Calling all influencers! Are you looking for easy-to-repurpose content for your chapter’s social media accounts? Look no further than The Arc’s Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and blog. Whether you like, follow, retweet, share, post or re-purpose, The Arc’s content is fresh, informative, inspiring, and thought-provoking. Take advantage of it today!
Google has reached out to The Arc to recruit persons with I/DD to help develop speech recognition technology. If you or someone you know has slurred or hard-to-understand speech, fill out this short form to volunteer and record a set of phrases.
The more speech samples the system hears, the more potential Google has to make progress and apply these tools to better support everyone, no matter how they communicate.
Watch this short video to learn about the exciting work that Google is doing to improve speech recognition technology.
Access to healthcare continues to be a huge concern for adults with I/DD who need qualified doctors to provide primary and specialty care. Operation House Call (OHC) uses a hands-on approach to address these issues by flipping the script and making families the instructor. Medical students experience an in-home visit to a family with a loved one with I/DD to gain a unique perspective into their lives and gain essential sensitivity and disability competency skills to help build their confidence in working with the I/DD population. Join our informational webinar on May 29th at 12pm EST learn more about how to bring this program to your chapter using the OHC Toolkit!
Capital City Club Gala Benefiting The Arc of Alabama, November 2018
Cultivating the next generation of leaders and advocates in the I/DD community is key to the continued success of The Arc and its mission. This is especially true in chapters across the country, where strong community connections can make all the difference in the health and future of a chapter.
Through her junior board, Gena Richardson at The Arc of Alabama is setting an example for what this can look like – and showing how bringing younger members of the community into the movement is both a smart short- AND long-term strategy.
What was your motivation for developing a Junior Board? What is the ultimate goal of the Junior Board?
Junior Boards are known to be an effective and creative way for nonprofit organizations to raise money. It has been my experience they also provide support for the strategic plan, offset some costs related to consulting services, and help build a stronger network.
Tell us how you went about finding the Junior Board members. Where did you find them in the community?
After determining the vision for our Junior Board, I attended community events and networked until I found our core group. It was important for me to look within established groups known to set high expectations for volunteers, and promote leadership development. The majority of our Junior Board members are involved in Rotary, Montgomery Chamber Ambassador Program, or Junior League. I am actively involved with these groups. The Junior Board members knew me, first and foremost, as a fellow volunteer. Once I approached a potential member and extended an offer, they were ready to join our group.
What activities do you engage the Junior Board in to build involvement and engagement in the mission?
I always encourage everyone to have fun. As we added new members each person was assigned duties based on their area of interest and expertise. This will continue to be our protocol. During the first nine months, we participated in a number of events including, but not limited to, a legislative prayer breakfast, Autism and Disability Friendly Day during a Minor League Baseball game, and our upscale fundraiser. 50% of ticket sales were given back to The Arc of Alabama. 100% of the overhead was covered by Capital City Club (a social and business club). Additionally, 100% of silent auction proceeds came back to us.
Has the Junior Board’s presence strengthened your organization’s work, and how so?
The Arc of Alabama’s profile has increased in our local community. When our Bylaws were initially drafted, we felt as though expanding opportunity for membership beyond the Montgomery metropolitan area gave more opportunities for donations, speaking engagements, and increased impact across the state. We have 30 local chapters in Alabama, the majority in underserved rural counties. Soon after our Junior Board was created, we had our foot in the door to speak with representatives from two counties that did not have a local chapter. During the last year, our Junior Board has obtained donations, provided pro bono services and consultations, and helped with regular volunteer activities. The professional backgrounds of our founding group range from behavioral health and disability services, marketing, legal services, accounting, nonprofit management, public policy, and political consulting. While recruiting Junior Board members, our intent was to connect with go-getters of diverse professional backgrounds.
What do you envision as the future of the Junior Board?
If the past is any indicator of what the future holds, it is incredibly bright for the Junior Board. They will continue to do excellent work. Everyone put in considerable time during the first nine months to make sure the Junior Board had a successful start. It was not uncommon for us to meet during nights and weekends. When a dedicated group of go-getters invests that much time, great things happen.
Take advantage of our chapter network’s collective knowledge!
While all chapters in The Arc’s network share a mission, every chapter is autonomous, and our network is decentralized. If you find yourself wasting time and effort trying to do something that someone else has already done well, it’s time to maximize your connections with other chapters. The Arc can help you form relationships with others to rejuvenate your efforts. Our chapter network is knowledgeable and generous with their time to support and energize fellow chapters. Contact Karen at wolf-branigin@thearc.org for a list of simple ways to connect with other chapters within and outside your state.
Looking for opportunities to contribute some of your skills and time? An NCE task group is the place for you. While NCE is continuously growing and evolving, we have set up a few targeted task groups to help move NCE’s goals and objectives forward. The task groups also ensure we have enough members to carry out important tasks, such as developing SLI programming, reviewing award nomination, conducting silent auction recruitment, and so much more. Anyone who is a member of NCE, chapter staff, or volunteer can join a task group. We encourage anyone who is interested in developing events, programs, and tools for NCE to get involved.
The current task groups are listed below with a brief description of each and how often they meet. Check them out today!
Program Planning
Support the successful implementation of Summer Leadership Institute and Professional Development Seminar by helping to select locations, themes, main topics, key note speakers, and social events.
13 meetings | every 2 weeks | December – June
Awards
Solicit nominations and support the selection of NCE members to receive awards.
3-4 meetings | once a month | March – June
Silent Auction
Run a successful silent auction by soliciting items, volunteering at the events, and assisting with follow-up after the event.
6 meetings | once a month | April – September
Scholarships
Identify and award scholarships to chapter leaders and staff.
3-4 meetings | once a month | February – April
Chapter Resources
Monitor the usefulness and utilization of current NCE offerings, and identify new resources to support leadership and professional development.
