2021 Oct | Nov | Dec Exceptional Times

What's Going ON? COVER STORY Children and Youth with Disabilities and Special Healthcare Needs P.40 ISSUE 32 Exceptional Free Webinars and Training P.16 MAGAZINE OCT | NOV | DEC 2021 Pivoting the New World for Change P.04 TIMES BULLYING From the director, Mary Jacob "Resiliency Takes Time" P.34 Photo Credit: April Elizabeth, llc CONTENTS MISSION The Mission of Families Helping Families of Greater New Orleans is to educate and connect children and adults with disabilities, and their families to resources, services, and supports to attend school, work, and thrive in their communities. OUR TEAM executive director MARY JACOB mjacob@fhfofgno.org - Ext. 207 statewide outreach specialist SHARON BLACKMON sblackmon@fhfofgno.org - Ext. 208 director of public relations BEBE BODE bbode@fhfofgno.org - Ext. 226 information & training specialist NICOLE DESROCHE ndesroche@fhfofgno.org - Ext.218 administrative assistant LIZ DUMAS ldumas@fhfofgno.org - Ext. 202 director of peer to peer support LAURA S. NATA lsnata@fhfofgno.org - Ext. 209 community resource specialist THUY NGUYEN tnguyen@fhfofgno.org - Ext. 211 community resource specialist STEVEN NGUYEN snguyen@fhfofgno.org - Ext. 212 director of training JESSICA RODRIGUE jrodrigue@fhfofgno.org - Ext. 204 director of administrative services DENISE SWEATMAN dsweatman@fhfofgno.org - Ext. 203 OFFICE HOURS Coronavirus COVID-19 Closure In an effort to do our part in helping eliminate the COVID-19 Virus, Families Helping Families of Greater New Orleans office will be closed to the public and all guests until further notice. We are still assisting families. All staff are working remotely from their homes. Families needing assistance please call our office at 504-888-9111 or 800-766-7736. Click here for up-to-date online resources specific to COVID-19. Exceptional Times Cover Story "Resiliency Takes Time" Photo Credit: April Elizabeth, LLC 4th Quarter Oct | Nov | Dec 2021 BOARD OF DIRECTORS Gregory Brenan, CPA, CCIFP, CGMA Jo Ann D. LoRusso, Ph.D. Denise Barrera, MPH, MSW Debra Dixon M.Ed.+30 Ashley Bourg Michelle Archambault, CPA/PFS 04 Pivoting the New Word for Change 06 All I Wanted was College Football 09 As the Sun Knows, Even the Sky is not the Limit 10 What you Need to Know About Variants 12 Employing the Un- and Underemployed 14 New Videos on Special Needs Trusts and ABLE Accounts 15 Youth Virtual Hangout 16 What's Going On? 21 The Inclusion Advantage - Job Fair 22 Team Up Louisiana 23 Does Your Child Have a Disability or Special Healthcare Needs? 24 School Inclusion 28 IRS provides tax inflation adjustments for tax year 2021 30 My Disabled Journey to Employment (and understanding) 32 New Guidance Reaffirms Importance of Full Implementation of IDEA Amidst COVID-19 Pandemic 33 Sir Bone Funk 39 Stereotypes About People With Disabilities 40 Bullying and Children and Youth with Disabilities and Special Health Needs 43 Louisiana Bullying Resources 44 2020 LDA Conference 46 Teens Talking Money 48 Customized Employment 51 Driving Change Through Customized Employment 53 LA Disability Resources Website Now Available 54 Return to School Roadmap: Development and Implementation of Individualized Education Programs 55 Tipping our Holiday Hats to All 56 Awareness Calendar 68 Resources for Parents & Educators 68 Medicaid Waivers for Military Families 70 GODA 2021 Inclusive Art Contest 71 LDH Emergency Rules Regarding OCDD Waiver Rate Increase and DSW Workder Wage Floor 72 Louisiana School Finder 700 Hickory Avenue Harahan, LA 70123 504.888.9111 800.766.7736 504.353.2350 fax info@fhfofgno.org fhfofgno.org 34 continued p.65 by Mary Jacob Pivoting: The New Word for Change Over the past 18 months, I’ve noticed the word “pivot” being used a lot. It’s used when we talk about how we educate students, how we work, and how we play. We’ve pivoted to the right, to the left, in a one-eighty, and a full 360-degree turn. Since the pandemic, we’ve pivoted from in-school instruction to virtual instruction. We then pivoted between synchronous and asynchronous instruction. We’ve pivoted from working in an office to working from home to doing hybrid work plans. We’ve pivoted from playing sports, going to concerts, movies, and festivals, to staying home and depending on things like Zoom to entertain us. And if a global pandemic wasn’t enough, we now find ourselves pivoting through a major hurricane. This constant pivoting is starting to feel more like a Tilt-a-Whirl fair ride that spins you around and turns you on your side. Pivoting reminds me of the quote by the Greek philosopher Heraclitus: “Change is the only constant in life.” I’m not sure, but I have a feeling Heraclitus never pivoted as much as we have in the past 18 months. The word pivot, which at one time seemed pretty harmless, seems to have taken on a new level of disgust with many. Even though life is really never static and we enjoy doing a variety of things, pivoting seems to affect us differently. Maybe it’s because before we chose what and when we would do things, and now much of our life feels like it’s being controlled by others. Generally with change, we have the time to think about it; we can process how it will impact our lives. Whereas with pivoting, it seems as though it’s thrust on us with either zero or very minimal notice. We have no time to prepare for it and usually have no control or decision-making power. Some people have difficulty with change because they don’t have all the answers. This is especially true if you have children. By nature, kids are inquisitive and constantly trying to figure out the world around them. As parents, we want to provide them with answers and support them through change. It’s completely okay to relax and admit you don’t have the answers. The most important thing you can do is listen to them and validate their concerns. So if change, or “pivoting,” is our new norm, how do we accept it? Even though I admittedly enjoy a pretty predictable life, I also like some uncertainty. Imagine if we already knew that LSU was going to beat Alabama with the final play of the game? Would watching the game still be the same? Admit it, many may just watch the last few minutes of the game. What happens if you already knew who your baby girl was going to marry? Wouldn’t you just want to spare her the heartache from the wrong ones while she was searching for the right one? Would you have missed the most anticipated episode of the TV show Dallas on November 21, 1980, if you already knew it was Kristin who shot J.R.? Let’s get real: once we knew it was Kristin, the rest of the show was pretty anticlimactic. In a NeuroLeadership study conducted between 2008 and 2013, it was discovered that our brains register uncertainty the same way they register errors. We simply crave resolution so that we feel comfortable and in control again. In “The Four Hour Workweek,” author Tim Ferris states that most people choose to be unhappy rather than uncertain. Blogger Mike Roberts wrote, “Change is a funny thing. Most of us seek it and fear it at the same time.” Like Roberts, I believe this to be true, especially since the pandemic began. We’ve seen a lot of change in our political climate; watched friends and family die from COVID; missed weddings, birthdays, holiday celebrations, and vacations. Embracing change means accepting that you can’t control everything. This might be my toughest issue, as my Type A personality likes to control everything. In researching for this article, I read about 25 stories on how to accept change. Three things appeared to be constant in all of them; if you are ready to embrace this pivoting lifestyle, you can start with these three suggestions: Adopt a Growth Mindset. Facing change becomes much easier when you think in terms of growth and learning instead of rigid and unwelcoming. People with a growth mindset view challenges as opportunities, mistakes as valuable lessons, and their whole being as ever-changing and evolving. Even when things get tough, approach change as a learning opportunity. Allow yourself to discover. Challenge your assumptions. Embracing change requires you to keep an open mind. Take Risks. Some people are natural risk-takers where others aren’t. Risk-taking requires you to leave your comfort zone – that place that is so predictable you could walk through it with your eyes closed. Have the courage to stick your neck out and accept that you will be doing things differently. You will never know if you like something different if you never step out of familiar routines. Take Care of Yourself. Yes, change will often cause disruption, anxiety, and even shock. I think back to March 13, 2020, when Governor Edwards declared all schools would shut down for a month due to COVID. I imagine most parents immediately felt the disruption, experienced real anxiety, and even went into shock. Regardless of the change, you still need to take care of yourself. Maybe self-care looks a little different; instead of going to the spa, you might just get in your car, put on your favorite tunes and drive to your quiet place for half an hour. Whatever it is, just make sure you find time for yourself. If you were like me, cruising through life on autopilot, enjoying your predictable life, it’s time to take advantage of change. If you embrace change it will give you a winning edge and a sense of resilience that you otherwise might not have recognized. As Jay Samit, American author and digital media pioneer, said: “Pivoting is not the end of the disruption process, but the beginning of the next leg of your journey.” Remember, life is an adventure. It comes with problems, solutions, lessons, and experiences. Stop and enjoy each change and pivot, as it’s a new and glorious, never-before-seen view on your trek through life. All I had on my mind the week of August 23, 2021, was that Saturday would be the first real day of college football season. I wasn’t that big a football fan until I met my husband in 2007; then after we married in 2008 I realized that every Saturday in the fall would be devoted to college football. He is a huge LSU fan, and I went to Alabama, so football became pretty important! And because it’s just what we’ve done for the past thirteen years, it also became normal. This year we were looking forward more than ever to just having something normal – something familiar – to look forward to each week. As it turned out, that week and the weeks following would be anything but normal. By Wednesday, August 25, all eyes were on the tropics as forecasters predicted that an area of disturbance in the Caribbean could very well become a major storm headed for the northern Gulf of Mexico. On Thursday the wave developed into a tropical depression, which quickly organized further and became Tropical Storm Ida later the same day. Knowing that it would probably just as quickly become a hurricane, I figured it was time to make plans for a quick exit. Our family does not stay for any storm stronger than a Category 1. And honestly, if we can get out for a Cat 1 we do. It isn’t so much that we’re afraid of going through the storm; we went through Hurricane Zeta in October of last year, and it reached Category 3 status just before making landfall in Cocodrie, Louisiana. The reason we choose to leave is because of the aftermath: we are quite allergic to being without electricity, internet, TV, and most importantly, air conditioning! Our son is 23 and has multiple medical needs as well as autism and an intellectual disability. He doesn’t understand why he can’t watch his TV or see when he goes into the dark bathroom. Keeping him in his normal environment without his normal activities is a recipe for another kind of disaster. After Hurricane Zeta we were without power for five days, and five days of dealing with a young adult with autism who doesn’t understand why he is miserable was, well, miserable. So we leave. On Thursday when my husband got home from school, we discussed where we would want to go for an evacuation. We have family in Mobile and north Louisiana, which is where we normally head for evacuations. But with COVID-19 raging in both places, and my family in Mobile struggling through confirmed cases, a hotel was our only option. We picked Tuscaloosa, Alabama, as our destination, and I made reservations for Saturday to Monday. As anyone living on the Gulf of Mexico can tell you, a lot of information goes into deciding when and where to evacuate. I don’t mean a meteorological education, I mean the education we gulf-dwellers get from the University of Hurricane Alley. Most of the time forecasters can tell what direction a storm will go after it hits land. That’s an important piece of information for evacuation, since a powerful hurricane or even a tropical storm can produce dangerous weather and spawn tornadoes for hundreds of miles inland. It would be terrible to evacuate only to lose power or flood from the storm’s remnants days after it made landfall. The other thing to keep in mind when choosing a route is that probably 90% of evacuees are going to take main highways or interstates and go east or west. As we now know, during Ida evacuation Interstate 10 became a veritable parking lot going through Mississippi as well as in west Louisiana. So our plan was to avoid the east-west directions and head north. Ida was forecast to go north through Baton Rouge, then into northwest Mississippi before heading into Tennessee and beyond. Tuscaloosa seemed far enough east to avoid terrible weather from Ida, and far enough north to avoid long lines trying to leave town. Of course, deciding when to leave is the other crucial part of the plan. Our reservations were for Saturday, so that’s when we would leave. But everyone else would certainly be leaving Saturday as well, since Ida was predicted to make landfall on Sunday afternoon, so it would have to be an early departure. We also have a small dog to consider, and the vet where we board her for vacations (and now, hurri-cations) is in a rural area of Mississippi. They close at noon on Saturdays, so even though that is normally only a two-hour drive, we couldn’t afford to get stuck on the interstate for hours. We packed the car Friday night and planned to get up early and be on the road by 5:00 am Saturday. If we were very early getting to the vet’s office, we would just get some breakfast and relax until they opened. If you have never used the Waze app for navigation, you need to check it out. Unlike other GPS programs like Google maps, Waze will redirect you around traffic problems and warn you about hazards ahead on your route. When my husband got up Saturday morning, he opened the app and entered our destination address. According to Waze, our route was clear all the way to Mississippi. When he checked again at 4:40 am, traffic was already backing up on the Bonnet Carre Spillway and into Kenner on I-10. When we got in the car with our two kids and the dog twenty minutes later, Waze told us to go the Causeway to I-12, then west to I-55 north. We did, and we had no problems with traffic getting out of town. Like I said, Waze is a lifesaver! Knowing that Ida was going to make landfall on the 16th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina was unsettling. Anyone living on the northern gulf coast during Katrina probably still has some post-traumatic stress associated with the event. Our lives are measured in “pre-Katrina” and “post-Katrina” time frames. As we drove out Saturday morning I was having all those thoughts and feelings again, like I do any time we evacuate, but this time the “feels” were even stronger. I didn’t meet my husband until after Katrina, so back then it was just my son (who was still my foster son at the time) and me, leaving after contra-flow was activated and driving all the way to Birmingham to stay with friends. We had enough of his supplies for a week, and clothes for about 3-5 days. Having dealt with trying to get his medical supplies and specialty formula out of state after we realized we couldn’t go home, I now know that when we evacuate we bring ALL of his formula and ALL of his meds with us. (Thankfully he no longer has all the equipment he needed back then, but if he did we would have brought it ALL!) When we woke up Sunday morning and checked the news, my husband and I realized that our home very well may not be intact when we returned. It was a harsh realization. There were tears. And as hard as I try to shelter my kids from my own stress and worry, I was on the bed crying when my eight-year-old daughter woke up. She is very much affected by my emotions, and she was concerned when she saw me crying. I brought her over close and explained to her that the storm had gotten a lot stronger overnight, and that it really was possible that our house could sustain some damage. And I was concerned about our friends who had chosen to stay and ride it out, especially some of our senior adults at church who would not leave. My heart hurt. It was a hard day of waiting for news from home. But instead of sitting in the room wallowing in fear and worry, we got dressed and took the kids out to lunch and to visit with a friend from my college years. We then drove around campus, and drove across the river to try to find the house with a little apartment attached where I lived my last two years of school. When we got back to the hotel, we all got in the pool and relaxed and played for a couple of hours. There was absolutely nothing that could be accomplished by sitting in front of the television all day, watching bad national news and weather outlets herald the destruction of New Orleans as the worst of the storm battered areas west of the city in the bayou parishes and even north into St. Tammany and Tangipahoa parishes. It was Monday afternoon before we got word from home that our house had fared very well. We didn’t have electricity, and wouldn’t for some time, so going back was out of the question. It was initially reported that New Orleans wouldn’t have power or sewerage and water systems running again for a month or more. Since we wouldn’t be able to afford a hotel indefinitely, we opted to go on to Tennessee and stay with friends – not coincidentally, the same friends who housed us in Birmingham for four months after Katrina – until we could return home. Our family was spared from the worst of the damage Ida inflicted on southeast Louisiana. I have many friends who were not as fortunate, and sustained either substantial or catastrophic damage to their homes. There is a degree of “survivor’s guilt,” for lack of a better description, that comes from being among the ones the storm left untouched. We are not unaffected though, and empathy and sympathy can cause us to grieve as if it happened to us. We want to help but feel mostly powerless to do anything but pray and listen and encourage, which we do and will continue to do. Here are some resources for help following a disaster: HurricaneRecovery.la.gov is now live. Any Louisianan affected by Hurricane Ida can use it to find important updates, information and links to resources. Be sure to visit.  