The Elkins crewed made their own muffin pizzas. Looks delicious to us!
Posted by NWVCIL on Friday, July 12, 2019
Pizza Muffin Day
Posted in Group
Author: Paulette Southerly
Why the Census Matters for People with Disabilities
Posted in Advocacy, Disability, and Public Awareness
From https://www.ndrn.org
Key Takeaways
The decennial census is the constitutionally mandated count of all residents of the United States.
- Census data help direct more than $800 billion a year in federal funding, including for key programs that support and protect the rights of people with disabilities.
- The Census Bureau considers people with disabilities hard to count. However, the bureau has taken steps to make participation more accessible.
- Stakeholders can help ensure a fair and accurate count of people with disabilities. Community organizations can, for example, play a vital role as trusted partners in conducting effective outreach.
For the full text, please visit https://www.ndrn.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/People-with-Disabilities-Brief.pdf or see the embedded PDF below.
Untitled“Different Voices and Common Experiences” accepting submissions
Posted in Disability, Outreach, and Public Awareness
Different Voices and Common Experiences is an exhibit featuring artists who have been affected by mental health issues. DVCE supports positive mental health awareness, community wellness, and inclusivity.
Completed application deadline is Friday, June 14th, 2019.
No late applications will be accepted.
Visual Artists:
Artists will be chosen on a first-come basis until the gallery space is full or deadline is met. You must submit photographs of your art pieces (limit 3 per artist) with your completed application. One piece of artwork will be chosen as the “feature” to be used for the postcards, posters and the show program.
Performing Artists:
Performers (poets, musicians, etc.) are welcome to share their talent during the opening night reception (Friday, August 9th). Performing artist applications will also be received on a first-come basis until the time available is full. To request a slot, please contact Paulette Southerly.
Opening Night Reception:
There will be a free public reception on Friday, August 9th, 2019 from 5:30 – 7:30 PM. Participating artists and the community are encouraged to attend to enjoy the visual and performance art with wonderful company. Refreshments will be available.
Set-Up and Take-Down:
Visual artists must deliver their work to the Mon Arts Center at 107 High Street in Morgantown on Monday, August 5th between 11:30 am – 7 pm. Artwork must arrive on time to be shown. All work must be picked up from the Mon Arts Center Tuesday, September 3rd between 11:30 am – 7 pm. ARTISTS ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR DELIVERY AND PICKUP OF THEIR PIECES.
Questions? Call Paulette Southerly at 304.296.6091 or 1.844.212.3464 or email psoutherly@nwvcil.org
Application can be downloaded here: http://nwvcil.org/dvce-application/
Join Advocates across the Country Tomorrow to #StopTheShock
Posted in Advocacy, and Public Awareness
From NCIL:
Tomorrow, April 24, marks five years since the FDA’s hearing on the graduated electronic decelerator (GED) shock devices used at the Judge Rotenberg Center (JRC). They found the device to cause serious harm and a ban was recommended. Since then, proposed regulations have been published and promises have been made, but the ban still hasn’t been finalized. Decades of advocacy have gotten us this far, and we need to keep the pressure on the FDA to release the ban and #StopTheShock! NCIL is proud to support the Autistic Self Advocacy Network’s #WeAreStillWaiting Campaign and tomorrow’s Day of Action to speak out against the torture and abuse inflicted on our disabled siblings at the JRC. We hope you will join advocates around the country by taking action and demanding the FDA #StopTheShock. Let them know that #WeAreStillWaiting by taking action in one of the following ways:
- Go to your local wait-in. Advocates at ASAN’s 10 wait-ins will come together to engage their communities in the fight to #StopTheShock. Wait-ins can involve anything from handing out flyers to writing letters.
- If you can’t make a wait-in in person, join the virtual wait-in! They’ll be making calls, sending emails, and more throughout the day, with scripts and tips available.
- Call or email the FDA and tell them to release the ban on electric shock devices.
- Call or email your elected officials and tell them to sign a letter asking the FDA to #StopTheShock.
- Use social media to spread the word and get your friends involved, and make sure to use the hashtags #WeAreStillWaiting and #StopTheShock! Check out ASAN’s social media kit (PDF) for more ideas. One way to get involved on social media is to take a selfie showing where you are waiting for the FDA to release the rule, and encourage your friends to join you.
