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CCL Newsletter
Issue 5-3: April-June 2009

 

Use the following to help you navigate the page.

CCA Rally | Our Hopes | Proud and Powerful | Senator Stabenow | New CCL Support | Bowl-A-Rama | Our Voices Forum | Leadership Opportunities | Indian Trails Changes | Leadership Seminars | Subscribe

CCL Members Recognized for their Leadership

George Hanley

George as he receives his awardConnections for Community Leadership (CCL) member George Hanley received the Unsung Advocate Award from the Michigan Developmental Disabilities Council (MDDC) at their annual legislative event this past February. The Unsung Advocate Award recognizes a person that demonstrates the spirit of the council’s mission and goals. The award highlights the behind the scenes contributions of someone who has worked tirelessly to improve the lives of people with disabilities.
George Hanley has served as a student representative on Lansing Community College’s (LCC) Special Populations Committee for five years, advocating and addressing physical barriers, policy issues, and various problems affecting students with disabilities. His advocacy efforts have resulted in the resolution of major and minor accommodation issues for countless individuals in the LCC community. He is currently advocating for resolution to significant transportation barriers in the Capital region.

In addition, George recently received a special tribute from State Representative Rick Jones, State Senator, Patricia Birkholz, State Representative Joan Bauer, and Governor Granholm.

Iosco RICC

Iosco RICC with their awardCCL’s partner, the Iosco RICC, received the RICC That Makes a Difference Award from the DDC at the same legislative event in February 2009. This award recognized the RICC members for significantly improving the visibility, influence, and integration of persons with developmental disabilities in their community. The Iosco RICC has been active the past eight to ten years, gradually evolving from a social organization to a systems change and service-oriented RICC. In the past year, the Iosco RICC was involved in Relay for Life, the Oscoda Fourth of July Parade, the Fall Scarecrow Contest (with the theme of voter awareness), a voting forum, multiple letter writing campaigns to their legislators advocating for issues of concern, involvement in the Local Advisory Committee for the local transit, and contribution at the township level to develop universally accessible parks.

Mike Finn

Mike with his award and Lloyd CarrCCL participant Mike Finn, a University of Michigan Honors Psychology and Spanish Language & Literature senior, was recently honored with a Student Mental Health Advocate Award for his tireless work with the student organization Finding Voice. Mike was presented this award by Former U-M Head Football Coach and current Associate Athletic Director, Lloyd Carr, as part of the Depression on College Campuses (DoCC) conference that took place in March.

Community Choice Act Rally

Through a generous donation by an anonymous donor, CCL and MDRC were able to send 20 self-advocates from around the state to a rally and lobby day in Washington, D.C. in support of the Community Choice Act (CCA). The CCA establishes a national program of community-based attendant services and supports for people with disabilities, regardless of age or disability. This bill would allow the dollars to follow the person and allow eligible individuals, or their representatives, to choose where they would receive services and supports. The rally was organized by ADAPT and the Service Employees International Union (SEIU). Following a message from Senator Harkin, the sponsor of the bill, self-advocates met with their federal representatives and senators.

For more information about the Community Choice Act, visit ADAPT's website.

Our Hopes

The Michigan Developmental Disabilities Council wants your input for its next 5-year plan. This is your chance to say what is important to you. Michigan Disability Rights Coalition and United Cerebral Palsy of Michigan will hold regional forums in six locations across the state to gather input and we need you to be there to make this a success. We would like your organization to begin thinking about what issues are most important to your members and then join us at a forum.

What to expect:
* Join in guided conversations around café tables
* Talk with people who care about disability issues
* Tell your stories and make your points
* Talk about issues that are important to you
* Explore the challenges that affect your life
* Share what has worked in your community
* Record your story as you want it recorded

The next forum is in Marquette, Michigan on June 11th. For more information, visit the Our Hopes Website. You can also contact Glenn Ashley at (800) 828-2714/ ashley@ucpmichigan.org or contact Carolyn Lejuste at (800) 760-4600 ext. 321/clejuste@prosynergy.org

Taking Proud and Powerful to Washington, D.C.

This quarter, CCL staff Melinda Haus-Johnson and Theresa Squires took the Proud and Powerful campaign to Washington, D.C. They began by attending the National ADAPT action where they joined approximately 500 disabled activists in fighting for the Community Choice Act. Next, they attended the Community Choice Act rally and spent the afternoon lobbying and meeting with legislators.

The latter part of their trip included a Proud and Powerful training with young adults from Kids As Self Advocates (KASA). In addition, Melinda and Theresa expressed the importance of teaching people about disability pride as well as specific things family members can do to promote disability pride in their children at their presentation at the national Family Voices conference. The feedback was overwhelmingly positive and CCL looks forward to future collaborations with KASA and Family Voices. For more information about Family Voices, visit their website. For more information about KASA visit the KASA website.

