Stephen Kuusisto Poet and Author, University Professor, Director of Interdisciplinary Programs and Outreach Burton Blatt Institute, College of Law
Certificate of Participation
**Must be: registered; attendance verified for the entire webcast (live or archive); and Post Test Evaluation completed to receive Certificate of Participation for the webcast. Attendance will be verified.
Description
“If the history of disability teaches us anything, it’s that disability life stands for freedom and not oppression.”
Join University Professor Stephen Kuusisto of the Syracuse University Burton Blatt Institute (BBI), and a panel of faculty, staff and students for an engaging discussion of disability history and disability life in celebration of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities.
Hosted by: Office of Interdisciplinary Programs and Outreach (OIPO) and the Southeast ADA Center in the Burton Blatt Institute at Syracuse University with the support of the Center on Disability and Inclusion (CDI), Academic Affairs, Atrocity Studies, the Disability Cultural Center (DCC), the Center for Disability Resources (CDR), the Office of Diversity and Inclusion (ODI), and Syracuse University Libraries.
DISCLAIMER
The opinions expressed in this recording are those of the presenter. They may not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Southeast ADA Center or the Burton Blatt Institute. The Southeast ADA Center is funded by the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research, Grant #90DPAD0005-01-00.
**Must be: registered; attendance verified for the webinar (live or archive); and Post Test with Evaluation completed to receive Certificate of Participation for the webinar. Attendance will be verified.
Description
“If you have come here to help me, you are wasting your time. But if you have come because your liberation is bound up with mine, then let us work together.” – Lilla Watson
These words were used by Lilla, Aboriginal Elder and Activist to set out a challenge for people working towards equity and human rights. For us, we use them as a reminder that social services are best done when no one is left behind—when we center the most vulnerable among us and bloom outward. Too often people with disabilities and LGBTQIA+ individuals are left out of important conversations— diversity, inclusion, equal access, and discrimination to name a few—even though we are deeply impacted by these topics on a daily basis.
We can all begin to heal as a community by embracing and honoring our differences. Advocacy can help us develop compassion for ourselves and others. Listening deeply and taking action can give us true strength. Our collective efforts will enable us to better understand how our lives are shaped by our lived experiences, to raise our awareness of experiences outside our own, and see the connections between our lives and those of others.
In this presentation we will seek to:
Define the terminology of microaggression, intersectionality, intersectional microaggressions, and reclamation by highlighting experiences of Disabled, Trans, and Queer people.
Discuss the presenter’s firsthand lived experiences as working professionals and share experiences of other Disabled, Neurodivergent, Transgender, BIPOC, and Queer folks.
Describe how support personnel can begin to raise awareness and advocate for disability, neurodiversity, AND LGBTQIA+ inclusion within their employment support processes.
**Must be: registered; attendance verified for each webinar (live or archive); and Post Test with Evaluation completed to receive Certificate of Participation for the webinar. Attendance will be verified.
NOTE: You do not have to attend all three webinars to receive credit.
Credit for Certified Employment Support Professional™ (CESP)
This webinar has been approved for 1.5 hours continuing education (CE) credit for Certified Employment Support Professional™ (CESP). You will be responsible for submitting your certificate of participation for the webinar to APSE.
Webinar 1 of 3: Disability Disclosure: From Application to Employment
March 30, 2022 (1.5 hours)
Description
Disclosing a disability may be a consideration when applying for a job or after you are hired. Making the decision to disclose can be overwhelming. So when do you disclose? How do you disclose? Under the ADA you can request an accommodation for any employment related activity. According to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) an employee must disclose their disability if they need an adjustment or change at work. This session will explain how and when to disclose a disability as well as employer requests for documentation. Once disclosure has been made the interactive process to investigate accommodations should begin. This session will be followed up on April 27, 2022 with a discussion on the interactive process.
Webinar 2 of 3: The Interactive Process: The Foundation for Receiving an Effective Accommodation
April 27, 2022 (1.5 hours)
Description
In the interactive process the applicant or employee and employer each share information about the nature of the disability and the limitations that may affect the ability to perform the essential job duties. This discussion is the foundation of compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The interactive process is required and simply means the employee with a disability and the employer work together to determine an accommodation that is effective for the employee. This session will look at best practices when engaging in discussion to identify and implement accommodations.
