Nominate a Youth Leader Today!

HSC Foundation Advocates in Disability Award -- Nominate a Youth Leader Today!

The purpose of the ADA Program is to award and encourage a young individual with a disability between the ages of 14 and 26, who has dedicated himself/herself to positively affecting the lives of individuals with disabilities and their families in the United States. The Program also supports an innovative project developed by this young person with a disability that serves and empowers individuals with disabilities.

The Advocates in Disability Award (ADA) is a program of The HSC Foundation, funded in part by the Sarah Beth Coyote Foundation. The selected recipient is awarded $3,000 in recognition of his/her past disability advocacy and will receive up to an additional $7,000 in funding support for his/her proposed project that focuses on serving and empowering individuals with disabilities.

The ADA program seeks a deserving young person who has distinguished himself/herself through contributions in the area of disability. Some examples of qualified applicants could include (but are not limited to): a student who is advocating for equal access to quality education, a young professional educating an employer about workplace accommodations, or a young person advocating for better policies and legislation for people with disabilities. This person does not have to be a "professional" advocate, but should be effectively working to make a difference. The ADA seeks to recognize and award individuals who are advocates through their deep belief and commitment to the inclusion and empowerment of all people with disabilities.

Applicants must be a citizen or permanent resident of the United States at the time of application submission and recipient selection.

The Advocates in Disability Award Program is part of The HSC Foundation's National Youth Transitions Initiative (NYTI). The Advocates in Disability Award Application is available at: www.hscfoundation.org/2012ADA.php

Stay informed! Go to the Advocacy Corner for frequent updates!

Federal Judge Puts Temporary Stop to 20% IHSS Cuts

FEDERAL JUDGE ISSUES PRELIMINARY INJUNCTION THAT CONTINUES STOPPING STATE & FEDERAL GOVERNMENTS FROM IMPLEMENTING 20% IHSS ACROSS THE BOARD REDUCTION

SACRAMENTO, CA (CDCAN)  [Last updated 01/19/2012 03:32 PM] -  A federal district court judge in Oakland, as expected, issued a court order that will continue blocking the Brown Administration and the federal government from taking any steps to implement the 20% across-the-board reduction in service hours for hundreds of thousands of children and adults with disabilities - including people with developmental disabilities - and seniors who receive In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS).  The reduction would have also impact hundreds of thousands of IHSS workers.   US District Court Judge Claudia Wilken issued the court order - called a "preliminary injunction"  during the hearing held today in her court room in Oakland.   The State will likely appeal the court order.    The order issued today by Judge Wilken remains in effect unless a higher federal court - in this case the US 9th Circuit Court of Appeals or the US Supreme Court decides to reverse it or if Judge Wilken decides at a later date to modify (change) it in some way. 

Judge Wilken issued on December 1st a temporary restraining order that blocked the reduction from taking place until a she decideD whether or not to grant a more permanent order to stop the cuts from being implemented.  The preliminary injunction granted by Judge Wilken - requested by those filing the lawsuit (IHSS recipients) - means that the State federal governments would still be blocked from implementing the IHSS 20% cuts.   In issuing the temporary restraining order in December, Judge Wilken had found that the reductions violated federal law and likely would, if implemented, cause immediate significant harm to people with disabilities and seniors in the IHSS program who would be impacted by the cut in service hours.  

Judge Wilken heard today from attorneys  representing IHSS recipients and the Brown Administration in the lawsuit "David Oster, et al v. Lightbourne", ("Oster" is an IHSS recipient and "Lightbourne" is Will Lightbourne, the director of the California Department of Social Services, the state agency that oversees statewide the IHSS program).  The case was previously titled  "V.L. v.Wagner" ("V.L." was the initials of an IHSS recipient and "Wagner" is the name of the previous director of the Department of Social Services). 

The lawsuit was filed by Disability Rights California (DRC), Disability Rights Legal Center, National Senior Citizens Law Center, the National Health Law Program and San Diego attorney Charles Wolfinger on behalf of the IHSS recipients. The union plaintiffs in the lawsuit, which include five SEIU locals and United Domestic Workers-AFSCME, represented by law firm of Altshuler Berzon LLP.

