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FYI Newsletter
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FYI Newsletter January 29, 2007
Quick Scan:
- Consumer Input about Health Care in Indiana Requested
- Thinking about You - Thinking about Me and Implementing Social Thinking Concepts Workshops
- IPIN Name Change
- Death by Chocolate: Citizen Advocacy Fundraiser
- Library Materials Renewal Policy
- Library Corner
Consumer Input about Health Care in Indiana Requested
The first of a series of annual "Indiana Disability Polls" is waiting to hear from you! This year's poll seeks input from people with disabilities and family members about health care in Indiana. Simply go to http://www.thepollingplace.org to respond to the survey.
You'll have the opportunity to share your thoughts about the following areas:
· Health services people with disabilities are currently receiving;
· Services that are needed but not being received;
· The quality of health care services; and
· Issues related to health insurance.
The survey will also allow you to provide input about needed changes in health care:
· What the priorities should be if Indiana were to create a system of universal
xhealth care; and
· What improvements are needed in the current health care system in Indiana.
The survey should take you about 5-8 minutes to complete. All answers to the survey are anonymous. The Indiana Disability Poll is being conducted jointly by the Indiana Governor's Council for People with Disabilities, the Indiana Institute on Disability and Community, and Indiana Protection and Advocacy Services. Please respond as soon as you can - we would like to be able to issue a report this spring.
The survey is online at http://www.thepollingplace.org. You may also request a print copy or alternative formats by contacting Vicki Pappas at the Indiana Institute at (812) 855-6508 or e-mail cpps@indiana.edu.
Thinking about You - Thinking about Me and Implementing Social Thinking Concepts Workshops
Mark your calendars for March 26 and 27, 2007 and plan to attend two one-day workshops (Bloomington Convention Center) where the needs of persons with social cognitive deficits are the focus. Persons with social cognitive deficits, which include those with diagnoses such as Aspergers Syndrome, high functioning autism, PDD-NOS, NLD, and ADAD often have difficulty efficiently considering and responding to the perspectives of those around them. This workshop will explore how central the skill of "perspective taking" is to all social contact and interpretation, be it nonverbal or verbal.
Professionals in general and special education, administrators, early intervention providers, family members, and those interested in learning more about educating individuals on the autism spectrum should plan to attend.
Implementing Social Thinking Concepts and Vocabulary into Our School and Home Day is a brand new workshop where parents and educators learn more about teaching social thinking and related skills to students. Participants will explore how social thinking concepts develop the infrastructure for students to meet educational standards by demonstrating how key these concepts are to reading comprehension, written expressions, etc.
The one-day registration fee for either March 26 or March 27, 2007 is $140.00. The two-day fee is $250.00 per person. For questions pertaining to workshop content, contact Cathy Pratt at (812) 855-6508 or e-mail prattc@indiana.edu. To register, contact Diana Stille (dstille@indiana.edu) or Donna Beasley
(beasley@indiana.edu) at (812) 855-6508. For information on Training Funds for family members or individuals with disabilities in Indiana, contact the Indiana Governor's Council for People with Disabilities at (317) 232-7770 or IN*SOURCE at 1-800-332-4433.
The Indiana Speech-Language-Hearing Association is approved by the Continuing Education Board of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) to provide continuing education activities in speech-language pathology and audiology. These workshops are offered for 0.8 Continuing Education Units (CEUs). Additionally, certificates of attendance will be provided at no cost. CEUs (Continuing Education Units - General education) and CRUs (Certification Renewal Units) will be available on-site.
IPIN Name Change
The Indiana Parent Information Network has announced a brand new name to coincide with the group's twentieth anniversary. As of January 17, 2007, the entity will be known as About Special Kids, Inc.
Executive Director Rebecca Kirby described the new name. "With our new name, About Special Kids, we celebrate the communities and the families and children we serve. %u2018About Special Kids expresses the heart of what we do. We see ourselves as the place for families and professionals to go to ASK questions about special needs and kids. We're committed to helping families access the resources and support they need to ensure the success of their children. We had encountered confusion with our previous identity. People mistook us for a government agency, a generalized parenting program, or a host of other things. With our new name and logo, we can connect with our audiences right away."
Coupled with the new name, About Special Kids will soon move to a new office. Now located at 4755 Kingsway Drive in Indianapolis, this March the organization will move to 7275 Shadeland Avenue in Indianapolis. The move will place the central office for the nonprofit organization within minutes of a major interstate. About Special Kids is a statewide organization and also has satellite offices in northwest Indiana and southern Indiana.
About Special Kids was founded as the Indiana Parent Information Network in 1987. In 2006, the 501(c)(3) organization served more than 4,000 families. Families and professionals can learn about About Special Kids by visiting http://www.aboutspecialkids.org or calling the staff at (317) 257-8683.
Citizen Advocacy Fundraiser - Death by Chocolate
Often people with disabilities may be isolated, face difficult challenges, or be at risk. They need friendships and the willingness of other members of the community to help them navigate human services, the health system, and even the legal system, so that people with disabilities may become viable and active members of their community.
Monroe County is fortunate to have an organization called Citizen Advocacy of South-Central Indiana, Inc. (CASCI). The mission of this not-for-profit organization is to "facilitate the recognition, promotion, and protection of the rights and interests of people with disabilities. This is achieved through recruiting and supporting individuals (Advocates) from the local community, who are prepared to act voluntarily to make a positive difference to the life of a person with a disability (Partner)."
As part of Options for Better Living's Week of Chocolate events, CASCI is having a fundraiser, a Death by Chocolate Interactive Murder Mystery Play, which will be held at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday, February 1, at St. Thomas Lutheran Church, 3800 East Third Street in Bloomington. The play will be presented by the Bloomington Playwrights Project and CASCI. A decadent chocolate dessert, provided by Lennie's of Bloomington, plus tea or coffee will be served.
Tickets may be purchased for $15.00 at Options, 200 East Winslow Road, or St. Thomas Lutheran Church. Interested individuals are encouraged to pre-purchase tickets. This event is recommended for teens and adults ages 13 and older. Contact Jo Gilbertson at (812) 219-5566 or Dixie Patterson at (812) 327-7823 for more information.
Library Materials Renewal Policy
The staff at the Center for Disability Information and Referral would like to announce that as of January 22, the policy of not renewing videos and DVDs has been discontinued. ALL library materials are now eligible for renewal after the initial four week circulation period. As always, if another patron requests material that is already checked out, a hold will then be placed on that item and that item may not be renewed. For questions, contact the Library (812) 855-6508 or e-mail cedir@indiana.edu.
Library Corner
New Items: The following new materials may be borrowed by Indiana residents from the Center for Disability Information and Referral (CeDIR) 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.
Holbrook, M.C. (2006). Children with visual impairments: a parents' guide, 2nd edition. Bethesda, MD: Woodbine House.
Hudson, J. (2006). Prescription for success: supporting children with Autism Spectrum Disorders in the medical environment. Shawnee Mission, KS: Autism Asperger Publishing.
Maeroff, G.I. (2006). Building blocks: making children successful in the early years of school. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
Payne, R. K . (2006). Working with students: discipline strategies for the classroom. Highlands, TX: Aha! Process, Inc.