fall 2012
Remembering Janet
Bookstore Spotlight
2013 IOD Calendar
The IOD
welcomes 2013
with its annual
outreach calendar,
highlighting
a shared
commitment
to community,
diversity, and
inclusion. Featuring original works
of art by 12 talented artists who
are connected to our mission, we
continue our tradition of coupling
each work with an inspirational
quote reflecting the values of the
IOD. In addition, each month
features sponsoring programs
and organizations that share in
our commitment to creating more
inclusive communities for people
with disabilities and their families.
Available for $10 at
www.iodbookstore.com.
Join Our
Mailing List
The IOD produces a variety of
publications, including Vision &
Voice, which communicate the ways
we are connected to individuals and
activities in New Hampshire and
across the country. If you would
like to be added to our mailing
list, e-mail contact.iod@unh.edu
or call 603.862.4320.
What’s Inside
NCIE Partners on National TA Center. . . . . . . . . 2
NH Elects Leadership Series Graduates . . . . . . 2
Did You Know?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Calendar of Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Students Become Teachers in AT. . . . . . . . . . . 4
Standing With Henry. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
A teacher. A guru. A mentor. An advocate.
A visionary. A truly honorable human being.
These are just a few words that describe Janet
Williamson, words she may have denied before
her encounter with the IOD.
members of their
communities.
At the IOD,
she served as a
mentor, teacher,
trainer, and
When Janet was invited to attend the IOD’s
leader in the design
first NH Leadership Series in 1988, she hardly
of self-directed services and supports and the
felt like a leader. As a parent of a child with
creation of truly inclusive communities. She
significant disabilities, she was desperate—her
was well-known for inspiring families when she
17-year-old son Jeff was stuck in an elementary
and Jeff presented annually on “A Good Life”
special education classroom with little hope,
during the NH Leadership Series’ fifth session,
so unhappy that it sometimes took two aides to
and, as a result, hundreds throughout the state
prevent him from hurting himself.
credit Janet with opening their
Janet
Williamson
At the first Series meeting,
minds to new possibilities for NH
then IOD Director Jan Nisbet
citizens with disabilities and their
1/21/46
–
11/7/12
challenged everyone to focus on
families.
a positive vision for the future. At
“Very few of us have transformed as many
first, Janet didn’t believe that this could really
lives as Janet did,” said Beth Dixon, longtime
apply to Jeff, but over time, she envisioned a full
colleague and friend. “She gave people practical
life for him, one that included a real education,
information and the hope and vision that they
a real job, a home of his own, and a life full of
and their children could have real lives. She
friends and family. Soon, she went to bat for
pushed people out of their comfort zones and
her son and his education, going so far as to
watched as they grew and realized that they
sue the local school district so he could attend a
could make a difference.”
regular school. After two years and two appeals,
Jeff became the first student with significant
“We are truly grateful that Janet touched our
disabilities to attend regular classes at and
lives, taught us to dream, and paved the way
graduate from Manchester West High School.
for our children,” said one Leadership Series
graduate. Another said, “Janet’s spirit will live
Janet spent the next 22 years leading the way,
on in all of us, as she helped mold us into the
ensuring that individuals with disabilities were
leaders that we are today—to carry on for her.”
welcomed and valued as respected, contributing
IOD Innovators Honored
In October 2012, UNH’s Office for Research
Partnerships and Commercialization (ORPC)
celebrated a record-breaking year for
disclosures of intellectual property. Innovations
disclosed to the ORPC totaled 32 during the last
year, an increase of more than 100 percent over
the previous year.
“UNH is leading the country in the use of
intellectual assets in creative works,” said
ORPC Executive Director Marc Sedam.
“We’ve spent the last year working with our
colleagues across campus and our fiscal year
accomplishments reflect that. We want the
technology developed at UNH to be used to
help keep jobs
in the state and
disclosures are
crucial to that
success.”
Among the
individuals
honored at an
evening dinner
for innovators
were several IOD
staff members:
• Dan Habib, IOD Filmmaker-in-Residence,
was recognized for his disclosure related to
the music licensing on his latest film, Who
Cares About Kelsey?