20% Cut Part of the 2011-2012 State Budget "Trigger Cuts"

*  The 20% across-the-board cut in IHSS hours amounting to a reduction of over $100 million in State general fund spending in the remaining months of the 2011-2012 State Budget year (and continue into the following budget year) was scheduled to go into effect on January 1, 2012 but never was implemented due to the temporary restraining order that was issued in December.  The 20% reduction did include several exemptions to the cut for certain eligible persons in the IHSS program.  With the court order issued today - the State and federal governments are still blocked from taking any steps to implement the cut for now. 

*  The reduction was part of the $1 billion in "trigger cuts" that were part of the 2011-2012 State Budget that was pulled because the State's revenues fell significantly below what was budgeted last June. 

*  Among the other state budget "trigger cuts" included $100 million reduction in state general fund spending to the developmental services budget for the 2011-2012 State budget year that ends June 30, 2012 - with another $100 million covering the 2012-2013 State Budget year.       

*  The 20% across-the-board reduction is in addition to other cuts and major changes to the IHSS program Governor Brown proposed as part of his 2012-2013 State Budget.

 

What would you ask President Obama?

Tomorrow, President Obama will deliver his State of the Union address at 9:00 p.m. ET. During that speech, he’ll lay out his vision for an America where hard work and responsibility are rewarded, where everyone does their fair share, and where everyone is held accountable for what they do.

There is a range of ways to get involved with this year’s State of the Union address.

Immediately following the President’s speech on Tuesday, be sure to stay tuned to WhiteHouse.gov/SOTU for a live panel featuring senior White House advisors answering your questions about the speech. Then, on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, a group of policy experts and advisors to the President will sit down for Office Hours on Twitter -- discussing the issues that matter to you and your community.

Finally, on Monday, January 30, President Obama will join the conversation in a special Google+ Hangout, a live multi-person video chat, from the White House.

Participating in the Hangout is easy -- just visit the White House YouTube channel to submit your questions and vote for your favorites between now and January 28. A few participants will be chosen to join the President in the Google+ Hangout to ask their questions of the President live!

Check out WhiteHouse.gov/SOTU to learn more about watching the enhanced State of the Union online and all the ways you can ask questions this week: 
 
WhiteHouse.gov/SOTU
 
Here’s the full lineup -- all times are ET. 
 
Tuesday

• 9:00 p.m.: Watch the enhanced version of the speech that features graphics, data and stats that highlight the issues the President is discussing on WhiteHouse.gov/SOTU. Use the Twitter hashtag #SOTU to discuss the speech live.
• 10:00 p.m.: Immediately following the speech, pose your questions to a live panel at the White House. Senior advisors will answer your questions about the President’s address submitted via Twitter (use #WHChat and #SOTU), Facebook, Google+, and an in-person audience of Tweetup participants.

Wednesday Office Hours Schedule

• All Day: Josh Earnest, Principal Deputy Press Secretary, answers your questions on Twitter (@jearnest44)
• 1:00 p.m.: Office Hours with Mark Zuckerman, Deputy Director of the Domestic Policy Council
• 3:00 p.m.: Office Hours with Dan Pfeiffer (@pfeiffer44), White House Communications Director

Thursday Office Hours Schedule

• 10:00 a.m. Veterans: Matt Flavin, White House Director of Veterans and Wounded Warrior Policy
• 11:00 a.m. LGBT: Miriam Vogel, White House Senior Policy Advisor and Gautam Raghavan, White House Associate Director for Public Engagement
• 12:00 p.m. Women: Racquel Russell, Special Assistant to the President for Mobility and Opportunity and Avra Siegel, White House Deputy Executive Director for the Council on Women and Girls
• 1:00 p.m. Seniors: Jeanne Lambrew, Deputy Assistant to the President for Health Policy and Nick Papas, Assistant Press Secretary
• 2:00 p.m. Latinos: Felicia Escobar, White House Senior Policy Advisor, Julie Rodriguez, White House Associate Director of Public Engagement and Luis Miranda, White House Director of Hispanic Media
• 4:00 p.m. Small Business Owners: Christine Koronides, Senior Advisor for Economic Policy, National Economic Council
• 5:00 p.m. African Americans: Danielle Gray, Deputy Assistant to the President for Economic Policy
• 6:00 p.m. Asian American Pacific Islanders: Chris Lu, Assistant to the President and Cabinet Secretary
• TBD Youth: Administration official to be announced