- Write an op-ed or letter to the editor for your local newspapers, and let your neighbors know what they can do to #StopTheShock.
Elkins Group at City Hall
Posted in Disability, Group, and Public Awareness
Instruction in Self-Advocacy (ISA) Program
Posted in Advocacy, Disability, Group, Outreach, Public Awareness, and Training
Northern WV Center for Independent Living in partnership with The WV Division of Rehabilitation Services will be hosting an Instruction in Self-Advocacy (ISA) Program in the months of June-August of 2019. This program will be completed in four-day periods, from 9am-3pm and held for consumers in and around the areas of Monongalia County, Randolph County, and Gilmer County.
This ISA program will meet the Pre-Employment Transition Service of Instruction in Self Advocacy. Students who participate in these programs will gain the skills necessary to be confident and self-directed self-advocates. NWVCIL will provide high quality instruction in self-advocacy as well as experiential opportunities for students to practice self-advocacy.
Qualifying consumer participants may earn up to $15.00 per hour of participation. For more information please contact Christine Wilcox, Transition Advocate at NWVCIL (304)296-6091 or email cwilcox@nwvcil.org.
Follow the event on Facebook for more information.
World Autism Awareness Day
Posted in Advocacy, Disability, and Public Awareness
From the UN:
“On World Autism Awareness Day, we speak out against discrimination, celebrate the diversity of our global community and strengthen our commitment to the full inclusion and participation of people with autism. Supporting them to achieve their full potential is a vital part of our efforts to uphold the core promise of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development: to leave no one behind.”
Secretary-General António Guterres
2019 World Autism Awareness Day observance
“Assistive Technologies, Active Participation”
Tuesday, 2 April 2019, 10 a.m. – 1 p.m.
United Nations Headquarters, Conference Room 1
Autism awareness has grown worldwide in recent years. For the United Nations, the rights of persons with disabilities, including persons with autism, as enshrined in the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), are an integral part of its mandate.
When world leaders adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in 2015, the international community reaffirmed its strong commitment to inclusive, accessible and sustainable development, and pledged that no one would be left behind. In this context, the participation of persons with autism as both agents and beneficiaries is essential for the realization of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
For many people on the autism spectrum, access to affordable assistive technologies is a prerequisite to being able to exercise their basic human rights and participate fully in the life of their communities, and thereby contribute to the realization of the SDGs. Assistive technology can reduce or eliminate the barriers to their participation on an equal basis with others.
The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities acknowledges the instrumental role of assistive technologies in enabling persons with disabilities to exercise their rights and freedoms. It obliges States that are party to the Convention to promote availability and use of such technologies at an affordable cost, to facilitate access to them, and to undertake or promote research and development into new such technologies.
While technological advances are continuous, there are still major barriers to the use of assistive technologies, including high costs, lack of availability, lack of awareness of their potential, and a lack of training in their use. Available data indicates that, in several developing countries, more than 50% of the persons with disabilities who need assistive devices are not able to receive them.
In September 2018, the UN Secretary-General launched a new Strategy on New Technologies, which aims to define how the United Nations system will support the use of these technologies to accelerate the achievement of the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda. The Strategy is also intended to facilitate the alignment of these technologies with the values enshrined in the UN Charter and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and the norms and standards of International Law, including the CRPD and other human rights conventions. These values include equality and equity, inclusion and transparency. Design and use of new technologies, according to the Strategy, should be guided by a rights-based and ethical perspective.
In the context of the Secretary-General’s Strategy, the 2019 World Autism Awareness Day observance at UN Headquarters in New York will focus on leveraging the use of assistive technologies for persons with autism as a tool in removing the barriers to their full social, economic and political participation in society, and in promoting equality, equity and inclusion. Topics to be addressed through discussions with self-advocates and experts include:
- The Internet and digital communities: Leveling the playing field
- Independent living: Smart home technology and more
- Education and employment: Communication and executive functioning
- Telemedicine: Opening the doors to healthcare
- The right to be heard: Political participation and advocacy
In 2008, The United Nations General Assembly unanimously declared 2 April as World Autism Awareness Day.
Taken from the UN Website.