After a Disaster Get help after a disaster finding family and friends, temporary housing, emergency food, and tips to let people know you are safe. https://www.usa.gov/after-disaster  Additional resources for recovery: https://gohsep.la.gov/emergency/ https://www.511la.org/#:Alerts https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/ ALL I WANTED WAS COLLEGE FOOTBALL by Sharon Blackmon Graham at the Louisiana Baptist All-State Youth Choir As the Sun Knows, Even the Sky Is Not the Limit The 2020 Paralympic games took place this year August 24 - September 5, 2021. Team USA ranked overall fourth out of 78 countries earning 37 gold, 60 silver, and 31 bronze medals totaling 104. Women won more than 60% of the US medals. Highlights United States swimmers broke multiple records with Anastasia Pagonis, 17, winning a gold medal in the S11 400-meter freestyle, breaking her own worked record at 4:54.49 and winning Team USA's first gold of the games on day two. She had set the world record at the Paralympic trials. She was more than 10 seconds ahead of the silver medalist, and 13 seconds ahead off the bronze medalist. Nick Mayhugh,1st time Paralympian, won gold for Team USA in the T37 100 meter dash earning a workd record time of 10.95 making history on the track. Mayhugh's original sport, soccer, was removed from the Paralympic program and he committed to track and field just two years ago. Team USA Medalists Check out NBC Sports to see all Team USA's medalists. Photos Gorgeous accomplishments, stunning photos of determination, grit, sweat, talent, athletic prowess, and heart, soul, and will. Have a look! Best Photos from the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games ET ET Top Things You Need to Know Variants are expected. The best way to slow the emergence of new variants is to reduce the spread of infection by taking measures to protect yourself, including getting a COVID-19 vaccine when available. Vaccines can keep you from getting sick, being hospitalized, or dying from COVID-19. All COVID-19 tests can detect all variants, but they will not tell you which variant you have. Vaccines FDA approved or authorized COVID-19 vaccines protect against Delta and other known variants. These vaccines protect people from getting infected and severely ill, and significantly reduce the likelihood of hospitalization and death. We don’t yet know how effective the vaccines will be against new variants that may arise. Symptoms Most variants cause similar COVID-19 symptoms. Some variants, such as the Alpha and Delta variants, may cause severe illness and death. Masks Wearing a mask is one effective way to reduce the spread of Delta and other variants. People who are not fully vaccinated should wear a mask indoors in public at all levels of community transmission. CDC recommends that people who are fully vaccinated wear a mask indoors in areas of substantial or high transmission. Wearing a mask is most important if you have a weakened immune system or if, because of your age or an underlying medical condition, you are at increased risk for severe disease, or if someone in your household has a weakened immune system, is at increased risk for severe disease, or is unvaccinated. If this applies to you or your household, you might choose to wear a mask regardless of the level of transmission in your area. If you have a condition or are taking medications that weaken your immune system, you may not be fully protected even if you are fully vaccinated. You should continue to take all precautions recommended for unvaccinated people unless advised otherwise by your healthcare provider. People who are NOT vaccinated, should continue to take steps to protect themselves. Testing All tests work for all variants, but they will not tell you which variant you have. As new variants emerge, scientists will continue to evaluate how well tests work. Types of Variants Scientists monitor all variants but may classify certain ones as Variants Being Monitored, Variants of Concern, Variants of Interest or Variants of High Consequence based on how easily they spread, how severe their symptoms are, and how they are treated. Some variants seem to spread more easily and quickly than other variants, which may lead to more cases of COVID-19. An increase in the number of cases will put more strain on healthcare resources, lead to more hospitalizations, and potentially more deaths. Variants of Concern in the US Delta - B.1.617.2 First identified: India Spread: Much faster than other variants Severe illness and death: May cause more severe cases than the other variants Vaccine: Infections happen in only a small proportion of people who are fully vaccinated, even with the Delta variant. Vaccine breakthrough infections are expected, but vaccines are effective at preventing most infections. However, preliminary evidence suggests that fully vaccinated people who do become infected with the Delta variant can spread the virus to others. All approved or authorized vaccines are particularly effective against severe illness, hospitalization, and death. Treatments: Certain monoclonal antibody treatments are less effective against this variant. Related Information Variant Proportions SARS-CoV-2 Sequences Other Languages Información importante acerca de las variantes Những Điều Quý Vị Cần Biết về các Biến Thể Other Languages Discussions about the Delta Variant: Viruses constantly change through mutation, and new variants of a virus are expected to occur. Sometimes new variants emerge and disappear. Other times, new variants persist. All variants of the virus that causes COVID-19 are being tracked in the United States and globally during this pandemic. Source: Center or Disease Control and Prevention | CDC 24/7 Saving Lives, Protecting People https://www.cdc.gov/ What You Need to Know about Variants ET Vaccines continue to reduce a person’s risk of contracting the virus that cause COVID-19, including this variant. Vaccines are highly effective against severe illness, but the Delta variant causes more infections and spreads faster than earlier forms of the virus that causes COVID-19. by Mary Jacob The pandemic has had a devastating impact on many households across Louisiana. As businesses were forced to close all over the state, the overall unemployment rate -- which was 4.5% in February 2020 -- doubled by summertime. While it has slowly started to decline, the rate still sits a little over 6%. However, the pre-pandemic employment rate for Louisiana’s residents with disabilities only averaged around 13% and dropped due to so many individuals with disabilities working in sectors that were unable to remain open during the pandemic. What resulted after this was a convergence of the perfect storm for many that were earning less than minimum wage. In addition to their unemployment benefits paid by the state, the Federal government pitched in extra funds which provided individuals accustomed to barely surviving with a considerable increase in income. In early summer, as the number of new COVID case started to trend downward, more businesses were opening up. All of the pandemic unemployment assistance programs also came to an end on July 31, 2021. It was anticipated that many of the unemployed would return to work, but this isn’t happening at the anticipated rate. Therefore, employers are finding themselves scrambling for staff, paying more than pre-pandemic rates, and -- for the first time I can remember -- moving away from their comfort zones and seeking nontraditional employees. According to Rita Zeidner, writer for HR Magazine, more companies than ever are looking to hire individuals with disabilities. Some are the more well-known giants like Amazon, 3M, Google, and Disney. Even with the pandemic, there was a 53% increase between 2019 and 2020 in the employment of Disability: IN’s members. Widespread acceptance of work-at-home arrangements has been a blessing for some individuals with mobility impairments who previously had difficulty getting to a job site. While we still have a long way to go in reaching equal employment rates for individuals with disabilities, the timing couldn’t be more perfect. The Families Helping Families Network is taking advantage of this perfect timing by hosting the first statewide virtual job fair for individuals with disabilities. The job fair was originally going to be held in October during National Disability Employment Month. Unfortunately, Hurricane Ida forced us to push it back a few weeks to Wednesday, November 3, 2021. Thanks to the generosity of our event sponsor, Healthy Blue, we can offer a first-class event on the Brazen Virtual Event Platform 100% free of charge for employers as well as job seekers with disabilities. Attendees will be able to participate using their mobile devices. They can choose to use text-only, audio, or full video to engage with recruiters. Additional benefits include reaching a higher pool of candidates and company recruiters in a mutually profitable way. Many businesses are hiring digitally, and meeting candidates online first is more common. The reduction in travel costs is another benefit to both the candidate and recruiter. Be on the lookout for additional information about the Families Helping Families Statewide Virtual Job Fair, sponsored by Healthy Blue. We will have information for both employers and potential employees. According to Rita Zeidner, writer for HR Magazine, more companies than ever are looking to hire individuals with disabilities. Employing the Un- and Underemployed Resources to Help Detect Future Reading Problems and Improve Children's Literacy Skills The Arc of the United States will be releasing more videos soon - so stay tuned. These videos are also available in Spanish. Planificación Financiera Futura Para Las Personas Con Discapacidades Descripción General de los Fideicomisos Para Necesidades Especiales Descripción General de las Cuentas ABLE About The Arc and the Center for Future Planning® For more than 65 years, The Arc has been supporting individuals with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities (I/DD) and their families. Learn more about The Arc and about how the Center for Future Planning® is supporting and encouraging families to plan for the future. ET Everyone must plan for how they will pay for the things they want and need in life. It’s especially important for people with disabilities to make a plan so that they can protect their public benefits. You don't need a lot of money to plan—but you do need to plan! To help you learn more about two important tools to save money, The Arc's Center for Future Planning is creating a series of free videos. Check out the first two videos to get an overview of special needs trusts and ABLE accounts. Each video covers why to consider using each tool, how they work, what they can pay for, and how you can get started. Over the past few months, Families Helping Families of Greater New Orleans, the Louisiana Parent Training and Information Center, has been hosting a STATEWIDE monthly Virtual Youth Hangout. The purpose of the virtual hangout is to build friendships and share stories and resources which is especially needed during times of a pandemic and quarantining. With each passing hangout, there has been a steady increase of participation of youth and young adults. The registration link is: https://forms.gle/qfPq4satiYyjhNuD6. For more information, please email Steven Nguyen at snguyen@fhfofgno.org. New Videos on Special Needs Trusts and ABLE Accounts from The Arc of the United States Families Helping Families of Greater New Orleans the Louisiana Parent Training & Information Center (LaPTIC) invites Parents, Caregivers, & Professionals of School-Aged Children/Students to join us for our FREE monthly webinars. Our webinars provide attendees with important training on a variety of educational topics and supports and services available to individuals with disabilities and their families in the community. Webinar events are viewed right from your computer, tablet, or cell phone where you can watch, listen and have the option to post questions and get LIVE responses. If you are in need of accommodations to attend a webinar or have any questions regarding our training opportunities, please reach out to our Director of Training, Jessica Rodrigue at jrodrigue@fhfofgno.org. OCTOBER 2021 Free WEBINARS What Happens When Parents and School Disagree? Co-Host: FHF Greater Baton Rouge Date: Monday October 4, 2021 Time: 11:00 am – 12:00 pm Louisiana Special Education Dispute Resolution Options - Join us for this new interactive training as we discuss Special Education dispute resolution options when parents disagree. Learning Goals include: Frequently used acronyms; Different informal and formal dispute resolutions options offered by the Louisiana Department of Education; How to request a dispute resolution option; And more! The ABC’s of Extended School Year (ESY) Services Co-Host: FHF of Southwest Louisiana Date: Monday, October 4, 2021 Time: 12:30 pm – 1:30 pm Did you know that data collected during the holidays often determine if your child will qualify for ESY Services? This training provides an overview of the ESY process for children with disabilities including how children qualify and why in many circumstances the school uses the holiday breaks in determining if a child will qualify for ESY. Louisiana’s Bullying Prevention Law Date: Wednesday, October 6, 2021 Time: 10:00 am – 11:00 am Join us as we discuss Louisiana’s Bullying Prevention law. This law applies to all public school students, regular education and special education. However, there are some significant implications that need to be considered when a student with a disability is involved. Navigating the IEP: Part 1 Date: Wednesday, October 6, 2021 Time: 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm Join us for this new interactive training as we navigate the different sections of the IEP. In Part 1 of our 4 Part Series, we will cover the requirements of notification to the parent for an IEP meeting, IEP team members, IEP exceptionalities, General Student Information and Special Factors to be considered for a child with a disability. Top Tips for Effective IEP Meetings Co-Host: FHF at the Crossroads of LA Date: Tuesday, October 12, 2021 Time: 11:00 am – 12:00 pm Join us for this new training as we go over some of the best IEP Tips for organizing yourself for an effective IEP meeting. We break them down into three steps: before, during, and after the meeting. Implementing our top 5 tips in each of these sections should result in an effective IEP meeting. Parent Rights in Special Education Co-Host: Bayou Land FHF Date: Tuesday, October 12, 2021 Time: 8:00 pm – 9:00 pm Join us for this new interactive online training where we will discuss parent rights in special education. Learning goals involve understanding your special education rights, including: Parental participation; When informed consent is required; Prior written notice; Independent Education Evaluation; Your right to disagree with school; And more! Accommodations vs. Modifications Co-Host: FHF of Acadiana Date: Wednesday, October 13, 2021 Time: 10:00 am – 11:00 am Meeting after meeting, parents and teachers use the words “accommodation” and “modification” almost interchangeably when discussing IEPs and student needs. If understood and used correctly, these words can greatly impact the success of a child’s educational program. Get answers to these questions and more: How can accommodations and modifications help my child in the general education classroom? How is it included in IEP and which accommodations are provided for state testing? Navigating the IEP: Part 2 Co: Host: Bayou Land FHF Date: Wednesday, October 13, 2021 Time: 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm Join us for this new interactive training as we navigate the different sections of the IEP. In Part 2 of our 4 Part Series, we will focus on the instructional plan, which includes the present levels of performance and challenging academic and functional goals for a student with a disability. These will be followed by Accommodations. Top Tips for Effective IEP Meetings Date: Saturday, October 16, 2021 Time: 10:00 am – 11:00 am Join us for this new training as we go over some of the best IEP Tips for organizing yourself for an effective IEP meeting. We break them down into three steps: before, during, and after the meeting. Implementing our top 5 tips in each of these sections should result in an effective IEP meeting. Navigating the IEP: Part 3 Date: Wednesday, October 20, 2021 Time: 11:00 am – 12:00 pm Join us for this new interactive training as we navigate the different sections of the IEP. In Part 3 or our 4 Part Series, we will discuss the Program/ Services and Placement/ Consent Sections of the IEP. Navigating the IEP: Part 4 Date: Wednesday, October 20, 2021 Time: 12:30 pm – 1:30 pm Join us for this new interactive training as we navigate the different sections of the IEP. In Part 4 of our 4 Part Series, we will cover the transition sections of the IEP. The Basics of Educational Plans: IEPs vs 504 Plans Co-Host: FHF of Southwest Louisiana Date: Monday, November 1, 2021 Time: 11:00 am – 12:00 pm Students with disabilities will usually qualify for either an IEP or a 504 Plan – but what is the difference and is one better than the other? This training will take you through the eligibility process of both plans, the laws that regulate both, the differences in the plans and parental rights. Top Tips for Effective IEP Meetings Date: Monday, November 1, 2021 Time: 8:00 pm – 9:00 pm Join us for this new training as we go over some