Webinar 3 of 3: Employment: COVID Long Haulers and ADA
May 25, 2022 (1.5 hours)
Description
According to the Job Accommodation Network (JAN) and the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), employers across the United States are receiving accommodation requests from employees who currently have COVID-19 or who have recovered from COVID-19 and have long-term effects. This session will explore possible residual effects of having COVID, whether COVID long haulers meet the ADA definition of disability and accommodations that may enable COVID long haulers to return to work.
Archive Recording and Certificate
Presenter Change: Barry Whaley, Southeast ADA Center Project Director, presented due to illness of Rebecca Williams.
Webinar: Disability in a COVID World: Employment, Communications, Physical Spaces and Mental Health
Date: December 3, 2020
Description
In celebration of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPD or IDPwD) held each year around the world on December 3, a panel of diverse presenters will discuss disability in a COVID world with a focus on employment, communications, physical spaces and mental health.
This webinar is a collaboration of the Consulate General of Canada in Atlanta, Southeast ADA Center and Burton Blatt Institute of Syracuse University.
Webinar: Disability in a COVID World: Employment, Communications, Physical Spaces and Mental Health
Date: December 3, 2020
Description
In celebration of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPD or IDPwD) held each year around the world on December 3, a panel of diverse presenters will discuss disability in a COVID world with a focus on employment, communications, physical spaces and mental health.
This webinar is a collaboration of the Consulate General of Canada in Atlanta, Southeast ADA Center and Burton Blatt Institute of Syracuse University.
“We believe that everyone has abilities to contribute and that their work should be recognized and rewarded with fair pay, creating inclusive workplaces. We believe that employment enriches and adds meaning to every life, and that workplaces and communities are enhanced when they embrace differences.”
This eight-part webinar series will build awareness of Employment First. The series will feature a variety of topics for supported employment providers, vocational rehabilitation professionals, self-advocates, and families. Each webinar will embrace APSE’s vision, mission and values, and provide tools and resources that can be used to advance equal employment opportunities for people with disabilities.
Vision: All people with disabilities have competitive employment in an inclusive workforce.
Mission: To advance employment equity for people with disabilities.
Values: We believe everyone can and should work, and have the dignity of determining their career path.
Part 4: Seeing Community and Building Connections with an Employment Lens
Presenters
Emily Harris, WISE – Program Manager
Debbie Moore, WISE – Senior Program Manager/Rotary Partners for Work Coordinator
Description
This webinar will explore the value of building community relationships and networking with an employment lens. From your neighbor to your grocer, family members to airplane seat mates, local community groups to business meetups- job leads are everywhere!
Part 5: The Truth About Employment and Social Security Disability Benefits
Presenter
Carolyn Wheeler, Human Development Institute at the University of Kentucky – Project Director
Description
Advancing equal employment opportunities and creating inclusive workplaces will require people with disabilities, employment service professionals, and family members to take the initiative to understand the truth about the impact of income on Social Security Disability benefits and other means-tested programs. Too many times there is an unwillingness on the part of all parties involved to make the effort to get the facts and instead make decisions based on assumptions, ignorance and fear. This webinar will provide a an overview of the two programs, SSI (Supplemental Security Income) and SSDI (Social Security Disability Insurance), the impact of income on both benefits as well as a guide to the resources available on-line to anyone who is willing to take the time and make the effort to understand this very important matter.
Part 6: “Building Intentional Culture” – How to foster a welcoming workplace
Presenters
Cesilee Coulson – Executive Director, WISE
Jaimie Laitinen – TA and Training Director, WISE
Morgan Cain – Operations and Communications Coordinator, WISE
Description
When unhealthy organizational norms are not addressed, they can inhibit the effective recruitment and retention of a diverse team. Having a team with different experiences and narratives can broaden an organization’s perspective and allow them to support a wider range of individuals, families, and businesses.
Individuals at all levels of an organization can affect their organization’s culture by the ways in which they interact with their teams. In this webinar, participants will be given tools to examine and reflect upon their own organizational culture. We will also discuss strategies to address unhealthy norms, as well as ways to intentionally create new and healthy ones.
