NTAC e.News — August 1, 2007

Asian/Pacific Islander Words of Wisdom

The body pays for a slip of the foot, and gold pays for a slip of the tongue.
Malaysian Proverb.

Announcements: Local

NEW! Dr. Kim-Rupnow Receives U.S. DOE Grant

Dr. Weol Soon Kim-Rupnow, NTAC Project Director, recently received another five-year grant from the U.S. Department of Education, valued at almost $1.5 million. The grant is for the "ACE for English Language Learners’ Literacy: Professional Development Program." The program will provide training to teachers and teachers’ aides in Hawai‘i, American Samoa, and the Marshall Islands. The goal is to provide high-quality professional-development activities for improved academic achievement and enhanced English skills and motivation for learners of English as a Second Language. The training will give students supplementary literacy tutoring with cultural support, emphasizing a feedforward philosophy that ensures high levels of success, and boosts self-efficacy and enjoyment of reading.

The project will be housed at the Center on Disability Studies at the University of Hawai‘i at Manoa, in collaboration with the Hawai‘i Department of Education, the American Samoa Department of Education, and the Marshall Islands Ministry of Education. Congratulations to Dr. Kim-Rupnow. You can reach her at kimrupno@hawaii.edu.

Online Course—Seventh Offering

The seventh online course facilitated by the National Technical Assistance Center for Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (NTAC-AAPI) with Disabilities is slated to begin September 4, 2007. The course, “Introduction to Disability/Rehabilitation with Asian/Pacific Islander Americans” costs $20 tuition and earns you 10 Continuing Education Units that may be applied to your CRC. The course is a wonderful opportunity to further your cultural competence and enhance your counseling abilities.

The seventh offering is again taught by Paul Leung, Professor and Director of the Department of Rehabilitation, Social Work, and Addictions at the University of North Texas, and Nan Zhang Hampton, Associate Professor of the Department of Administration, Rehabilitation, and Postsecondary Education at San Diego State University.

For more information, or to preview the required readings before the seventh offering begins, please go to the following Web site: http://www.ntac.hawaii.edu/AAPIcourse/. To receive reminders about the course, reserve your space, or learn where to send your $20 tuition payment, contact James D. Brightman, NTAC-AAPI Vocational Rehabilitation Coordinator/Teaching Assistant at jamesdb@hawaii.edu. Thank you, and see you online.

Call for Papers—Come to Hawai‘i in 2008

Attention Network members and others—the call for papers for the 24th Annual Pacific Rim Conference on Disabilities is now open. You are invited to submit papers for the 2008 PacRim Conference to be held March 24 & 25 at the Sheraton Waikiki Hotel and Resort in Honolulu, Hawai‘i. For more information about Pac Rim, please see http://www.pacrim.hawaii.edu/.

Announcements: National and International

A Systemic Approach to Arming Students and Job Seekers With Disabilities and Their Advocates In Securing Meaningful Employment

Disability will touch the lives of most Americans at some point during their lives either through firsthand experience or acquaintance with someone who has a disability. Census figures indicate that, in 2002, more than one in six Americans had a disability involving limitations in seeing, hearing, speaking, walking, learning, or undertaking other major functions central to daily life.

17th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act

On the anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), we celebrate the progress towards an America where individuals with disabilities are recognized for their talents and contributions to our society. We also underscore our commitment to extend the full liberties and freedoms of our great country to all Americans. Read the entire proclamation here.

The President’s New Freedom Initiative: The 2007 Progress Report

Announced in February, 2001, the New Freedom Initiative is President George W. Bush’s plan to tear down barriers to full integration into American life that remain for many of the 54 million Americans with disabilities. This report highlights the many accomplishments of the Administration in implementing the President’s vision and builds upon the reports issued in May 2002 and May 2004. Click here to read the full report.

Recent Products

For a complete list of NTAC products, please visit the Products section of our Web site.

Resources

My Corps Summer

My Corps Summer is a two-week program that gives special education high school students from the Philadelphia area the opportunity to gain valuable job and life skills and improve academic goals by serving as camp counselors. The program engages students in meaningful service-learning by demonstrating that they can be the providers of service, not just the recipients.

Funding to Promote Leadership for Increasing Employment and Economic Independence for Adults with Disabilities

DOL’s Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) has announced the availability of up to $2.35 million to fund a single cooperative agreement to establish a National Technical Assistance and Research Center to Promote Leadership for Increasing Employment and Economic Independence for Adults with Disabilities. Application deadline is August 20, 2007.