of the best IEP Tips for organizing yourself for an effective IEP meeting. We break them down into three steps: before, during, and after the meeting. Implementing our top 5 tips in each of these sections should result in an effective IEP meeting. Louisiana’s Bullying Prevention Law- Date: Wednesday, November 3, 2021 Time: 10:00 am – 11:00 am Join us as we discuss Louisiana’s Bullying Prevention law. This law applies to all public school students, regular education and special education. However, there are some significant implications that need to be considered when a student with a disability is involved. Special Education FAQ 1.0 Co-Host: FHF at the Crossroads of LA Date: Wednesday, November 3, 2021 Time: 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm Join us for this new interactive training on the most frequently asked questions about special education and younger children. Learning Goals include: Transitioning from EarlySteps to school services; Evaluation requirements and timelines; Who qualifies for special education; Evaluation requirements for students in private schools; What to do if your child is struggling in school; How to handle bullying in school; And more! All About Tests and Evaluations Co-Host: FHF of Acadiana Date: Wednesday, November 10, 2021 Time: 10:00 am – 11:00 am In this webinar we will talk All About Assessments and Testing. It will answer some frequently asked questions regarding assessments and testing, when to have your child evaluated and interpreting those assessment results. Special Education FAQ 2.0 Co-Host: Bayou Land FHF Date: Wednesday, November 10, 2021 Time: 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm Join us for this new interactive training on the most frequently asked questions about the Individualized Education Program (IEP) Process Parent Rights in Special Education Co-Host: FHF of Greater Baton Rouge Date: Monday, November 15, 2021 Time: 11:00 am – 12:00 pm Join us for this new interactive online training where we will discuss parent rights in special education. Learning goals involve understanding your special education rights, including: Parental participation; Access to education records; When informed consent is required; Prior written notice; Independent Education Evaluation; Your right to disagree with school; And more! What Happens When Parents and School Disagree? Date: Monday, November 15, 2021 Time: 12:30 pm – 1:30 pm Louisiana Special Education Dispute Resolution Options - Join us for this new interactive training as we discuss Special Education dispute resolution options when parents disagree. Learning Goals include: Frequently used acronyms; Different informal and formal dispute resolutions options offered by the Louisiana Department of Education; How to request a dispute resolution option; And more! Top Tips for Effective IEP Meetings Date: Wednesday, November 17, 2021 Time: 10:00 am – 11:00 am Join us for this new training as we go over some of the best IEP Tips for organizing yourself for an effective IEP meeting. We break them down into three steps: before, during, and after the meeting. Implementing our top 5 tips in each of these sections should result in an effective IEP meeting. Special Education FAQ 3.0 Co-Host: Bayou Land FHF Date: Wednesday, November 17, 2021 Time: 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm Join us for this new interactive training on the most frequently asked questions about the transition process from high school to adult life. Navigating the IEP: Part 1 Co-Host: FHF at the Crossroads of LA Date: Wednesday, December 1, 2021 Time: 11:00 pm – 12:00 pm Join us for this new interactive training as we navigate the different sections of the IEP. In Part 1 of our 4 Part Series, we will cover the requirements of notification to the parent for an IEP meeting, IEP team members, IEP exceptionalities, General Student Information and Special Factors to be considered for a child with a disability. Navigating the IEP: Part 2 Co-Host: FHF of Greater Baton Rouge Date: Wednesday, December 1, 2021 Time: 12:30 pm – 1:00 pm Join us for this new interactive training as we navigate the different sections of the IEP. In Part 2 of our 4 Part Series, we will focus on the instructional plan, which includes the present levels of performance and challenging academic and functional goals for a student with a disability. These will be followed by Accommodations. What Happens When Parents and School Disagree? Date: Monday, December 6, 2021 Time: 11:00 am – 12:00 pm Louisiana Special Education Dispute Resolution Options - Join us for this new interactive training as we discuss Special Education dispute resolution options when parents disagree. Learning Goals include: Frequently used acronyms; Different informal and formal dispute resolutions options offered by the Louisiana Department of Education; How to request a dispute resolution option; And more! Navigating the IEP: Part 3 Co-Host: Bayou Land FHF Date: Wednesday, December 8, 2021 Time: 11:00 am – 12:00 pm Join us for this new interactive training as we navigate the different sections of the IEP. In Part 3 of our 4 Part Series, we will discuss the Program/ Services and Placement/ Consent Sections of the IEP. Navigating the IEP: Part 4 Date: Wednesday, December 8, 2021 Time: 12:30 pm – 1:30 pm Join us for this new interactive training as we navigate the different sections of the IEP. In Part 4 of our 4 Part Series, we will cover the transition sections of the IEP. Parent Rights in Special Education Co-Host: FHF of Southwest Louisiana Date: Saturday, December 11, 2021 Time: 10:00 am – 11:00 am Join us for this new interactive online training where we will discuss parent rights in special education. Learning goals involve understanding your special education rights, including: Parental participation; Access to education records; When informed consent is required; Prior written notice; Independent Education Evaluation; Your right to disagree with school; And more! Special Education FAQ 1.0 Date: Monday, December 13, 2021 Time: 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm Join us for this new interactive training on the most frequently asked questions about special education and younger children. Learning Goals include: Transitioning from EarlySteps to school services; Evaluation requirements and timelines; Who qualifies for special education; Evaluation requirements for students in private schools; What to do if your child is struggling in school; How to handle bullying in school; And more! Special Education FAQ 2.0 Co-Host: FHF at the Crossroads of LA Date: Tuesday, December 14, 2021 Time: 11:00 am – 12:00 pm Join us for this new interactive training on the most frequently asked questions about the Individualized Education Program (IEP) Process. Special Education FAQ 3.0 Date: Tuesday, December 14, 2021 Time: 12:30 pm – 1:30 pm Join us for this new interactive training on the most frequently asked questions about the transition process from high school to adult life. What's Going On? NOVEMBER DECEMBER ET Make an impact in health education by sharing your story! Would you like to help educate future health professionals by sharing your experiences? The Health Partner community program at LSU Health New Orleans provides students in the first year of their program an opportunity to learn together as a team about the health, health experiences, and health goals of community members. Students from various health professions will interact with and learn from their Health Partner through face-to-face opportunities. Your participation will allow students to apply the valuable information and lessons learned from their Health Partner throughout their education and practice after graduation. Participating as a Health Partner allows you to: Contribute to the education of LSU Health students Share your experiences, goals, and opinions on health and healthcare Assist in the development of team building for LSU Health students Requirements for Health Partners Meet and interact with students at least three times over the length of the program (January-March) Allow students into their home and/or a designated community location Need to be accessible by phone, email or video (Zoom/Facetime) Must be willing to share information regarding their health, health experiences, and health goals Participate in an optional survey regarding their experience with students he Health Partner community program is under the direction of the Center for Interprofessional Education and Collaborative Practice (CIPECP). The goal of the CIPECP is to educate health students using a team-based approach in order to improve the health of our communities. If you have any questions regarding the program, you can email Tina Gunaldo, Director tgunal@lsuhsc.edu or call 504-568-4426 ET Families Helping Families of Greater New Orleans, the Louisiana Parent Training and Information Center, is seeking a diverse group of Louisiana parents or family members that have a child with a disability or special healthcare need to be a member of our Parent and Family Advisory Group. A part of our new grant is to create a Family Advisory Group to help plan, review and implement the work we do. Because our project is a statewide project, we need family input from all over Louisiana. We need to make sure our products are useful to families that: Live in urban and city areas Live in suburban areas Live in rural areas Parents that are from different socio-economic backgrounds; Parents that are culturally diverse; and Parents with disabilities. Individuals that volunteer to be part of our Family Advisory Group will help review workshop materials, flyers, newsletters, website, and other products we develop to ensure they are family-friendly and useful. There is no long-term commitment to your participation. You can choose to participate in as many product reviews as you would like. Families Helping Families of Greater New Orleans mission is to empower and educate children and adults with disabilities and their families about resources, services, and supports to attend school, work, and thrive in their communities. All services are provided free of charge to the more than 6,000 families requesting assistance each year. To learn more & sign up, visit https://tinyurl.com/yxmp7g9p. For questions, please contact Sharon Blackmon at 504.888.9111. PARENT ADVISORY GROUP NEEDS MEMBERS ET Inclusion is part of a much larger picture than just placement in the regular class within school. It is being included in life and participating using one’s abilities in day to day activities as a member of the community. Inclusion is being a part of what everyone else is, being welcomed and embraced as a member who belongs It is being a part of what everyone else is, and being welcomed and embraced as a member who belongs. Inclusion can occur in schools, churches, playgrounds, work and in recreation. ~Kids Together, Inc. School Inclusion If your child is eligible for special education services, you may worry he’ll be placed in a different classroom than other kids his age. But most kids might be placed in classrooms that are known as inclusion (or inclusive) classrooms. In an inclusion classroom, the general and special education teachers work together to meet your child’s needs. Your child will still have an Individualized Education Plan. Many schools have inclusion classrooms. In part, because the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) says that kids who receive special education services should learn in what is called the “Least Restrictive Environment” (LRE). This means they should spend as much time as possible with students who don’t receive special education services. Inclusive classes are set up in a number of ways. Some use a collaborative team teaching or co-teaching model. Co-teaching is the practice of pairing teachers together in a classroom to share the responsibilities of planning, instructing, and assessing students. In a co-teaching setting, the teachers are considered equally responsible and accountable for the classroom. Co-teaching is often implemented with general and special education teachers paired together as part of an initiative to create a more inclusive classroom. Other inclusive classes have special education teachers “push in” at specific times during the day to teach (instead of pulling kids out of their general education class to a separate room). In either case, both teachers are available to help all students. Supplementary Aids and Services Supplementary aids and services are often critical elements in supporting the education of children with disabilities in regular classes and their participation in a range of another school activities. IDEA’s definition of this term (at §300.42) reads: Supplementary aids and services means aids, services, and other supports that are provided in regular education classes, other education-related settings, and in extracurricular and nonacademic settings, to enable children with disabilities to be educated with nondisabled children to the maximum extent appropriate … Speaking practically, supplementary aids and services can be accommodations and modifications to the curriculum under study or the manner in which that content is presented or a child’s progress is measured. But that’s not all they are or can be. Supplementary aids and services can also include: direct services and supports to the child, and support and training for staff who work with that child. That’s why determining what supplementary aids and services are appropriate for a particular child must be done on an individual basis. Considering the supplementary aids and supports that a child needs should take into account the academic, extracurricular, and nonacademic environments available to, and of interest to, the child. That pretty much covers the gamut of school settings where children might be engaged in learning, interaction, and development, doesn’t it? The last two elements—extracurricular and nonacademic—are actually new to IDEA in 2004. Consistent with the inclusive nature of the legislation, the final Part B regulations have added the phrase “in extracurricular and nonacademic settings” to the definition of supplementary aids and services and, thus, enlarged the scope of where supplementary aids and services must be provided, as appropriate to the child’s needs. Examples of Supplementary Aids and Service The definition of “supplementary aids and services” was new in IDEA ’97. Since then, the field has fleshed out the definition through practice. Numerous states have developed IEP guides that include both the regulatory definition of “supplementary aids and services” and examples to guide IEP teams in their considerations of what a student might need. Here are some examples that the New Mexico Public Education Department (2004) provides online that you may find illuminating: Supports to address environmental needs (e.g., preferential seating; planned seating on the bus, in the classroom, at lunch, in the auditorium, and in other locations; altered physical room arrangement) Levels of staff support needed (e.g., consultation, stop-in support, classroom companion, one-on-one assistance; type of personnel support: behavior specialist, health care assistant, instructional support assistant) Planning time for collaboration needed by staff Child’s specialized equipment needs (e.g., wheelchair, computer, software, voice synthesizer, augmentative communication device, utensils/cups/plates, restroom equipment) Pacing of instruction needed (e.g., breaks, more time, home set of materials) Presentation of subject matter needed (e.g., taped lectures, sign language, primary language, paired reading and writing) Materials needed (e.g., scanned tests and notes into computer, shared note-taking, large print or Braille, assistive technology) Assignment modification needed (e.g., shorter assignments, taped lessons, instructions broken down into steps, allow student to record or type assignment) Self-management and/or follow-through needed (e.g., calendars, teach study skills) Testing adaptations needed (e.g., read test to child, modify format, extend time) Social interaction support needed (e.g., provide Circle of Friends, use cooperative learning groups, teach social skills) Training needed for personnel Accommodations and Modifications For many students with disabilities—and for many without—the key to success in the classroom lies in having appropriate adaptations, accommodations, and modifications made to the instruction and other classroom activities. Some adaptations are as simple as moving a distractible student to the front of the class or away from the pencil sharpener or the window. Other modifications may involve changing the way that material is presented or the way that students respond to show their learning. Adaptations, accommodations, and modifications need to be individualized for students, based upon their needs and their personal learning styles and interests. What are Accommodations and Modifications? A modification means a change in what is being taught to or expected from the student. Making an assignment easier so the student is not doing the same level of work as other students is an example of a modification. An accommodation is a change that helps a student overcome or work around the disability. Allowing a student who has trouble writing to give his answers orally is an example of an accommodation. This student is still expected to know the same material and answer the same questions as fully as the other students, but he doesn’t have to write his answers to show that he knows the information. What is most important to know about modifications and accommodations is that both are meant to help a child to be successful in their learning environment. The Benefits of Inclusion inclusion is best practice for disabled and non-disabled students alike. Studies show that when inclusion is done well, the whole class benefits. ... It enhances the ability of non-disabled kids to cooperate, work together, understand and value different perspectives, think critically, and even test well. Benefit #1: Differentiated Instruction All students learn differently. This is a principal of inclusive education. One key teaching strategy is to break students into small groups. By using small groups, teaching can be tailored to the way