NTAC e.News — January 15, 2007

Asian/Pacific Islander Words of Wisdom

“Kekora bisech ra bai el dechor ra rebai e diak douspech er ngi.” (Palauan Proverb)
Translation: You are like the bisech plant in the backyard that has no purpose.
Meaning: A person who isn’t trusted is not needed.

Announcements: Local

NEW! Resource—Bay Area Asian Task Force

In January 2005, the Department of Rehabilitation in California formed the San Francisco Bay Area Asian Task Force, which consists of rehabilitation counselors, rehabilitation specialists and supervisors, and district administrators. Many members of the Task Force are bilingual, speaking Asian languages such as Chinese, Hindu, Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese, and others. The Task Force reaches out to meet needs of the more than 40 ethnic groups among Asian Americans with disabilities (many of whom lack access or language to utilize disability services in San Francisco and nearby Bay Area counties). The Task Force identifies local agencies and facilities that provide services to this unique population.

The Task Force holds quarterly meetings to discuss and create ways to reach out and find resources. The San Francisco Bay Area Asian Resource Directory lists hundreds of local agencies or groups catering to specific Asian populations. Through the work of the Task Force, the Department of Rehabilitation hopes to play a more active role with Asian communities and thus provide more effective programs and services to meet the needs of Asian groups in San Francisco Bay Area.

For more information, or to connect with the Task Force, please contact Frank Wang at (510) 622-2775 or FWANG@dor.ca.gov.

NEW! Fifth Online Course—Filled and Starting Tomorrow

Registration for the fifth NTAC-AAPI online course, “Introduction to Disability/Rehabilitation with Asian/Pacific Islander Americans,” is closed. This free three-week course, which is 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, begins tomorrow, January 16, 2007. Although this current course is full, you can get your name on the mailing list for future offerings by sending an email to James D. Brightman, NTAC-AAPI Vocational Rehabilitation Coordinator/Teaching Assistant, at jamesdb@hawaii.edu.

The course earns ten Continuing Education Units (CEUs), which may be applied to your CRC, and is a wonderful opportunity to further your cultural competence and enhance your counseling abilities. For more information, or to preview the required readings before the sixth course, please see the Web site: http://www.ntac.hawaii.edu/AAPIcourse/. Thank you, and see you online.

Announcements: National and International

Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) Reauthorization

Information from the National Dissemination Center for Children with Disabilities (NICHCY) on the reauthorization of the IDEA.

Recent Products

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

Resources

Featured Practice—North Dakota

Rehabilitation Consulting Services (RCS) is North Dakota Vocational Rehabilitation’s Business Services program. It assists North Dakota business owners and employers in finding solutions to disability-related issues. Services are designed to maximize the productivity and potential of new hires, to help retain an existing work force, and to provide research and the latest information on disability-related issues. http://www.ed.gov/rschstat/research/pubs/vrpractices/nd.html

Featured Practice—Delaware

Collaboration between the Divisions of Vocational Rehabilitation (DVR) and Employment & Training (E&T) is on the rise in Delaware. The agencies are co-located at all four of the state’s One-Stop centers. Individuals can drop in to use the computerized job search, resume writing program, telephones, and fax machines. One-Stop staff are available to assist individuals with their job searches. http://www.ed.gov/rschstat/research/pubs/vrpractices/de.html

Institutes / Conferences

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

NCTI at ATIA 2007 Conference—Meet us in Orlando!

Join us at the free Networking Event on Wednesday, January 24, from 3 – 4:30 pm. Click here to find out more about topics and featured speakers. Catch our presentations: Announcing Technology in the Works 2007: Short-term Collaborative Research and The Early Reading and Writing Matrices. Email us to request a consultation in Orlando: ncti@air.org.

NCTI at TRLD 2007 Conference

Meet us in San Francisco! Join us at the Technology, Reading, and Learning Diversity (TRLD) annual conference in San Francisco. Catch our presentation The Early Reading and Writing Matrices with George Peterson-Karlan. Email us to request a consultation in San Francisco: ncti@air.org.

