NTAC e.News — April 1, 2009

Asian/Pacific Islander Words of Wisdom

“Mai pale i ke a`o a ka makua”- Do not set aside the teaching of your elders.

Hawaiian phrase

Source: http://www.geocities.com/~olelo/heavensent.html

Announcements: NTAC

UPCOMING CONFERENCE/EVENTS IN HONOLULU, HAWAI`I

There is still time to register for the "Pacific Rim International Forum 2009: Securing the Rights of Persons with Disabilities: A Focus on Poverty," which will be held on May 2nd and May 3rd; the "24th Annual Pacific Rim Conference on Disabilities," which will be held on May 4th and 5th at the Honolulu Convention Center; and the "Post PacRim Capacity Building Institute--Addressing Diversity and Disability in the Postsecondary Classroom: Universal Design and Beyond," which will be held on May 6th at the Ala Moana Hotel. For more information, please see: http://www.pacrim.hawaii.edu/.

Announcements: National and International

Interagency Committee on Disability Research (ICDR) Seeks Recommendations on Emerging Disability Research Topics

This year for the first time, the federally mandated ICDR is utilizing an innovative Web-based approach to collect online disability research comments to assist in developing a federal disability and rehabilitation 2010 research agenda. Sign up to submit your recommendations on what you believe are critical research issues related to disability. Recommendations will be accepted March 27-April 17, 2009. Click here to find out more.

Open For Questions

Open For Questions is an opportunity to open up the White House to all Americans. Submit your own question about the economy, health care, education, veterans and other subjects that are important to you. Sign in to vote on questions and suggest your own, or read some of the questions already submitted.

Free Tax Return Preparation by Volunteers

Trained community volunteers can help you prepare your taxes to make sure you take advantage of special credits, such as the Earned Income Tax Credit, Child Tax Credit and Credit for the Elderly for which you may qualify. Learn more from IRS Publication 907. To locate the AARP Tax-Aide site near you call 1-888-227-7669. You may also download Schedule R, the Credit for the Elderly or the Disabled. If you are experiencing a hardship, you may call or write your local Taxpayer Advocate Office for your state, or call the Taxpayer Advocate Service Toll-free Case Intake Line at 1-877-777-4778 or TTY/TTD 1-800-829-4059.

February 2009 Disability Employment Statistics Released

In February 2009, the percent of people with disabilities in the labor force was 23.0, compared with 70.9 for persons with no disability. The unemployment rate for those with disabilities was 14.0 percent, compared with 8.7 percent for persons with no disability, not seasonally adjusted. Read about the February Disability Employment Statistics or Commonly Used Terms in BLS Employment Statistics.

Database of More Than 1,900 Job Candidates with Disabilities

The U.S. Department of Labor has made available to employers nationwide a free database of 1,921 job candidates with disabilities seeking employment in a wide variety of fields. Federal employers can tap into this ongoing recruitment resource online through the Workforce Recruitment Program, and private sector, other government and nonprofit employers can request unlimited searches by calling the Labor Department's Employer Assistance and Recruiting Network at 866-327-6669. Click here to read the press release.

Recent Products

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

Institutes / Conferences

The Ripple Effect of the ADA Amendments Act of 2008 on College/University Campuses

Participants can select from a variety of Strands, Single Sessions, a Mini-Strand, and a Saturday Post-Session taught by experts in the field, which provide participants with in-depth information and adequate time for questions and follow-up discussions. Visit the online brochure at: http://www.cped.uconn.edu/09pti.htm.

Assistive Technology & Transition: Evaluation, Identification & Acquisition

This webinar, to be held on April 6, 2009 at 2:00 PM EDT, will discuss assistive technology as the great equalizer for people with disabilities in accessing pathways to community living, employment and post secondary education. For students with disabilities and families, however, it may not be clear who has responsibility for providing these technologies once a student is no longer protected by IDEA mandated services.

2009 National ADA Symposium

The theme of the 2009 Symposium is Revitalizing the ADA. This event will take place from June 8-10, 2009 in Kansas City, MO. The National ADA Symposium is sponsored by the DBTAC-Network of ADA Centers, a project of the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR).

Research / Publications

How The American Recovery & Reinvestment Act May Affect People with Disabilities

Fact sheet from the Real Economic Impact Tour (REI Tour), a national initiative that provides free tax preparation and filing assistance and other asset building strategies to low-income persons with disabilities.

ODEP's Activities and Resources Highlighted in SHRM Article

Today, the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) published "Can Hiring One Employee with a Disability Make a Difference?" The article covers a wide range of disability employment interests including ODEP's policy activity, EARN, WRP, and more. Click here to read the article