Part 7: Sharing Your Story with Confidence in the Workplace
Presenter
Joel Slack – President, Slack Consulting, LLC & Founder, RESPECT Institute of Georgia
Description
Joel Slack will provide an overview of the RESPECT Institute of Georgia, a program designed to help persons with disabilities construct and present their stories of lived experience – so they are able to effectively self-advocate in the workplace. The philosophy of the RESPECT Institute, the training experience, the benefits to the participants and the impact RI stories have on all stakeholders will be presented. One or two RI Graduates will share their stories or share how they were able to utilize the RI experience to disclose a disability or request a special accommodation in the workplace. Finally, Joel will discuss how RI stories can reduce stigma in the workplace.
Parts 8: Large Employer Initiatives and Public Sector Employment
Presenters
Susan Harrell, Assistant Executive Director, Washington Initiative for Supported Employment; Wise
Keri Siekowski, Human Resources/Supported Employment Program Supervisor, Kitsap County
Brian Collins, Senior Manager, Real Estate & Facilities – Microsoft Corporation
Gillian Maguire, Microsoft Supported Employment Program Manager, CBRE
Ryan Farrow, Supported Employment Program Manager, CBRE/Nike Account
Description
Large Employer Hiring initiatives can open the doors to lots of opportunities for supported employment positions, in a variety of departments and with a variety of duties. Join in this webinar to hear from representatives from some large public and private sector employment initiatives, at a variety of stages of development. We will examine:
How these models may differ from other supported employment job development models
How these models addressed potential issues, utilizing strategies that allow for continued successful development
The way in which these employers developed their structure to allow for sustainable development to achieve a scale that makes significant impact
Amazing (and unexpected) ways in which workplaces and the community benefit from large supported employment hiring initiatives.
When you create demand for hiring individuals into supported employment positions by engaging the employer in creating a model appropriate for their culture and environment, it changes the way in which services are engaged to support these efforts, and the benefit of these efforts. This webinar will provide information about the amazing efforts which are taking place, which may impact hiring initiatives in your community as well.
“Increasing Access and Opportunity” was the October 2020 theme for the annual National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM). This year marks the 75th year of NDEAM lead by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP). During 2020 we also celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the 100th anniversary of Vocational Rehabilitation (VR). In recognition of these important milestones, the Southeast ADA Center hosted a FREE four-event Virtual Series: Disability Employment – Looking Back & Moving Forward on each Wednesday in October 2020.
Individuals with disabilities have been disproportionately affected by COVID-19 over the past year and a half. Whether it be through lack of access to important health resources, obstacles to get COVID-19 testing and now the vaccine, as well as some of the long-term effects it can have on individuals with existing medical conditions.
Archives [1 podcast & 3 Webinars]
Podcast: ADA Live! Celebrating 100 Years of Vocational Rehabilitation with RSA Commissioner Mark Schultz
Wednesday, October 7, 2020
Presenters
Guest: Mark Schultz, Commissioner, Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA)
Host: Barry Whaley, Director, Southeast ADA Center
Description
For the past 100 years, Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) under the guidance of the Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) has enabled people with disabilities to overcome barriers to access, maintain, or return to employment. Join RSA Commissioner Schultz in discussing the past, present, and future of Vocational Rehabilitation.
Webinar 1 of 3: Shaping Modern Disability Employment Policy through the Lens of Past Veterans’ Experience
Wednesday, October 14, 2020
Presenters
Larry Logue, Senior Fellow at Burton Blatt Institute (BBI) at Syracuse University and former Professor of History at Mississippi College
Peter Blanck Ph.D., J.D., University Professor & Chairman Burton Blatt Institute
Description
What can the past tell us about contemporary employment policy for veterans with disabilities? For the past decade, Dr. Larry Logue and BBI Chairman, Dr. Peter Blanck have conducted research on Union army veterans’ experience with disabilities and federal government benefits. Their new book “Race, Ethnicity, and Disability: Veterans and Benefits in Post-Civil War America,” a volume in the Cambridge University Press Disability Law and Policy series investigates veterans’ longevity and African Americans’ treatment in the pension system. Join this webinar to discover the historical and contemporary views of the employment of veterans with disabilities.