• Therese Willkomm, Ph.D., was recognized
for her four disclosures as well as a patent
application for the AT Tablet Stand, a freestanding, fully-adjustable invention that
holds a tablet for hands-free use.
• Sönke Dornblut was recognized for his
disclosure and work on a trademark for AT
Connects, an assistive technology website.
• JoAnne Malloy, Ph.D., was recognized for
her work around licensing the Rehabilitation
for Empowerment, Natural Supports,
Education, and Work (RENEW) program.
ORPC developed a standardized user
agreement that she has used for multiple
RENEW contracts.
The goal of the ORPC is to promote and
advance the use of UNH’s intellectual assets
to improve the university’s academic standing
and relevance, attract high quality faculty and
students, engage the business community, create
local well-paid jobs, and generate revenue.
800315
10 West Edge Drive, Suite 101
Durham, NH 03824
NH Elects Leadership
Series Graduates
On Tuesday, November 6, 2012,
the state of New Hampshire elected
Maggie Hassan as its next governor.
Maggie is a 1992 graduate of the IOD’s
New Hampshire Leadership Series,
a program which provides parents
and self-advocates with information
and strategies to effectively impact
local and state organizations on
issues related to individuals with
disabilities. The seven-month program
produces an annual class of leaders
who advocate with service providers,
use the legislative process to achieve
change, and organize communities to
support inclusion. To date, more than
800 people have graduated from the
Leadership Series.
Maggie has often credited the
Leadership Series with preparing her
for a career in public service.
In addition to Maggie, Leadership
Series graduates Lisa DiMartino and
Mariellen McKay, as well as Chris
Muns (husband of graduate Melanie
Muns) were elected and will serve as
New Hampshire state representatives.
For more information on the New
Hampshire Leadership Series, visit
www.nhleadership.org.
2
Did You Know?
The Employment Gap is the
difference between the total number of
individuals employed and the number
of individuals employed of a certain
population, expressed as a percentage.
In 2011, the national
the Gap
employment rate
for individuals with
40.2
pts
disabilities ages 18
to 64 years living
in the community
was 32.6%, while
the employment rate for individuals
without disabilities was 72.8%—a gap
of 40.2 percentage points.
In New England, Connecticut had the
lowest employment gap at 38.1 points,
followed by New Hampshire (42.7),
Vermont (43.8), Massachusetts (45.2),
Rhode Island (45.7), and Maine (46.7).
Taken from the 2012 Annual Disability
Statistics Compendium. For more
information and statistics, visit
www.disabilitycompendium.org.
Feedback
Have a comment, suggestion, or
story idea? We value your input.
E-mail contact.iod@unh.edu or
call 603.862.4320 to let us know
how we’re doing and how we can
better serve you.
Share the IOD with a friend:
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know about us. Pass us along!
NCIE Partners on National Technical Assistance Center
The National Center on Inclusive Education
(NCIE) at the IOD has received a $825,000
subcontract as part of a five-year, $24.5 million
grant from the U.S. Department of Education,
Office of Special Education Programs to the
University of Kansas.
“The NCIE team is thrilled to join this national
effort to transform educational policies and
practices so that all students, including those
with the most significant disabilities, are
presumed competent and receive the supports
they need to learn in their neighborhood schools
and general education classrooms,” Schuh says.
“Schools really are for all children, and this
project is designed turn this vision—rooted in
research, civil rights, and principles of social
justice—into a reality.”
The NCIE will work with the University of
Kansas and other national partners to establish
the Schoolwide Integrated Framework for
Transformation (SWIFT) Center, a national
technical assistance center for inclusive
education. SWIFT is dedicated
“Almost 30 years of research
“Schools
really
are
for
all
to promoting the inclusion of
and experience have shown us
students with disabilities in their children, and this project is that all children, including those
designed turn this vision—
neighborhood schools while
with significant disabilities,
rooted
in
research,
civil
also increasing the academic
benefit from high expectations
rights, and principles of
achievement of all students.
and practices that support
social
justice—into
a
reality.”
