AUCDigest
July 19, 2006 • Volume 6, Number 63
Forging New Partnerships for New Challenges Through Research, Education and Service
North Carolina Center for Development and Learning UCEDD Director Retires. Dr. Mel Levine, Director of the NC UCEDD at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has retired from his role as Director effective June 30, 2006. Dr. Levine will continue in his role as Director of the All Kinds of Minds Institute, which he co-founded with Charles W. Schwab in 1995. Dr. Levine will also continue in his role as Professor in the Department of Pediatrics and will continue to see children and families through the UCEDD's clinic. Dr. Greg Olley (formerly the Associate Director) has been appointed Interim Director and a search committee will work in cooperation with other disability-related programs in the School of Medicine to recruit a permanent director.
Texas Center for Disability Studies (TX UCEDD) Success Story for "Tips for First Responders and Texas Resources for Services and Supports." We adaptated material originally developed by a consortium led by the Center for Development and Disability (NM UCEDD). Advocacy Incorporated (TX P&A) representatives who attended several hurricane-season preparation seminars offered across the state by the Texas Red Cross passed out our "Tips" guides and requests for more copies began arriving at our offices. One of our early collaborators, the Center on Disability (UCEDD) at Texas A&M University, distributed guides to county extension agents and added a link to our Web site from their Web site. In addition to dissemination by various state agencies, health and education centers, and health councils, we have supplied "Tips" to a large number of EMS services across the state and expect an article in the state's professional EMS magazine will be published in an upcoming quarterly issue. We will continue to print and distribute the "Tips" guides as long as we have funding and the demand continues. For more information, contact Steve Thomas.
Honors & Activities from the West Virginia Center for Excellence in Disabilities (WV UCEDD)
- Art Exhibit Promotes Community Inclusion. The ROMPP (Real Opportunities Make People Productive) 2006 juried art exhibition runs from June 2-August 10, 2006. The exhibition includes two-dimensional artwork, small sculpture and photography by artists who have disabilities at the Paul Mesaros Gallery at the WVU College of Creative Arts, in Morgantown, West Virginia. ROMPP is designed to enhance the community inclusion, socialization and employment of people with developmental and other disabilities through improving access to and participation in the fine arts.
- Emergency Management
- Planning Development. West Virginia Assistive Technology System (WVATS) and West Virginia Disability Technical Assistance Center (DBTAC) staff collaborated with VMC/Homeland Security Programs at West Virginia University to produce a "Handbook on Disability and Special Needs." This booklet was designed for course designers, emergency planners and related groups to provide a basic level of knowledge on how to write and design curricula and courses on emergency planning that are accessible and usable to everyone. Disability etiquette, legal requirements, web accessibility validators and general information on the role of community planners in ensuring emergency planning includes persons with special needs are topics covered in the booklet.
- Policy Development. Lori Risk, an Assistant Director for CED and Mark Fischer, Associate Director for Program Operations at WVU's VMC/Homeland Security Programs served as state delegates at the national Conference on Emergency Management and Individuals with Disabilities and the Elderly held in Washington, DC on June 28-30.
Additional inquiries about these activities can be sent to Melina Danko.
Hawaii Center on Disability Studies' Project Promotes Student-Directed Approach. The Hawaii CDS recently received funding from the Institute of Education Sciences for a three year project, "The 'I' in the IEP." This project is intended to assist indigenous youth in taking leadership in participating in and directing their IEPs, which is anticipated to lead to improved post-secondary outcomes. Hawaii will collaborate with the Center for Persons with Disabilities (UT UCEDD) and Center for Human Development (AK UCEDD) in implementing this project.
Vanderbilt Kennedy Center (TN UCEDD) Reading Clinic Providing Success. The UCEDD's Reading Clinic provides intensive, one-to-one instruction for children with intellectual disabilities and autism, as well as typically developing students who are in early elementary grades and are experiencing serious reading problems. For further information, contact Caresa Young at 615-936-5123.
Rural Institute (MT UCEDD) Focuses on Nutrition Training in September. In September, the Montana Disability and Health Program (MTDH) within the UCEDD will offer five regional training events for Montana nutrition professionals and service providers in the developmental disabilities system on a new nutrition supports program called Materials supporting Education and Nutrition for Adults with Intellectual or Developmental Disabilities (MENU-AIDDs). MENU-AIDDs is designed to improve food systems in group home living arrangements. National dissemination plans for MENU AIDDs are also underway. Additional resources are available on the Montana Disability and Health Program website.
Honors & Activities from the Center for Persons with Disabilities (UT UCEDD)
- CPD Staff Named to Prestigious National Committee. The National Center on Disability and Access to Education (NCDAE) at the UCEDD was named to the Telecommunications and Electronic and Information Technology Advisory Committee, a very prestigious national committee charged with updating Section 508 Standards. Jared Smith is the NCDAE representative and Cyndi Rowland is his alternate. NCDAE is the sole representative of higher education among appointees. The new 508 Advisory Committee will assist in updating access standards for electronic and information technologies procured by the Federal government.
- Legal Issues in Special Education to be Addressed in Upcoming Conference. The Institute on Special Education Law and Practice, a two-day conference planned in August (see Events section below) will be geared toward administrators and educators from Utah schools, families of children with special needs, and other advocates. The conference is coordinated jointly by the Utah Office of Education, Special Education Office, and the Mountain Plains Regional Resource Center (MPRRC), which serves as the technical assistance division at the UCEDD.
Additional inquiries about these activities can be sent to Kelly Smith.
Project Activities from the Wyoming Institute for Disabilities (UCEDD)
- AgrAbility. The UCEDD is collaborating with the Wyoming Agricultural Extension Service to provide disability and assistive technology outreach to farming and ranching families through Wyoming's new AgrAbility project funded by the U.S. Cooperative Research Education & Extension Service. Awarded in April 2006, AgrAbility programs are designed to provide education, networking, and assistive technology to families that are impacted by a disability.
- Wyoming Lions Early Childhood Vision Project. The most common vision problem among preschool children is amblyopia (lazy eye). Children are at greatest risk of developing amblyopia during their first three years of life: if not corrected it will cause monocular blindness. Through the UCEDD's early detection and intervention program, the prognosis for typical vision development is improved and amblyopia can be reversed if intervention occurs early. Additional inquiries about these activities can be sent to Dr. Keith Miller.
Activities from the Connecticut A.J. Pappanikou Center
- Training Institute on Outcomes and Practices in Service Coordination. Early registration is still available for this event taking place in St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands. The Institute has a stellar group of presenters, and participants will learn how to help young children and families reach positive outcomes. To obtain a brochure and find out more about the training institute, visit our UCEDD Events Webpage or contact Sharon Dexler at 860-679-5474.
- 16th Anniversary of ADA Celebration. The Connecticut Developmental Disabilities Network will celebrate the 16th anniversary of the signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act at an event on Wednesday, July 26th. This year the DD Network honors individuals and organizations that go above and beyond to promote the inclusion of people in recovery from mental illness. A complete list of the individuals and organizations from across the state that will be honored are included on our UCEDD DD Network Events Page. The event will be held at the new Michael J. Adanti Student Center at Southern Connecticut State University, a fully-accessible, world-class facility that opened earlier this year.
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