Friday Office Hours Schedule

• 11:00 a.m. Foreign Policy: Ben Rhodes, Deputy National Security Advisor for Strategic Communications and Speechwriting
• 12:00 p.m. Education: Roberto Rodriguez, Special Assistant to the President for Education Policy
• 1:00 p.m. Health: Jeanne Lambrew, Deputy Assistant to the President for Health Policy and Nick Papas, Assistant Press Secretary
• 2:00 p.m. Energy: Heather Zichal, Deputy Assistant to the President for Energy and Climate Change and Dan Utech, Deputy Director for Energy Policy
• 3:00 p.m. Consumer Protections: Brian Deese, Deputy Director National Economic Council
• 4:00 pm The Economy: Jason Furman, Principal Deputy Director National Economic Council
• 5:00 p.m. Job Opportunities: Portia Wu, Senior Policy Advisor for Mobility and Opportunity Policy
• 6:00 p.m. Urban Issues: Racquel Russell, Special Assistant to the President for Mobility and Opportunity

Monday January 30

• President Obama participates in a Google+ Hangout from the White House

Stay informed! Go to the Advocacy Corner for frequent updates!

Districts Must Expand Definition of "Services to Students With Disabilities"

By Nirvi Shah on January 19, 2012 4:32 PM 

A new letter from the Office for Civil Rights at the federal education department details how school districts should act on some changes to federal law regarding people with disabilities. The way I'm reading it, the letter expands the range of students to whom school districts' may have to provide special education services and accommodations, including some who in the past may have been found not to need those services. 

The letter is intended to clarify school districts' obligations following amendments made to the Americans with Disabilities Act that took effect in 2009. Those amendments say school districts should define disability very broadly, writes Russlynn Ali, the assistant secretary for civil rights, in a set of questions and answers that accompany the letter.

"Students who, in the past, may not have been determined to have a disability under Section 504 [of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973] and Title II [of the Americans with Disabilities Act] may now in fact be found to have a disability under those laws," the guidance says. "A student whom a school district did not believe had a disability, and therefore did not receive...special education or related services before passage of the Amendments Act, must now be considered under these new legal standards. The school district would have to evaluate the student, as described in the Section 504 regulation, to determine if he or she has a disability and, if so, the district would have to determine whether, because of the disability, the student needs special education or related services."

Stay informed! Go to the Advocacy Corner for frequent updates!



Mon January 23 2011- Explore Your Future: UC Berkeley invites students with Disabilities to explore Campus on Ed Roberts Day!

UC Berkeley’s Invitation to A College Campus Visit For High School Students with Disabilities

On January 23, 2012

Explore Your Future

Who:  The Disabled Students’ Program at the University of California, Berkeley, in cooperation with the Berkeley Center for Independent Living (CIL), is opening the Cal campus to area high school students with disabilities. Support has been provided by the Thunen Family Foundation and William “Sandy” Muir and Paulette “Pauli” Muir.

What:  During the program, area high school students with disabilities will engage in a short session on “how to” get into college, as well as enjoy a tour of the Cal college campus. The entire program will take about 90 minutes.

Where: Identical tours will begin at 9am, 11am and 1pm, in the Alumni House on UC Berkeley’s campus (near Bancroft Way and the Haas Pavilion). Pick a time and call-in your reservation request (see contact person’s name below).

When: This program will be held on January 23, 2012, in observance of the statewide Ed Roberts’ Day celebration – recently enacted and sponsored by State Senator Loni Hancock (invited). 

Why:  As a student at Cal, Ed Roberts helped this campus learn how to serve students with disabilities. He also founded the Berkeley CIL.  Ed Roberts forever changed the landscape for people with disabilities in our community, state, nation and the world. Come and build your future. For more about Ed Roberts see: http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2010/07/27/roberts/

 For more information about this event; or to make a reservation for your school contact: Paul Hippolitus, Director of the Disabled Students’ Program at Hippolitus@berkeley.edu; or call 510-642-8783.