• Community Calendar
• Online Resources
• In the News
• That's Entertainment!
  

Readers, don't forget! We have created a list of over 80 newsletters for you to select personally that are disability-related. We manage this list so that you can access information specifically of interest to you! The FSN newsletters are great but we just cannot include all of the information that we receive, so please take advantage of this list! Sign up for the newsletters at www.delicious.com/familysupportnetwork.

Community Calendar

• Feb. 8 & 22
• March 8 & 22
• April 12 & 26
• May 10 & 24

Assistive Technology

• Need Assistive Technology (AT) but your insurance is balking? Here is a great resource: www.iltech.org/persistence.asp
• Assistive Technology (AT) for Kids with Learning Disabilities, an article from LD OnLine, introduces parents to the role of Assistive Technology (AT) in helping children with learning disabilities experience success in school, in recreation and, eventually, at work. It includes information about how to select AT tools that are reliable and tailored to children's individual needs, abilities and experience.

• Evidence-Based Practice and Autism in the Schools: Educator Manual outlines relevant topics, including the current state of research findings, professional judgment and data-based clinical decision making, values and preferences of families, and capacity building. Each chapter sets a course for advancing the efforts of school systems to engage in evidence-based practice for their students on the autism spectrum.
• The website for the Texas Council on Autism has been updated: www.texasautismcouncil.org
• The National Association of School Psychologists provides basic facts about Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and effective intervention strategies.
• Autism in the Criminal Justice System, a 28-minute video, was produced for use by the University of North Carolina School of Government and other legal organizations in consultation with UNC Division TEACCH to develop continuing legal education training regarding the identification, safety, and needs of those with autism in their communities.

• Disaster Alternate Care Facility Selection Tool | A public health emergency can strain the capacity of hospitals and other traditional venues for medical services. In such emergencies, it may be necessary to select alternate facilities for providing medical care. This new computer tool will help institutions and communities select alternate care facilities and determine which patients to send to them.
• Physician-Assisted Suicide: A Perspective from Advocates for People with Disabilities | Although public opinion in the United States on physician-assisted suicide is evenly divided, about half of states have either defeated bills to legalize assisted suicide or have passed laws explicitly banning it and only two states, (Oregon and Washington) have legalized it. In this environment, examines the issues related to assisted suicide and disability, the legal considerations and the Oregon and Washington experiences.
• Medicaid Home and Community-Based Service Programs: Data Update  | This report presents a summary of the main trends to emerge from the latest (2006) expenditures and participant data for the three main Medicaid HCBS programs: (1) optional 1915(c) HCBS waivers, (2) the mandatory home health benefit, and (3) the optional state plan personal care services benefit. It also presents findings on eligibility criteria, provider, service and waiting lists for all three programs, as well as provider reimbursement rates for the home health benefit and the personal care services benefit in 2008.

• A local parent shares this resource...It is the Disabled Children’s Relief Fund and she has received grants for $1,000 each time, for two years in a row (even though they mention much smaller grants on their website). The fund is intended to cover items that insurance will not pay for, or for children that do not have insurance. For such things as: wheelchairs, orthopedic braces, walkers, lifts, hearing aids, eyeglasses, medical equipment, physical therapy, and surgery. Blind, Deaf, Amputees, and children with Cerebral Palsy, Muscular Dystrophy, Spastic Quadriplegia, Encephalitis, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Spina Bifida, Down's Syndrome, and other disabilities receive assistance. DCRF focuses special attention on helping children throughout the U.S. that do not have adequate health insurance, especially the physically challenged. It looks like the applications for grants are only accepted from April–September each year.
• America’s Children: Key National Indicators of Well-Being, 2009 | This annual report is a compendium of statistics from 22 Federal agencies that provides the latest available data about the well-being of children in the United States. It presents background data and highlights 40 key indicators of children’s well-being, including children’s family and social environment, economic circumstances, physical environment and safety, health, behavior, and education.
• Using Growth for Accountability: Considerations for Students with Disabilities | This Policy Directions issue provides considerations and recommendations on growth models for students with disabilities. Published by the Institute's National Center on Educational Outcomes (NCEO).
• Patterns in the Identification of and Outcomes for Children and Youth With Disabilities | This study utilizes existing data collected by the U.S. Department of Education and other federal agencies to provide a national description of identification patterns across time and comparisons of the outcomes for children and youth with disabilities with outcomes of samples including their nondisabled peers. Released by the National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, the purpose of the report is to provide background context for studies of program implementation and effectiveness occurring under the National Assessment of IDEA.
• Working Together: A Parent’s Guide to Parent and Professional Partnership and Communication Within Special Education | This guide from PACER provides practical ideas for parents of children with disabilities to improve their interaction with school staff and become more effective advocates for their child.