Local Leaders Visit Senator Stabenow

By Scott Heinzeman

Laura sits in her wheelchair outside the officeIn cold February, members of ADAPT visited three regional offices of Senator Debbie Stabenow. Ten went to Lansing, five to Detroit, and two to Flint. The coordinated visit commenced shortly after 11am. Each person presented a personally signed letter asking the Senator to meet with ADAPT to discuss the Community Choice Act (CCA). This was prompted by direction from a staff person who recently told us we needed a written request to potentially meet with the Senator. Of course, we’d already made many efforts for almost a year to achieve such a privilege.

Each group then presented the ranking staffer with our demand letter. We each met with staff in office conference rooms mostly explaining CCA. Our demand was for Senator Stabenow to contact Senator Harkin’s office and ask to be an original co-sponsor of CCA when he reintroduces it had the same initial answer. The universal first response from Washington was, “there’s nothing we can do today. It is impossible to commit to supporting legislation we haven’t seen.” Next we asked, could the Senator commit in writing to support the legislation if it’s the same as S.799? “No, this isn’t possible. It’s not how things are done.” Ok then, as Senator Stabenow told us several times last year she’d co-sponsor CCA and didn’t; how do you suggest we get the Senator to do what she said she’d do? We even offered to accept a date to simply meet with the Senator. The response was negative.

After approximately an hour of civil disobedience we each got copies of a fax signed by the Senator pledging to be a CCA co-sponsor. We had gotten what we came for. Thanks Senator Stabenow.

New Support at CCL

Invitation to Join the Leadership Program Coordinators Roundtable

Many of us care about expanding the number of strong leaders with disabilities, young and old, in Michigan. There are many challenges in this work such as: maintaining the commitment of current leaders, riding the currents of the energy demands of this work, identifying and mentoring emerging leaders, and keeping the commitment to the long haul. This is not an easy task. CCL wants to work with a community of practitioners, others who think about and practice the craft of leadership development. We want to find ways to loosely network with each other, to share what we know and don’t know. Our next meeting is July 22nd from 1:30 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. at MDRC. For more information or to join the roundtable, please contact us at (866) 532-2669 or leadership@prosynergy.org.

Annual Bowl-A-Rama a Huge Success

CCL and Michigan Disability Rights Coalition raised over $8,000 for our social justice work on issues including access to housing, community living, and assistive technology, as well as leadership development. Thank you to the more than 150 people who participated in the Second Annual Bowl-A-Rama held Saturday, May 9th at Royal Scot in Lansing, Michigan.
There is still time left for you to donate and help us reach our goal of $10,000 for the event. Visit our Bowl-A-Rama website and select "Donate Now" to make your donation today.

Our Voices Forum

More then 50 people with developmental disabilities from Huron County joined CCL for an unforgettable Informed Communities Informational Forum called Our Voices. The day began with participants creating a self-exploration book. While doing this, participants explored their strengths and weaknesses, discussed what was important to them in their lives, and identified good things in their lives due to their disabilities. This self-exploration book can be used not only to build self-awareness and self-esteem, but participants can also use this book to advocate for their wants and desires when developing their Person Centered Plan (PCP) or their Individualized Education Plan (IEP).

What seemed to be the most exciting part came later in the four hour forum where participants practiced using their voices to stop stigma and discrimination. They broke into small groups and discussed real life scenarios of when they have been treated differently because of their disability. Next, each group performed a role-play of that situation and participants gave feedback on ways each character could respond to the situation differently. This activity helped participants realize the power of their own voice and learn creative ways to use their voices in the face of stigma and discrimination.

What is Informed Communities?

Informed Communities is a grant funded by the Michigan Developmental Disabilities Council to help people with disabilities and their families understand national, state, and local disability issues; participate in public policy discussions; and take action on issues that affect their lives by giving 2-4 free informational meetings on public policy issues per year for people with disabilities and their allies.

Over the past two years, CCL has held two forums on accessible and affordable housing, one forum on building accessible communities, and three forums on voting. This year, we held our first forum in Bad Axe and focused on finding our voices and using them to create change. Future locations are still being determined. Would you want a forum near you? Are you interested in helping us plan a forum on a topic of interest to your group? Then contact us!

Leadership Opportunities

Kids As Self-Advocates (KASA)

KASA taskforce membersAre you interested in getting involved in the national disability youth movement? Are you between the ages of 12 and 24? Are you interested in learning how to inform youth about their rights; give peer-support and training; and to change systems to include youth? If you answered “YES” to these questions, Kids As Self Advocates (KASA) wants YOU! National Kids As Self Advocates will have positions opening up on our Advisory Board and Task Force. We are looking for youth with disabilities between the ages of 12 and 24 to serve on the national KASA Advisory Board or our National Task Force. The KASA Advisory Board and Task Force are two different kinds of leadership groups. Visit the KASA website to learn more about what each group does and how to apply.

