AUCD 360 - October 2020

AUCD 2020: Registration is now open!

We welcome network members, non-network organizational partners, experts from across the disability field, individuals with disabilities, family members, and trainees to learn and share together during the virtual conference. AUCD2020 will virtually feature pre-recorded plenary sessions, pre-recorded concurrent sessions and on-demand poster sessions that cover a broad spectrum of disability topics. Read more...

AUCD Expands Children's Mental Health Champions!

The Children's Mental Health Champions, made possible through a cooperative agreement with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), has expanded to support champions in American Samoa, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Kentucky, Georgia, New Mexico, Maine, North Carolina, South Dakota, and Virginia. We now have a total of 12 Champions supporting efforts in states and territories across the nation! Champions act as community change agents to increase positive parenting practices, through a one-year term of service. Read more...

New National Technical Assistance and Training Center on Disability Inclusion in Emergency Preparedness Seeks Input from Emergency Managers and Public Health Preparedness Personnel

The newly formed National Technical Assistance and Training Center on Disability Inclusion and Emergency Preparedness through AUCD's National Center on Disability in Public Health seeks input from local emergency or public health preparedness planners. The Center's goal is to build capacity through and with local disability and/or chronic and mental health organization affiliates to increase disability inclusion at the local emergency planning level. Through training and technical assistance, we want to increase disability stakeholders' seats at the local emergency planning table. Read more...

Apply Now: The Council Trainee Representative Program

The Council Trainee Representative program is a year-long leadership opportunity for trainees to work with AUCD council leadership and promote the Emerging Leaders Community. Trainees are enthusiastic and eager for more variability and opportunities to demonstrate leadership within the AUCD network. In an ongoing request, trainees expressed an interest in opportunities for greater involvement with AUCD Councils. Specifically, trainees want involvement during their traineeship, rather than afterwards. Read more...

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In Memoriam - Fred J. Biasini

The Alabama LEND and UCEDD experienced a heartbreaking loss on 9/23/2020 in the unexpected passing of Dr. Fred J. Biasini. During his nearly 40 years of involvement with the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Civitan-Sparks Clinics and the Department of Psychology, Dr. Biasini was a mentor to innumerable trainees and professionals and was a strong advocate for families. His presence and passion was felt throughout UAB, the state, and the nation. It is difficult to find a person or project within the disability community that did not have a connection to Fred Biasini. Dr. Biasini is survived by his wife of 44 years, Jan, three children, six grandchildren, a sister, and a niece and nephews. Read more...

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Dr. Kelly Nye-Lengerman Named Director of Institute on Disability/UCED

Dr. Kelly Nye-Lengerman, a leader in employment policy and services, workforce development, person-centered practices, and evaluation, has been named director of the Institute on Disability/UCED (IOD) at the University of New Hampshire effective June 8, 2020. Before joining the IOD, Dr. Nye-Lengerman served for 11 years at the Institute on Community Integration at the University of Minnesota. Read more...

Sheppard-Jones Selected for UK Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Leadership Team

Dr. Kathy Sheppard-Jones, Executive Director of the UK Human Development Institute and adjunct assistant professor of the College of Education, has been selected as a member of the University of Kentucky Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Leadership Team. This team supports the execution of a comprehensive, enterprise-wide Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Implementation Plan that was recently announced by the University. Read more...

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Celebrating National Disability Employment Awareness Month - an Employment First Resource in Colorado

Sitting under JFK Partners at the University Center of Excellence in Developmental Disabilities, the Colorado Office of Employment First (COEF) is a new resource for training and learning communities on a variety of Employment First topics including Individual Placement and Support, Customized Employment, Supported Employment, Youth and Family Education, and Benefits Counseling. Read More...

Staying Connected During COVID-19: Waisman Center Outreach Supports AAC Remotely

The Communication Development Program (CDP) is an outreach program of the Waisman Center UCEDD at University of Wisconsin, Madison. This program was developed over 30 years ago in partnership with the Dane County Department of Human Services, and specifically the Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD) unit. The mission of CDP is to enhance community participation, health, safety, and self-determination for individuals with disabilities through specialized Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) and Assistive Technology (AT) services. Read More...

