Past Spotlights

From a sensory integrative perspective, learning occurs when a person receives accurate sensory information, processes it, and uses it to organize behaviors. In some instances, the system does not function as it should, and the individual does not do a good job with noticing input, sorting it, prioritizing it, or responding appropriately. When children receive inaccurate or unreliable sensory input, their ability to process the information and create responses is disrupted (Dunn, 1991). Poor sensory integration can lead to problems with attention, motor control, activity level or ability to experience, learn, and interact with the environment and others. Deficits can impact behaviors in many ways and must be inferred from observing a child’s behavior and performance. In such cases, if the deficiencies are severe, there may be what is called Dysfunction of Sensory Integration (DSI), also known as Sensory Processing Disorder, (SPD). Children who experience DSI demonstrate a wide range of symptoms, which are often misinterpreted as misbehavior.

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Have you ever stopped to think how much progress humans have made over the past 100 years? In 1903 Orville Wright piloted the first powered airplane 20 feet in the air for 12 seconds! Now we board a 747 and can be anywhere in the world in a matter of hours. In 1908 Henry Ford introduced the Model T, selling 10,000 the first year. Now Ford sells roughly 300,000 cars a month in the United States alone.

Along with the advancements in transportation and technology, the disability rights movement has made great progress. However, the struggle to achieve independence, equality, and inclusion are ongoing. It takes all of us working together to create change!

Learn more about how you can Create Change in your community!

Read more about the history of the Disability Rights Movement by visiting the Smithsonian National Museum of American History's online exhibit.

The Maryland Technology Assistance Program provides numerous services, including the Assistive Technology Guaranteed Loan Program, established through legislation, which enables people who might ordinarily be denied under a bank's stringent lending criteria to get a loan and to get it significantly below the current lending rate. This program has allowed many individuals to live more productive and fulfilling lives.

When Karenna and Ken Jones two-year-old son, Kenny, fell into a swimming pool and nearly drowned, their lives changed forever. Kenny spent a year in hospitals in Baltimore, 130 miles from his Salisbury home. His parents watched their finances crumble as they missed work to stay by his side. The couple wanted to bring their son home, but needed to build an accessible addition on their house to accommodate Kenny and the round-the-clock nurses he required. Given the recent damage to their credit, however, no lender would consider giving them financing, until they heard about the Assistive Technology Guaranteed Loan Program. Their loan was approved, they built the addition, and Kenny was able to return home. Several years later, when Kenny had grown too heavy to lift in and out of the family car, the Jones family applied for and received another loan to buy a van with a wheelchair lift. Having access to these loans brought this family back together again.

Mike Bullis has also benefited greatly from the program. Mr. Bullis is a business man who happens to be blind. Through his job with Blind Industries and Services of Maryland, Mr. Bullis travels frequently. He needed technology to help him find his way in unfamiliar cities and to gain access to notes and financial data while he's on the road. He couldn't afford a global positioning system and an upgraded BrailleNote (a PDA for people who are blind). "The truth is, technology is expensive," he says. Mr. Bullis turned to the Assistive Technology Guaranteed Loan Program, which gave him the financing he needed.

To learn more about this program go to www.mdtap.org, or contact Tony Rice or Lori Markland by phone at (800) 832-4827.

IDEA 2004 is finally here! On December 3, 2004, President Bush signed into law the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004. Referred to as "IDEA 2004," this new statute is the preeminent law governing the U. S. Special Education system designed to preserve the very basic right to a Free and Appropriate Education (FAPE) for students with special education.

As a parent of a child with a disability, self-advocate or professional working with preschool or school-aged children with disabilities, you'll need to be aware of the recent changes in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act that go into effect this summer.

IDEA 2004 Online Resources
Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates
Comparison of H.R. 1350 (IDEA 2004) and IDEA '97
Council for Exceptional Children
Summary of Significant Issues
The Center for the Study and Advancement of Disability Policy
A User's Guide to the 2004 IDEA Reauthorization (P.L. 108-446 and the Conference Report), Robert Silverstein, Director
Congressional Research Service analysis of Changes made by PL 108-446
Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities
IDEA Partnership
House Committee on the Workforce and Education Guide to Frequently Asked Questions
National Association of State Director of Special Education
National Coalition of Parent Centers
NICHCY
National Dissemination Center for Children with Disaabilities
WrightsLaw

