care Congress today

Nothing about us, without us!

 

 

Know Your Rights! DOJ Issues New Technical Assistance Document on Enforcement of Olmstead

via The Department of Justice (6.23.11):

Justice Department Issues Technical Assistance Document on Enforcement of the Supreme Court Decision in Olmstead v. L.C.

WASHINGTON – The Department of Justice released a new technical assistance document describing public entities’ obligations and individuals’ rights under the integration mandate of title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the 1999 landmark Supreme Court decision, Olmstead v. L.C.  The Olmstead decision held that the ADA requires public entities to provide community-based services to persons with disabilities when such services are appropriate; the affected persons do not oppose community-based treatment; and community-based services can be reasonably accommodated.  The document also provides questions and answers on a variety of ADA enforcement issues related to Olmstead. 

Additionally, in commemorating the 12^th anniversary of the Olmstead decision yesterday, the department launched a new section of its ADA website, www.ada.gov/olmstead, providing information and resources about the decision and its enforcement. In addition to the newly created technical assistance document, users can visit the site to find briefs filed by the Department, as well as other materials relevant to this important area of law. 

The ADA website provides easy access to an extensive collection of ADA technical assistance materials and settlement agreements, as well as information about enforcement, mediation, technical assistance and certification activities and links to other sites with ADA information. The addition of the new Olmstead section of the site will provide critical information to individuals with disabilities, advocates and state and local officials responsible for complying with the ADA’s integration mandate...

 

>>>To Read the Full Press Release

 

Knowledge is power! How will you help spread the word about this crucial information? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Olmstead Champion Meets the President

via the White House blog (6.22.11):

Olmstead Champion Meets the President

by Sue Jamieson

The memories of living in institutional settings since the age of 13 will always be with Lois Curtis even though her life today is beyond what she ever could have imagined when she made the first of many brave phone calls to my office at the Atlanta Legal Aid Society saying, “I want to get out!” The journey (and struggle) from that day includes an historic Supreme Court decision, a home of her own and a successful career as an artist. And now, a meeting with President Barack Obama in the Oval Office as we observe the 12th anniversary of the Olmstead decision.  

The Olmstead story began long before the Supreme Court decision. Lois and another plaintiff, Elaine Wilson (who passed away in 2004), were in a state psychiatric hospital in Georgia. They filed suit in 1995 seeking disability services in the community...

...And, as we all now know, the U.S. Supreme Court eventually held that the unjustified institutional isolation of people with disabilities is a form of unlawful discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act, thus taking a giant step forward for the millions of people with disabilities across the country.

Lois’ story did not end after that landmark Supreme Court decision. In fact, that decision launched a new journey. After living in staffed residential homes since her release from the institution, Lois now rents a beautiful home in the Stone Mountain area of Georgia...

>>>To Read the Full Post

 

On this 12th anniversary of Olmstead, how can we honor Lois and Elaine's legacy? Please share your thoughts in comments below.

Students with Developmental and Intellectual Disabilities Prepared for Workforce

via the White House Office of Public Engagement (6.20.11): 

Making History for Students with Developmental and Intellectual Disabilities

by Rayna Aylward

As high school seniors all across the country graduated this week, history was quietly being made in Washington, D.C. at the Department of Education for 23 D.C. public school students with developmental and intellectual disabilities. They, like their peers across the country, were graduating too. They all participated in a program called Project SEARCH. The 15-year-old program now operates in 39 states and four foreign countries, but this is the first year that the federal government has hosted the project in three agencies including the Departments of Education, Labor and Health and Human Services.

The goal of Project SEARCH is to prepare high school seniors with developmental and intellectual disabilities for employment. Instead of attending classes in a regular high school, the participating students reported to work every day in one of the federal agencies. They received vocational training from a special education teacher for part of the day, and then worked as interns in different offices, learning skills that would prepare them for paid employment in the government or private sector. Job coaches who were part of the Project SEARCH team accompanied the students to their assigned offices to teach them the specific job skills needed to fulfill each task...

>>>For the Full Article...

 

How do you feel about the expansion of Project SEARCH? Please share your thoughts in comments below.

 

Celebrating Victory, Honoring Leadership, Remembering Justin Dart, Jr.

From AAPD (6.17.11):

Celebrating Victory, Honoring Leadership

by Sarah Peterson, Former JFA Moderator

June 22 is a historic day for the disability community. Not only does it mark the anniversary of the 1999 Supreme Court Olmstead decision which affirmed the right of people with disabilities to live in their homes and communities, but it also marks the anniversary of the death of Justin Dart, Jr. who is widely recognized as "the father of the Americans with Disabilities Act," "the godfather of the disability rights movement," and co-founder of Justice for All.

In a time when the rights of many people with disabilities are in peril, it is important to remember the strength of our collective roots, acknowledge our current allies and rededicate ourselves to the work ahead.

There are no words to describe what Justin Dart meant, and continues to mean, to the people whose lives he touched, to the disability community nationwide, and to the movement worldwide. He was a leader like none other. I, unfortunately, never had the joy of meeting Justin Dart personally. However, I draw tremendous inspiration, guidance, and power from his life and words as documented in his manifesto, With Liberty and Justice For All: Toward a culture of Individualized Empowerment, and in the stories reported by his friends.

C-SPAN has recently posted the video of his memorial service in their video library. I encourage advocates, young and old, to spend time watching, listening and learning about Justin's life and vision of a "revolution of empowerment." Justin taught us: "Get involved in politics and advocacy as if your lives depended on it. They do, and the lives of our grandchildren. You can be a soldier of justice. You can be a revolution of one. The dedicated, total effort of a single individual to struggle for the human dream is a monumental, irreversible victory for the person and for humanity. That is real happiness. That is the good life." 

As we face major reductions in services at the national, state and local levels, as Congress considers deep cuts to Medicaid, Medicare, food stamp programs, TANF and Social Security, these words are as applicable today as they ever were.

Lead On, Patriots!

>>> For AAPD's Justin Dart Memorial Page

Youth with Disabilities Making Art, Gaining Recognition

via DisabilityScoop (6.16.11): 

Artists With Special Needs Featured In National Exhibit

by Michelle Diament

An art exhibit featuring the work of students with disabilities from across the country kicks off this week in Washington, D.C. before heading out on a national tour.

The exhibit features 102 pieces — everything from paintings to sculptures and photographs — produced by students from each state and the District of Columbia. The artwork was selected from more than 4,700 entries from students ages 5 to 15 by a panel of judges that included artists and art educators.

Half of the winning artists have disabilities, but the work of all students — two representing each state — will be displayed side by side in an effort to support inclusion in the arts, according to organizers from VSA and CVS Caremark.

The exhibit will be on display at Union Station in Washington, D.C. until June 26. Dates and locations for other stops of the traveling exhibit are still being arranged, organizers said.

VSA — the group behind the exhibit — was started by Jean Kennedy Smith, a sister to President John F. Kennedy, and focuses on increasing opportunities in the arts for people with disabilities.

Picture above is a mixed media piece by Kory, 12, from Annapolis, Md. Kory's piece is one of the works featured in VSA's art exhibit.

>>>For the Full Article...

How can we support greater inclusion for people with disabilities in the arts? Please share your thoughts in comments below.