Kids As Self Advocates KASA is created by youth with disabilities for youth to educate society about issues concerning us. KASA believes in self-determination, creating support networks, and self-advocacy for all youth with disabilities in our society.  

Michigan Department of Civil Rights Youth Advisory Council

Michigan Department of Civil Rights (MDCR) is searching for highly motivated students committed to social and racial justice and who are interested in civil rights advocacy to join the Youth Advisory Council. This council, unique in the nation, will benefit youth in several ways. They will be able to participate in the University of Michigan Summer Youth Dialogue Program, they will learn financial literacy skills; and, most importantly, they will be honored partners in advising the staff what civil rights issues most impact Michigan high school youth. Their efforts will, in turn, help MDCR shape policy. The student participants will also have the opportunity to develop lasting mentoring relationships with the Michigan Department of Civil Rights staff.

Interested youth must be between 10th and 12th grade students who live in and/or attend school in Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, Washtenaw, Livingston, or Monroe counties and must submit a 500 word essay. If you have any questions, need any additional information, or are interested in joining, please contact Anthony Lewis at (313) 456-3700.

Sixth Annual Disability Pride Parade

face shot of Amber SmockThe Sixth Annual Disability Pride Parade is set for July 25 in Chicago, Illinois. This year’s Grand Marshall will be Amber Smock, who is a youth and feminist disability rights organizer.  Since 2005, she has been part of the Chicago disability community as the Youth Leadership Coordinator for Access Living of Metropolitan Chicago.  The overall mission of the Disability Pride Parade is:

  • To change the way people think about and define “disability;”
  • To break down and end the internalized shame among people with disabilities; and
  • To promote the belief in society that disability is a natural and beautiful part of human diversity in which people living with disabilities can take pride.

For more information, visit the parade website.

Are you interested in attending, but finances are an issue? CCL and MDRC have a scholarship fund that can help. Call us for more information or visit the scholarship's website.

Changes at Indian Trails

CCL participant Laura Hall worked with other disability activists to improve the services provided by Indian Trails. After a successful meeting with executives from Indian Trails, the following tips have been developed:

  • If you need accommodations (i.e. wheelchair lift), reserve your ticket and request those accommodations at least 48 hours prior to the time you want to take your trip. It might be a good idea to call the day before your trip just to make sure that they have record of your request and intend to honor it.
  • Any time a wheelchair lift is requested, drivers are given an extra 30 minutes to make sure that the bus is at the location and that the lift is working and ready.
  • Drivers have been trained on how to operate the wheelchair lifts, but there are many steps. If they are having trouble they should use the “cheat sheets” located by the driver’s console or on the door to the lift. If drivers are still having trouble after using the “cheat sheets,” they have cell phones and should use these to call dispatch right away.
  • Dispatchers should be able to walk drivers through the process – BUT if there are still problems, a replacement bus should be sent right away.
  • If you have any problems riding the bus, it is extremely important that you report them to Indian Trails. They cannot fix what they don’t know about!! To file a report, call (800) 292-3831.
  • The administrative office of Indian Trails is also concerned that you have the best experience possible. If there are problems, you may call Ken Henry, V.P. of Maintenance and Operations, at (989)723-9625 or Chad Cushman, V.P. of Business and Administration, at (989)723-9600.

2009 Summer Series of Leadership Seminars

CCL is offering a series of three seminars focusing on leadership development over the summer months. The first seminar will examine the Lejuste Three Dimensions of Leadership and practice different methods of developing skills in the areas of self, community, and vision. The second will explore specific ways to foster leadership development amongst participants in your program and identify the most critical roles of a facilitator. The last seminar will look at the concepts of pride and power and their important role in leadership development while exploring ways to create pride and power amongst their program’s participants.

Our leadership seminars are designed for professionals who facilitate leadership development programs in their communities. They are not designed for individuals or groups aspiring to become leaders. If you are looking for a training on leadership skills for your group, contact us. We offer workshops on specific leadership skills such as developing action plans, talking to the media, assertiveness, and more.

The seminars will be held on May 29, June 26, and July 31 and all will be located in East Lansing. For more information or to register, please contact Melinda at (866) 532-2669 or email leadership@prosynergy.org.

Subscribe

To subscribe to the CCL newsletter, please send an email to leadership@prosynergy.org with "Subscribe" in the subject line. If you need to receive the newsletter in an alternative format such as large print or plain text, please note that in the email or call 1-866-532-2669.

Connections for Community Leadership is funded by the Michigan Developmental Disabilities Council.

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