In Prince George’s County "the philosophy of inclusion is woven throughout our parks and recreation programs, and is designed to encourage and provide opportunities for individuals with disabilities to participate with their non-disabled peers, friends, and family members. Services include adapted equipment, large print/Braille, sign language interpreters, assistive listening devices, audio description, staff consultations, as well as inclusion support staff and volunteers. Numerous and continuous staff trainings are provided to all Department staff on a wide array of topics including disability characteristics, disability etiquette, and the ADA. The Department has been in the forefront of the inclusion movement on both the national and local levels. The next time you come to one of our facilities or programs, look around. Take note of the parking lot curb cuts, how the access to sidewalks and buildings and the movement within a facility is made easier by design, and if an accommodation has been made for someone in a program so they can more fully participate…this is part of our mission of inclusion for all. We have Something for Everyone!" To read the full article click here. To go to the Department of Parks and Recreation for Prince George's County click here.

Way to go PG County! To find out what is offered in your area, check out our Recreation Page.

Autism is a lifelong developmental disability with symptoms typically appearing during the first three years of life

Autism Spectrum Disorders are neurobiologically-based and encompass a wide range of disabilities that affect communication, social skills, and behavior.

There has been a 1,500 percent increase in the number of Maryland public school children found to have autism over the past ten years: 260 in 1993, 4,084 in 2003.

Research indicates that children with Autism Spectrum Disorders benefit from intensive early intervention.

Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders want to have friends and fully participate in their communities. They need your support and understanding to do so.

The Second Annual Southern Maryland Autism Conference

Cumberland Tri-State Walk F.A.R. for NAAR

Successful Inclusion Practices for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

Frederick County ASA Monthly Meeting

Autism Through a Sister's Eyes: A Young Girl's View of her Brother,s Autism, a book signing and reading by Eve Band, PhD. and Emily Hecht

Dr. Pamela Wolfberg on Integrated Playgroups

FOCAS - Autism Awareness Month Open House and Special Activities

Howard County Autism Society Monthly Meeting

Beyond Access

4th Annual National Capital Area Walk F.A.R. for NAAR

Dr. Paula Kluth on Access To Academics


Edward Willard Project Co-director

Starting on July 1, 2005 The Maryland Developmental Disabilities Administration (DDA) will offer citizens with developmental disabilities and their families greater control over their supports and services under a new Medicaid waiver, called New Directions. "My Life: Going FAR: Freedom, Authority & Responsibility" is funded through a grant from the Maryland Developmental Disabilities Council to provide technical assistance to individuals and families enrolling in this MD New Directions waiver.

Project Co-director, Edward Willard says, "Being somebody with a disability I can imagine your questions. What does this waiver mean to my family and me? What will it pay for? The answers are in many ways simple: make a plan, put the items in your individual budget and if approved by DDA, you direct the purchasing of supports and services. Edward assures people: "as a person myself who requires a lot of support assistance, is in the process of building my own home, and self-directs my services, I understand and encourage you to fully explore the process before considering self-direction. Remember, though, this waiver does give you freedom and authority, and comes with a lot of responsibilities too."

To learn more about the Waiver and upcoming training opportunities visit www.tash.org/mdnewdirections

Family NET Works is proud to be sponsoring "Celebrating All Of Us", a joint project created by an elementary special educator, a physical therapist and a parent of a child who has Down syndrome. The project's goal is to compile literature-based lesson plans and other resources for educators, therapy providers and parents to use in an effort to enhance the inclusion of young children with disabilities in their neighborhood schools and communities through similarities awareness. Our goal is to ensure that classrooms, schools, teachers, communities, parents and children are, indeed, celebrating all of us!

Help spread the word!
The new Youth Empowerment Alliance is offering an
"Inclusion Grant Opportunity"

If you know of a youth group, leadership program, or recreation center in Prince George's County, Harford County or Baltimore City that you or your teen would like to be more involved with, than tell them about this grant opportunity! Help them get the training, resources, or funding they need to increase their capacity to include youth or young adults with developmental disabilities. They won't know about this opportunity unless you tell them!

Download the Request for Proposals here and share it!
Learn more about the Youth Empowerment Alliance by clicking here!

