How can you ensure IEPs are designed to empower your students to reach their full potential and support access and progress within the general education curriculum? What are the services and aids you need to consider and how do they fit together to create a symphony of supports allowing students with disabilities to thrive?

The statement of special education and services and aids is a critical component of the IEP that provides the substance of what will be taught and the supports that will be provided to allow students with disabilities to make progress toward their annual goals, to be involved in and progress in the general curriculum, and to be educated and participate with other children with and without disabilities. Like the instruments of a symphony, the parts of the statement work together to support students. In this webinar, presenters will define the four parts of the statement, discuss how educators, in collaboration with the other members of the IEP team, can help develop a comprehensive statement that includes the specially designed instruction, services, and aids that meet the unique student needs.

Presenters will model activities that educators can use to learn more about the statement and access share freely available resources that can support additional learning. While geared toward new and early-career special educators, it is a great refresher for everyone starting the 2024-2025 school year.

Attract and retain more customers by improving access within your digital space.

Website accessibility is no longer an option but a legal and ethical imperative. This session will delve into the importance of making websites inclusive for people with disabilities. Participants will gain a comprehensive understanding of accessibility standards, best practices, and practical tools to enhance website usability for customers with disabilities.

What You'll Learn About:

• The importance of website accessibility and its impact on your customer base
• Key accessibility standards and guidelines (WCAG)
• Practical tips for improving access to digital content
• Tools and resources to evaluate and enhance website accessibility

All elections are important, but this upcoming one may be one of the most important elections in our lifetime. People with Down syndrome can and should vote, but it is sometimes confusing to figure out who to vote for. What does each candidate stand for, and how would they impact your life? It can also be challenging to access your right to accommodations during the voting process. Join this webinar presented by the NDSC Policy Team and the Self-Advocate Council to discuss what issues are important to the disability community, how to ascertain candidates' positions on them, and potential implications if each candidate is elected. This webinar will also discuss how to register and vote, as well as your right to ask for support and accommodations in order to exercise your right to vote. Your voice is important and so is your vote!

This Annual Conference is an educational, motivational and inspiring experience that attracts upwards of 400 attendees to include: administrators, behavior support specialists, psychologists, direct care professionals, physicians, educators, residential providers, family members, social workers, nurses, students, persons with disabilities, researchers, vocational staff, psychiatrists, therapists, criminal justice systems personnel employment specialists, case managers and client coordinators. 

The theme of this year’s conference is “A View to the Future: Innovation and Excellence.” 

Join the 5th annual Design + Accessibility Summit, the essential HOW-TO event for design professionals who need to master accessibility, being held online October 8–11, 2024.

It’s no secret that accessibility is a hot topic. In fact, ensuring your documents are accessible is not just a good idea: it’s the law. Whether you’re extending your company’s DEI (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion) focus, expanding your market to include the estimated 25% of the population who have disabilities, or safeguarding your company against legal risks, it’s important to make accessibility a business priority.

Creative professionals must learn how to design documents that are accessible for people with vision and hearing impairments, mobility and cognitive challenges, or other disabilities. Those who develop expertise in accessibility will find themselves in high demand; while those who don’t will risk falling behind.

At The Design + Accessibility Summit, you will learn practical techniques for building accessible documents with InDesign, Acrobat, PowerPoint, and other tools widely used by creative professionals.

This presentation will discuss the history of the diagnostic overshadowing bias in ID and will review past and present research as well as the current state of our knowledge about this bias.

In this online presentation, based on her new book, “Autism and Adolescence,” Dr. Temple Grandin draws on her hard-won experience to deliver an essential guidebook for guiding and nurturing autistic youth. She gets to the real issues of autistic adolescents—the ones parents, teachers, and individuals on the spectrum face every day.

WordPress Accessibility Day is a 24-hour global event dedicated to promoting and learning website accessibility best practices for WordPress websites.  The conference is pre-approved for continuing education credits for the International Association of Accessibility Professionals Web Accessibility Specialist (WAS) and Certified Professional in Core Competencies (CPACC) certifications. 

WordPress Accessibility Day is a nonprofit event, volunteer organized by members of the core WordPress Accessibility Team and other community members. Our mission is to demystify website accessibility for WordPress developers, designers, content creators, and users so that they can build websites that work for everyone.

Whether you are an executive, HR professional, recruiter, manager, inclusion leader, or interested in creating a more inclusive workplace, you will not want to miss the opportunity to learn from experts on how to contribute to a more autism-inclusive workplace. Panelists will share their knowledge and tools for fostering a neuroinclusive workplace. They will offer practical strategies and actionable steps HR professionals can use to educate their teams about interviewing, onboarding, hiring, and supporting autistic individuals. Panelists will also share their personal experiences, including what has worked well for their organization and what lessons they have learned along the way.  