Webinar 2 of 3: RRTC Disability Inclusive Employment Policy Center
Wednesday, October 21, 2020
Presenters
Host: Peter Blanck Ph.D., J.D., University Professor & Chairman Burton Blatt Institute
Guest: Michael Morris, J.D. Senior Adviser, Burton Blatt Institute Founder and Senior Strategic Advisor, National Disability Institute
Guest: Meera Adya Senior Researcher Burton Blatt Institute at Syracuse University
Guest: Nicole Maestas, Ph.D. Associate Professor of Health Care Policy at Harvard Medical School
Guest: Doug Kruse Distinguished Professor School of Management and Labor Relations Rutgers University
Guest: Elaine Zundl Research Director Center for Women and Work Rutgers University
Description
The unprecedented health, social, and economic challenges raised by the coronavirus pandemic have greatly affected employees with disabilities. What does the future of U.S. employment policy look like for people with disabilities? Learn about the newly funded Rehabilitation Research and Training Center (RRTC) on Disability Inclusive Employment Policy (DIEP). The National Institute on Disability, Independent Living and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR) provides funding for this new initiative. The Center is formed by a key partnership of Syracuse, Harvard, and Rutgers Universities. This Center also brings together nationally recognized researchers from multiple disciplines, including economics, psychology, law, public policy, business management, and health.
Over five years, the anticipated outcomes of the Center are new evidence-based options for disability employment policy including:
Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) and workforce development professionals will have increased strategies to support job seekers with disabilities and businesses.
Human resource (HR) professionals will have new evidence-based practices to enhance worker retention and quality of work experience.
Employment service providers will have new evidence-based strategies to improve employment, re-engagement and job retention.
People with disabilities will have access to explore new alternative paths to employment and career advancement.
Researchers and students will have new data and evidence to support existing and next-generation research ideas.
Across targeted audiences, there will be a next-generation disability policy framework to advance employment and economic self-sufficiency for working-age adults with disabilities.
For more information on the RRTC Disability Inclusive Employment Policy project, contact Peter Blanck, PhD. J.D, Principal Investigator (pblanck@law.syr.edu).
Webinar 3 of 3: Future Images of the Face of Vocational Rehabilitation
Wednesday, October 28, 2020
Presenters
Host: Allison Flanagan Director, Florida Division of Vocational Rehabilitation President, Council of State Administrators of Vocational Rehabilitation
Guest: Cora McNabb Executive Director, Kentucky Office of Vocational Rehabilitation
Guest: Joe Xavier Director, Department of Rehabilitation (DOR) California Office of Vocational Rehabilitation
Guest: Felicia Johnson Commissioner South Carolina Vocational Rehabilitation Department
Guest: David Doukas Director, Connecticut Bureau of Rehabilitation Services
Description
In a final tribute to National Disability Employment Awareness Month and the first 100 years of Vocational Rehabilitation (VR), a panel of VR innovative leaders will discuss issues around racial equity, service delivery design, employer engagement and reasonable accommodations, technology, transition services and statewide workforce system integration. This webinar will also cover future emerging issues, challenges and trends for public Vocational Rehabilitation.
This informative three-part webinar series – Show Me the Money! – will explore topics including: creating a culture of financial inclusion and access; Money Smart, a financial education tool developed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC); and ABLE accounts. The presenters for this series will include representatives of Regions Bank, the FDIC, and state ABLE programs.
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) has four foundational goals “equality of opportunity, full participation, independent living, and economic self-sufficiency for individuals with disabilities.” In a letter to the “ADA@25: Economic Advancement and Financial Inclusion Summit,” former President George H.W. Bush stated, “Since the passage of the ADA, our country has made progress in ‘assuring equality of opportunity, full participation, Independent living in economic self-sufficiency.’ There remains, however, more work to be done to ensure the financial health and future of individuals living with disabilities.”
The Southeast ADA Center, a project of the Burton Blatt Institute at Syracuse University, is committed to addressing the barriers to economic self-sufficiency and financial inclusion for people with disabilities. Equal opportunity must include: facility and virtual access to banks, credit unions, and other financial institutions; options to build the knowledge and skills necessary to make informed financial decisions; access to financial education and coaching; affordable and accessible financial services and products; inclusion in career pathways; and the ability to save and build assets.
Part 1: Creating a Culture of Financial Inclusion and Access
Description
Regions ADA Manager Kathy Lovell will explain how Regions proactively created a corporate culture that makes individuals with disabilities feel welcome. The key focus is on providing accessible banking products and services. This session will share strategies about how to better serve the disability community by creating a culture of inclusion. A commitment to inclusion and accessibility makes good business sense and is the right thing to do.