The center will assist educators,
inclusion,” said U.S. Secretary
administrators, schools, and
of Education Arne Duncan.
state education agencies in implementing
“[SWIFT will] help ensure that educators have
evidence-based inclusive education practices.
resources to address the needs of their students
with disabilities.”
The NCIE’s Mary Schuh, along with colleagues
from the Maryland Coalition for Inclusive
During the first year, SWIFT project staff will
Education (MCIE), will lead the effort to create
visit model schools to gauge and document the
a national network of technical assistance
characteristics which lead to achievement for
providers and resources in inclusive education.
all students. In the second year, SWIFT will
Additional key partners include the Council
expand its work to 64 schools in four states, in
of Chief State School Officers, the Institute of
a mixture of rural and urban areas, with the goal
Education Leadership, the National Association of supporting school and district-wide inclusive
of State Directors of Special Education,
education reform.
TASH , and other universities and non-profit
For more information on SWIFT, visit
organizations.
www.swiftschools.org.
Highlighting IOD Donors
New Investment Platform Features RENEW
The IOD’s Rehabilitation for Empowerment,
Natural Supports, Education, and Work
(RENEW) program was recently selected as part
of the Social Impact Exchange’s Social Impact
100 Index (S&I 100) after an initial nomination
from the New Hampshire Charitable
Foundation and a rigorous application process.
The S&I 100 features high-performing nonprofits and non-profit programs from across the
nation that focus on education, health, poverty
alleviation, and youth development. The selected
non-profits create an online profile that makes
it easy for donors to learn more about programs
and donate. To be selected for inclusion on the
website, non-profits must provide effective,
high-impact social solutions and be ready to
expand program services. RENEW can be found
listed alongside successful non-profits like Big
Brothers Big Sisters of America and City Year.
“As far as we know, this is the first time that
one investment platform has aggregated only
evidence-based, growing non-profits operating
in hundreds of cities across the country, and in
a variety of issues—education, poverty, health,
and youth development,” said Alex Rossides,
President of the Growth Philanthropy Network.
“Given its breadth of issues and geographies we
believe there is an opportunity for participation
by individual donors across a wide spectrum
of giving—and especially for those who are
looking for impact as an important element in
their choice of donations.”
RENEW is a structured school-to-career
transition planning and individualized
wraparound process for youth with emotional
and behavioral challenges. RENEW is currently
being provided by schools, community mental
health centers, community-based providers,
and IOD staff members to youth in NH, IL,
MA, MN, PA, and WI. Staff members propose
to use funds received through the S&I 100
Investment Platform to expand program services
into eight new states and 32 new schools
by June 2016. For more details, visit www.
socialimpactexchange.org/organization/unhinstitute-disability-renew.
Support for the New Hampshire Leadership
Series
The Merrimack County Savings Bank
Foundation has awarded the Institute on
Disability a $1,500 grant to support the New
Hampshire Leadership Series. These funds
will be used to support individuals from
Merrimack County Savings Bank service areas
to attend the Series for free. The program trains
individuals with disabilities and their families
to become leaders and advocates for disability
rights. Today, more than 800 graduates of this
program are found in NH and beyond, leading
the development of better schools, rallying
their neighbors to shape improved public
policies, and creating better systems to support
individuals with disabilities and their families.
To learn more about making a tax-deductible
gift to the IOD, please contact:
Mary Schuh, Ph.D. – Director of
Development and Consumer Affairs
Institute on Disability / UCED
56 Old Suncook Road, Suite 2
Concord, NH 03301
603.228.2084 | mary.schuh@unh.edu
or visit www.iod.unh.edu for easy and secure
online donation.
iPad After-School Discovery Series: New
Tools and Techniques for the Inclusive
Classroom
Join us for these two-hour afternoon
sessions and discover the basics of how
to operate your iPad, new techniques to
engage students in interactive learning,
and a world of powerful apps to support
individuals with disabilities.