Multiple sclerosis poses unique challenges to those in the Hispanic MS community. Some may experience cultural and language barriers, a diagnosis at a younger age than others and more severe symptoms. 

The Hispanic/Latinx MS Experience Summit is a virtual program. People affected by MS learn from experts and make valuable connections. The 3rd annual Summit will take place from 1–3 p.m. ET/10 a.m.–12 p.m. PT on Oct. 10, 2024. It will feature parallel sessions in English and Spanish.

Healthcare experts will offer the latest information on managing MS over time. The Summit will also include conversations about comprehensive care and resilience. Share your experiences, find community and get resources that will help you manage life with MS.

Food allergies, eating disorders, feeding tubes, and other eating-related disabilities often provide challenges for disability office professionals. Accommodating students in this space often requires detailed discussions with our colleagues in the Housing and Dining offices. Once approved, implementation of the accommodation can require complex cooperation and training of a vast range of personnel who work in departments that may not be very familiar with disability laws. This panel from around the country will address common issues, such as establishing and building a relationship with the dining team, when a meal plan exemption is reasonable, allowances for cooking in residence halls, negotiating with food vendors, and more. The panelists represent institutions with exclusive vendor contracts, multiple vendors, and self-contracted food service management.

Engage with colleagues and trendsetters in digital accessibility and inclusion, gain insights on the latest trends, and be part of the global discussion on building an inclusive digital world for persons with disabilities! The three-day 2024 in-person Summit will feature a hybrid track, general and break-out sessions, interactive roundtables and workshops, panel discussions, open dialog with innovators and disrupters in digital inclusion, accessibility chat interviews, and a cognitive sprint forum.   

The Summit will host premium networking and educational opportunities with a keen focus on leaders and practitioners engaging in accessible technologies and environments from around the globe.

Join the International Association of Accessibility Professionals (IAAP), a division of G3ict, on the third day of the Summit for their annual thought leadership Expert Forum on integrating accessibility into organizational maturity.

The Center on Knowledge Translation for Disability and Rehabilitation Research invites you to join in its 2024 virtual knowledge translation (KT) conference, Disability Inclusion, Intersectionality, and Knowledge Translation. This year’s programming will focus on how to ensure full and equitable inclusion in KT of people with disabilities from a wide range of disabilities. Presenters will also discuss how KT activities can address intersections of disability with and among gender/sexual orientation, racial/ethnic identity, socioeconomic background, rurality, religion and/or national origin. They will also share inclusive strategies to promote uptake of findings and thoughtfully address users' perspectives as understood from this intersectional lens. 

The ADA’s “interactive process” is about an employer and employee (or applicant) having a meaningful discussion about a request, including why accommodation is needed and what forms of accommodation might be effective. Yet, both employers and employees often lack understanding on why a discussion generally is necessary and how to discuss a request, including what types of information may need to be shared and their respective roles in having a meaningful discussion. This session will discuss how to ensure an interactive process that provides employers with the information to make a legally sound decision consistent with the requirements of the ADA. This webinar will discuss how each person plays a part in ensuring that critical information is shared (including sometimes medical documentation) and outside sources that can assist in identifying potential accommodations.

Back by popular demand from CEC 2024 Convention in San Antonio! Special Education Teachers are often taxed with supporting students best served by their General Education Teacher within the classroom. This webinar gives Special Education Teachers actionable tools and strategies to help General Education Teachers better support all students within the general education setting with task initiation, time management, and behavior.

Participants will be able to:

1. Support their general education teachers with specific tools and strategies.
2. Understand more accurately why some students are struggling so that they can choose the most appropriate intervention.
3. Help students at the point of performance with task initiation and time management.
4. Have a method for addressing challenging behaviors directly with their students before reaching for outside support. 

Presented by: Cindy Goldrich, Ed.M, ADHD-CCSP

Learn about:

• Supported employment through the Department of Aging and Rehabilitative Services (DARS)
• Available resources in the community to support entry into the workforce
• Waivers as they relate to supported employment

Presented by Northstar Career Center.

During the Conference’s three days, there will be 250 sessions on: Transition Assessment; Culturally Responsive Practices, Transition to Postsecondary Education, Transition to Employment, Transition to Independent Living, Family/Community Partnerships in Transition, Self-Determination & Student Involvement, Personnel Preparation/Professional Development, Mental Health Issues, Practitioner to Practitioner, Introducing Transition in Elementary School, Assistive Technology & Transition, DCDT Committee Meeting, VCASE Featured Strand, Division on Learning Disabilities (DLD) Featured Strand, Featured DCDT Partner Showcase Session and the Sitlington Emerging Research Poster Sessions.