each student learns best. This is known as differentiated instruction. Teachers meet everyone’s needs by presenting lessons in different ways and using Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and multisensory techniques. Some classrooms may have an interactive whiteboard. On it, kids can use their fingers to write, erase and move images around on the large screen. This teaching tool can also be used to turn students’ work into a video, which can be exciting for kids and help keep them engaged. Benefit #2: Supportive Teaching Strategies In an inclusive classroom, teachers weave in specially designed instruction and support that can help students make progress. Kids may be given opportunities to move around or use of fidgets. And teachers often put positive behavioral interventions and supports (PBIS) in place. These strategies are helpful for all students—not only for students with learning and attention issues. Benefit #3: Reduced Stigma Inclusive classrooms are filled with diverse learners. That lets kids talk about how everyone learns in their own way. They may find that they have more in common with other kids than they thought. This can go a long way in reducing stigma for kids with learning and attention issues. It can also help kids build and maintain friendships. Benefit #4: Effective Use of Resources In more traditional special education settings, many kids are “pulled out” for related services, like speech therapy or for other specialized instruction. An inclusion class often brings speech therapists, reading specialists and other service providers into the classroom. These professionals can provide information and suggestions to help all students. If your child isn’t eligible for special education, but still needs some extra support, it can provide him with some informal support. Benefit #5: High Expectations for All If your child has an IEP, his goals should be based on the academic standards for your state. Those standards lay out what all students are expected to learn in math, reading, science and other subjects by the end of the school year. Differentiated instruction and co-teaching in a general education classroom make it easier for students with standard-based IEPs to be taught the same material as their classmates. In some schools, only certain classrooms are inclusion classes. In that case, schools may assign general education students randomly to inclusive or non-inclusive classes. Other schools may choose students who benefit from the emphasis on meeting the needs of all learners at all ability levels. ET Sources: Center for Parent Information and Resources, Partners Resource Network, and Education Week ET Source: irs.gov WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service today announced the tax year 2021 annual inflation adjustments for more than 60 tax provisions, including the tax rate schedules and other tax changes. Revenue Procedure 2020-45 provides details about these annual adjustments. Highlights of changes in Revenue Procedure 2020-45 The Consolidated Appropriation Act for 2020 increased the amount of the minimum addition tax for failure to file a tax return within 60 days of the due date. Beginning with returns due after Dec. 31, 2019, the new additional tax is $435 or 100 percent of the amount of tax due, whichever is less, an increase from $330. The $435 additional tax will be adjusted for inflation. The tax year 2021 adjustments described below generally apply to tax returns filed in 2022. The tax items for tax year 2021 of greatest interest to most taxpayers include the following dollar amounts: The standard deduction for married couples filing jointly for tax year 2021 rises to $25,100, up $300 from the prior year. For single taxpayers and married individuals filing separately, the standard deduction rises to $12,550 for 2021, up $150, and for heads of households, the standard deduction will be $18,800 for tax year 2021, up $150. The personal exemption for tax year 2021 remains at 0, as it was for 2020; this elimination of the personal exemption was a provision in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. Marginal Rates: For tax year 2021, the top tax rate remains 37% for individual single taxpayers with incomes greater than $523,600 ($628,300 for married couples filing jointly). The other rates are: 35%, for incomes over $209,425 ($418,850 for married couples filing jointly); 32% for incomes over $164,925 ($329,850 for married couples filing jointly); 24% for incomes over $86,375 ($172,750 for married couples filing jointly); 22% for incomes over $40,525 ($81,050 for married couples filing jointly); 12% for incomes over $9,950 ($19,900 for married couples filing jointly). The lowest rate is 10% for incomes of single individuals with incomes of $9,950 or less ($19,900 for married couples filing jointly). For 2021, as in 2020, 2019 and 2018, there is no limitation on itemized deductions, as that limitation was eliminated by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. The Alternative Minimum Tax exemption amount for tax year 2021 is $73,600 and begins to phase out at $523,600 ($114,600 for married couples filing jointly for whom the exemption begins to phase out at $1,047,200). The 2020 exemption amount was $72,900 and began to phase out at $518,400 ($113,400 for married couples filing jointly for whom the exemption began to phase out at $1,036,800). The tax year 2021 maximum Earned Income Credit amount is $6,728 for qualifying taxpayers who have three or more qualifying children, up from a total of $6,660 for tax year 2020. The revenue procedure contains a table providing maximum Earned Income Credit amount for other categories, income thresholds and phase-outs. For tax year 2021, the monthly limitation for the qualified transportation fringe benefit remains $270, as is the monthly limitation for qualified parking. For the taxable years beginning in 2021, the dollar limitation for employee salary reductions for contributions to health flexible spending arrangements remains $2,750. For cafeteria plans that permit the carryover of unused amounts, the maximum carryover amount is $550, an increase of $50 from taxable years beginning in 2020. For tax year 2021, participants who have self-only coverage in a Medical Savings Account, the plan must have an annual deductible that is not less than $2,400, up $50 from tax year 2020; but not more than $3,600, an increase of $50 from tax year 2020. For self-only coverage, the maximum out-of-pocket expense amount is $4,800, up $50 from 2020. For tax year 2021, participants with family coverage, the floor for the annual deductible is $4,800, up from $4,750 in 2020; however, the deductible cannot be more than $7,150, up $50 from the limit for tax year 2020. For family coverage, the out-of-pocket expense limit is $8,750 for tax year 2021, an increase of $100 from tax year 2020. For tax year 2021, the adjusted gross income amount used by joint filers to determine the reduction in the Lifetime Learning Credit is $119,000, up from $118,000 for tax year 2020. For tax year 2021, the foreign earned income exclusion is $108,700 up from $107,600 for tax year 2020. Estates of decedents who die during 2021 have a basic exclusion amount of $11,700,000, up from a total of $11,580,000 for estates of decedents who died in 2020. The annual exclusion for gifts is $15,000 for calendar year 2021, as it was for calendar year 2020. For tax years beginning in 2021, § 6039F authorizes the Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service to require recipients of gifts from certain foreign persons to report these gifts if the aggregate value of gifts received in the tax year exceeds $16,815. (added May 17, 2021) The maximum credit allowed for adoptions for tax year 2021 is the amount of qualified adoption expenses up to $14,440, up from $14,300 for 2020. IRS provides tax inflation adjustments for tax year 2021 ET Before I became disabled, I wanted to be a doctor or medical researcher. It was a realistic goal. I had the intelligence, drive, grades, and most importantly, I had the health for it. I was a 3.9 GPA in college with an entrance into a doctoral program. In 2009 I had to medically withdraw. Symptoms of Chiari Malformation/Craniocervical instability came on and progressed to where I was losing consciousness from sitting up. The surgery I had done to treat it was successful at alleviating those symptoms. Unfortunately, there was a major complication that left me with quadriparesis, weakness in all four limbs for the rest of my life. People have asked me if the symptoms kept me from school and why I never went back to finish my degree. The answer wasn’t because I physically couldn’t. It was because of all the income limits put on people with disabilities in the U.S. making it not worth it to have a career. I was approved for SSI soon after I became disabled. My homecare services were not approved until four years after the quadriparesis started. In that time, I had to suffer through many toxic living situations and put up with things no one should ever have to, just to get help with basics like laundry and a shower. Finally, I got affordable housing that was wheelchair accessible. It was subsidized and in a very dangerous area. I lived there alone, and showered in the sink. I allowed homeless people to stay with me so that I could get help with the apartment. In 2013 I was approved for homecare services through Medicaid. Finally with the housing and homecare support I needed; I was ready to try working again. I got a part time job that made $1,000 a month. I reported this income, and SSI made the adjustment with their rules of “For every $2 you make, we take $1 away from your SSI benefits.” They never took into consideration that my working my income was taxed. Making money meant that my subsidized housing rent went up, my food stamps went down, and I lost assistance for paying medical bills. I told myself it was worth it because it got me out and doing something. Unfortunately, at the job I was at, there was a payroll error and they had to pay their employees a few days late. This shouldn’t have been a problem, but because I was on SSI that put my income above the monthly earning period. So, because it was late, it would have counted as making too much in the next month. I asked my employer what I should do. I was advised to quit my job and not accept money that I legally had earned so that it did not compromise my medical assistance. So, I did. I didn’t try to work again until I was able to get off SSI and onto SSDI through my mother retiring, and got out of public/subsidized housing. The SSDI rules seemed much fairer. Anyone can work up to $1,310 a month and nothing is subtracted from the SSDI cash benefits. But this is not true for everyone, only disabled people who do not need homecare. Those that require homecare lose services that are paid for by Medicaid if they earn or save more than the state set cap. I told myself that as far as working part time, I needed to find a simple job that would make as little money as possible but still be something to improve my quality of life. I did not consider that working a few hours a week would equal the same amount that I would lose in my food stamps. Further, my employer told me I wasn’t allowed to have my aide with me at work. So, without the help I needed in the bathroom, I tried to use a “go-girl” urinary funnel, and failed miserably. Oh, and the dress code for that job was khaki pants. Such an embarrassment. Working was not worth it. There is an underlying systemic belief that if you’re working then you should be paying for your homecare, or not need homecare in the first place. However, unless I’m making over 6 figures, there’s no way I can afford my homecare on top of the costs of living. The presumption is that by limiting the amount people can earn and still receive medical assistance/homecare to only abject poverty, they’ll limit the amount of people who will depend on Medicaid and “the system.” The truth is, all that does is make people chose to not work because needing our services is our #1 priority. The amount of disabled people that aren’t millionaires that need homecare doesn’t change at all. All it does is keep all of these people from making taxable income for the government. The ableism is costing our government money. Two major developments have happened for people with disabilities. The first, was the introduction of ABLE accounts. In these accounts we can have money gifted, or money earned that will not compromise benefits. Money in these accounts can be used for things related to disability needs and basic living expenses. But since we are systemically stuck in poverty, any of our money go directly to disability and survival related expenses anyhow. The second, and I think the biggest are medicated by programs for workers with disabilities. Under these state-run programs workers with disabilities who rely on homecare/Medicaid can work and earn up more and not have those services cut or compromised. My best friend has a progressive degenerative condition but working has given her purpose to achieve and stay positive through it. She was told by a financial adviser that when she progresses to where she needs homecare, she’ll have to quit her job. Not because she can’t work but because she would then need the Medicaid for an attendant. No one should ever have to choose between having a career or getting the help for their basic daily living needs. When I found out about Medicaid buy-in, I immediately told her. It was definitely an amazing moment, hearing it in her voice when she actually realized what I was telling her: that she can keep her job as long as she wants to. For me the major changes are that I can work the maximum amount for SSDI, and get married without losing my services. Employing people with disabilities is not only important for boosting the economy, but for the much needed integration of people with disabilities into society. We’ve been held back and isolated for so long. It’s time for us to belong in the real world and be recognized for our capabilities as employees, coworkers, friends, family members and partners. Our lives may be more difficult with the extra obstacles we face, but they are no less valuable. We are just as capable of contributing when our basic medical assistance needs are being met. My disabled journey to employment (and understanding) by Anomie Fatale ORDER HERE The U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) sent a letter to its state and local partners reiterating its commitment to ensuring children with disabilities and their families have successful early intervention and educational experiences in the 2021–2022 school year. This letter outlines a series of question and answers (Q&As) as children and students return to in-person learning. The Q&As focus on topics to help ensure that — regardless of the COVID-19 pandemic or the mode of instruction — children with disabilities receive a free appropriate public education (FAPE) in accordance with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), and that infants and toddlers with disabilities and their families receive early intervention services. The Q&As document on Child Find Under Part B of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act is the first Q&A in the series and reaffirms the importance of appropriate implementation of IDEA’s child find obligations, which requires the identification, location and evaluation, of all children with disabilities in the states. An effective child find system is an ongoing part of each state’s responsibility to ensure that FAPE is made available to all eligible children with disabilities. Read the Press Release Read the Letter to OSERS State and Local Partners Read the Q&A on Child Find Under Part B of IDEA Winner: 2020 San Francisco Book Festival Honorable Mention! Former Employee of Families Helping Families of Greater New Orleans is now a Published Author New Guidance Reaffirms Importance of Full Implementation of IDEA Amidst COVID-19 Pandemic He played the guitar like a God I couldn’t keep my eyes off him For the first time I didn’t feel odd That was when I picked up a guitar And I finally fit in ~Eddie Tebbe in “Old Man With One Glove" ET ET ET Music has always been Eddie’s way to cope with the triple whammy life has dealt him: born with cerebral palsy, developed epilepsy as the result of a fall at age 9, and gradually consumed by Hunntington's disease in his thirties. Yet he remains friendly, funny and outrageous as he flashes his famous smile. A fixture on the New Orleans music scene for years, native son Eddie Tebbe has attended multiple concerts a night, composed lyrics picked up and recorded by the likes of George Porter and Paul Sanchez, and made friends with anyone and everyone in the popular clubs. He has, as he says, felt the funk in his bones. Now at age 50, Eddie is no longer able to write or to stay out late, instead offering the short stories, a play and his poetry he’s written through the years to his many loyal friends in this inspiring collection. Local writer Colman DeKay puts it well: “Eddie writes with simplicity, urgency and honesty about the town that he loves. He’s the real deal – a New Orleanian who, despite personal setbacks, grabs the city in a gigantic life-affirming hug.