Benefits Counseling for a Brighter Future

The Virginia MIG grantees have developed this resource guide for transition practitioners. The manual explains Benefits Counseling and how it serves as a valuable resource for students, parents/guardians, and families to get help in optimizing needed benefits and begin planning toward a future that includes employment, earnings, self-sufficiency, and SSA benefits, if needed. Click here to read more.

Employer Resource Networks Presentation

The South Dakota MIG grantees have developed this short overview of Employer Resource Networks (ERNs). The presentation is shown to prospective ERN groups and answers questions about how an ERN can address labor issues in the community and create partnerships. Click here to read more.

Employment Liaison Resource Manual

The purpose of this manual is to provide an overview of information and referral sources available to the Employment Liaison, individuals with disabilities, and student services staff at post-secondary schools. Resources in the manual reference both National resources and those specific to job seekers in Wisconsin. Click here to read more.

Gateways: West Virginia’s Comprehensive Employment System Overview

The West Virginia Medicaid Infrastructure (MIG) is transitioning to Comprehensive Employment Strategies (CES) Grant. The CES grant has 3 major goals: maximizing employment for people with disabilities, increasing the state’s labor force through the inclusion of people with disabilities, protecting and enhancing workers’ health care, other benefits and needed supports. Review the presentation and overview of their strategic plan including a comprehensive workforce infrastructure. Click here to read more.

Pennsylvania Employment Resource Guide for Persons with Disabilities

The Pennsylvania MIG project developed the Work Incentive Planning Assistance (WIPA) Program in order to promote employment among those receiving SSI/SSDI benefits. WIPA produced the following newsletter entitled “Employment Resource Guide for Persons with Disabilities”, which sought to succinctly list services available to individuals with disabilities who wish to work. Some of these resources include Family Savings Accounts and information about the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program. Click here to read more.

Rhode Island’s Social Security Work Incentive Programs 1619 (a) and 1619 (b) Issue Brief

The Rhode Island MIG project produced an issue brief, which outlined the State’s utilization of 1619(a) and 1619(b) waivers, their effect on disabled workers, the barriers these waivers present, and recommendations for eliminating barriers and other best practices. Click here to read more.

Institutes / Conferences

For a complete list of conferences, please visit the Conferences section of our Web site.

US Business Leadership Network 2007 Annual Conference: Building the New Workforce—Inclusion & Innovation

The US Business Leadership Network’s (BLN) 10th Annual Conference and 2nd Annual National Career Fair will take place September 23-26, 2007. The conference is a national event for business, community leaders and BLN chapters that have an interest in hiring, retention and marketing to people with disabilities. Click here to visit their website.

International Forum 2008: Securing the Rights of Persons with Disabilities

March 22 and 23, 2008: Sheraton Waikiki, Honolulu, Hawaii
Select speakers including experts with regional and UN experience, advocates and community leaders will present and participate in panels and lead discussions around the posed questions. The forum will also provide a space for dialogue and informal conversations. We invite you to host a dialogue session and to share your insights and expertise. Those interested in speaking and or participating at the Forum, please contact Robert A. Stodden at stodden@hawaii.edu

First Annual International NATTAP Conference

September 26-28, 2007: Columbus, OH
The Network of Autism Training and Technical Assistance Programs (NATTAP) and the Autism Society of America (ASA) present the First Annual International NATTAP Conference. The objectives of the conference are to review current models of systems, best practice in research and intervention use, and methods of capacity building all of which contribute to the ultimate goal of improving outcomes for ASD individuals ages 3-21. A forum will be provided in which ideas will be exchanged that will set a new foundation in autism spectrum disorders. .

24th Annual Pacific Rim Conference on Disabilities

Even though it is not until next year, now is the time to start planning to attend PacRim. The 24th Annual Pacific Rim Conference on Disabilities will be held March 24 & 25, 2008 at the Sheraton Waikiki Hotel and Resort in Honolulu, Hawai‘i. For more information about Pac Rim, please see http://www.pacrim.hawaii.edu/.

2008 National ADA Symposium and EXPO

On May 12-14, 2008 at America’s Center in St. Louis, Missouri the National ADA Symposium and EXPO will be held. It is a comprehensive three-day conference on the Americans with Disabilities Act and related disability laws sponsored by the National Network of Disability and Busines Technical Assistance Centers. Visit http://www.adasymposium.org to find out why the National ADA Symposium has become the conference to attend on the ADA.

Research / Publications

Improvement Following ADHD Treatment Sustained in Most Children, But Linked Problems Persist Into Adolescence—Major Follow-up Study

July 20, 2007: Most children treated in a variety of ways for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) showed sustained improvement after three years in a major follow-up study funded by the National Institutes of Health's (NIH) National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). Yet increased risk for behavioral problems, including delinquency and substance use, remained higher than normal. Click here to read more.