In addition, this conference will share evidence-based practices from featured DCDT partners as well as the opportunity for participants to access pre-recorded sessions from leaders in the transition field from across the country.

Assistive Technology Professionals often focus on finding, implementing, and trouble-shooting AT tools. For those who cannot rely on speech alone for communication, this means identifying the most appropriate AAC solution and supporting its implementation. However, there can be significant opportunity barriers to initial access to AAC such as restrictive policies and practices, deficits in adult/professional knowledge and skills, and negative attitudes and beliefs (Beukelman & Mirenda, 2013). This session will focus on identifying and overcoming these barriers, with a special focus on the preschool through young adult population.  

At the end of session, attendees will be able to:

1. Describe potential opportunity barriers to initial access to AAC.
2. Discuss and debunk pervasive myths about AAC.
3. Identify resources to utilize when advocating against opportunity barriers.

The fourth ASHA School Services Virtual Town Hall event will include a panel of school-based experts who will discuss topics such as emergency procedures and safety drills, building and environmental safety, trauma-informed care, and best practices to safeguard the well-being of students with communication disorders. Leave empowered with the knowledge and tools needed to contribute effectively to safety in the school community.

Attendees to this virtual town hall will:

• Discuss three ways to support students who use AAC and students who are Deaf and Hard of Hearing (DHH) with emergency planning.
• Identify three safety plan-related action steps for your school and students.
• Explain three ways to collaborate with other school staff to support school safety and trauma-informed care.

This webinar will focus on "Collaborative IEP Advocacy Strategies for Success" with key takeaways on: 12 Critical IEP questions, How to Respond to "No" and how to make every school day an inclusive day. 

Catherine Whitcher, M.Ed has been solving Special Education struggles for schools and families for over 25 years. After watching her family navigate the system for her brother with Down syndrome, Catherine was motivated to create change. She earned several certifications in Special Education, spent time in the classroom, and became a positive voice of hope and collaboration for families and teachers in her community. She is the founder of the Master IEP Coach® Mentorship and host of the Special Education Inner Circle podcast. Her unique special education strategies and solutions have been implemented at thousands of IEP tables and she can’t wait to support you in leveling up your leadership on your IEP team.
 

Dr. Stephanie Bay will present on Robust AAC for Adults with Intellectual and Development Disabilities. Dr. Bay is a licensed speech-language pathologist and assistive technology professional specializing in augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) for over 10 years. 

Presented by the AUCD Assistive Technology and Disability Special Interest Group (SIG).

Join this one-hour webinar with the mother-daughter duo Nanci and Susie Shepardson as they explore the profound effects of trauma and memory on learning, particularly for dyslexic learners.

Many people with dyslexia have a hard story to hear. Some were identified late in life and in learning environments, they were labeled as disruptive, lazy, unmotivated, or told they just needed to try harder. The psychological implications of negative learning environments are well documented, and the impact of being misidentified affects an individual’s ability and motivation to learn. This session will delve into research on the emotional repercussions of being undiagnosed. Personal stories of adults with dyslexia will be shared. Finally, learn how to help these individuals by exploring best practices for instruction as well as technology to support their access to age-appropriate content.

Learning Outcomes:

• Attendees will understand the impact trauma has on memory and learning.
• Attendees will learn best practices for teaching students with trauma how to read.

This two-day training is open to the public; you do not have to be an ADA Coordinator Training Certification Program (ACTCP) member to register to attend. ASL Interpreters and Real-Time Captioning (CART) will be provided in all sessions.

This training offers multiple sessions covering different aspects and Titles of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). It offers ACTCP members the Pre-Requisite options, Required Foundation credit options, Optional Foundation Credit options, Elective Credit options, as well as an ACTCP Advanced Employment Certificate option.

Join trailblazing leaders and educators at this exclusive event where you'll gain the essential tools and strategies to seamlessly integrate behavior systems into your MTSS framework.  Whether you're a seasoned educator or new to the field, this professional development opportunity is your gateway to transforming your approach.  Don't miss this chance to pave the way for student success!

This series will be presented by three medical students living with Tourette Syndrome. In this series you will hear a range of information related to the presenter’s childhood experiences, how Tourette Syndrome shaped their decision to become physicians, their experiences as medical students with TS and how personal identities can affect learning and working in the healthcare setting. The third session (happening on November 18) will be interactive and will provide an opportunity for those attending to engage with the presenters!

Key Takeaways

• Hear experiences from individuals with TS who are pursuing careers in healthcare
• Recognize how one’s own identities intersect with being an individual with TS
• Identify support systems and how to best utilize them

How can everyone create long term-employment solutions and opportunities for their communities together? Learn how The de Moya Foundation is using new unique outside the box concepts in doing just that, in addition to creating unique funding opportunities for extended services.