Remaining Dates & Topics:
December 5, 2012 – Reading, Writing,
and Arithmetic Apps
Presenter: Diana Petschauer
January 16, 2013 – 101 Uses for the iPad
Camera
Presenter: Therese Willkomm
February 4, 2013 – Social Stories and
Visual Schedules
Presenter: Phyllis Watson
March 4, 2013 – Video Modeling
Presenter: Phyllis Watson
April 3, 2013 – iPad Apps for Students
with Visual Impairments
Presenter: Diana Petschauer
May 1, 2013 – Using iPad Apps to Foster
Specific Developmental Skills in Young
Children
Presenter: Shannon Fitch
Time: 4pm – 6pm
Location: IOD Professional Development
Center, Concord, NH
Cost: $59 each
Picture This! The Art of Graphic
Facilitation
An accelerated learning experience in
graphic recording and facilitation.
Date & Location: December 7, 2012 –
IOD Professional Development Center,
Concord, NH
Time: 9am – 3pm
Cost: $150
Presenter: Patty Cotton, M.Ed.
Using Literacy for Children’s Social and
Emotional Development
Learn how to use children’s literature to
frame lessons in social and emotional
learning. Participants will learn to
incorporate lessons into their own
read-aloud activities in early childhood
education settings.
Date & Location: December 11, 2012
– IOD Professional Development Center,
Concord, NH
Time: 8:30am – 11:30am
Cost: $65
Presenter: Leigh Rohde, Ph.D.
Webinar: iPad Adaptations in Minutes
While the iPad is promoted as a
universally-designed tool, individuals with
disabilities often benefit from the added
support of adaptations. This webinar will
demonstrate over 30 ways an iPad can
be adapted in five minutes or less.
Date & Location: January 8, 2013 –
Online
Time: 3:30pm – 5pm EST
Cost: $59
Presenter: Therese Willkomm, Ph.D.
Foundations in Transition: YouthCentered Strategies
This five-part series will highlight
practices that improve youth’s selfdetermination skills, share tools to help
youth develop transition plans that are
relevant to their interests, and share
resources to ensure that youth are
successful.
Dates & Topics:
January 10, 2013 – The Basics of
Secondary Transition
Presenters: Heidi Wyman, Dawn
Breault, JoAnne Malloy, Jen Cunha,
and Amy Jenks
February 21, 2013 – The Foundation for
a Youth-Driven Process: Person Futures
Planning
Presenters: Heidi Wyman and
Jonathon Drake
March 21, 2013 – Assistive Technology
and Transition
Presenter: Therese Willkomm
April 10, 2013 – Think Outside the Box:
Youth-Centered Educational and
Employment Options
Presenters: Heidi Wyman, Dawn
Breault, and Elizabeth Cardine
May 16, 2013 – Answering the 5 W’s for
Transition Resource Development
Presenters: Heidi Wyman and Michelle
Lewis
Time: 8:30am – 2:30pm
Location: Holiday Inn, Concord, NH
Cost: $125 each
Differentiated Instruction in the
Elementary Classroom: Making
Curricula Accessible for All Kids
Learn the benefits of differentiated
instruction as a lesson/unit planning
model. Participants will consider
the diverse needs of learners in the
classroom and adjust instructional plans
ahead of time, to design individualized
supports and accommodations
when necessary for individuals, and
to integrate as appropriate unique
learning goals (such as IEP goals) into
daily lessons and routines.
Date & Location: February 13, 2013 –
IOD Professional Development Center,
Concord, NH
Time: 9am – 3pm
Cost: $120
Presenter: Susan Shapiro, M.Ed.
Webinar: Creating Inclusive IEPs:
Families and Students as Partners in
the IEP Process
This webinar will focus on how
students, parents, and teachers can
work together to write Individualized
Education Programs (IEPs) that target
students’ full participation in inclusive
general education classrooms and
specify the supports needed for success.