“ by Mallory Brown “Resiliency Takes Time” “Your lives will never be the same.” Those were the exact words that I heard from pediatrician after our daughter was born in 2011. I remember crying questioning God’s plan, questioning if our marriage was strong enough to handle this, and questioning if, I, myself, was strong enough to handle this new diagnosis that I knew nothing about. I had finished my Bachelor’s degree in teaching the year prior to my daughter Maddie being born. My husband at the time had just finished a tour in Iraq and as a newly married couple who was finally able to start their lives together, we couldn’t have been more excited to welcome our new bundle of joy. Until that day in June when Maddie was born, I had never been around a person with a disability for a long period of time, or met someone who was deaf. My new Mama “happy vibes” were quickly replaced with internet searches, meeting doctors in specialties I had never heard of, and learning the names of the medical equipment that were feeding my daughter in the NICU to keep her growing in hopes to bring her home. After 32 days in the NICU, our strong-willed Maddie came home! She had special bottles, and countless hours of inhouse and outpatient therapy, but our sweet, miracle baby girl was home! I thought that the NICU and learning all the new terminology was going to be the hardest part; boy was I wrong. Learning how to function on a day-to-day basis with a special needs child has to be one of the toughest jobs I have ever had. Even now, ten years later, there are some days that are filled with glitter and sparkles like I call it, and other days, where you just want to throw your hands up and ask the big “why?” that you’re not supposed to ask to the man upstairs and pray you have the strength to fall into bed at the end of a long day. We were lucky to find an amazing preschool for Maddie that helped us develop sign language skills to communicate with her. There was also an wonderful parent advocate that came to speak to us as a group of special needs parents that pushed us to advocate for our children. After that meeting, I have become very well versed in ADA law and have no problem using the loud voice that God blessed me with to speak up and advocate for those who cannot speak for themselves. After preschool we have tried out many schools, private and public, to try to find the best fit for Maddie, and after many years have been very lucky to find the current public schools SPED program where the teacher is nothing short of a miracle walking on this Earth that works with Maddie each day and is so patient with her it amazes me! When Maddie was in first grade we found out that we were pregnant with our second child, Blake. My pregnancy with him was also a very stressful time as we were concerned about another diagnosis. Thankfully, he was born a beautiful, healthy baby boy, who cried louder than any baby I had ever heard, as Maddie being deaf, never cried. My husband at the time started working night shifts and then started working at a clinic near our home and worked his way up in the company while I continued teaching. It seemed to everyone that was around us we were living the dream. Fast forward to 11 months later and things started spiraling downhill in our marriage. The day to day became hard to get along, let alone work together to accomplish what we both wanted and needed. We realized that we both wanted very different things in life and staying together wasn’t an option and wasn’t the best for the children. Before daggers are thrown at me for saying that sometimes parents are better off divorcing and letting the kids share homes for their parents; hear me out. Our children were witnessing two people who gave up on their own dreams, that couldn’t make dreams together come true, arguing all the time, and two adults who would rather be alone with the kids than enjoy spending family time together. That isn’t good for even the most emotional stable child to witness on a day-to-day basis. So after much consideration, we filed for divorce in 2017, a month shy of my son’s first birthday. We promised each other that no matter how ugly the divorce got or what our feelings were for each other, we would never let the kids see us argue or speak ill of the other parent; to this day we have held true to that rule. I moved into a tiny two-bedroom apartment on a third floor. At the time we shared custody and every week that I didn’t have the children I worked four jobs trying to make ends meet and get financially ahead to get out of the living situation I was currently in after the divorce. Maddie was attending a school about 30 minutes away and in order for me to get to my full-time teaching job on time, her school bus picked her up at 4:15 a.m. every morning. I carried my son who couldn’t walk quite yet down three flights of stairs, then went back and got Maddie who had trouble going down the stairs to get to the bus on time. Then I would go back home and feed Blake, get him to daycare and then go teach all day. I’d get home and cook dinner and have the kids in bed by 7 since we all had to wake up so early every morning. I often look back at that time in my life and think how the heck did I manage to do that? I think for anyone who goes through a divorce we all have those “dark years” afterward that maybe lead to us looking back on what could have been or who we used to be, or seeing what we want for ourselves in the future and realizing the long road that may lay ahead in order to get there. I will never forget about four months into the divorce, on a random Thursday night, the kids gave me a run for my money. They both refused to eat what I had cooked, splashed a ton of water out of the bathtub, cried when it was bedtime; I was flat exhausted. I remember standing in the kitchen, washing dishes, trying to stay awake, and the song “You Gotta Be,” by Des’ree came on my phone. I can still remember hitting the kitchen floor and sobbing like I hadn’t ever cried before. I was hurt that my plans that I had after college with my new degree didn’t pan out the way I thought they would. I was mad that I had more to cope with and learn about Maddie’s diagnosis every day than most parent’s do; but most of all I was furious that my marriage, the one thing that was supposed to be a “forever” thing, ended and I was all alone. I gave myself until the end of the song (thankfully it’s a longer song) and picked myself up and swore to myself, that for my kids’ sake, I was going to be the strong Mama that they needed me to be everyday from there on out. No more crying over what could have been, but I was going to take the “bull by the horns” and instead focus on what was best for me and my kid’s future. Fast forward to a few months later, I happened to look online one day and saw they were having an open house for a house that looked like a doll house. I took the kids that weekend and fell in love immediately! I put in an offer and bought my first house just a few months shy of one year after the divorce. The following year Maddie got very sick and we had to learn how to navigate the new diagnosis of epilepsy. That has been the biggest rollercoaster ride yet for us and is a challenge everyday to make sure she gets the right medicine, doesn’t get overheated, and we try to keep things as least stressful as possible for her as to not trigger her seizures. In 2019, she started having up to 20 seizures a day. School became impossible for her to attend, so I made the decision to stay home with her and take care of her. At the same time, I decided that it would be a good time for me to go back to school for my Master’s degree, and what better field than something that I felt so strongly about, had advocated hours in, and learned first hand from my daughter, but a Master’s degree in Deaf Education. These last two years have been extremely long, hard, and tiresome. I would work when I could, raised two kids that I have custody of 90% of the time, and then would stay up until 2 a.m. several nights a week studying and writing papers for my Master’s program. I remember when I told someone that I was going to go back to school as a single Mom, they jokingly laughed and said, “good luck with that.” I called my mother that night and said, “Mom, I’m not only going to get my Master’s, I’m going to do it with a 4.0.” She knew me well enough to know that if I put my mind to it, I’d make it happen. So here I am two years later, with a Master’s degree and a 4.0 GPA in my new field of deaf education. I have found my dream job here in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, working with deaf children in a school system that has a schedule that is perfect for me as a single Mom. Everyday I wake up and realize how blessed I am. I have two amazing children. Maddie is a miracle who wasn’t expected to live past age four and is now a healthy, vibrant, and happy 10-year-old little girl. Blake loves his sissy and always reassures me that I am an awesome Mom, which sometimes, as most mom’s do, we don’t feel like we’re doing a worthy job, but he makes sure to tell me. I am here to not only share my story, and share just some of the hardships that I have encountered since becoming a special needs parent, but to hopefully share with you that if you are in those “dark years” like I was, it will get better. Years ago, I saw a plaque in a store right after my divorce and it said, “Your day will go the way the corners of your mouth turn.” I have remembered that phrase every single day when I wake up. We choose our happy. Your happy may look like a child who eats only certain foods try something new on their palate without hesitation. It may be a girl’s night out with other Mom’s who understand what you’re going through each day. It may be getting bedtime snuggles from your babies after a long hard day of being out in the crazy world that we live in. Whatever it may be, choose your happy and know that special needs parents are equipped with super powers every day! Photo's by April Elizabeth, LLC ON THE IMAGE OF DISABILITY The life that a person with a disabling condition can look forward to today is very often, though certainly not always, radically different from what it might have been just 20 years ago. The passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act in 1990 extended to people with disabilities the civil-rights protections which have been extended to blacks, women, and minorities. It opens a broad front of new possibilities for people with disabilities, although -- like other major civil rights legislative initiatives -- it will take many years for the consequences to reveal themselves. And yet when someone learns today that she will have a disability or a condition understood as disabling, when a parent-to-be learns that his child will have a physical or cognitive impairment, when television reports that a public figure has become disabled, certain specters are likely to arise -- emotionally freighted, irrational, even mutually contradictory -- of what the life of a person with a disability must be like. STEREOTYPES AND CONSTRUCTIONS: Until recently, attitudes toward individuals and groups, embodied in popular culture images, would have been called stereotypes. This word suggests that the image or the attitude is unconsidered, naive, the by-product of ignorance or unfamiliarity. Stereotypes are also by definition unchanging; when a stereotype has been exposed as inadequate or false to experience, it can be transcended and left behind. The "myths of disability" which we bring to encounters with physical and mental difference are beyond stereotypes. Such deep-rooted conceptions are what sociologists now call constructions. Popular culture images both reflect and affect attitudes. Representations of disability will often reflect contemporaneous ideas in medicine, science, religion, or social management, but those ideas may themselves be affected by the assumptions inherent in popular images and fictional narratives. A film story of a courageous doctor helping a lame child to walk might reflect current medical approaches to disability; the film story broadcasts those attitudes and helps to impress them on families, care-givers, and people with disabilities as well as the general public. But doctors were also themselves seeing such stories; they formed part of the evidence by which doctors determined their own status and the status of their patients with disabilities. Six common constructions, or ways of understanding and picturing disability, have been widely shared by medical professionals, educators, public health workers, blue and white collar workers, novelists, publicists, philanthropists, and by many of those who themselves have disabilities. They have been chosen for examination in Beyond Affliction: The Disability History Project because they have been powerful organizers of experience for many people over long periods. They are polar pairs, each pair expressing the same assumptions in negative and positive modes. They are rarely found in a pure iconic state. Even mutually contradictory conceptions often overlap, or appear combined in the same historical or fictional Sterotypes p.39 figure, creating ambiguous but powerful images that haunt the culture for decades. Like myth and folklore (of which they are partly made) these constructions undergo transformations. They transcend geographical boundaries. They persist across generations. They go underground, and reappear, unacknowledged, in apparently rational and value-free analyses and plans. They still have power today to alter and affect the lives of individuals with disabilities as well as the lives of their family members and care providers. People with disabilities themselves have at various times used and resisted the categories they were placed in for their own empowerment: to make, insofar as they could, their own way and their own lives. People with disabilities are different from fully human people; they are partial or limited people, in an "other" and lesser category. As easily identifiable "others" they become metaphors for the experience of alienation. The successful "handicapped" person is superhuman, triumphing over adversity in a way which serves as an example to others; the impairment gives disabled persons a chance to exhibit virtues they didn't know they had, and teach the rest of us patience and courage. The burden of disability is unending; life with a disabled person is a life of constant sorrow, and the able-bodied stand under a continual obligation to help them. People with disabilities and their families -- the "noble sacrificers" -- are the most perfect objects of charity; their function is to inspire benevolence in others, to awaken feelings of kindness and generosity. A disability is a sickness, something to be fixed, an abnormality to be corrected or cured. Tragic disabilities are those with no possibility of cure, or where attempts at cure fail. People with disabilities are a menace to others, to themselves, to society. This is especially true of people with mental disability. People with disabilities are consumed by an incessant, inevitable rage and anger at their loss and at those who are not disabled. Those with mental disabilities lack the moral sense that would restrain them from hurting others or themselves. People with disabilities, especially cognitive impairments, are holy innocents endowed with special grace, with the function of inspiring others to value life. The person with a disability will be compensated for his/her lack by greater abilities and strengths in other areas -- abilities that are sometimes beyond the ordinary. These pictures of disability are not mistaken in any simple way; in fact each of them contains kernels of experiential truth about encounters between the able-bodied and those with disabilities. But when tacit theories and assumptions such as these underlie public policy and social relations, they tend to limit the full humanity of those who are affected by them. Stereotypes About People With Disabilities ET continued on p.45 2019-09 Hannah & Gang Freshman First Down Run What is Bullying? Bullying is unwanted, aggressive behavior among school aged children. It involves a real or perceived power imbalance and the behavior is repeated, or has the potential to be repeated, over time. Both kids who are bullied and kids who bully others may have serious, lasting problems. OCTOBER IS BULLYING PREVENTION MONTH 2019-09 Hannah Freshman First Down Run Children with physical, developmental, intellectual, emotional, and sensory disabilities are more likely to be bullied than their peers. Any number of factors— physical vulnerability, social skill challenges, or intolerant environments— may increase their risk. Research suggests that some children with disabilities may bully others as well. Kids with special health needs, such as epilepsy or food allergies, may also be at higher risk of being bullied. For kids with special health needs, bullying can include making fun of kids because of their allergies or exposing them to the things they are allergic to. In these cases, bullying is not just serious; it can mean life or death. A small but growing amount of research shows that: Children with attention deficit or hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are more likely than other children to be bullied. They also are somewhat more likely than others to bully their peers (Twyman et al., 2010; Unnever & Cornell, 2003; Weiner & Mak, 2009). Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are at increased risk of being bullied and left out by peers (Twyman et al., 2010). In a study of 8-17-year-olds, researchers found that children with ASD were more than three times as likely to be bullied as their peers. Children with epilepsy are more likely to be bullied by peers (Hamiwka, Yu, Hamiwka, Sherman, Anderson, & Wirrell, 2009), as are children with medical conditions that affect their appearance, such as cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, and spina bifida. These children report being called names related to their disability (Dawkins, 1996). Children with hemiplagia (paralysis of one side of their body) are more likely than other children their age to be bullied and have fewer friends (Yude, Goodman, & McConachie, 1998). Children who have diabetes and are dependent on insulin may be especially vulnerable to peer bullying (Storch et al., 2004). Children who stutter may be more likely to be bullied. In one study, 83 percent of adults who stammered as children said that they were teased or bullied; 71 percent of those who had been bullied said it happened at least once a week (Hugh-Jones & Smith, 1999). Children with learning disabilities (LD) are at a greater risk of being bullied (Martlew & Hodson, 1991; Mishna, 2003; Nabuzoka & Smith, 1993; Thompson, Whitney, & Smith, 1994; Twyman, Saylor, Saia, Macias, Taylor, & Spratt, 2010). At least one study also has found that children with LD may also be more likely than other children to bullying their peers (Twyman et al., 2010). Effects of Bullying Kids who are bullied are more likely to have: Depression and anxiety. Signs of these include increased feelings of sadness and loneliness, changes in sleep and eating patterns, and loss of interest in activities they used to enjoy. These issues may persist into adulthood. Health Conditions Decreased academic achievement—GPA and standardized test scores—and school participation. They are more likely to miss, skip, or drop out of school. Bullying, Disability Harassment, and the Law Bullying behavior can become “disability harassment,” which is prohibited under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. According to the U.S. Department of Education, disability harassment is “intimidation or abusive behavior toward a student based on disability that creates a hostile environment by interfering with or denying a student’s participation in or receipt of benefits, services, or opportunities in the institution’s program” (U.S. Department of Education, 2000). Disability harassment can take different forms including verbal harassment, physical threats, or threatening written statements. When a school learns that disability harassment may have occurred, the school must investigate the incident(s) promptly and respond appropriately. Disability harassment can occur in any location that is connected with school—classrooms, the cafeteria, hallways, the playground, athletic fields, or school buses. It also can occur during school-sponsored events (Education Law Center, 2002) What Parents Can Do If you believe a child with special needs is being bullied: Be supportive of the child and encourage him or her to describe who was involved and how and where the bullying happened. Be sure to tell the child that it is not his or her fault and that nobody deserves to be bullied or harassed. Do not encourage the child to fight back. This may make the problem worse. Ask the child specific questions about his or her friendships. Be aware of signs of bullying, even if the child doesn’t call it that. Children with disabilities do not always realize they are being bullied. They may, for example, believe that they have a new friend although this “friend” is making fun of them. Talk with the child’s teacher immediately to see whether he or she can help to resolve the problem. Put your concerns in writing and contact the principal if the bullying or harassment is severe or the teacher doesn’t fix the problem. Explain what happened in detail and ask for a prompt response. Keep a written record of all conversations and communications with the school. Ask the school district to convene a meeting of the Individualized Education Program (IEP) or the Section 504 teams. These groups ensure that the school district is meeting the needs of its students with disabilities. This meeting will allow parents to explain what has been happening and will let the team review the child’s IEP or 504 plans and make sure that the school is taking steps to stop the harassment. Parents, if your child needs counseling or other supportive services because of the harassment, discuss this with the team. Work with the school to help establish a system-wide bullying prevention program that includes support systems for bullied children. As the U.S. Department of Education (2000) recognizes,“creating a supportive school climate is the most important step in preventing harassment.” Explore whether the child may also be bullying other younger, weaker students at school. If so, his or her IEP may need to be modified to include help to change the aggressive behavior. Be persistent. Talk regularly with the child and with school staff to see whether the behavior has stopped. Getting Additional Support If a school district does not take reasonable, appropriate steps to end the bullying or harassment of a child with special needs, the district may be violating federal, state, and local laws. For more information, contact: The U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights Phone: (800)-421-3481 The U.S. Department of Education Office of Special Education Programs Phone: (202) 245-7468 The U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division Phone: 1-877-292-3804 Hannah 2020 UL Homecoming Bullying and Children and Youth with Disabilities and Special Health Needs Louisiana Bullying Resources Source: stopbullying.gov ET Students, parents, teachers, principals and school leaders can all work together to prevent and end bullying. Bullying is a pattern of: written, electronic or verbal communications that threaten harm, obscene gestures, taunting or malicious teasing, persistent shunning or excluding a student, or physical harm, such as hitting, pushing or damaging personal property. If you are a student, parent or school leader and need to report a case of bullying, you can fill out this form PDF and submit to the principal or appropriate school leader. If you are a school leader who is investigating a report of bullying, you can use this form to document the investigation. Under Act 861 enacted in 2012, school employees are required to participate in four hours of training to learn how to detect, prevent and end bullying. Teachers or other school personnel who receive a complaint about bullying must verbally notify the principal on the day of incident and in writing within two days of the incident. The principal must notify parents and launch an investigation on the day of the incident. The investigation must be completed with ten days. The Bullying Prevention Toolkit, developed by the Louisiana Department of Education, provides resources to assist school district prevent and end bullying. SCHOOL DISTRICT LEADERS: Implementation Checklist SCHOOL LEADERS: About Reporting and Investigating Bullying Training Resources Principal / Designee Responsibilities Sample Policy SAMPLE LETTERS AND FORMS: Bullying Report Form Parental notification about possible bullying Parental notification about confirmed bullying Parent notification about unconfirmed bullying Witness Statement Form School Stay Away Agreement REGISTER The Learning Disabilities Association of America is holding its 59th Annual Conference in the heart of New Orleans, where there's no shortage of things to do! Check out their completely non-exhaustive list of sights, sounds—and tastes!—to start your planning. Source: Laurie Block, “Stereotypes about People with Disabilities,” Disability History Museum Source: Louisiana Believes ET ET Who Should Attend this Conference? Teachers of special education and general education Counselors, Social Workers Para Educators/special education instructional assistants Principals and school administrators Psychologists Parents of children with learning disabilities Attorneys and Advocates Researchers, Medical and Mental Health Professionals Adults with learning disabilities and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder College student support personnel Teens Talking Money Source: RAISE - Raising the Standard for Young Adults with Disabilities. Financial Empowerment ET Want more of Ryan? Check out Ryan's blockbuster video “How I Survived on a Penny for 1 Week.” Viewed more nearly 13 million times, Ryan shows the power of investing money and a vision for how to leverage it over time. Tools to Explore #1: A Guide Book — Your Money, Your Goals: Focus on People with Disabilities was developed by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. It is designed to empower the disability community. The 66-page guide is packed with useful information and resources. There is even a guide on page 11 to help jump start “The Money Conversation.” Click here to access and download the guide Your Money, Your Goals. #2: A Video —A credit cards is important tool in the world of cyber purchases. But there are important things to know about how and when to use a card. Watch an animated YouTube that helps teens learn about credit cards and how they work #3: Four popular apps used by teens and families Mint is the #1 most downloaded personal finance app. Easy to use, and free. GreenLight is a debit card and app where teens earn money through chores, set savings goals, spend wisely and invest. Parents set flexible controls and get real-time notifications every time their kids spend money. The card rewards 1% cash back and 2% on their savings balances. FamZoo is designed for children and teens of all ages. It designates a purpose for every single dollar a teen earns and spends, while also creating incentives for them and helping track savings progress. MoneyPro is the app recommended by featured vlogger, Ryan Trahan. YouTube sensation Ryan Trahan says, “Money can be fun!” Speaking directly to teens, he offers youth-friendly money tips for teens and young adults. His message is to take charge! Don’t just spend your money. Invest in items that can make you money. Let your money multiply. Build the habit of saving money. Save half of every dollar you make. Track income and spending by logging it. Get educated about money and finance. Be smart about debt. Don’t overspend on higher education. Making money can be fun! It does not have to be drudgery. Start a business doing what you like. A Closer Look August is #ABLEtoSav Month 2021 This month ABLE National Resource Center is hosting events and share ABLE tools, including panels with ABLE Ambassadors, podcasts, informational videos, “Ask an ABLE Account Owner” forums, and more! Q: What is an ABLE Account? A: An ABLE account is a tax-free savings vehicle for people with disabilities. ABLE accounts allow people with a disability to save without disqualifying them from government benefits such as SSI, Medicaid, and means-tested programs such as HUD and SNAP/food stamps. With ABLE accounts in 43 states, about 91,000 Americans have saved more than $759 million, an average of more than $8,300 per person. Q: Are there limits? A: Yes! There are rules and annual limits. The total annual contribution by all participating “contributors” for any given tax year is currently $15,000. The amount may be adjusted periodically for inflation. ABLE account owners who work under the ABLE to Work Act may contribute up to an additional $12,760 (2021) or their gross income for that taxable year, whatever is less, into their ABLE account. Some states allow more. For example, residents of Alaska can contribute $15,950 and residents of Hawaii can contribute $14,680. They may do this if they have not contributed to an employer sponsored retirement plan that year. The total aggregate account limit, over time, is subject to state-specific limits for education-related 529 savings accounts. Many states have set this limit at more than $500,000 per account. Resources Debunk the ABLE Myths ASL video on 5 Things You Need to Know about ABLE Accounts Sign up for ABLE National Resource Center's Newsletter OCTOBER IS NATIONAL DISABILITY EMPLOYMENT AWARENESS MONTH (NDEAM) Defining Customized Employment Customized employment is a process for achieving competitive integrated employment or self-employment through a relationship between employee and employer that is personalized to meet the needs of both. It is a universal strategy that benefits many people, including people with disabilities who might not have found success through other employment strategies. In 2014, customized employment was included in Title IV of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) as a strategy under the definition of supported employment. ODEP’s Role in Advancing Customized Employment In 2001, ODEP began implementation of a five-year customized employment initiative through American Job Centers in targeted states. Today, ODEP supports customized employment through education, outreach, and collaborations that promote the benefits of using customized employment as a workplace flexibility policy. Strengthening the Workforce System through Customized Employment ODEP has helped American Job Centers incorporate customized employment into their menu of services. The resources below demonstrate the effectiveness of this process: Customized Employment Works for Veterans: A Win-Win Strategy – This video describes customized employment from the veteran, service provider and employer points of view. Customized Employment Works for Veterans: A Job that I Love – This video describes the importance of discovery in the customized employment process and the positive impacts a customized job has for a veteran. Customized Employment Works for Veterans Brief – This brief describes five wounded warriors who obtained employment by using discovery and customized employment. Solutions for Youth with Disabilities – This video describes how to support youth transition to competitive integrated employment using customized employment. Solutions for Employers – This video describes how customized employment benefits the employer and overall business operation. Creating Opportunities and Solutions – This video describes how customized employment is a win-win strategy for employers and job seekers with disabilities. A Spanish version of this video is also available. A Compendium of Federal, State, and Local Implementation of Customized Employment Formal adoption and implementation of customized employment policies and practices is growing among state and local agencies, especially to improve employment outcomes for individuals with disabilities and other significant barriers to employment. This living compendium will grow to document new adoptions and implementations of customized employment strategies, with real-life examples of policies, staff and provider manuals, Medicaid waiver language, fee structures, and other capacity building techniques as they become available. National Center on Leadership for the Employment and Economic Advancement of People with Disabilities (LEAD) – Fully funded by ODEP, the LEAD Center promotes equal opportunity within the broader workforce system for youth and adults with disabilities. Their website features an up-to-date compendium of customized employment resources. Defining Customized Employment as an Evidence-based Practice: The Results of a Focus Group Study [PDF] – Customized employment efforts have generated support at the national, state and individual participant levels. This qualitative research study developed a research-based description that agencies can replicate to implement customized employment when supporting individuals with significant disabilities. Customized Employment Competency Model [PDF] – This guide outlines the competencies needed by employment specialists and customized employment support teams to successfully provide services to job seekers. The Workforce Innovation Technical Assistance Center (WINTAC) – WINTAC provides training and technical assistance to State Vocational Rehabilitation Agencies and service providers to help them develop the skills and processes needed to meet the requirements of the WIOA. Essential Elements of Customized Employment – WINTAC developed this manual to help increase the number of individuals who obtain competitive integrated employment by making customized employment training content more consistent. Information on Self-Employment & Entrepreneurship as a Customized Employment Option – Self-employment has long been an option for individuals seeking a new or better career. Today, many individuals with disabilities are turning to the flexibility self-employment offers in helping them to meet professional and financial goals. Discovery Discovery is the foundation for securing customized employment. It is a qualitative process aimed to better understand job seekers by understanding their strengths (potential contributions to employers), their needs (the features that need to be in place for success), and their interests (providing a direction to the type of work that the individual wants to do). ODEP worked with national subject matter experts to develop a series of resources focused on discovery targeted to specific groups. Guided Group Discovery: Participant Workbook and Facilitator Guide – The purpose of guided group discovery is to lay a foundation for competitive integrated employment, a universal approach that can benefit all job seekers. For some people, guided group discovery leads to customized employment. For everyone, the process can help to identify opportunities that would be a good fit for them and potential employers. New Approaches to Customized Employment: Enhancing Cross-system Partnership [PDF] – This paper explores approaches to bringing guided group discovery to scale through cross-system partnerships, leveraging Pre-Employment Transition Services and funding to improve employment outcomes for youths. Guided Group Discovery – Youth Version – Facilitator Guide and Supplemental Slide Deck – This guide trains people to facilitate guided group discovery sessions with youth and adults with disabilities and others who experience barriers to employment. Guided Group Discovery – Veterans Edition – This facilitator guide trains people to lead guided group discovery sessions with Veterans and others who experience barriers to employment. Self-Guided Discovery Facilitator's Guide [PDF] – Self-guided discovery is a set of strategies that can benefit any job seeker who faces barriers to employment. This guide reports best practices and lessons learned from three state teams that implemented self-guided discovery strategies to help job seekers with disabilities take the next step forward in their careers. Customized Employment Driving Change Through Customized Employment Source: United States Department of Labor; Office of Disability Employment Policy ET Bob Simonovich was in the Army for 14 years. Transitioning out of the military and finding a civilian job was difficult, especially with a traumatic brain injury and PTSD. An employment specialist with the VA Medical Center in Cleveland met with Bob to go through a process called “discovery” that helped him look at his job search differently. Based on his strengths, interests and talents, the discovery process led Bob to work that he is passionate about: “I discovered that I’m capable of doing a job that I’ve dreamed of all my life.” For Bob, that job is an official scorer for the Akron RubberDucks minor league baseball team. This process of discovery, which matches people’s skills, interests and talents with employers’ needs, results in employment that is “customized” for both the jobseeker and the employer, creating a “win-win” relationship. Known as customized employment, thousands of people with disabilities have benefitted from it in the past 22 years following the Supreme Court’s decision in Olmstead v. L.C. This landmark case affirmed the rights of