
HOMEPAGE: WHATS NEW

2/15/2023
Call for UCEDD LEND ECHO Organizations
The Wyoming Institute for Disabilities is inviting organizations across the network to join the newly formed UCEDD LEND ECHO Collaborative. These monthly calls are open to any UCEDD or LEND program that is currently replicating or interested in implementing the ECHO model. The collaborative will allow UCEDD, LEND, and partner agencies to share successes, challenges, and strategies in using the ECHO model to build capacity throughout their programs supporting individuals with developmental disabilities.

11/28/2022
Autism research is a family affair: Steps toward increasing inclusion and diversity
As a research team working with children and adolescents with autism in the Bronx, a racially, ethnically and culturally diverse borough of New York City, we have seen the significant barriers to research participation that families in our area face. Research is an essential step toward improving outcomes of individuals with autism. When research involves children, parents and caregivers make major contributions to the study process by enrolling their children in research, carving out time to bring their children to the research setting, and providing important information about the child's strengths, needs, and developmental and intervention histories. Unfortunately, the racial and ethnic diversity of the US population is not well-represented in many research studies and research findings often do not generalize to excluded groups. This lack of representation in research contributes to health disparities.

11/22/2022
2022-2023 AUCD Children's Mental Health Champions
AUCD's National Center on Disability in Public Health continues its work with the Children's Mental Health Champions project for a third year. This project is made possible through a cooperative agreement with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Building on the efforts of Champions from 2021-2022, twelve Champions were selected for 2022-2023 to continue to provide timely support for children and their families.

11/22/2022
Welcome Newly 2022 Elected Board Members
On behalf of AUCD Nominating Committee Chair Tawara Goode and Board President Danny Armstrong, AUCD is pleased to announce the newly elected members of the Board of Directors. These new members will begin their three-year term after the passing of the gavel at the 2022 AUCD Conference closing plenary. Congratulations!

10/17/2022
Culturally Relevant Trauma Training Video Developed by Georgia State's Center for Leadership in Disability
Researchers from the Center for Leadership in Disability in the Georgia State University School of Public Health have created a trauma training video module that covers the complex needs of Latinx immigrant and migratory children in Georgia.

9/9/2022
NIH Awards $100 Million for Autism Centers of Excellence Program
AUCD Network Members Awarded
The National Institutes of Health has awarded a total of $100 million over the next five years to support nine Autism Centers of Excellence (ACEs). This endeavor funds large research projects to understand and develop interventions for autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Created in 2007, the ACE program is renewed every five years.

9/6/2022
Building Community Capacity for Accessible Vaccine Events
The UCEDD in the Institute on Development and Disability at OHSU worked with the Oregon Health Authority to create resources for vaccine events to be more inclusive. They made videos, guides, and checklists to go with a boxed kit of accessibility tools. This will help people with disabilities and people who speak languages other than English get vaccines in their communities. There are more videos and resources coming soon.

8/29/2022
Funding Opportunity: Children's Mental Health Champions
Deadline: September 23, 2022 at 5:00 p.m. ET
Through a cooperative agreement, the Association of University Centers on Disabilities (AUCD) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), will support a pilot program of Children's Mental Health Champions. This funding opportunity is limited to AUCD network members in any state or Territory. The Champions will support AUCD's evaluation of the Children's Mental Health Champions program by documenting and reporting project activities and measurable process outputs and short-term outcomes via program reporting forms conducted at the two-time points (mid-year and end of the program year). AUCD staff will be available to support Champions in different components of the program, including providing training and technical assistance as needed.

8/25/2022
LEND Family Mentorship Models
The long-awaited LEND Family Mentorship Models are here! This document was written by LEND programs for LEND programs and contains several different versions of this experience from across the network. The LEND Family Discipline Network (LFDN) hopes you will use this document to help inspire or develop your own family mentorship experience in your LEND program.

8/9/2022
ANCOR's COVID-19 Vaccine Toolkit
As a DSP, It's Up to Me! Protect yourself and the people you support
Developed by ANCOR with funding from the Association of University Centers on Disabilities (AUCD), "As a DSP It's Up to Me" recognizes that people with I/DD should be able to live and thrive in their communities. We want them to live where they want to live, with whom they want to live. We want them to have jobs that are fulfilling to them. And we recognize achieving these goals requires isolating people with I/DD from the dangers of COVID-19. With a goal of keeping people with I/DD and the people around them safe and healthy, The COVID-19 Vaccine Toolkit was designed with ANCOR members and other community providers in mind. You are an essential partner for this initiative, and these tools were designed for you-to make it as easy as possible for you to engage with your colleagues on the frontlines to get vaccinated.

7/25/2022
Community Supports in Crisis: No Staff, No Services
All the progress toward community living that has been made in services for people with IDD over decades is now in jeopardy because of catastrophic labor shortages and pervasive high turnover rates in the direct support workforce. This white paper from ICI and its partners at HSRI and NASDDDS explores the depth of the crisis in the workforce and the impact on people with IDD and sounds the alarm about the nature and scope of the workforce crisis in the IDD service system.

7/22/2022
2022 AUCD Board Elections: Nominations Requested
Deadline: September 9, 2022
AUCD is currently seeking nominations to the AUCD Board of Directors for a three-year term beginning in November 2022.

7/13/2022
Columbia University Seeks Participants for Focus Group
Columbia University is seeking participants for a study that explores issues of trust in a type of medical research called "precision medicine research." The study looks at a person's genetics, environment, and lifestyle. It can help physicians improve prevention and diagnosis of diseases and develop new treatments.

7/5/2022
IDRPP Research Offers Skills List for College-bound Students with Intellectual Disabilities
Are you wondering what non-academic skills a college-bound student with intellectual disabilities should have before entering an inclusive program? AUCD's IDDRC, the Institute for Disability Research, Policy & Practice in has research on that.

7/1/2022
CDC-AUCD Leadership Opportunity: Act Early Ambassadors-State or Territorial Liaisons to CDC's "Learn the Signs. Act Early." Program
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities and the Association of University Centers on Disabilities (AUCD) announce a funding opportunity for Act Early Ambassadors to work with CDC's "Learn the Signs. Act Early."