Mailman Early Autism Intervention Program

The Mailman Early Autism Intervention program uses the evidence-based, manualized Project Impact model, to provide telehealth-based parent coaching to families of children ages 18 months to 4 years with social communication challenges. This project was developed in response to COVID-19 to replace in-person services. This program includes 6 pre-recorded webinars for parents and 6 live coaching sessions. If needed, there is an optional 7th webinar and related coaching session focused on managing challenging behavior. Read More...

NH-ME LEND Program Awarded National Training Initiative Grant

WNH-ME LEND was accepted as one of ten Primary Lead Programs participating in a National Training Initiative called Project SCOPE- Supporting Children of the Opioid Epidemic. Project SCOPE is intended to build nationwide provider capacity and confidence in applying evidence-based practices in screening, monitoring, and supporting children diagnosed with Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome (NAS), Neonatal Opioid Withdrawal Syndrome (NOWS), or suspected of being impacted by opioid use, trauma, or related exposure.
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New: A Guide to Interacting with Police for Individuals with Intellectual/Developmental Disabilities

The University of Cincinnati UCEDD has developed a new brochure on: A Guide to Interacting with Police for Individuals with Intellectual/Developmental Disabilities. People with intellectual, cognitive or developmental disabilities get involved as both victims and suspects/offenders with law enforcement and with the criminal justice system. The police are ready to help in many different ways to help us feel safe. Read More...

Office of Health, Equity, Inclusion and Diversity Opens at Kennedy Krieger

Kennedy Krieger Institute's new Office of Health, Equity, Inclusion and Diversity (O-HEID), established last month, represents a significant step in the Institute's journey to cultivate and encourage a community of equity, inclusion and diversity. A quarter of a century ago, the Institute's Center for Child and Family Traumatic Stress (CCFTS) formed a Cultural Awareness Committee to encourage cultural and linguistic competency across the Institute. Read More...

Vanderbilt Kennedy Center (TN IDDRC, UCEDD, LEND) Investigators to Lead $5 million NSF-funded Expansion of ASD Workforce Program

The National Science Foundation has awarded a highly competitive $5 million grant to multiple Vanderbilt Kennedy Center (TN IDDRC, UCEDD, LEND) (VKC) researchers to greatly expand a project for creating novel artificial intelligence (AI) technology and tools and platforms that train and support individuals with autism spectrum disorders in the workplace.
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MN UCEDD Pinpoints Autism's Reach

To better quantify the prevalence of autism across Minnesota, investigators at University of Minnesota's Institute on Community Integration (MN UCEDD) will tap into large statewide education and social services databases under a new grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Using secure data sets from the MinnLInK project at the University's Center for Advanced Studies in Child Welfare (CASCW), investigators will explore statewide indicators of autism spectrum disorder and the use of ASD-related services in schools, public health, juvenile justice, and other settings. Read More...

WVU CED Launches New Website to Provide Resources for Families Impacted by Substance Use Disorders

TThe WVU Center for Excellence in Disabilities (CED) launched a new website designed to provide resources to help educate families and providers on the effects of substance use on the family unit and child development. Developed by the CED's IMPACT WV program, the site provides a variety of ways that allow families and professionals to get connected. Families can find resources, get connected to providers, read blogs and learn strategies for improved health, parenting and resiliency.  Read more...

Kentucky Students Participate in 2020 Summer Leadership Experience

The University of Kentucky (UK) Human Development Institute (HDI), with support from the Kentucky Office of Vocational Rehabilitation (OVR) welcomed high school students with disabilities to the 2020 Summer Leadership Experience. This three-day virtual camp provided participants an opportunity to connect with peers across the state to gain knowledge, develop skills, and identify resources to support a successful transition beyond high school. Read More...

US Commission Urges Repeal of Subminimum Wage After VT Visite

In a report published on September 17, 2020, the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights recommended repealing section 14(c) of the Fair Labor Standards Act which permits employers to pay less than the minimum wage to individuals with disabilities. During the agency's investigation, they heard testimony from Dr. Bryan Dague before coming to Vermont as one of two field visits to employment and service provision sites.l. Read More...

TOPS Program Celebrates Ten Years of Promoting Inclusion at Ohio State

The Transitions Options in Postsecondary Settings (TOPS) Program at The Ohio State University Nisonger Center is celebrating its tenth year of providing alternative college experiences for young adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities.Over the past ten years, the program has seen 28 students graduate, collaborated with dozens of Ohio State faculty and staff, and recruited hundreds of peer mentors to support TOPS students in their day-to-day campus activities.
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IOD Awarded $600,000 to Extend New England Regional Genetics Network (NERGN )e

The Institute on Disability (IOD) at the University of New Hampshire has received a four-year renewal for the New England Regional Genetics Network (NERGN) from the Health Resources and Services Administration of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. . Read More...