people with disabilities to live and receive services in their communities in the most integrated settings possible. This includes employment services since working is a key part of community life. Two years later came another major milestone – the establishment of the Office of Disability Employment Policy. Since day one, ODEP has worked to advance the spirit of Olmstead through our work on customized employment, grounded in the belief that everyone can bring value and contribute to an organization through employment. Early on, we implemented multiple rounds of Customized Employment Grants to help states and the workforce development system use this strategy to assist job seekers with disabilities. We also implemented Workforce Action Grants, also known as Olmstead employment grants, to enable people transitioning out of nursing homes and institutions to seek community-based employment. Based on lessons learned, we then worked with national leaders in the disability employment field to develop numerous resources, including profiles of customized employment in action and a competency model describing the skills needed to provide it effectively. At the heart of customized employment is discovery, an individualized assessment process which helps identify specific skills that an individual can offer employers. To this end, we also developed multiple resources on discovery targeted to different audiences, including youth, adults, veterans and even a self-guided manual, so that some people can take themselves through the process. In 2014, the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act affirmed the importance of customized employment by defining it, for the first time, in federal law. That year, we also developed three videos on customized employment to help others understand its benefits. Since then, we have collaborated with the Rehabilitation Services Administration to develop their fact sheet, “The Essential Elements of Customized Employment,” which explains how to provide customized employment through the vocational rehabilitation system. And recently we partnered with the Veterans Health Administration to implement targeted trainings for their job development staff, and developed a brief and videos about customized employment (see the first three resources listed on the linked webpage) as a strategy for assisting veterans with disabilities like Bob. At ODEP, we’re proud to have played a role in advancing customized employment as a strategy to help people, like Bob and so many others, find fulfilling jobs. We also look forward to working with our many partners – including multiple federal agencies whose systems now support this evidence-based policy – over the next 20 years and beyond to further open the door to community life by making sure that customized employment is a tool in the toolbox of employment strategies. By Rose Warner Editor’s Note: The following blog is reposted with permission from the U.S. Department of Labor. Customized Employment Success ET Photo credit: ODEP, Bob Simonovich About the Author Rose Warner is a senior policy advisor in the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy. LA Disability Resources Website Now Available The Louisiana Developmental Disabilities Council is pleased to announce the launch of ladisabilityresources.com. The Council collaborated with Trach Mommas of LA (TMOL) to sponsor the creation of this accessible website to serve as an information resource for individuals with developmental disabilities and their families to access during times of both personal emergencies and/or natural disasters. The Council and TMOL want to ensure this newly created website meets your needs. Please click here to participate in a user survey and share your feedback. You can also send your feedback and content suggestions directly to TMOL via their contact information below. The Council has also made funding available to assist TMOL in their ongoing work to coordinate and support rapid disaster response for Louisianans with developmental disabilities and their families. If you have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic or one of the numerous natural disasters our state has faced, contact TMOL to see if they can help! Trach Mommas of Louisiana Phone: (225) 200-5178 Email: trachmommas@gmail.com Website: trachmommas.org ET On 9/30/2021, the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) released a Q&A entitled the Return to School Roadmap: Development and Implementation of Individualized Education Programs in the Least Restrictive Environment under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. This second in a series of Q&As builds on the August 24 press release and demonstrates the Department’s continued commitment to support States to ensure they have the information necessary to carry out these important requirements and to make good use of the additional American Rescue Plan (ARP) funds to ensure the full implementation of IDEA requirements. “The pandemic didn't alter IDEA's guarantee of a free appropriate public education for children with disabilities,” said OSERS Acting Assistant Secretary Katherine Neas. “As more and more students return to in-person learning, the Department emphasizes the critical role that IEP Teams, including parents, have in making individualized decisions about each child’s educational needs, including assessing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on health and safety considerations and on providing appropriate special education and related services.” Topics covered under this latest Q&A, focusing on Individualized Education Programs (IEP), include: Ensuring IEPs Are in Effect at the Start of the School Year Convening the IEP Team Consideration of Special Factors Considering the Assistive Technology Needs of a Child with a Disability Addressing the Social, Emotional, Behavioral, and Mental Health Needs of Children with Disabilities Addressing the School-Related Health Needs of Children with Disabilities with Underlying Medical Conditions Determining Appropriate Measurable Annual Goals & Considering the Child’s Need for Compensatory Services Making Extended School Year (ESY) Services Determinations Considering Secondary Transition Services Making Educational Placement Decisions Resolving Disagreements Regarding a Child’s Educational Program Read the Q&A on IEPs Under IDEA Return to School Roadmap: Development and Implementation of Individualized Education Programs ET National Down Syndrome Awareness Month Down syndrome is a condition in which a person has an extra chromosome. Chromosomes are small “packages” of genes in the body. They determine how a baby’s body forms and functions as it grows during pregnancy and after birth. Typically, a baby is born with 46 chromosomes. Babies with Down syndrome have an extra copy of one of these chromosomes, chromosome 21. A medical term for having an extra copy of a chromosome is ‘trisomy.’ Down syndrome is also referred to as Trisomy 21. This extra copy changes how the baby’s body and brain develop, which can cause both mental and physical challenges for the baby. Natural Beauty Domestic Violence Awareness Month Dwarfism Awareness Month Dyslexia Awareness Month Eye Injury Prevention Month Health Literacy Month Healthy Lung Month Learning Disabilities Awareness Month National ADHD Awareness Month National Breast Cancer Awareness Month National Bullying Prevention Month National Dental Hygiene Month National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM) National Physical Therapy Month Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) Awareness Month 10/3-9 - Mental Illness Awareness Week 10/4 - Child Health Day 10/7 - National Depression Screening Day 10/10 - World Mental Health Day 10/12 - White Cane Safety Day 10/12-20 - Bone and Joint Health National Action Week 10/13 - Metastatic Breast Cancer Awareness Day 10/14 - World Blind Day / World Sight Day 10/15 - Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Day 10/15 - National Latino AIDS Awareness Day 10/17-23 - International Infection Prevention Week 10/17-23 - National Healthcare Quality Week 10/19 - World Pediatric Bone and Joint Day 10/18-22 - National Health Education Week 10/22 - International Stuttering Awareness Day 10/24-30 - Respiratory Care Week OCTOBER Spina Bifida Awareness Month Spina Bifida, Latin for "Split Spine", occurs within the first month of pregnancy resulting in incomplete closure of the spinal column. It is considered the most frequently occurring, permanently disabiling birth defect. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 1,500 babies are born with Spina Bifida each year. awareness Calendar OM Gosh! Cuteness Overload World Cerebral Palsy Day (Oct. 6) There are 17 million people across the world living with cerebral palsy (CP). Another 350 million people are closely connected to a child or adult with CP. It is the most common physical disability in childhood. CP is a permanent disability that affects movement. Its impact can range from a weakness in one hand, to almost a complete lack of voluntary movement. World Cerebral Palsy Day is a movement of people with Cerebral Palsy and their families, and the organizations that support them, in more than 75 countries. Our vision is to ensure that children and adults with Cerebral Palsy (CP) have the same rights, access and opportunities as anyone else in our society. Together, we can make that happen. 1 by Mary Jacob I recently had a conversation with another professional about bullying prevention. She seemed surprised to find out children with disabilities are bullied at a higher rate than those without disabilities. She even questioned my definition of bullying to make sure we were talking about the same thing. At the end, I invited her to research it for herself - but the data I've read from the National Bullying Prevention Site and StopBullying.gov indicated this wasn't an assumption - but a fact (read story p.40). Bullying has become such a problem state and local lawmakers have taken action to prevent bullying and protect children. Bullying is alive and unfortunately thriving in our community. I read about it on social media, blogs, and articles. I see it on the news. I hear about it from friends. It's the one thing that doesn't require a single penny to stop and yet it's growing like wildfire. Some might say it's even the gateway to more serious things if it's not stopped. Defining bullying actions can be a difficult task. Is there really a fine line between being assertive and being a bully? Does age matter? Is a 3 year old capable of being a bully? Does it happen more frequently with males? I believe like many other things, bullying prevention starts at home. From the earliest ages we need to teach children how to play nice. A young child acting out because they don't understand or want to share is not necessarily bullying. However, not addressing that behavior early on could in fact result in a subliminal message that starts the bullying mentality in a child. Some things parents can do to help: Be a positive role model. Moral development is getting mixed messages if you expect your child to act one way and you act another. Your words MUST line up with your actions. This is not only true for parents - but for any adult that has an impact on children. (I.e. teachers, coaches, other school personnel, recreational staff, relatives, etc.) Teach your children pleasant ways to ask others to join in or for themselves to join in on activities. Practice caring and helpfulness with your children. Kindness is learned and with daily practice children will grow up to be caring adults. Teach your children there are consequences for certain behaviors. Use age-appropriate consequences. Help children manage destructive feelings. Children need to know that anger, shame, and envy are normal emotions that can hinder the ability to be kind and empathetic. Praise your children when they are being good friends and behaving appropriately. Encourage conversation with your children where they feel safe to tell you when something is wrong. Set clear rules and monitor your children's interactions. At present, no federal law directly addresses bullying. In some cases, when bullying is based on race or ethnicity, color, national origin, sex (including sexual orientation and gender identity), disability, or religion, bullying may constitute harassment and schools may be legally obligated to address it. Read more about when bullying overlaps with harassment and how to report it to the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights and U.S. Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division. See also Federal Laws. The End of Bullying Begins With You ET 1 The theme for NDEAM 2021, “America’s Recovery: Powered by Inclusion,” reflects the importance of ensuring that people with disabilities have full access to employment and community involvement during the national recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. NDEAM is held each October to commemorate the many and varied contributions of people with disabilities to America’s workplaces and economy. Browse our website for ideas and resources for employers, community organizations, state and local governments, advocacy groups and schools to participate in celebrating NDEAM through events and activities centered around the theme of “America’s Recovery: Powered by Inclusion.” Plan NDEAM Observances What can YOU do to celebrate NDEAM? There are lots of ways! Explore the ideas below designed for: Employers. Educators and youth service professionals. State governors, legislators and other policymakers. Associations and unions. Disability related organizations. Federal agencies. NDEAM every day How about a plan for Every. Single. Day. of National Disability Employment Month? Start here with day one and plan for 31 days of NDEAM. Get NDEAM Materials ODEP offers a range of resources to help employers and other organizations plan NDEAM observances, including not only the official poster, but also sample articles, a press release, proclamation and social media content. National Family Caregivers Month For this year’s National Family Caregivers Month in November, Caregiver Action Network is really going to mix things up a bit! CAN is undertaking a national, digital campaign called #CaregiverAnd. And with your help, Caregiver Action Network will leverage social media to reach millions of people with #CaregiverAnd. #CaregiverAnd encourages family caregivers to celebrate the identities and passions that enrich their lives. This digital campaign will highlight the roles, activities, and passions that make up the lives of family caregivers. Far too often the role of family caregiver overshadows the identity of those caring for their loved ones. As family caregivers juggle their many responsibilities, they may lose sight of who they are beyond the caregiver role. As you focus all your attention on caring for your mom with Alzheimer’s, the fact that you’re a journalist who loves to cook and read mystery novels can get pushed to the side—and this campaign aims to change that. A person’s sense of self makes their life complete. This is an essential component of self-care that can ultimately prevent caregiver burnout and depression. #CaregiverAnd will also help others see themselves as a caregiver by realizing that the barista they see every morning may be caring for his dad with Alzheimer’s, or their son’s Little League coach may be caring for his wife with breast cancer. American Diabetes Month/Diabetes Bladder Health Month Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) Awareness Month Dercum’s Disease (Adiposis Dolorosa) Awareness month Diabetic Eye Disease Month Lung Cancer Awareness Month RSD/CRPS Awareness National Alzheimer’s Awareness Month 22q Awareness Month National Epilepsy Awareness Month National Healthy Skin Month National Home Care and Hospice Month National Stomach Cancer Awareness Month Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month Prematurity Awareness Month 11/1 - Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome (LGS) Awareness Day. LGS is a rare form of epilepsy that causes multiple types of seizures resulting in developmental delays and cognitive impairments. 11/1-5 - International Stress Awareness Week 11/11 - Veterans Day - Veterans Day is a time for us to pay our respects to those who have served. For one day, we stand united in respect for you, our veterans. This holiday started as a day to reflect upon the heroism of those who died in our country's service and was originally called Armistice Day. It fell on Nov. 11 because that is the anniversary of the signing of the Armistice that ended World War I. However, in 1954, the holiday was changed to "Veterans Day" in order to account for all veterans in all wars. 11/12 - World Pneumonia Day 11/13-19 - Transgender Awareness Week 11/14 – World Diabetes Day 11/15 - World Ohtahara Syndrome Awareness Day 11/16 - International Day for Tolerance 11/17 - World Prematurity Day 11/21-27 - GERD Awareness Week 11/18-24 - World Antibiotic Awareness Week 11/18 – World COPD Day 11/19 - World Pancreatic Cancer Day 11/20 - Transgender Awareness Day 11/20 - Aicardi Syndrome Awareness Day 11/20 - International Survivors of Suicide Day 11/21 - Great American Smokeout 11/23 - N24 Awareness Day - Non-24-hour sleep-wake disorder (N24) is a circadian rhythm sleep disorder in which an individual's biological clock fails to synchronize to a 24-hour day. Instead of sleeping at roughly the same time every day, someone with N24 will typically find their sleep time gradually delaying by minutes to hours every day. 11/25 - National Family Health History Day ET National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM) 2021 America’s Recovery: Powered by Inclusion NOVEMBER America’s Recovery: Powered by Inclusion Description The poster is rectangular in shape with a deep rust color background. A cream-colored depiction of the United States and its territories spreads across the poster and is covered with illustrations of people of diverse races, sizes and disabilities wearing colorful outfits. Written in bold letters in the center of the map is the 2021 NDEAM theme, America’s Recovery: Powered by Inclusion. Under the theme in smaller letters are the words National Disability Employment Awareness Month. Along the bottom (left to right) is the DOL logo, followed by ODEP’s logo, followed by the words Office of Disability Employment Policy United States Department of Labor. In the right lower corner is ODEP’s website, dol.gov/ODEP, with hashtag NDEAM underneath. 