This task group is new; the team lead will determine commitment.
Limited spaces are available! Contact Abby Owusu at owusu@thearc.org with the task group you are interested in joining.
The deadline to submit a proposal to speak at The Arc’s National Convention has been extended until Friday, April 5th! If you have a replicable program, best practice or innovative initiative that would be beneficial to share with The Arc’s network, we encourage you to apply.
The Arc actively is looking for advanced level sessions focusing on:
If you or someone you know is interested in presenting at this year’s conference, please make sure to submit a proposal by Friday, April 5th.
Questions? Please contact Kerry Mauger.
One of the most important activities that chapters engage in is raising our concerns on issues and taking action. Whatever strategies you use at the local, state, and federal level, these invaluable tools will support your path:
In December 2018, The Arc filed an amicus brief before the New York Supreme Court in People v. McCollum in support of an adult man with autism charged with unauthorized driving of city trains and buses. In an unprecedented decision, the lower court found that, based on his autism diagnosis, Darius McCollum met the criteria for a “dangerous mental disorder” and committed him to a psychiatric institution for the most violent offenders despite him never having committed a violent crime. The brief argues that this placement is wholly inappropriate for someone like Mr. McCollum, who could thrive in the community with appropriate supports and services.
The Arc also received a positive outcome in a prior case in which it participated in an amicus brief, Postawko v. Missouri Department of Corrections. The brief supported the certification of a class of prisoners seeking life-saving medical treatment and alleging that the Missouri Department of Corrections refused to treat them in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act and argued that class actions are a vital tool for civil rights enforcement for the most vulnerable populations. In December 2018, the Eighth Circuit affirmed class certification since the alleged deficiencies in a prison-wide treatment policy impose a common injury.
By Peter Berns, CEO, The Arc
It’s no surprise that when Walmart, our nation’s largest private employer, announced plans to change the People Greeter role in its stores, a move that affects some employees with disabilities serving in that role, there was a hue and cry in the disability community and beyond. It is heartening that Walmart US President & CEO, Greg Foran, immediately stepped forward to reiterate the company’s commitment to its employees with disabilities, stating that Walmart will look at each situation individually “with the goal of offering appropriate accommodations that will enable these associates to continue in other roles with their store.” Foran further explained: “Let me be clear: If any associate in this unique situation wants to continue working at Walmart, we should make every effort to make that happen.”
As a company that prides itself on its “long-standing history of being an employer of choice for people with disabilities,” and on its 100 points score on the Disability Equality Index, these recent events provide an opportunity for Walmart to demonstrate its leadership and commitment to people with disabilities and their families. Certainly, the first order of business is to support employees with disabilities in the People Greeter role who are not able to perform the new additional responsibilities of Customer Host to transition to other jobs in the company and to actively support them in doing so. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requires no less.
At a point in time where more than 60% of people with disabilities are not employed, including 65-75% of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, how Walmart manages the current controversy is of vital interest. Walmart’s customers are watching, as are people with disabilities and their families, disability advocacy and services organizations, academics, lawyers, the news media, and many, many other employers. The company has the opportunity to lead our nation by modeling and demonstrating best practices in employment of people with disabilities in the mainstream workforce.
Walmart can demonstrate the importance of rejecting stereotypes and misconceptions about what people with disabilities can do. True, some people with disabilities, as well as some without disabilities, may not be able to perform all of the requirements of the new Customer Host job, such as lifting 25 lbs. Yet, it is also true that many people with disabilities, including those with intellectual and developmental disabilities, will meet and exceed the minimal job requirements and perform superbly in this new role and others within Walmart stores. Walmart and other employers need be open to and accepting of the reality that an employee with a disability, with appropriate training and accommodation, can be successful in a wide variety of roles. In Walmart, after all, the former People Greeter and new Customer Host roles represent only a tiny fraction of the more than 2 million jobs nationwide.
Walmart can demonstrate that it truly is feasible for any employer to recruit, hire and retain employees with disabilities as part of a company’s overall commitment to diversity, and that the business benefits in many ways by doing so. By working collaboratively with relevant government agencies, educational institutions, and nonprofit developmental disability services, vocational rehabilitation and workforce development agencies, employers can build a robust pipeline of candidates with disabilities for all types of jobs.
Walmart, and other private sector employers that are not currently legally required to do so, could also establish voluntary systems of self-identification for job applicants and employees with disabilities, adopt disability employment goals, and annually reporting that data publicly. Today, both the Federal government, as an employer, and Federal contractors are required to have systems of self-identification and report on progress in meeting defined goals. However, these requirements don’t apply to other private sector employers, nor is the reporting made public.
Many private sector employers assume they are legally prohibited by the ADA from asking about an applicant’s disability status. Yet, as the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has explained:
(T)he ADA does, however, provide an exception to the general rule prohibiting disability-related questions in the interview process. Under the ADA, an employer may invite applicants to voluntarily self-identify as individuals with disabilities for affirmative action purposes.1
Walmart and other private sector employers could truly be game changers in employment for people with disabilities by adopting self-identification and hiring goals, for affirmative action purposes, and then sharing and holding themselves accountable for the results.
Finally, Walmart should continue the active communication and candid dialogue it has engaged in with advocacy and social services organizations in the disability community over the past years. Walmart should share with the community the results of its efforts to place People Greeters with disabilities in other roles. It should continue and expand its efforts to work collaboratively with disability nonprofits to advance employment opportunities across the company and, as one of our country’s largest employers, across the nation.
1Recruiting, Hiring, Retaining and Promoting People with Disabilities – A Resource Guide for Employers, https://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/interagency/upload/employing_people_with_disabilities_toolkit_february_3_2015_v4-2.pdf
Will you pledge to vote this November?