Alliance for Full Participation Announces First in a Series of Webinars on Employment

The Alliance for Full Participation (AFP) has recently launched a major initiative to improve the employment infrastructure, services and outcomes for people with developmental disabilities. The primary focus of this initiative is on achieving demonstrable results on a state level. The Alliance is building and will guide state teams that include people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their families, advocates, service providers, business organizations, state government officials, and members of the general community to explore and transform the environment for employment in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. To support our state teams, and to bring awareness to the cause of increasing employment for people with developmental disabilities, The Alliance is hosting a series of quarterly webinars. The first of these webinars will be held May 7 at 4:00 pm ET.

Topic:
Employment Today:
Understanding the Current State of Employment for People with Developmental Disabilities

Time & Date:
May 7, 2009, 4:00 – 5:00 pm, ET

Dial in Information:
Dial in information will be emailed to all registered participants.

To Register:
Please complete the registration form here, or e-mail walshworks@verizon.net with your name, address and phone number, and add "AFP Webinar" as the subject line.

Cost:
Free, audience must pre-register.

Moderated by Jim Gardner, president and CEO of The Council on Quality and Leadership and president of The Alliance for Full Participation, the call will feature Chester Finn, president of SABE discussing the importance of employment for self advocates and the communities they live in. John Butterworth, Research Director of the Center on State Systems and Employment will present the results of his national and state-by-state study on the status and trends in employment for people with developmental disabilities. Participants will be invited to add their thoughts and experiences to the discussion.

Participants:
John Butterworth, Ph.D., has over 25 years of experience as a teacher, manager of community-based day and employment services, trainer, and researcher. He has directed projects on school-to-career transition, employment support, and disability policy. Dr. Butterworth currently directs a longitudinal national data collection project on day and employment services for persons with developmental disabilities, and a project that addresses the use of personal networking in career development and the job search in diverse communities. He is the Research Director for the Center on State Systems and Employment (RRTC).

Chester Finn is a Special Assistant with the New York State Office of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities (OMRDD), is President of the national Self-Advocates Becoming Empowered (SABE) board. Finn previously served as Chairman from 2002-2006. Finn is former President of the New York State Self-Advocacy Association and currently serves as an advisor. He also serves on a number of statewide, national and international committees for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. In addition to his work with SABE, Chester remains active on the Board of Directors for the ARC of the United States. He is committed to fighting for the civil rights of people with disabilities and as a self-advocate, demonstrates that on a daily basis.

James F. Gardner, PhD is the President and Chief Executive Officer of The Council on Quality and Leadership. Dr. Gardner is a nationally recognized leader in the application of quality improvement methods to the field of human services. Through presentations at national conferences, in his teaching and writing, and during organizational consultations, Dr. Gardner argues that the measurement of quality must move from compliance with organizational process to facilitating person-centered outcomes for people. In 2004, The American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (AAIDD) honored Dr. Gardner with the National Leadership Award, a prestigious honor given annually to an individual who has proven to be an exceptional leader in human services.

For more information on AFP, visit www.allianceforfullparticipation.org, or call 301-706-6252.

Join the Alliance for Full Participation Facebook group and fan page.

About the Alliance for Full Participation
The AFP is a 501 (c)3 nonprofit organization comprised of 13 national nonprofit organizations in the field of intellectual and developmental disabilities:

American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (AAIDD);
American Network of Community Options and Resources Foundation (ANCOR);
APSE: The Network on Employment;
The Arc of the United States;
Association of University Centers on Disabilities (AUCD);
Autism Society of America (ASA);
The Council on Quality and Leadership (CQL);
Council of State Administrators of Vocational Rehabilitation;
National Association of Councils on Development Disabilities (NACDD);
National Alliance for Direct Support Professionals (NADSP);
NISH;
The National Association of State Directors of Developmental Disabilities Services (NASDDDS);
Self-Advocates Becoming Empowered (SABE); and
United Cerebral Palsy (UCP).

Each of these organizations represents distinct stakeholders within the developmental disabilities community, yet all are united in their commitment to the successful inclusion of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities into mainstream American life. By bringing together the many voices within these organizations and throughout the developmental disabilities community, the Alliance for Full Participation is dedicated to making the vision of full participation a reality.