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FYI Newsletter November 23, 2009
Quick Scan:
- Indiana Institute Holiday Schedule
- Indiana Arts Commission Recipient of National Accessibility Leadership Award
- IU Disability Roundtable
- 2009 IN-APSE Conference
- Coming Soon to the Indiana Institute’s e-store
- Library Holiday Hours
- Library Corner
INSTITUTE HOLIDAY SCHEDULE
THANKSGIVING SCHEDULE: The Indiana Institute on Disability and Community will be closed on Thursday, November 26 and Friday, November 27, 2009 in observance of the Thanksgiving holiday. Normal operating hours will resume on Monday, November 30, 2009.
KUDOS
INDIANA ARTS COMMISSION RECIPIENT OF 2009 NATIONAL ACCESSIBILITY LEADERSHIP AWARD: Rocco Landesman, Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts, announced this week that the Indiana Arts Commission is the recipient of the 2009 National Accessibility Leadership Award/grant for their outstanding accessibility work. Sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies (NASAA), the award recognizes exceptional initiatives or programs that make the arts accessible and inclusive for older adults and individuals with disabilities.
The award is presented to the Indiana Arts Commission in acknowledgement of its leadership and highly effective work to make the arts fully inclusive throughout its organization, programming, and state. Among the accomplishments of the Indiana Arts Commission:
- As a result of discussion round-tables and surveys from the 2004 Statewide Forum on Careers in the Arts for People with Disabilities, the Indiana Arts Commission, in partnership with VSA arts of Indiana and the Indiana Institute on Disability and Community, created ArtsWORK Indiana (AWI). ArtsWORK Indiana is a grassroots organization that facilitates access to careers in the arts for people with disabilities through awareness, education, and encouragement.
- AWI’s website (www.artsworkindiana.org) provides information, resources, employment, and internship opportunities, as well as an artist directory and discussion forums. AWI invites guest speakers to monthly meetings to address topics such as marketing, artwork sales, and funding opportunities.
- In Spring 2009, AWI took its programs to six different areas of the state, partnering with arts organizations, disability service providers, colleges, and community centers to hold Creative Connections: Careers in the Arts for People with Disabilities workshops. At each workshop the AWI chairperson gave presentations on how to access and use the free resources available on the website, and a local artist from each area shared personal experiences, tips, and advice as a working artist and peer.
Rocco Landesman said, “Since becoming Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts, I have been talking about “art works,” and the Indiana Arts Commission will help ensure even more opportunities for American artists in the three ways that I mean this phrase: artists of every background should have the opportunity to create new art works; they should participate in all the ways that art can work to expand us as human beings and knit together our communities; and perhaps most importantly, they should have the chance to be working artists who are part of this country’s real economy.”
The Arts Endowment and NASAA established the National Accessibility Leadership Award in 2001. Since 2002, the award has provided a $30,000 NEA competitive grant to the selected state or regional arts agency to advance its access work. With their award, the Indiana Arts Commission and AWI will expand their support for artists with disabilities by offering grants for projects that will impact the artist’s career development.
Previous award recipients are the Florida Division of Cultural Affairs (2008); the Minnesota State Arts Board (2007); the Maine Arts Commission (2006); the Massachusetts Cultural Council (2005); the New Jersey State Council on the Arts (2004); the New York State Council on the Arts (2003); the Ohio Arts Council (2002); and the Arizona Commission on the Arts (2001).
UPCOMING
IU DISABILITY ROUNDTABLE: Indiana University is seeing greater numbers of students with autism enrolled in its programs. Because of this growing student population, the Bloomington Campus’s Disability Roundtable is sponsoring an Accessible University session (Wednesday, December 2 from noon to 1:00 p.m., Dogwood Room, IU Memorial Union) to create awareness of how the campus can be as welcoming and supportive as possible to this student group.
Cathy Pratt, Director of the Institute’s Indiana Resource Center for Autism will be the featured speaker. Pratt’s presentation titled Accommodations for Students on the Autism Spectrum will share some of the characteristics of students on the autism spectrum and the issues they may face while attending college. She will also provide guidance on ways to support them in their classes, in planning their programs, and in participating in other University activities and events. Bring your questions and concerns and join us for this timely and relevant discussion! Please also share this information with others who may be interested.
If you plan to attend this session and require a sign language interpreter, real time captioning, assistive listening system, another auxiliary aid or information in alternate format, please contact Alice Voigt, Accessibility Specialist, at the National Center on Accessibility, ajvoigt@indiana.edu, (812) 856-4422 (voice) or (812) 856-4421 (tty).
Accessible University is a monthly series of presentations sponsored by the IUB Disability Roundtable. The purpose of the series is to educate the university community about accessibility issues and methodologies to create a more accessible university environment fully inclusive of students, faculty, staff, and visitors with disabilities.
The Accessible University series is a collaborative activity of IUB’s Disability Roundtable, coordinated by Vicki Pappas of the Indiana Institute on Disability and Community and Alice Voigt of the National Center on Accessibility. For further information about the Accessible University series or the Disability Roundtable, please feel free to contact Vicki (cpps@indiana.edu) or Alice (ajvoigt@indiana.edu).
2009 IN-APSE CONFERENCE: Destination Employment – Pilot Your Career is the theme of this year’s 19th annual IN-APSE Conference scheduled for December 8 (Pre-Conference Workshop) 9-10, 2009 at the Indianapolis Marriott East.
The Pre-Conference workshop, presented by Barbara Barnett, Trainer/Consultant for the Supported Employment Consultation and Training Center, will provide an overview of state and federal laws as they relate to working with individuals who have criminal histories. She will provide insight to risk factors with this population as well as resources available.
The Conference will focus on exploring the creative approaches and educational opportunities to advance competitive employment opportunities across Indiana. A Business Leadership Network (BLN) track has been added this year. Keynote speakers include J. Randolph Lewis, Senior Vice President of Distribution for Walgreens and Jack McCall, Motivational Humorist.
Visit http://www.inapse.org/index.php?pageId=64 for registration fees and other details. For questions, contact Susan Wilson at (765) 621-2310.
NEW IIDC PRODUCT
COMING SOON TO THE INDIANA INSTITUTE’S E-STORE: Tips on Emergency Preparedness for Families and Direct Support Staff is designed to provide information that does not focus on the scary aspects of emergencies. It offers the family and support staff suggestions on how to prepare in the event that an emergency does arise. The reader is encouraged to think of emergency preparedness as a project rather than a reaction to an unexpected and frightening event. Cost: first 5 are free, then 5/$4.00, sold in bunches of 5. Contact Maribeth Mooney at (812) 855-6508 or e-mail mfmooney@indiana.edu for more information. Visit the e-store at http://www.iidc.indiana.edu/.
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.
Belas, K. (2009). Raising a left-brain child in a right-brain world: Strategies for helping bright, quirky, socially awkward children to thrive at home and at school. Boston: Trumpeter Books.Kennedy, A. (2008). Not stupid. London: John Blake.
Rodriguez, G. M., & Zangari, C. (2009). Practically speaking: Language, literacy, and academic development for students with aac needs. Baltimore: Paul H. Brookes Pub. Co.
Soper, K. L. (2009). Gifts 2: How people with Down syndrome enrich the world. Bethesda: Woodbine House.