Law, Health Policy & Disability Center
University of Iowa College of Law
http://disability.law.uiowa.edu/dpn/
and
The Burton Blatt Institute
Syracuse University
http://bbi.syr.edu
One–Stop Toolkit
Resources of the Week Technical Assistance Project E–Mail listserv
5 October 2007
Good morning everyone,
Below please find the web site and publication of the week, as well as other resources that we hope will be useful as you work on systems change activities to help improve employment opportunities for persons with disabilities.
To subscribe and / or view past resources of the week archives, access: www.onestoptoolkit.org and click on the link to "Resources of the Week" on the right hand side of the home page.
To view an indexed list of the resources of the week by subject matter, visit the L.P.H.D.C. web site at http://disability.law.uiowa.edu/lhpdc/resources/wig/default.asp. It currently includes 20 categories, covering over 300 annotated references. Each category opens to a new window with each Resource of the Week which covered material in that area.
Have a good day and weekend!
Laura (Farah) Gleneck
Program Associate
Law, Health Policy & Disability Center
University of Iowa College of Law
P: 617–489–0086
F: 617–489–1374
[ E–mail Lgleneck@mail.law.uiowa.edu ]
[ E–mail LFarah8@aol.com ]
[ http://www.onestoptoolkit.org ]
[The President’s Proclamation on the National Disability Employment Awareness Month is located under the section heading "For Your Information / Action"]
Navigators, please take an opportunity to peruse the table of contents in this week’s One-Stop Toolkit. There are a number of activities at the Federal level related to NDEAM (White House proclamation, ODEP profile of the day, EEOC Best practices in employment), and resources (including a lot of great info for businesses) and publication’s (NCD’s report in which some DPNs participated in a focus group and helped to set up stakeholder forums). In terms of Disability Mentoring Day, the fact sheet on high schools and dropout rates includes some current statistics. You can take pieces of these resources to use in your NDEAM activities…
Speaking of which, I have heard about many events that are taking place and being planned during phone calls, etc., but have not received e-mails detailing the events to include in a 2007 Disability Awareness Month chart. Please send me an e-mail letting me know what events you have planned this month. I will include them in a chart and circulate next week.
October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month (http://www.dol.gov/odep/faqs/ndeam.htm) and Disability Mentoring Day (http://www.dmd-aapd.org/). It is not too early to start planning an event or activity that you can launch in October to add to the collective efforts that will take place across the country. Particularly consider how you can participate in National Disability Mentoring Day (DMD) on October 17!! Mental Illness Awareness Week (MIAW) is an annual observance, created by a presidential proclamation in 1986 to recognize “the urgent need to educate the American public about mental illnesses and their treatments,” and in recognition of the National Alliance on Mental Illness’ efforts to raise mental illness awareness. MIAW activities will be held across the country from October 7-13, 2007. During this week, millions of Americans will honor the challenges of mental illness, as well as celebrate the recoveries they or their loved ones have embraced.
Navigators, it is that time of year again to start preparing for the 2007 National Disability Employment Awareness Month and Disability Mentoring Day. Over the years, DOL and LHPDC have been really inspired by the different activities and events communities have planned to raise awareness during these national annual events. To help you begin to spread the message, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy has copies of the 2007 National Disability Employment Awareness Month poster available, which depict this year’s theme, Workers with Disabilities: Talent for a Winning Team. In addition to its representation of the national NDEAM theme, this poster is popular throughout the year in connection with events that foster employment opportunities for workers with disabilities.
The print copy of this poster is available in either a 20” x 30” and/or a 10” x 15” size. Please send your request to E–mail NDEAM@dol.gov. You may also download a PDF version of the 2007 poster from the website at http://www.dol.gov/odep/pubs/ndeam07.htm. We look forward to learning about your October activities.
[The news release is included below in its entirety.]
Throughout October, which is National Disability Employment Awareness Month, the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) will profile on its Web site individuals who have personally benefited from agency-sponsored programs aimed at eliminating the chronic underemployment of people with disabilities, as well as employers and organizations that have successfully implemented strategies to hire, support, empower and otherwise value employees with disabilities.