December 6-10, 2004

A Letter to Rene

All Inclusive Issue #1

All Inclusive Issue #2

A Blueprint for Maryland

Elements of Inclusion

Functional Life Skills

Historical and Legal Perspectives

Myths and Facts about Inclusion

Collaborative Teams

National Inclusive Schools Week provides an opportunity for schools across the nation to celebrate the diverse abilities of all students. In addition, it signals the importance of providing equal opportunities for children with disabilities. Inclusive Schools are characterized as those that:

Make every student feel welcome and provide the supports they need to learn;

Embrace the understanding that every student is unique, and therefore, learns differently;

Understand that all children learn better if teaching is tailored to their abilities and interests;

Collaborate with families, and;

Hold high expectations for student success

For more information about inclusion go to www.mcie.org

Fast forward three years, and a move to Baltimore, where her extended family lives. Lily starts in the Baltimore County Public Schools at the tender age of three. After receiving services through the Infants and Toddlers program she is walking, talking a blue streak, and is a social butterfly. Lily loved school from the very beginning, and has benefited greatly from inclusion in regular education classes, as well as some smaller special education classes.

Lily is currently included in her elementary school for most of the day in regular education classes. She has enjoyed a great deal of success and has many friends. Parents and teachers alike have often said how much everyone loves Lily. Lily is very social and loves having friends to her home to play. Lily has been included in a regular summer camp for the last four years called Camp Notre Dame. There is a very good counselor to camper ratio there, and she has been very successful at this camp. She goes there for six weeks, and then goes to a Nature Camp for one week.

Lily has attended Sunday School with her peers at St. Joseph's Catholic Church in Cockeysville, Maryland. She made her First Holy Communion with her peers in a very large ceremony, and looked like an angel in her white dress and veil. She loves to go to Mass and to the Children's Liturgy with the other youngsters. Everyone smiles at Lily in church, and many people have told us how they look forward to seeing her at Mass. She truly touches everyone she comes in contact with.

Lily and I intend for her to be included in regular education through Middle School, High School, and I predict Community College, and finally independent living. For Lily and I, inclusion in every aspect of her life has been the way to go. It has not always been the easiest way for either of us, as there are hurdles at times, but it has been worth it. I have known since the day Lily was born that she is indeed a fighter.

At the age of four Lily was chosen to be in a national calendar featuring children who have Down syndrome. Lily represented Maryland and the Mid-Atlantic region. We traveled to Indianapolis for a few days for the photo shoot, and to spend time with the other children and parents from around the country. It was a really wonderful experience for all of us. The Down Right Beautiful Calendar was released in 1996, and it was absolutely beautiful. Each and every child looked so spectacular, and we were thrilled with Lily's photograph. Her photo was a stunning visual depiction of an angel on the outside as well as the inside. Afterward, Lily was signed for a two year contract to model for an agency specializing in children with special needs. Lily quickly booked jobs with Toys 'R Us, and we were taking the train to New York City for the photo shoots. She was a natural, and loved the fun of being in front of the camera. She appeared in a number of print advertisements for Toys 'R Us along with typically developing peers. The experience of modeling for my daughter was great for her self esteem, and the larger purpose of course, to show inclusion of children with disabilities where they should be, everywhere in life.

Now Lily's self-advocacy would take on an even larger scope, and would get the message out to millions of people. First Lily was featured in a segment on Channel 2 news, next came an article in the Baltimore sun which was picked up by the Associated Press and distributed in papers across the country! The Sun article led to a call from CBS Television who read the article on the internet. They were interested in featuring Lily in a story they were working on. They featured Lily on "48 Hours" in a segment with Chris Burke, the actor with Down syndrome who was in the television show "Life Goes On". The segment was aptly named "role models". Through her modeling, Lily has reached millions of people showing the strengths and abilities of individuals who have a disability.

Lily is also a role model on the sports playing fields. She has played Soccer and Softball with the Cockeysville Recreation Council for the last four years. She just started the new soccer season. She plays on a team with her typically developing peers, and has always been the only child with a disability. I am a Recreational Therapist by profession, and have been for twenty three years, long before Lily was born. I have always known that opportunities were out there for her. I know how important it is to have healthy leisure skills, and to develop lifelong interests and hobbies, and I wanted this for Lily. We have been fortunate; Lily has had wonderful coaches who have supported her inclusion in sports. Her peers have also been supportive and helpful to her. She is an accepted and cherished member of the team, and I believe they have benefited from this experience as much as Lily has. It is so important to teach youngsters about acceptance of everyone in life, and they see that individuals who have a disability are more like them than different. Her teammates say things like "Lily is a really good hitter in softball". Her softball coach even commented this past season that "Lily is my best hitter".