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FYI Newsletter April 20, 2009
Quick Scan:
- Direct Support Professionals to Shine at May Graduation Ceremonies
- Arc of Indiana/FUSE April 25 Conference to be Rescheduled
- VETS: Voicing Experiences through Service Project Showcased at Indiana Statehouse
- Keith Coros Community ADA Implementation Projects
- RSS Feeds from the Indiana Institute Website
- Library Corner
Direct Support Professionals to Shine at May Graduation Ceremonies
A group of Indiana direct support professionals (DSPs) will take center stage this May, when they become the first graduates of the state's new Direct Support Professional Development training and education program. Around the state, organizations providing services to Hoosiers with developmental disabilities will cheer their DSP employees who have completed both Foundations, an onsite orientation, and Ivy Tech Community College coursework designed to give them more in-depth information on topics ranging from First Aid to positive behavior supports and person-centered planning. In addition to college credit, DSP graduates of the program will have earned their Human Services Certificate and are eligible for national credentials.
Next month'ss ceremonies will include a short "virtual" graduation, featuring videotaped congratulations from state officials and experts in the field, including Peter Bisbecos, Director of the Indiana Division of Disabilities and Rehabilitative Services (DDRS) and Amy Hewitt, project director of Minnesota's Research and Training Center on Community Living. The virtual graduation will be webstreamed on May 15, beginning at 1:30 p.m., so that the more than 45 graduating DSPs and their sponsoring provider organizations around the state can watch and celebrate together in real time.
Direct Support Professional Development is an initiative created by a partnership of the DDRS, self-advocates and individuals with disabilities and their families, Ivy Tech, Indiana provider organizations and the Indiana Institute's Center on Community Living and Careers which coordinates the program. The collaborative effort focuses on improving quality of life for people with disabilities while improving professionalism and career opportunities for DSPs.
The second class of Direct Support Professional Development graduates will celebrate their accomplishments in August 2009. For more information on Direct Support Professional Development or the virtual graduation ceremonies in May, contact Mary Held at the Center on Community Living and Careers at (812) 855-6508 or maheld@indiana.edu.
Arc of Indiana/FUSE April 25 Conference to be Rescheduled
The Champion Your Future, Reaching New Heights, conference has been rescheduled. The conference, scheduled for Saturday, April 25, 2009, will now be held on Saturday, September 12, 2009.The great news is that Mike Schlappi is available on September 12 and will still be our outstanding and inspirational keynote speaker! We also hope to use the same venue, Stonybrook Middle School, Indianapolis, but are awaiting confirmation.
For those of you who you have already registered for the conference as an attendee or exhibitor, The Arc of Indiana will contact you directly to inquire if you would like your registration applied to the September 12th date, or if you would like your registration to be refunded.
The Arc of Indiana and FUSE apologize for any inconvenience this change of date may cause, and hope you will plan to attend what will be an outstanding conference for middle and high school students with special needs and their families on Saturday, September 12th.
VETS: Voicing Experiences through Service Project Showcased at Indiana Statehouse
A statewide celebration reception was held recently to honor the students and veterans who have participated in VETS: Voicing Experiences through Service, a Program of National Significance, funded by the Corporation for National and Community Service, in partnership with the National Service Inclusion Project. The Indiana Institute on Disability and Community's Centers on Education and Lifelong Learning (CELL) and Community Living and Careers, are collaborating with the University of Vermont and TransCen, Rockville, Maryland, to support programs pairing young people and veterans to write and submit oral histories to the Library of Congress.
The VETS Appreciation Celebration was held on Wednesday, April 8, 2009 at the Rotunda at the Indiana State House. This was an opportunity to showcase Indiana's service learning efforts and to honor these exceptional Hoosier young people, their teachers, and the veterans who willingly shared their stories. The reception also provided an opportunity to celebrate Governor Daniels' proclamation of a day of Celebration for Service Learning.
Visit the Indiana Institute's Homepages at http://www.iidc.indiana.edu/ and click on the VETS Appreciation Celebration at Indiana Statehouse link under the Indiana Institute Spotlight News Features to view photographs and learn more about the VETS project. Contact Cate Hart, Indiana Site Coordinator for more information at (812) 855-6508 or e-mail camhart@indiana.edu.
Keith Coros Community ADA Implementation Projects
ADA-Indiana, with generous support from the Indiana Governor's Council for People with Disabilities, is pleased to announce that five organizations were chosen for funding through the 2008-2009 Keith Coros Community ADA Implementation Projects program. The purpose of the program is to promote increased implementation of the ADA in Indiana's local communities.
Funded organizations include:
Future Choices, Inc., one of Indiana's Center for Independent Living based in Muncie, is offering ADA training using the ADA Audio Conference series. They have partnered with the local government and transportation entity to provide the audio conference in different locations each month.
The Greater Bloomington Chamber of Commerce is being funded to update and print their two ADA guides for local businesses: Making Places of Public Accommodation Accessible to All and Hiring and Supporting People with Disabilities. These booklets were developed by the Chamber with the collaboration of local city officials and advocates.
The Indianapolis Resource Center for Independent Living (IRCIL), another Center for Independent Living, will work with local partners to assist businesses and organizations in the Fountain Square neighborhood (Southeast Indianapolis) to create access for people with disabilities.
The Indiana Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society and the Indiana Transportation Museum were funded to explore ways to make the State Fair train accessible. The project will focus on reviewing the existing historical train, assessing and identifying barriers as well as accessible stops along the route.
The City of Bloomington's Council for Community Accessibility (CCA) was funded to conduct two trainings in Monroe and surrounding counties for architects, construction personnel, inspectors, and municipal officials who approve plans for new business construction. The goal is for those involved in the process to know their obligations under the ADA so businesses are accessible prior to opening, rather than after the fact, necessitating additional expenses.
The mission of ADA-Indiana is to serve as a statewide resource for promoting the implementation of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Founded in 1991, ADA-Indiana is part of the six-state consortium that comprises the DBTAC: Great Lakes ADA Center. For more information on ADA-Indiana, visit www.adaindiana.org.
RSS Feeds from the Indiana Institute Website
RSS or Really Simple Syndication, allows you to subscribe to news, blogs, and other content available to subscribers. The Indiana Institute offers RSS feeds for download automatically. Get the latest news headlines regarding the work of the Institute, podcasts, audio and video updates straight to your computer! Subscribing is easy and best of all, it's free! Just click on the orange RSS icon located in the top right hand side of the Indiana Institute's homepage. A dialog box will appear indicating that you are viewing a feed that contains frequently updated content. When you subscribe to a feed, it is added to the Common Feed List. Updated material from the feed is automatically downloaded and can be viewed via Internet Explorer and other programs. Click on the "Subscribe to this feed button" and technology will do the rest.
Library Corner
New Items: The following new materials may be borrowed by Indiana residents from the Center for Disability Information and Referral at the Institute. To check out materials, contact the library at 1-800-437-7924, send e-mail to cedir@indiana.edu, or visit us at 2853 East Tenth Street in Bloomington.
Connor, L. (2008). Waiting for normal. New York: HarperCollins Publishers.
Luecking, R. G. (2009). The way to work: How to facilitate work experiences for youth in transition. Baltimore: Paul H. Brookes Publishing.
Parker, R. A. (2008). Piano starts here: The young Art Tatum. New York: Random House Children's Books.