This year's National Disability Employment Awareness Month theme is "Workers with Disabilities: Talent for a Winning Team." The special Web feature — to be posted at www.dol.gov/odep is intended to dispel misconceptions about workers with disabilities by showcasing real faces and success stories. Each installment will include the story and photograph of a person whose life has been changed, or an employer or organization that has influenced positive change. The entire montage will include people and efforts from across the nation.
"Behind the banner of this awareness month are real people with talent, and others looking for talented employees, who are making a difference in their workplaces year-round," said Karen M. Czarnecki, acting assistant secretary of labor for disability employment policy. "Our hope is that additional employers, job seekers and service organizations that view these few examples will be inspired to replicate best practices in their communities."
News media are encouraged to use the profiles as a springboard to develop their own coverage about disability employment-related issues. The roots of National Disability Employment Awareness Month go back decades, along with the nationwide crisis of underemployment facing Americans with disabilities. In 1945, Congress enacted a law declaring the first week in October as "National Employ the Physically Handicapped Week." In 1964, the word "physically" was omitted to acknowledge the employment needs and contributions of people with all types of disabilities. In 1988, Congress expanded the week to a month and adopted the current name.
ODEP is leading a 21st century federal response to the historic underemployment of people with disabilities. In collaboration with other government agencies, public and private employers, and additional stakeholders, ODEP facilitates the development and implementation of innovative policies and practices necessary to achieve a fully inclusive workplace. ODEP's work primarily falls into three categories: employers and the workplace; workforce systems; and employment-related supports, which include education and training, health care, reliable transportation, affordable housing and assistive technology.
Access the following website to see a profile of Dave D: Reaching Out with Hope and ‘Spirit’ for Those in Need available at http://www.dol.gov/odep/talent/10022007.htm.
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), recently presented the agency’s third annual “Freedom to Compete Award” to five employers from the private and public sectors for best practices that promote access and inclusion of employees with disabilities. Brief overviews of each award winner are on their website.
[The proclamation is listed below in its entirety.]
National Disability Employment Awareness Month is an opportunity to recognize the contributions and accomplishments of Americans with disabilities and to underscore our Nation's commitment to advancing employment opportunities for all our citizens.
Americans with disabilities strengthen our country's workforce, and their achievements help keep our Nation the world's economic leader. Landmark reforms such as the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 have helped to ensure that individuals with disabilities are better able to engage in productive work and participate fully in the life of our Nation. It is important that we continue to expand on these opportunities for Americans with disabilities by eliminating the barriers and false perceptions that hinder them from joining the workforce. By enhancing the workplace environment for people with disabilities, employers can help provide access to jobs that allow these individuals to demonstrate their potential and realize their dreams.
Since 2001, my New Freedom Initiative has helped promote the full participation of people with disabilities in all areas of society, including education, training, and employment. Programs such as "Ticket to Work" and services at One-Stop Career Centers have helped improve access to employment training and placement services for individuals who want to work. Throughout the Federal Government, we have worked to improve access to jobs for individuals with disabilities and to promote greater inclusiveness in the workforce. Individuals and employers can learn more about the Federal Government's disability-related programs by visiting DisabilityInfo.gov. We will continue to build on the progress that has been made for individuals with disabilities and will work to ensure that our Nation remains a place of opportunity for all Americans.
To recognize the contributions of Americans with disabilities and to encourage all citizens to ensure equal opportunity in the workforce, the Congress (36 U.S.C. 121) has designated October of each year as "National Disability Employment Awareness Month."
NOW, THEREFORE, I, GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim October 2007 as National Disability Employment Awareness Month. I call upon Government officials, labor leaders, employers, and the people of the United States to observe this month with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-eighth day of September, in the year of our Lord two thousand seven, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-second.
GEORGE W. BUSH
This section of the Mid-Atlantic ADA & IT Center website includes information just for businesses and features:
This fact sheet identifies tax incentives available to help employers cover the cost of accommodations for employees with disabilities and to make their places of business accessible. It highlights the Small Business Tax Credit and Architectural/Transportation Tax Deduction.
To download the P.D.F. version of this Fact Sheet access http://www.dol.gov/odep/pubs/publicat.htm [ Get free Adobe Reader ] and click on the link to “Tax Incentives for Employers.”
