DVP INTERVIEW: BONNIE LEWKOWICZ AND JUDITH SMITH

https://goo.gl/JPx7Jr

Bonnie Lewkowicz interviewed Judith Smith. for the Disability Visibility Project™ at StoryCorps San Francisco on September 6, 2014. In this clip, Bonnie Lewkowicz talks with Judith Smith about the creation of AXIS, a contemporary dance company specializing in integrated work with dancers of all abilities. Judith and Bonnie talk about the social and political implications of doing this type of dance. Both discuss the challenges of traveling by strange and sometimes inaccessible means with the company for shows abroad. Both describe their work as a passion and activism. Bonnie and Judith share moments of impact both for them and audience members in creating and viewing their integrated dances.


People with deafblindness share their stories at advocacy event

https://goo.gl/UUWCSQ

At the ninth annual Deafblind Awareness Day, everyone had a story to tell.

A mother described the uncertainty of raising an infant with CHARGE syndrome. A teenager who is deafblind shared his dream of working in the community. A woman explained how she provides life-changing technology to people like herself who are deafblind.

Each story was unique, but all three emphasized the importance of state-funded services and programs for people who are deafblind and their families.

"That’s why we’re here today," said Kerry Thompson, Information and Program Coordinator for the Disability Rights Fund. "We need to advocate to make sure everyone has these opportunities."

Students in the Deafblind Program at Perkins School for the Blind joined several dozen members of the deafblind community and their interpreters for the event, held March 30 at the Massachusetts State House. They were joined by several state representatives and service providers from organizations like the Deafblind Community Access Network (DBCAN).


Bellwether Behavioral Health Is Controversial Group Home Operator AdvoServ — With a New Name

https://goo.gl/HjnIYv

A for-profit company that runs group homes for the developmentally and intellectually disabled has changed its name from AdvoServ to Bellwether Behavioral Health, following ProPublica articles on three teenagers’ deaths and staff’s frequent use of physical holds and mechanical restraint devices.

In response to questions from ProPublica, the company said that the name was not the only facet of the company to change.

“Over the past year, a completely new leadership team, with a different management philosophy, initiated a series of transformational changes designed to fundamentally alter the trajectory of the company,” company executives said March 17 in an emailed statement from a spokesman, Brian Burgess. “The new name — Bellwether Behavioral Health — is just an outward reflection of the fundamental changes designed to deliver better outcomes for the individuals in our care.”

Burgess said that the company would not elaborate on the changes in the company’s operations or management philosophy. Reflecting the shift in leadership, all but one of the six top executives listed on its website were hired last year. A New York private equity firm, Wellspring Capital Management, owns the company.


National Federation of the Blind Applauds Introduction of Transitioning to Integrated and Meaningful Employment Act

https://goo.gl/ldBSN4

The National Federation of the Blind, the oldest and largest organization of blind Americans, today applauded the introduction of the Transitioning to Integrated and Meaningful Employment (TIME) Act of 2017 (H.R. 1377) by Representative Gregg Harper (R-MS). Congressman Harper introduced this legislation to remove barriers to employment opportunities for people with disabilities by phasing out Section 14(c) of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and facilitating the transitioning of people with disabilities now working in segregated employment settings into competitive employment opportunities in their communities.

Congressman Gregg Harper said: “Section 14(c) of the FLSA, enacted out of a false understanding regarding the true capacity of people with disabilities, currently prevents nearly two-hundred thousand people with disabilities from gaining access to the work and training environments that build their capacity and allow them to acquire meaningful skills and better employment opportunities. Segregated work, which too often focuses on mundane tasks that are not transferrable to today's workplaces, is just an expression of low expectations that instills a false sense of incapacity in individuals who could become competitively employed with the proper training and support. I look forward to working with my colleagues to advance the bipartisan goal of increasing and improving employment opportunities for all Americans with disabilities.”

Mark A. Riccobono, President of the National Federation of the Blind, said: “The National Federation of the Blind and our partners representing the 55 million Americans with disabilities seek only the kind of meaningful, remunerative work that other Americans take for granted. We applaud Congressman Harper for rejecting over seventy years of entrenched but false thinking about the capacity of people with disabilities. We strongly urge his colleagues in both houses of the United States Congress to transition from an ineffective employment model to a policy that recognizes the individuality, interests, and skills of workers with disabilities and allows them to live the lives they want. I, like Congressmen Harper, want my own children to be free of the shackles of low expectations and to lead an employment revolution that empowers people with disabilities in the twenty-first century.” 

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LTAC is back for Year 8! 2017 Artist Registration is Now Open

https://goo.gl/x9y41R

Back for its eighth year, the Legacy Trust Award Collection will take place in advance of ArtPrize 2017, the open art competition that will be held September 20 through October 8 in Grand Rapids.