Date & Location: February 20, 2013 –
Online
Time: 3:30pm – 5pm EST
Cost: $59
Presenter: Dr. Cheryl Jorgensen
Navigating Choice and Change
in Later Life: Frameworks for
Implementing Person-Centered
Planning
An introduction to person-centered
planning for adults, including an
overview of what we mean by a personcentered system of care. Information on
how to facilitate planning meetings and
tools to use in the planning process will
also be presented.
Date & Location: March 14, 2013 –
IOD Professional Development Center,
Concord, NH
Time: 9am – 3:30pm
Cost: $90
Presenters: Susan Fox, M.Ed., M.A., and
Patty Cotton, M.Ed.
RENEW Facilitator Training Institute
Through group activities and instruction,
participants will learn to engage youth
in the RENEW process, facilitate personal
futures planning through mapping,
develop individualized and youthspecific resources, direct a RENEW
team, conduct school-to-career
planning, and empower youth to lead
the process.
Dates & Location: April 2-4, 2013 –
Radisson Hotel, Manchester, NH
*Attendance at all 3 days is required.
Time: 8:30am – 3pm
Cost: $400
Presenters: Jonathon Drake, MSW and
Heidi Cloutier, MSW
Save the Date
Living Well in our Communities: Thriving
as We Age
Date: May 7, 2013
Location: Grappone Conference
Center, Concord, NH
The National Center on Inclusive
Education Summer Institute – When
Behavior Gets in the Way: Creating
Caring Schools and Communities
Dates: July 29-31, 2012
Location: Radisson, Manchester, NH
For more information and to register, visit www.iod.unh.edu or call 603.228.2084
3
IOD Leadership
Charles E. Drum, MPA, JD, Ph.D. – Director
Susan Fox, M.Ed., MA – Associate Director
Jennifer Donahue – Director of Finance
Matthew Gianino, BA – Director of
Communications
Andrew Houtenville, Ph.D. – Director of
Research
Mary C. Schuh, Ph.D. – Director of
Development & Consumer Affairs
Executive Committee
Carol Stamatakis – Executive Director
New Hampshire Developmental
Disabilities Council
www.nhddc.org
Matthew Ertas – Bureau Chief
Bureau of Developmental Services
New Hampshire Department of Health
and Human Services
www.dhhs.state.nh.us/DHHS/BDS
Neil B. Vroman, Ph.D. – Interim Dean
College of Health and Human Services
University of New Hampshire
www.chhs.unh.edu
Santina Thibedeau– Administrator
Bureau of Special Education
New Hampshire Department of Education
www.education.nh.gov
Richard Cohen, JD – Executive Director
Disabilities Rights Center
www.drcnh.org
UCED Partners
Tom Bunnell, JD – Director
Institute for Health, Law and Ethics
Franklin Pierce Law Center
www.fplc.edu
John B. Moeschler, MD, MS – Director,
Clinical Genetics Program & Professor of
Pediatrics
Section of Medical Genetics
Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth
Children’s Hospital at Dartmouth
Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center
www.dartmouth-hitchcock.org
4
Consumer Advisory Council
Steve Alexander – Hudson, NH
Gina Colantuoni – Bow, NH
Jeff Dickenson – Concord, NH
Jackie Driscoll – Derry, NH
Bonnie Dunham – Concord, NH
Nathan Gams – Hampton, NH
Sandy Hicks – Manchester, NH
Beth Hillsgrove – Dover, NH
Amy Howe – Hopkinton, NH
Cabrinni Kulish – Loudon, NH
Dan Louney – Bedford, NH
Kirsten Murphy – Hanover, NH
Ian Phelps – Keene, NH
Wagner Quintanilha – Bennington, NH
Mary Schuh – Concord, NH
Chrissy Shaffer – Litchfield, NH
Julie Smith – Durham, NH
Jim Tobin – Effingham, NH
Pat Vincent-Piet – Concord, NH
Linda Wadensten – Newport, NH
Kathryn Wallenstein – Concord, NH
Marian West – Concord, NH
Support the IOD!