Georgia State University UCEDD Trainees Step-up for COVID-Tracing Research

Universities across the country are adapting to take on the unique challenges COVID-19 has brought to their campuses and larger communities. The Georgia Department of Public Health (GaDPH) offered opportunities for public health students and alumni at Georgia State University (GSU) to train and serve as contact tracers who work to track and prevent further spread of COVID-19. Students were assigned to work as contract tracers within any one of the 18 public health districts in Georgia. Three students affiliated with the Center for Leadership in Disability (CLD) at GSU have engaged in the volunteer-led contact tracing effort. Read more...

Edward Esbeck Leads the Way for Iowa's Self-Advocates

Before 2020, Iowa's LEND program did not have a Self-Advocacy Coordinator serving as Core Faculty for trainees in the program. Before 2019, Iowa's UCEDD, the Center for Disabilities and Development (CDD), did not have a Self-Advocacy Coordinator as a member of its staff. Before 2017, Iowa LEND had never had a Self-Advocacy Trainee. But since 2016, when he became a member of the UCEDD's Community Advisory Committee, CDD has had Ed Esbeck. For the past year, since he was hired as CDD's Self-Advocacy Coordinator in the fall of 2019, Esbeck has championed inclusion for Iowa LEND, and has led the way for more self-advocates to become leaders, as he has. Read more...

The Boggs Center (NJ UCEDD/LEND) Hosts First NJLEND Alumni Leadership Symposium, "Leadership in a Time of Crisis: The COVID-19 Pandemic"

The Boggs Center on Developmental Disabilities at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School Department of Pediatrics hosted the first Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental Disabilities - NJLEND Alumni Leadership Symposium. This virtual symposium, "The Challenge of Leadership in a Time of Crisis: The COVID-19 Pandemic" was a collaboration with systems across the state and RWJMS to address the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on children and young adults with Autism and other early onset disabilities and their families. Read more...

#IVoteBecause

AUCD is excited to join partners across the disability community working to increase the political power of people with disabilities by sharing resources, getting folks registered, supporting voters in navigating the planning processes, and making sure that we are all voters in 2020. This effort includes plans to continuously share information and resources up to Election Day: November 3, 2020. Read more...

#FightFlu

A mini-toolkit for social media advocacy

Help us leverage existing community relationships to educate the disability community on the importance of the flu vaccine in protecting the health of everyone in accessible, relevant messaging. Download Toolkit

@AUCDNews Twitter chat #OwnMyHealthRecord

Mark your calendar and make plans to join a lively discussion on what a health record is, how it is used, and why it is important. The hashtag will be: #OwnMyHealthRecord. Join the discussion on how a health record supports patient rights and access to things needed now, such as a flu shot. Please bring links to your favorite resources and be ready to share during the chat on October 15th at 3:00 p.m. ET. Learn more...

EPCAMH Call for Papers: Special Issue on Mental Health Interventions for ASD/IDD

EPCAMH Call for Papers: Special Issue on Mental Health Interventions for ASD/IDD Evidence-Based Practice in Child and Adolescent Mental Health (EPCAMH) is now accepting papers for a special issue on evidence-based practice in mental health interventions for youth with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), guest edited by Meghan Miller, Ph.D., Lauren Brookman-Frazee, Ph.D., and Judy Reaven, Ph.D.. Submissions are due January 1, 2021. Read more...

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21st Annual Chronic Illness and Disability Conference: Transition from Pediatric to Adult-based Carers

October 29-30, 2020, 8:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. ET

Because of increased awareness of transitioning to adult-based care, clinicians are required to update their knowledge of the changing strategies for integrating emerging adult-based care into practice. For all conference participants, there will be a discussion of the legal issues involved in healthcare transition, as well as time to meet and talk with faculty in small groups, to exchange ideas among participants, and to share knowledge and information about how best to plan for a successful transition to adulthood. AUCD Network Members are eligible for a $25 discount on registration!  For the AUCD discount ($25), use code AUCD25 at checkout.  Read more...

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