Ticket to Work Advisory Panel Beneficiary Summit Announcement

The Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Advisory Panel (the Panel) will be having a Beneficiary Summit in Atlanta, Georgia on February 6-7, 2007, for individuals who receive (or recently received) a Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and/or Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefit and/or their health insurance from Medicare or Medicaid (beneficiaries). Beneficiaries will be invited to the Summit to give us their thoughts and ideas on the way that Social Security disability and other programs operate now and how they can be made better for people who want to go to work. Also, beneficiaries attending the Summit will propose an ongoing process for beneficiary involvement in the work of the Social Security Administration (SSA).

The Summit will be a meeting of about 50 beneficiaries to discuss the disability programs as they are now and what could be changed to make them work better for people with disabilities. Recommendations will focus on work and what SSA and its partners can do to encourage work for more beneficiaries. It costs nothing to attend the Summit. The beneficiaries who are selected to attend will have their travel, meal, lodging, transportation, and incidental costs paid by the Panel. In addition, if a beneficiary requires a personal assistant or support person in order to participate, those costs will be paid by the Panel as well.

Applications can be sent via e-mail to Jenn Rigger with the Panel to TWWIIAPanel@ssa.gov or faxed to: 202-358-6440. They can also be mailed to the: Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Advisory Panel, 400 Virginia Avenue, SW, Suite 700, Washington, DC 20024, Attn: BENEFICIARY SUMMIT.

If there are questions about the application, call Jenn Rigger at 202-358-6425. REMINDER: The deadline for applications is October 6, 2006.

JAN’s 2007 Accommodation and Compliance Web Training Series

Schedule of events for the Job Accommodation Network’s (JAN) 2007 Accommodation and Compliance Web Training Series. This series of webcasts will address several subjects including the ADA, hiring veterans with disabilities and assistive technologies. Continuing Education Units (CEUs) are available for these training events.

Consumer Electronics Show Web Event: What’s Happening with Accessibility?

Do you wish you had attended the International CES Conference in Las Vegas last week with all those gadgets and gizmos? NCTI Collaborators Steve Jacobs and Eric Morrison were there, investigating the designs and possibilities for educational uses and diverse users.

23rd Annual Pacific Rim Conference on Disabilities

Registration is open for the 2007 Pac Rim Conference. Be sure to take advantage of the special Early Registration Rate. Mark Your Calendar! March 12-14, 2007, Sheraton Waikiki Hotel & Resort Honolulu, Hawaii. Visit http://www.pacrim.hawaii.edu/ for more details.

Multiple Perspectives on Access, Inclusion, and Disability

April 3 & 4, 2007
As a modern land grant university an important part of Ohio State University’s mission is serving the community. Since 2001 The Ohio State University’s ADA Coordinator’s Office has hosted Multiple Perspectives On Access Inclusion & Disability. The conference offers a unique opportunities for approximately 300 professionals, scholars, advocates. Workshops and presentations are designed to bring a diverse audience together to discuss the full spectrum of disability issues and experiences. The annual gathering provides a forum for individuals and organizations to share their knowledge; broaden their perspectives, and increase community resources through the synergy of collaboration.

For the call for presentations and conference updates visit: http://ada.osu.edu/conferences.htm. For more information on this years program visit: http://ada.osu.edu/conferences.htm Or e-mail ada-osu@osu.edu.

National Association for Asian and Pacific American Education (NAAPAE)

The National Association for Asian and Pacific American Education (NAAPAE) is holding its 29th Annual Conference in Hawaii on April 20-21, 2007. With a conference theme entitled, “Pacific Pathways: Engage, Educate, Enlighten”, presenters may focus on social, cultural, and educational issues; leadership development; and outreach.

Please consider submitting a proposal to this noteworthy conference. Proposals submitted electronically or via CD by January 10, 2007 will receive priority for selection. Submit proposals to nakaoka@hawaii.edu.

Charting the Future In Developmental and Learning Disabilities

YAI/National Institute for People with Disabilities Network will hold its 28th Annual International Conference: “Charting the Future In Developmental and Learning Disabilities” on April 30 - May 4, 2007 at the Crowne Plaza Manhattan Hotel, 1605 Broadway, in New York City. For more information, contact Tina Sobel, Senior Manager of YAI/NIPD’s Professional Information Department, at tsobel@yai.org, 212-273-6457 or visit http://www.yai.org/.