According to the fact sheet, over a million of the students who enter ninth grade each fall fail to graduate with their peers four years later. In fact, about seven thousand students drop out every school day. Perhaps this statistic was acceptable fifty years ago, but the era in which a high school dropout could earn a living wage has ended in the United States. Dropouts significantly diminish their chances to secure a good job and a promising future. Moreover, not only do the individuals themselves suffer, but each class of dropouts is responsible for substantial financial and social costs to the communities, states, and country in which they live.
Although graduation rates are a fundamental indicator of how schools are ultimately performing, only recently have those rates been rigorously scrutinized and the extent of the crisis in America’s high school been revealed. For decades, schools and districts published misleading or inaccurate graduation rates, and as a result, the American public knew little of the scope and gravity of the problems of far too many of the nation’s high schools. Reputable, independent research has exposed alarmingly low graduation rates that were previously hidden behind inaccurate calculations and inadequate data.
This fact sheet from the Alliance for Excellent Education answers the following questions: Who is dropping out of high school? Where are students dropping out? Why do students drop out? and What are the costs of dropping out?
The Misunderstood Minds project consists of three elements: The PBS documentary, first airing March 27, 2002; the companion website and the Developing Minds Multimedia Library. The site includes profiles of the students in the documentary, as well as sections on Attention, Reading, Writing, and Mathematics. Interactive activities, called Experience Firsthand, are designed to give site visitors a sense of what it may be like for a student struggling with a basic skill.
It also includes, in its resource section, materials to become more informed about learning about learning disabilities and differences.
[The following is excerpted from the October 1st NCD news release.]
On the first day of National Disability Employment Awareness Month, NCD released a report that presents the best practices in the public and private sectors and the promising public policies and initiatives that increase employment opportunities for people with disabilities. The employment rate of working age people with disabilities remains only half that of people without disabilities (38 percent compared with 78 percent in 2005). The report comprehensively reviews the issues integral to the employment of people with disabilities. It has two broad aims: 1) to summarize the existing knowledge regarding the employment of people with disabilities in a series of short issue briefs; and 2) to present new information on the perspectives of employers, people with disabilities, and disability specialists on the key barriers and facilitators of employment.
According to NCD chairperson John R. Vaughn, “For Americans with disabilities, no less than for all other citizens, the opportunity to earn a living and be self-supporting is a universally held goal. Yet in perhaps no area of public policy has the expectations gap so stubbornly resisted our efforts to achieve equality. Whatever set of statistics one chooses from among the varying estimates of disabled Americans’ employment rates, the rate and level of employment for this population remain far too low. These employment and earnings gaps are a substantial public and policy concern. A lack of employment opportunities limits the ability of many people with disabilities to fully participate in society, since employment plays a number of important roles and functions for individuals.”
“There is a direct benefit to expanding the employment opportunities for people with disabilities. For employers who are projected to face labor shortages as the baby-boom generation retires, non-employed people with disabilities represent a valuable tool of human resources to help fill those needs. For people with disabilities, employment has not just economic value, but important social and psychological value. For government, increased employment of people with disabilities helps increase tax receipts and decrease social expenditures. Finally, as recognized in the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act, there are societal benefits from greater inclusiveness in mainstream society as the barriers facing people with disabilities are dismantled,” Vaughn concluded.
NCD received advice and guidance from a Business Advisory Committee, chaired by J.T. (Ted) Childs Jr. (Principal, Ted Childs LLC), made up of representatives from 25 U.S. companies. NCD also received advice and guidance from an Expert Advisory Panel, comprising experts in the field of disability and employment. As part of a road map to improving employment opportunities for people with disabilities, NCD offers the following recommendations that supplement the best practices and existing public policies and initiatives:
NCD is an independent federal agency and is composed of 15 members appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the U.S. Senate. It provides advice to the President, Congress, and executive branch agencies to promote policies, programs, practices, and procedures that guarantee equal opportunity for all individuals with disabilities, regardless of the nature or severity of the disability, and to empower individuals with disabilities to achieve economic self-sufficiency, independent living, and inclusion and integration into all aspects of society.