What's New?
- Help Pass the ABLE Act in this Congress!
- The National Down Syndrome Society has endorsed the Achieving a Better Life Experience Act (ABLE) of 2009 (S. 493/H.R. 1205). The ABLE Act will give individuals with disabilities and their families the ability to save for their child's future just like every other American family, and help people with disabilities live full, productive lives in their communities. The ABLE Act will allow individuals with disabilities to create a disability savings accounts or 'ABLE Accounts' that would accrue interest tax-free. The account could fund a variety of essential expenses for the individual, including medical and dental care, education, community based supports, employment training, assistive technology, housing, and transportation.
The time to pass this bill is now- Please contact your Representatives to encourage them to convene a hearing and vote on the ABLE Act today! Please vist this link to find out how easy it is to lend your support and help pass this act.
- Seminar on Chapter 14 for Families
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The Special Education regulations in Pennsylvania for school districts are found under the 22 PA Code, Chapter 14 provides regulatory guidance to ensure compliance with the federal law with regard to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 2004, and its regulations. A special training session hosted by Vision for Equality, presented by the Arc of PA is designed to provide families with information about their rights for their child who receive special education services. The training will take place August 19, 2010, from 11:00 AM to 1:30 PM at Vision For Equality, 718 Arch Street, 6th floor North, Philadelphia, Pa. 19106. Please call Call Ana Pacheco at 215-923-3349 or email her at apacheco@visionforequality.org. For more information on the training session, please download a flyer here. To learn more about what Chapter 14 means to you and your child please visit the PaTTAN website's page on Chapter 14 .
- Off to College
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Congratulations to the Jackie, the daughter of our outgoing treasurer Carol Csaniz, who was recently accepted to Temple University. Jackie is enrolling in Temple's Academy for Adult Learning program and will be attending this fall. To learn more about this wonderful opportunity, please vist Temple University's Adult Learning program's website.
- The Arc of PA Hires “Include Me From The Start” Director
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The Arc of Pennsylvania announced today that Rita Cheskiewicz, of Dallas, Pennsylvania, will join its team to serve as the Director of its new education inclusion initiative, "Include Me From The Start" IMFTS).
The IMFTS will provide intensive training and technical assistance to 30 school districts statewide
to ensure that about 150 children entering either kindergarten or first grade receive their
education in general education classrooms in their neighborhood schools. Federal law requires that
students with disabilities be educated in the least restrictive environment. Pennsylvania is ranked
39th in the nation when it comes to how well it includes students with disabilities in general
education classrooms with their peers without disabilities. The objectives of the IMFTS are to 1)
include the children early and make it less likely they will be segregated throughout their
school-age years, and 2) help build inclusion capacity within the students’ school districts. While
administered independently by The Arc of PA, IMFTS will be funded by the PA Department of Education
(PDE). The Arc of PA was selected by PDE in late 2009 to administer the project.
Cheskiewicz comes to The Arc with extensive personal and professional experience working with
educators, school administrators, and families to improve education outcomes for students with
disabilities. As a parent of a child with an intellectual disability and autism, Cheskiewicz has
worked with her school district to make sure her son is fully included in general education
classrooms. She is also the founder and current President of Time Counts, Inc., a non-profit
dedicated to improving literacy in students with significant disabilities. As Vice Chair of the
Local Right to Education Task Force in Luzerne/Wyoming Counties for the past 10 years, Cheskiewicz
has worked with various constituencies and stakeholders to make sure schools comply with federal and
state special education laws. Her experience also includes participating in numerous peer
monitoring teams for the state Bureau of Special Education’s Compliance Monitoring System since
2005.
“The Arc of PA is pleased to have Rita Cheskiewicz join its team”, said Steve Suroviec, Executive
Director of The Arc of Pennsylvania. “Rita brings a wealth of real-world experiences to the
position, having demonstrated that students with significant disabilities can and should be included
in general education classrooms with their peers without disabilities. We’re looking forward to
having her make that a reality for many more students across the state”, Suroviec concluded.
Rita Cheskiewicz is a former healthcare executive who holds a master’s degree in education from Penn
State University and a bachelor of art degree in psychology from King’s College in Wilkes Barre,
PA. She is also certified rehabilitation counselor.
Stephen H. Suroviec, Executive Director, The Arc of PA
Suite 8 Executive House, 101 S. 2nd St., Harrisburg, PA, 17101
717-234-2621 Fax: 234-7615
www.thearcpa.org
- Pledge to Show Respect to Everyone
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On March 3, 2010, Best Buddies, Special Olympics and supporters from across the world will unite in support of a grass roots movement challenging the use of the R-word, an outdated word that must be recognized for its hurtful impact on people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Spread the Word to End the Word awareness day will engage schools, organizations and communities by raising the consciousness of society about the dehumanizing and hurtful effects of the R-word and encouraging everyone to stop using this word by signing our pledge and encouraging their friends to do the same.
Please help us achieve our goal of 100,000 pledges by visiting www.r-word.org and taking the pledge today. You can also show your support by purchasing merchandise at the new www.r-wordstore.com.
Our language frames how we think about others. Help eliminate the use of the R-word in everyday speech.
SPREAD THE WORD TO END THE WORD
03.03.10
www.r-word.org
- Ongoing
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Elwyn Genetic Services is pleased to announce we are now offering
Sibshops. Sibshops are workshops created for the siblings of children with
special needs. Sibshops offers a lively mixture of games, discussion, and
guest speakers. Sibshops are open to all siblings of children with special
needs ages 8 through 12 years of age. Siblings with special needs do not need
to be enrolled in an Elwyn program or have a genetic diagnosis. If you have
any questions, please feel free to contact Mary Delany at 610-891-2349 or
email mary_delany@elwyn.org. Download a PDF brochure here.
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Upcoming Events
- Summer Picnic
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Save the Date! Our annual Summer Picnic will be held August 26th at the Willows. Check back soon for more information.
- Professional of the Year Award
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This year at our annual Ice Cream Social, we awarded both our Professional of the Year Award and our Outstanding Professional awards to two very deserving teachers serving our children and our community. Please take a few minutes to read the full story about these two professionals and see the difference they have made. Click here to view the entire story.