• Check out the National Park Service Accessibility Guides.
• Download "Sexuality & Developmental Disabilities Across the Lifespan." Staff from the Florida Center for Inclusive Communities collaborated with the Florida Developmental Disabilities Council and University of Albany, Center of Intellectual Disabilities to create an easy-to-use free workbook for families and educators of individuals with developmental disabilities.
• Workforce Infrastructure in Support of People with Disabilities: Matching Human Resources to Service Needs | The National Council on Disability (NCD) released a report titled Workforce Infrastructure in Support of People with Disabilities: Matching Human Resources to Service Needs, calling for policymakers at all levels of government to proactively address current shortages and examine how labor market changes are driving both current and future supply.
• The Impact of Broadband on People with Disabilities | The U.S. Chamber of Commerce today released this paper as part of its series of studies detailing the benefits of broadband technology. The paper also offers guidance to policymakers as they examine broadband issues, including how to craft a national broadband plan and how to implement the broadband-related provisions in this year’s economic stimulus bill.
• Equal Access: Universal Design of Your Project | This annually-updated publication discusses how to make facilities, information and activities accessible and usable to all. Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 mandate that no otherwise qualified person with a disability shall, solely by reason of his or her disability, be excluded from the participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination in public programs.
• The State of Housing in America in the 21st Century: A Disability Perspective | The National Council on Disability (NCD) has released a report entitled The State of Housing in America in the 21st Century: A Disability Perspective. The report provides recommendations to improve housing opportunities for people with disabilities. The research contained in this report presents a comprehensive overview of the state of housing in the twenty-first century, and answers important questions about the current housing needs and options for people with disabilities living in the United States. 

• Think College Searchable Literature Database Now Online | This database consists of annotated listings of books, journal articles, and other publications related to the topic of postsecondary education and people with intellectual/developmental disabilities.
• Best Journey to Adult Life for Youth with Disabilities: An Evidence-based Model and Best Practice Guidelines for the Transition to Adulthood | Released by CanChild, a center for childhood disability research, this is a report of five years of work by a research team to identify best practices for the transition to adulthood for youth with disabilities. Best practice guidelines were written using the words of youth, parents, community members, service providers, educators, and researchers in Ontario, Canada.

Spanish-Language

• The Brazos Valley NAMI is offering a Family to Family course in Spanish! Contact Karen at kgarbe@bvcaa.org for more info.
• IRIS has new Spanish-language resources at http://iris.peabody.vanderbilt.edu. 

Texas Governor's Committee on People with Disabilities Artist Search
We would like to see if you can help us with outreach to artists with disabilities in Texas. Each year, during National Disability Employment Awareness Month in October, the Texas Governor's Committee on People with Disabilities takes the opportunity to recognize the efforts of employers to hire and retain employees with disabilities. In conjunction with that promotion and the awards ceremony, the Committee also spotlights the Texas NDEAM Poster, which is distributed to more than 2,000 businesses throughout the state. Each year, the artwork for the poster features the original art of a Texan with disabilities.

This year, we are asking for your help in getting the word out to artists throughout the State of Texas. There is no entry fee, but the artist who is chosen must agree to donate the original art to the  If you know of local artists in your community who might be interested in a submission, will you please ask them to contact me for the Submissions Guidelines and Entry Form? Those are not up on our website yet, but will be soon.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Jo Virgil at jo.virgil@governor.state.tx.us. Thank you for your help and for supporting artists with disabilities.

That's Entertainment!

TEMPLE GRANDIN - The Movie
HBO debuts their long-awaited movie, Temple Grandin 
February 6, 2010 at 8:00 pm
Claire Danes stars in the title role of this HBO Films presentation of a Ruby Films/Gerson Saines production, based on the true story of the best-selling author, animal scientist and autism advocate, whose own autism has afforded her uncanny powers of observation. Directed by Mick Jackson. A must see!