Each year, Legacy Trust and sponsors from the business, arts and disability communities ask Michigan artists with disabilities to submit their best original paintings, sculptures, photographs, drawings, collages and other works of art to a preliminary art competition. The four winners, chosen by popular vote, by a panel of celebrity judges and by the LTAC Advisory Committee, each receive a cash prize of $500 and sponsorship in ArtPrize™.

How to Submit Artwork

Artists from all genres are invited to participate in the competition. All artists must submit an artist registration to Legacy Trust by April 24. All artwork must be completed and available for showing in Grand Rapids by 5 p.m. on April 28.

Following is a list of guidelines for submitting artwork:
  • All participating artists must be a resident of Michigan and at least 18 years of age by April 3.
  • All artwork must be original, attributable to the applicant and completed within three years prior to September 21, 2017.
  • All artwork is subject to the “Official Rules for Artists-ArtPrize,” which can be found at www.artprize.org.
  • The top four artists will retain ownership and all rights to their artwork, subject to the rules and restrictions of ArtPrize 2017. The artists agree to make themselves and their artwork available to LTAC and all partnering agencies and sponsors prior to and during ArtPrize for promotions and marketing efforts.
  • The top four artists who receive the award will be entered into ArtPrize 2017 as a Legacy Trust Collection Award winner.
  • LTAC artists agree that if their artwork wins any ArtPrize award, they will donate 25 percent of any award to create a special Legacy Trust Endowment Fund to continue arts programs for adults with disabilities in greater Grand Rapids.
  • Winning artists will be notified by Legacy Trust by May 30 and will be entered into ArtPrize.
  • There are no restrictions on artists who are not part of the Collection from entering ArtPrize on their own.

Artwork may be delivered by mail, UPS, FedEx or in person to Legacy Trust, 99 Monroe, Suite 600, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 49503 by 5 p.m. on April 28.

CLICK HERE FOR THE OFFICIAL REGISTRATION FORM


Wheelchair Users Are More Likely to Be Killed in Traffic Than Other Pedestrians

https://goo.gl/4XYEij

A new study out of Georgetown University.....suggest(s) that pedestrian wheelchair users are a third more likely to be killed in a road accident than the general public is. The study, published in BMJ Open, also found that in more than 75 percent of crashes that involve a wheelchair user, no “crash avoidance maneuver” by the driver—like braking or steering—was recorded.

“This gets back to basic city design: How do we design places in ways that make it safe for pedestrians to use them?” says John Kraemer, an epidemiologist and lawyer at Georgetown with a special interest in road safety for vulnerable users, and the study’s lead author. “What we really don’t want is [for] a person who's using a wheelchair or has a disability to choose between not being able to access their community or having to do it in a dangerous way.”

For this study, Kraemer and his colleague Connor Brenton gathered news reports and police records of more than 250 traffic fatalities involving pedestrian wheelchair users between 2006 and 2012 across the U.S. To adjust for incomplete data in those sources, they used a statistical method to estimate a total of 528 fatalities over those years. The data was then compared to general pedestrian fatalities recorded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.


Town Hall meeting on gerrymandering (email post)

Question or Comment: I am volunteering with a non-partisan group that is doing a series of Town Hall Meetings and policy input sessions regarding gerrymandering. The group is called Count MI Vote. The link below is for a virtual town hall meeting via webinar to take place on Thursday, March 30 at 7:00 pm. There will be a presentation about how gerrymandering affects citizens and an opportunity to weigh in on language for a ballot proposal we hope to get onto the 2018 ballot. Can you please make this link available to your membership so people. If the link does not work or you have questions, feel free to contact me at the email above.

Thanks,
Toni

Partners in Policymaking Online Courses

https://goo.gl/kPbxTj

The goal of Partners in Policymaking is to educate participants to be active partners with those who make policy. They will become partners in policymaking. The idea is to develop partnerships that are based on positive relationships. In today’s political climate of radical change, Partners graduates must work harder than ever to prevent the loss of basic rights for people with disabilities. Partners graduates can change the future by influencing public policy today.

The conversion of the Partners program to an e-learning site gives Partners participants the opportunity to supplement their learning; Partners graduates can refresh their skills and stay current on best practices; and others can increase their knowledge and understanding of best practices in the disability field, and learn how to communicate effectively with their elected officials.

Getting Started: Registration and Using This Site

In order to track your progress through the courses and qualify you for a completion certificate, you'll need to log in with a user account. If you're already registered, log in below, otherwise register and create a new user account, Registration is free. You'll only need to register one time to have access to all the courses on this site on any computer or device.


Safety Plan for People with Cognitive Disabilities

https://goo.gl/n1lYQT

This tool was created to support survivors with cognitive disabilities create a safety plan and a plan to leave when their situation is no longer safe.  It includes consideration for being safe in the home, while leaving an abusive situation, safety at work, and safety when the person has a protection order.

Downloadable Files