Presenter
Kathy V. Lovell, Senior Vice President Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Manager Risk Management Group – Regions
Part 2: Money Smart: A Tool to Foster Greater Economic Inclusion Among Individuals with Disabilities
Description
Financial education fosters financial stability for individuals, families, and entire communities. The more people know about credit and banking services, the more likely they are to increase savings, buy homes, and improve their financial health and well-being. Money Smart is a comprehensive financial education curriculum designed to help individuals outside the financial mainstream enhance their financial skills and create positive banking relationships. This session presents how Money Smart can be used to increase economic inclusion among individuals with disabilities.
Presenters
Elaine M. Hunter, Community Affairs Specialist – Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC)
Thomas E. Stokes, Community Affairs Manager, Division of Depositor and Consumer Protection – Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC)
Part 3: Understanding ABLE Accounts: Advancing Self-Sufficiency for Individuals with Disabilities and Their Families
Description
The Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) Act was signed into law in December 2014. Presenters from three state ABLE programs in the U.S. Southeast Region — Alabama, Tennessee and Kentucky — will discuss the benefits and opportunities of opening an ABLE account. Individuals with disabilities and their friends and families can contribute to an ABLE account that grows tax free and will not impact adversely resource tested public benefits. Join us to learn more about state ABLE programs and the use of funds for qualified disability expenses. Contributing to an ABLE account is making a down payment on freedom and better quality of life experiences.
Presenters
Michael Morris, J.D. Senior Adviser, Burton Blatt Institute at Syracuse University Founder and Senior Strategic Advisor, National Disability Institute
LaKesha Page Director, College Savings and ABLE Tennessee
Joanna Swanson Head of Sales and Education Enable Alabama
Samara Heavrin STABLE Kentucky Director Kentucky State Treasurer Allison Ball
Webinar: ADA Impact on Individuals and the COVID-19 Long Haul
Date: June 9, 2021
Description
The COVID-19 pandemic has changed our world and caused many of us to reassess the way we operate and interact with one another daily, including our daily activities, whether personal or professional, especially for individuals living in the disability community.
Individuals with disabilities have been disproportionately affected by COVID-19 over the past year and a half. Whether it be through lack of access to important health resources, obstacles to get COVID-19 testing and now the vaccine, as well as some of the long-term effects it can have on individuals with existing medical conditions.
This session will share more information on the ADA and how it can help those with disabilities as they are still navigating COVID-19. A vast array of information related to the disability community that includes highlights and obstacles to virtual living, COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and information, and accommodations and assistive technology that can help with carrying out the COVID-19 long haul will be shared.
Join us for an important session that will share information on the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and how it can help those with disabilities as they are still navigating COVID-19. Presenters will share a vast array of information related to the disability community that includes highlights and obstacles to virtual living, COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and information, and accommodations and assistive technology that can help with the COVID-19 long haul.
Speakers
Carolyn Phillips Co-Director, Center for Inclusive Design and Innovation, Georgia Tech
Liz Persaud Program and Outreach Manager, Center for Inclusive Design and Innovation, Georgia Tech
Charles Drum Director, National Center on Research, Knowledge Translation, & Dissemination, American Association on Health and Disability (AAHD)
Danny Housley Assistive Technology Case Manager, Shepherd Center
The quest for social equality for people who have disabilities is a story that begins in the earliest years of the American experience. Marked by both great achievement as well as some of the darkest policies imaginable, the struggle to remove physical, institutional, and attitudinal barriers faced by people who have disabilities is a dynamic story of disappointment and perseverance that continues to today.
This webinar series provides an educational framework for students, social service professionals, family members, and most of all, people who experience disability. We will explore the roots of the disability rights movement and the historical turning points that shape contemporary policy. Dr. Logue’s conversational style and deep subject matter knowledge make for an intriguing and thought-provoking webinar experience.
Join author and educator Dr. Larry Logue as he tells the story of the disability rights movement in a four-part webinar series, “History of Disability Rights”. Dr. Logue takes us on a fascinating journey; exploring the policies, legislation, movements, and personalities that have left their mark on this civil rights movement.
Presenter
Larry Logue, Senior Fellow at Burton Blatt Institute (BBI) at Syracuse University and former Professor of History at Mississippi College
Stephen Kuusisto