12/5-11 - National Handwashing Awareness Week - Help Henry “Spread the Word Not the Germs” about hand washing and Hand Awareness in order to avoid any “flu” or flu-like epidemics this year. Show Henry you care about clean hands and respect the role “Our Hands” play in the spread of infection. Photo credit: Military.com DECEMBER 12/3 - International Day of People with Disabilities - Celebrating International Day of persons with disabilities International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPD) is a UN day that is celebrated every year on 3 December. The day is about promoting the rights and well-being of persons with disabilities at every level of society and development, and to raise awareness of the situation of persons with disabilities in all aspects of political, social, economic, and cultural life. WHO joins the UN in observing this day each year, reinforcing the importance of securing the rights of people with disabilities, so they can participate fully, equally and effectively in society with others, and face no barriers in all aspects of their lives. 12/1 - World AIDS Day - World AIDS Day is held on the 1st December each year and is an opportunity for people worldwide to unite in the fight against HIV, show their support for people living with HIV and to commemorate people who have died. World AIDS Day was the first ever global health day, held for the first time in 1988. National Drunk and Drugged Driving Prevention Month 12/1-7 - Crohn’s & Colitis Awareness Week 12/6-12 - INCLUSIVE SCHOOLS WEEK This year, the Inclusive Schools Week’s theme is “Rebuilding our Inclusive Community Together.” Join us in celebrating Inclusive Schools Week December 6-12, 2021! During the past eighteen months, the world has experienced an extraordinary degree of separation. We have been separated from our classmates, friends, family, colleagues, and community. The force that created the separation is silent and unseen but nevertheless has upended our sense of progress and security. Throughout history, great trials have always resulted in unprecedented responses. Albert Einstein once described the phenomenon, “In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity.” Today’s challenges present us with the unique opportunity of rebuilding our inclusive community, the focus of our theme for Inclusive Schools Week 2021. We have recognized the individual and organizational necessity of inclusive beliefs and practices and find that we are committed to restoring and rebuilding a shared community of learners, educators and leaders. Rebuilding requires a blueprint that guides construction from a solid foundation to the roof—a blueprint designed with active engagement from our students, their families, educators and the community. Two-way communication is critical to determine priorities for needs and to create a design that works. Rebuilding demands the right tools. Teaching resiliency is a powerful tool to help combat the fears and uncertainty of constructing a new environment—one that restores and revives the basic human need to belong. Rebuilding emphasizes the need for quality materials and resources to upgrade services that take inclusion to the next level for student success. We look forward to hearing your stories and lessons learned from your own rebuilding process. We will share those success stories through the Inclusive Schools Network, so together we can continue the work of supporting successful inclusive communities worldwide! 12/10 – Human Rights Day Human Rights Day is observed every year on 10 December – the day on which the United Nations General Assembly adopted, in 1948, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights empowers us all. The principles enshrined in the Declaration are as relevant today as they were in 1948. We need to stand up for our own rights and those of others. We can take action in our own daily lives, to uphold the rights that protect us all and thereby promote the kinship of all human beings. In December 1948, UNESCO was the first United Nations agency to place the Universal Declaration at the heart of all its action, to promote it across the world through education and the media. Human rights gain new meaning when they become a reality in the daily life of every single person in the world. Bringing human rights home is at the core of UNESCO’s mission in all its fields of competence – education, science, culture and communication. In the context of the commemoration of the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), UNESCO brings to the fore the centrality of human rights protection in the history and the mandate of the Organization. #StandUp4HumanRights #ItStartsWithMe ET Pivot p.5 ET What Is Atypical Anorexia? In short: Someone who has all the symptoms of anorexia but is not underweight. This article from Child Mind goes into much more detail than that! Make sure you also have a look at the related resources listed at the very bottom of the article, to see if any fit would be useful in your work and for sharing (such as Family-Based Treatment for Eating Disorders). The Kid Zone! Make learning to read a shared adventure! The Kid Zone! is a place where parents can participate as their child builds literacy skills in a fun and interactive way. The site is especially targeted to support children who are finding learning to read a challenge. More info for families can also be found under the "Parents and Families" tab at the home page of the National Center for Improving Literacy. As kids spend more time online for school and other activities, it’s important for adults to discuss how to stay safe on any device. Talk to your children about cyberbullying, inappropriate behavior online, identity theft and more. After what felt like an eternity of remote and hybrid learning, most children and teachers are back in school. But as families look ahead, many are uneasy about the future. Will the school remain open? Will the school team develop and implement an appropriate IEP for their child, given her challenges? Will the school provide her with compensatory education so she can recover the lost educational time? Learn strategies for successful parent advocacy in the COVID-19 era. Parent Advocacy Strategies: When You Disagree with the IEP Team Get the Wright Stuff! 25% Off on a Bundle of Wrightslaw Parent Advocacy: Write Things Down When They Happen (and How to Get Started) ET Mental Health Tools and Connections Advocating for My Child’s Literacy Needs Great for parents of a child with literacy-related concerns, and also a good resource about being their child's advocate in general. TBRI® FRIDAYS is a statewide strategy designed to elevate the level of care children across Louisiana receive by providing regular, consistent TBRI® training to DCFS, foster parents, service providers, and community partners. Statewide in-person trainings are held once a month on the 2nd Friday, and will resume later this year, and live online trainings are available now. What is Trust-Based Relational Intervention® (TBRI)? Listed on the California Clearinghouse for Evidence Based practices, TBRI® is an attachment-based, trauma-informed intervention that is designed to meet the complex needs of vulnerable children. TBRI® educates and equips caregivers with knowledge and skills that empower them to provide healing care for a child who has experienced trauma. In addition to successful use by families, TBRI® has been used in multiple settings to effect change, including intensive home programs, residential treatment centers, and schools. The cost is minimal, and CEUs are available for some professionals. RESOURCES FOR PARENTS & EDUCATORS These are turbulent times. Need help coping? Need resources to share with families, youth, and community colleagues? TIKES is a statewide program of Tulane University School of Medicine that supports parents and teachers caring for young children, aged 0-6 years, by providing remote mental health consultation. Their website provides a host of resources for parents and teachers, from short video clips with tips for handling disruptive behaviors or separation anxiety, to videos for adults, like chair yoga or meditation for sleep. The resources included on the website are too many to name, and there is definitely something for everyone! Crisis Hotlines and Resources for Triggering or Traumatic Events and News The events taking place in the news may be triggering to many in our communities. This resource from Brainline is one to put in your toolbox and share widely. It includes crisis hotlines for kids and teens, and hotlines for addressing drug or alcohol abuse, domestic violence, rape, and sexual assault. There's a small section of state and local resources, too. 10 Simple Grounding Techniques To Calm Anxiety This article from Forbes describes what grounding techniques are and how they can be used to allay anxiety. It then describes 10 simple techniques anyone can use to dial back to calm. 10 Best Mental Health Apps of 2021 Mental health apps give you tools and support to help with general mental health or specific conditions. This article identifies the 10 best such apps for: therapy, meditation, suicide awareness, stress, anxiety, addiction, boosting your mood, eating disorders, OCD, and the best overall. Dealing with Adolescent Behavior Problems: Top Tips for Parents There are many tips and tricks for how parents can deal with adolescent behavior problems. This article discusses general principles of parenting a child with behavior problems, tips for handling the 4 main types (ADHD, oppositional defiant disorder, autism, and conduct disorders), ways to reduce conflict, self-care, and suggestions for parents during the pandemic. Many military families with special needs know the ins and outs of applying for state Medicaid waivers and the frustration of reaching or getting closer to the top of the waiting list, only to PCS and start the process over. In fact, families report waiting for years on these lists and never being able to receive Medicaid funding benefits during the service member’s active-duty career. ET Source: Military OneSource Because of this, the Department of Defense created the TRICARE ECHO program to provide coverage for sponsored family members with condition-specific needs. ECHO offers a full range of services, including rehabilitative or assistive services, equipment, home health care, residential services and respite. Unlike Medicaid waivers, ECHO benefits move with the family. However, military families lose ECHO support when the sponsor separates or retires from the military. The Department of Defense State Liaison Office has been working hard to improve the availability of Medicaid waivers for military families in preparation for the time when they no longer have Tricare ECHO available due to separation or retirement. DSLO now has 37 states with either no waiting list or with policies that support military members on the waiting list in their state of legal residence while on active duty. How waivers work Waivers are state-specific Medicaid programs that provide funding for long-term care services to be provided in the community instead of in nursing homes or hospitals. Each state receives Medicaid funding from the federal government and chooses how to spend it through its state Medicaid program, which set guidelines on who gets assistance and how they qualify. In many states, the community need for a particular waiver outweighs available funding, and a waiting list is created of approved applicants. It can take several years before an applicant receives federal aid-supported services. How the military waiver benefit works States already agree to work with military families on many topics so they can receive the same priorities as other eligible state residents. For many states, that consideration is now extended to include Medicaid waiver waiting list placement. Service members who are legal residents of a state where applicable policy has been enacted may enroll an eligible family member on the state waiver list as early as possible so they can progress towards the top of that list prior to separation/retirement. Families can enroll at any time and service members have the flexibility to change their state of legal residence as long as they meet the state requirements. State actions. Families begin the process by notifying the state where they are planning to move upon separation or retirement. Using state of legal residence. States may allow active-duty service members to use their state of legal residence (where they pay taxes, vote, register their vehicles, hold a driver’s license, etc.) to register their family member with special needs for a Medicaid Home and Community Based Services waiver. Modifying existing waiver category. States may consider modifying one of their existing waiver categories (such as individuals with critical need). This would allow military families transferring into a state (or transitioning out of the military) to be placed on the expedited list to receive services through HCBS. The military family member must have been receiving services at the last location to qualify. The following states either have no waiting list or agree to the policy of allowing active-duty military families to enroll in their state of legal residence to get on the wait list: Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, Michigan, Montana, North Carolina, North Dakota, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Vermont, Washington and Wyoming. The following state has modified an existing waiver category: Florida. Get more information Find more information and resources to help you become your family’s best advocate on the EFMP Essentials Page. If you have questions about Medicaid waivers or need to know more about available services and supports, contact your installation EFMP Family Support Staff or a Military OneSource special needs specialty consultant through Military OneSource at 800-342-9647 or by live chat. Medicaid Waivers for Military Families Planning to separate or retire from the military one day? You may be able to place your eligible family member with special needs on a Medicaid waiver wait list now. Medicaid Waivers for Military Families The theme of this year's conference is "Learning Together: Connecting Research and Lived Experience." AUCD2021 will continue to serve as a forum for meaningful collaborations around important topics, best practices, and issues that affect the disability community, the AUCD network, and beyond. AUCD is also excited to continue 50th anniversary celebrations during the virtual conference. The conference will include virtual plenary sessions, pre and post-conference meetings with special interest group members, and poster presentations all offering the opportunity to engage with and reach out to a vast network of community leaders, researchers, policymakers, practitioners, professionals, advocates, and students. Learn more and register here. ET On September 20, 2021, the Louisiana Department of Health (LDH), including the Bureau of Healthcare Financing (Medicaid), promoted emergency rules related to the implementation of a rate increase for OCDD Home and Community Based Waiver services. Effective October 1, 2021: Rates for all services provided by a DSW in the Children’s Choice, New Opportunities, Residential Options and Supports Waivers will be increased by $2.50 per hour, and The minimum hourly wage floor paid to DSWs shall be $9.00 per hour. LDH Issues Emergency Rules Regarding ODD Waiver Rate Increase and DSW Wage Floor The Louisiana Parent Training and Information Center (LaPTIC) is a program of Families Helping Families of GNO and a grant from the US Department of Education; Office of Special Education (OSEP) as Louisiana's official and only statewide federally funded Parent Training and Information Center. Any information provided by Families Helping Families of Greater New Orleans (FHF) and/or Louisiana Parent Training and Information Center (LaPTIC), its staff, and/or its volunteers is intended for informational and educational purposes only. Any information expressed or implied is not intended nor should be construed as legal, medical, or other professional advice. FHF and/or LaPTIC does not render legal, medical, or professional advice or recommendations; nor is legal, medical, or other professional advice implied by any information given. Any information provided should not replace consultations with qualified legal, educational, healthcare, or other professionals to meet individual or professional needs. Reference to any program, service, therapy, or treatment option does not imply endorsement by FHF and/or LaPTIC or by its organizational staff/members and should not be construed as such. The Louisiana Department of Education is committed to helping families find the right school or early childhood center for their children, and providing them with helpful information about Louisiana’s schools. The Louisiana School Finder is an interactive, online tool that provides families with: school performance scores and early childhood performance ratings to show how well schools and centers are preparing students for the next grade-level; basic information about schools and centers such as their address, website, hours of operation, and principal or director’s name; and listings of course offerings, clubs, enrichment and extracurricular activities. To find out information about schools and early childhood centers in your area, visit www.louisianaschools.com, and type in a school or center’s name, or your zip code. The Office for Citizens with Developmental Disabilities (OCDD) has four developmental disability home and community-based waivers, New Opportunities Waiver (NOW), Residential Options Waiver (ROW), Supports Waiver, and Children's Choice Waiver have now been operationalized to a tiered waiver system of service delivery, which will allow for individuals to be supported in the most appropriate waiver. To learn more, click here. 700 Hickory Avenue Harahan, LA 70123 504-888-9111 800-766-7736 504-353-2350 fax info@fhfofgno.org fhfofgno.org