Imagine...Everybody Works!

The Autism Society of America and APSE: The Network on Employment Conference & Training Event, May 10 and 11, 2007, Columbus, OH, Hyatt on Capital Square. APSE and the Autism Society of America invite sponsors and exhibitors to participate. For more information, contact: Teresa Grossi (tgrossi@indiana.edu) or Cathy Pratt (prattc@indiana.edu) or call 812.855.6508.

RESNA 2007

Instructional Courses: June 15-16, 2007; Conference Workshop: June 17-19, 2007
RESNA’s Annual Conference will be held in Phoenix, June 15-19, 2007. RESNA 2007 will feature assistive technology’s leading researchers, renowned clinicians and policy experts creating a conference program with unmatched levels of knowledge and expertise. RESNA presenters and attendees will experience a surprisingly intimate conference environment. RESNA 2007 will offer an exciting Exhibit Hall featuring product demonstrations and training sessions, two days of Pre-Conference Instructional Courses, and 3 full-days of Workshops, Interactive Poster Sessions, Themed Paper Sessions and distinguished speakers.
For the latest information and details visit their Web site: http://www.resna.org/.

National Institute of Child Health and Human Development/National Institutes of Health: Summer Institute in Applied Research in Child and Adolescent Development

June 24-29, 2007: Bolger Center, Potomac, Maryland
A goal of the Institute is to support investigators who are beginning careers as applied researchers by providing training that will build upon their existing content knowledge and research skills. To be eligible for this Institute, individuals must have completed a Ph.D., M.D. or equivalent terminal degree within their field. Individuals must also:

• Have at least 1 year of post-doctoral experience in academe, private industry, non-profit, or government
• Have not more than 5 years of subsequent research experience at the time of the Institute

Application packet and Institute information are available at: http://www.nichd.nih.gov/about/org/der/branches/cdbb/pages/summer-institute.aspx. Direct all inquiries to: summerinst@mail.nih.gov. Application Due Date: February 15, 2007. Notification of Acceptance: April 1, 2007

National Federation of the Blind Youth Slam 2007 A STEM Leadership Academy

July 30 - August 4, 2007: Baltimore, MD
Who:Two hundred blind high school students will be selected to participate in this program. Students who would like to be considered must complete the attached application and return it to the Jernigan Institute by April 1, 2007. Students will be selected based on their ability to participate actively in the activities.

What: This four-day academy will engage and inspire the next generation of blind youth to consider careers falsely believed to be impossible for the blind. While staying at Johns Hopkins University, students will be mentored by blind role models during fun and challenging activities meant to build confidence and increase science literacy.

Cost: There is no cost to apply for the program. Students who apply and are accepted to the Youth Slam will be expected to pay a $200 registration fee by May 31, 2007.

To send questions or comments via email, please write to youthslam@nfb.org

Research / Publications

Consumer-Directed Home and Community-Based Services

In the past decade consumer-directed services have proliferated in public programs. AARP has developed a two page Fact Sheet that offers an short overview of consumer preferences, program characteristics, the role of fiscal agents, and the ways consumer direction is expanding. http://www.hcbs.org/moreInfo.php/nb/doc/1610

Consumer Direction Initiatives of the FY 2001 and 2002 Grantees: Progress and Challenges

This paper discusses the activities of 11 CMS grantees and the program and policy issues they have encountered. The paper’s primary purpose is to provide information that states and stakeholders will find useful when planning or implementing consumer-directed initiatives, whether through solely state-funded programs or the Medicaid program. In particular, the report highlights program and state and federal policy challenges and how Grantees are addressing them. http://www.hcbs.org/moreInfo.php/nb/doc/1601

Referral Registry and Workforce Resource Centers Web site

Managed by the Home Care Quality Authority (HCQA), a public agency in Washington, this Registry is a customized internet-based system designed to match the needs of publicly funded in-home consumers/employers with pre-qualified individual providers. The day-to-day operations are administered by Referral and Workforce Resource Centers (RWRCs). Local sites offer programs and services including referral searches, a Resource Clearinghouse and outreach materials such as the attached newsletter. http://www.hcbs.org/moreInfo.php/nb/doc/1602