Archives for 2016

We would like to invite you to participate in a national survey titled, “Transportation Access and Experiences”, which is designed to improve understanding of accessibility of public transportation for people with disabilities. This survey is being conducted by the ADA Participation Action Research Consortium (ADA-PARC), a collaborative research project of ADA Regional Centers (PIs: Lex Frieden and Joy Hammel). This project focuses on community living, community participation & work/economic participation disparities of people with disabilities (For more information, visit the website: www.adaparc.org). We would like to improve our understanding on transportation access of people with disabilities and use this information to make improvements at regional and national levels. 

We are very interested in receiving as many responses as possible from people with disabilities based on their personal experiences with public transportation. The results will serve as crucial evidence to support improvements to accessible transportation. 

Please use the link below to access and complete the survey. The online survey can be completed in English or Spanish. This is the second round of data collection for this survey, so if you have already completed it, please do not complete the survey again.

If you would like to complete the survey by phone in English, please contact the research team at 800-949–4232 V/TTY. If you would like to complete the survey by phone in Spanish, please contact Ancel Montenelli at 312-413-1439. Please mention that you are calling about the ADA transportation survey.

If you have any questions or comments regarding this survey, please contact Jill Bezyak, Investigator for this survey from the Rocky Mountain ADA Center at jill.bezyak@unco.edu.

https://unco.co1.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_00wcGeTOzGL2lQ9

JAN’s Workplace Accommodation Toolkit offers disability-related guidance for U.S. businesses. 

Morgantown, WV – The Job Accommodation Network (JAN), the leading source of free, expert and confidential guidance on workplace accommodations and disability employment issues,  has developed an online tool to help U.S. businesses successfully recruit, hire and retain applicants and employees with disabilities. The newest addition to JAN’s suite of products, the Workplace Accommodation Toolkit packages JAN’s deep knowledge into an online platform with the information businesses need to create inclusive workplaces while complying with disability-related employment laws. 

“Recently JAN has seen an increase in requests for guidance related to the reasonable accommodation process and creating disability-inclusive workplaces. The Toolkit was designed to respond to these requests,” said Lou Orslene, JAN co-director.  It includes sample accommodation procedures, examples of policies and forms from leading U.S. businesses, training presentations, roleplay videos and best practices for creating an inclusive workplace for people with disabilities. The Toolkit provides inclusive practices at various phases of the employment life cycle for recruiters, hiring managers, and supervisors; human resource professionals; accommodation consultants; and allies of employees with disabilities. Checklists are also available to help keep track of the accommodation process.

The JAN Workplace Accommodation Toolkit was developed in consultation with Deb Dagit, from Deb Dagit Diversity, Inc.

The JAN Workplace Accommodation Toolkit can be accessed at: http://AskJAN.org/toolkit

For more information contact Lou Orslene @ 800-526-7234 Ext. 135 or Anne Hirsh Ext. 112.

This Toolkit release coincides with National Disability Employment Awareness Month #NDEAM  

About JAN 

The Job Accommodation Network (JAN) is a free service of the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Policy (ODEP).  Working toward practical solutions that benefit both employer and employee, JAN helps people with disabilities enhance their employability, and shows employers how to capitalize on the value and talent that people with disabilities add to the workplace.

JAN’s trusted consultants offer one-on-one guidance on workplace accommodations, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and related legislation, and self-employment and entrepreneurship options for people with disabilities. Assistance is available both over the phone and online. Those who can benefit from JAN’s services include private employers of all sizes, government agencies, employee representatives, and service providers, as well as people with disabilities and their families.

JAN serves as the most comprehensive job accommodation resource available. From Fortune 500 companies to entrepreneurs, JAN has served customers across the United States and around the world for more than 30 years. Its consultants are thought leaders and innovators on disability employment issues, and all have earned at least one Master’s degree in their specialized fields, ranging from rehabilitation counseling to education and engineering.

On July 26, 2016, ADA Celebration Committee and the disability community celebrate the 26th anniversary of the signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act. An event that day at the Minnesota History Center, 345 W Kellogg Blvd, St. Paul, will bring together the rich variety of communities, ethnicities and identities that make up the disability community.

Festivities begin at 3:00 p.m. in the 3M Auditorium with keynote address by Ken Rodgers, chair of the Minneapolis Advisory Committee on People with Disabilities, followed by a panel discussion on the joys and challenges of living with a disability in a culturally diverse community. Panelists include Carlos Vazquez, SMG; Mai Thor, Metropolitan Council; Char Coal, artist and disability advocate; and Fardowsa Ali, Minnesota Deaf Muslim Community. Kenneth Brown, a disability and civil rights advocate, will moderate the panel that will conclude at 5:00.

“9 Nights of Music”, a popular MN History Center series, now in its 19th year, presents Minnesota’s multi-cultural artists at free outdoor performances. “9 Nights of Music” is thrilled that Angelique Lele, 2015 Miss Wheelchair Minnesota, and Young Dance will perform and provide dance instruction for the assembled audience of all abilities. Performance and lessons start at 6:30 p.m. Lele is a yoga teacher, actor and dancer, who landed in a wheelchair after a trapeze accident in 2012. She continues to perform in the world of integrative dance. Young Dance brings together youth of all abilities with professional artists to forge an inclusive, creative community. The dance performance will be followed at 7:00 p.m. by Tamarak, a driving, no-holds-barred, classic rock-n-roll band, whose drummer Curt Jones, is blind. The night’s festivities end at 8:30. For more information on the “9 Nights of Music” visit www.mnhs.org.

The event is free and open to the public. ASL interpreters, audio description and CART captioning will be provided. Food will be available for purchase. Go to www.disability.state.mn.us for more information or to request accommodations by July 12, or call the Minnesota Council on Disability, 651-361-7800, toll-free 1-800-945-8913.

The ADA celebration is made possible in part by a grant from the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund, in addition to partnerships with AMPERS, the Minnesota History Center, and 15 disability organizations and state agencies.

The ADA establishes protections to individuals with disabilities similar to those provided in the Civil Rights Act on the basis of race, sex, national origin, age, and religion; and ensures equal opportunity for access to businesses, employment, government programs and services, and telecommunications.

The ADA celebration is made possible in part by a grant from the Art and Cultural Heritage Fund. The Minnesota Historical and Cultural Grants Program has been made possible by the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund through the vote of Minnesotans on November 4, 2008. Administered by the Minnesota Historical Society.