Presenter: Jorge deMoya

Get ready to join the excitement at DyslexiaCon 24, as the event will celebrate the monumental 75th Anniversary of IDA's founding! This year promises to be the most exhilarating yet, featuring a jam-packed program designed to empower professionals, families, and individuals impacted by dyslexia. Dive into tailored education sessions, iconic Award Lectures, and engaging Symposia, all crafted to equip attendees with practical insights and strategies. Kicking off with the General Opening Session and Special Tracks, this three-day conference will dazzle with concurrent breakout sessions, ensuring an unforgettable experience for all.

This year DyslexiaCon will offer three experiences to choose from: in-person experience, advanced certificate experience, or virtual on-demand.

Join CEC's Fall PD Fair! This online event features over 20 live 1-hour sessions with content from CEC, their Special Interest Divisions, the PROGRESS Center, the IRIS Center, and Lead IDEA. So step right up and pick the sessions you like best. All sessions will air live and will be recorded for registrants to view later.

In this webinar, Dr. Jessica Schwartzman will review prevalence rates of mental health outcomes in autistic people across the lifespan, particularly young people in the transition to adulthood. Information on the common signs of mental health distress among autistic people and how these may occur in employment spaces will be discussed. The presentation will include strategies for employers, families, educators, and others to support the well-being of autistic people in employment spaces.

This presentation focuses on securing employment opportunities for people with disabilities across a broad range of community settings and employment barriers. Strategies for including all people with disabilities in the workforce will be shared, including customized employment methods. Special consideration will be given to individuals experiencing multiple barriers to employment including housing insecurity and justice system involvement. Strategies for identifying and supporting employment in a career that matches the individual’s skills, goals, and dreams will be discussed with attendees. Personal experiences of jobseekers with disabilities will be highlighted.

In this session, participants will:

• Learn about principles and innovative solutions that can be applied to a diverse population of jobseekers.
• Leave with information for next steps and community resources.
• understand the intersectionality of job seekers with disabilities, justice involvement, and homelessness.

The 2004 reauthorization of IDEA allowed for new methods of specific learning disability identification. Twenty years later, the field continues to be divided on what method is “best” and the literature would suggest that the Response to Intervention (RTI) and Patterns of Strengths and Weaknesses (PSW) “camps” agree on little. Four noted researchers in the field have spent time in deep discussion of the issue and will share their insights and the common ground they have discovered, including thoughts on moving the field forward, during this virtual Science to Practice Symposium.

Join the collaborative conference that brings together a community that is committed to improving employment outcomes for the neurodiverse workforce.

Through collective impact, participants will engage in dynamic discussions, learn from expert presenters, and build a network of change-makers who promote diverse and inclusive employment practices. This conference empowers employers to build a dynamic workforce and enhance the workplace.

Rochester Institute of Technology’s NTID Regional STEM Center and DeafTEC are excited to host their first-ever Math and Science Conference this year. In the past, math-only conferences have been hosted by DeafTEC, but this year, science topics will be incorporated into this conference. The aim of the Math and Science Conference is to bring together teachers of deaf and hard-of-hearing students from middle school to community college to collaborate on a variety of math and science topics.

This conference, brought to you by Rochester Institute of Technology’s NTID Regional STEM Center and DeafTEC, will be held at NTID on October 28-30, 2024.

There is no cost to attend this conference, but registration is required. Sign language interpreters and CART services will be provided for all workshop sessions. Please make note of any other accommodations needed when registering.

When the new Title II regulations concerning digital accessibility for public institutions were released in April, there was quite a bit of concern about how schools could achieve the required levels of accessibility in just two years' time. There was also uncertainty about whether private schools might also need to comply through section 504, due to their federal funding, even though the regulations seem to cover only public institutions because they are contained in Title II of the ADA. This webinar will talk about what practical steps public institutions should be taking now and over the next couple of years, and why private schools should also be taking measures toward full digital accessibility. By gaining practical strategies and best practices for implementing them at your institution, you will be equipped to guide the transition to compliance.

The Fall Leadership Institute, hosted by The Arc and its National Conference of Executives (NCE), unites executives, leaders, and professionals from across the disability sector. The Fall Leadership Institute’s goal is for everyone to work better and smarter towards a shared purpose: ensuring people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) achieve their full civil and human rights and are fully included in their communities.

This is a unique opportunity to be immersed with leaders in the disability field. This event focuses on personal and professional development, daily business challenges of leading your organization, and creating change in the policies and programs that improve the lives of people with IDD and their families.