As a community oriented nonprofit focused on ensuring that
equal opportunities and a
satisfying quality of life are
accessible to all persons, we
rely on the generosity of
supporters like you to help
further the mission of the IOD. If
you would like to contribute to
the IOD, tax-deductible
donations can be made:
Online
www.iod.unh.edu
Mail
56 Old Suncook Road, Suite 2
Concord, NH 03301
Phone
603.228.2084
An IOD staff member will assist
you with the process and
answer any questions you may
have about your contribution.
Students Become Teachers in Assistive Technology
Ever since the University of New Hampshire
began offering a graduate certificate in assistive
technology (AT) overseen by “MacGyver”
Therese Willkomm, UNH has been turning
out creative and forward-thinking leaders in
AT services—leaders like Cynthia Yetman and
Nicole Finch who are now passing on their
knowledge to others through their work and as
presenters at AT workshops at the IOD.
intervention as an occupational therapist,” says
Nicole, who completed her master’s degree
in May 2011 and now works at Spaulding
Rehabilitation Hospital in Boston. “Working
with individuals who experience brain injury
and other complex medical diagnoses, I use the
skills I developed through the AT program on
a daily basis. It has strengthened my role as an
interdisciplinary team member and broadened
my capacity to meet the needs of clients.”
Nicole taught an IOD iPad workshop last spring
specifically for rehabilitation professionals.
Cynthia, who has most recently taught two
of the IOD’s sold-out “iPad 101” workshops,
has been a public school educator for 32
years, serving the past 25 as
UNH is one of only 12
“[The AT program] has
the Director of Educational
strengthened my role as universities in the United
Technology for public schools
an interdisciplinary team States that offers a graduatein Amesbury, Massachusetts.
member and broadened level interdisciplinary assistive
She was convinced of the benefit my capacity to meet the technology program. To date,
of enrolling in the certificate
over 400 students have taken
needs of clients.”
program after attending one of
one or more of the certificate’s
Therese’s workshops. “The workshop informed
courses, with 30 students receiving the full
me of how much more I needed to learn about
certificate since 2005. The program applies
technology and how it can provide access to
to individuals pursuing or engaged in careers
information and curriculum for students and
in occupational therapy, speech language
adults,” she says. She completed the graduate
pathology, physical therapy, recreation
certificate in the spring of 2011. “Therese
therapy, rehabilitation counseling, engineering,
inspired me to become a better teacher. I am
education, special education, or nursing. Along
grateful now for the experiences she allows me
with courses in occupational therapy, students
and to direct others in technology use to support may elect to supplement their study with
teaching and learning.”
courses in social work, communication sciences,
recreation therapy, and education to complete
“Therese’s enthusiasm for technology and
the required 15 credit hours.
ability to transform common household
materials into cost-effective solutions stretched
For more information about the AT certificate
my mind and strengthened my approach to
and how to apply, visit www.iod.unh.edu.
Standing With Henry
Henry Frost is a 13-year-old who loves Nascar
and hanging out with kids in his neighborhood.
He also experiences autism and hearing
loss, and he types to communicate using an
augmentative and alternative communication
(AAC) device. Henry lives less than 200
yards from Wilson Middle School in Tampa,
Florida—a place that denied him access to
education in a regular classroom because of his
disabilities. Despite his parents’ offer to pay for
an aide, the school district wanted to send Henry
to a specialized program at another school.
For a while, this looked like Henry’s only
option. But after watching Wretches and
Jabberers, a film about autism and selfadvocacy, Henry’s way of interacting with the
world changed radically. He realized that he
had a voice, could use it, and had a right to
participate in discussions about his education
and life. In response, Henry took to social
media, quickly gathering thousands of followers
through his Facebook page and an online
petition supporting his attendance at Wilson. He
attended several conferences this past summer,
including the IOD’s Autism Summer Institute,
where he learned from prominent self-advocates
with autism. He even took to the streets during
the Republican National Convention to raise
awareness. And he was heard.
Hillsborough County School District officials
began meeting in September to discuss Henry’s
Individualized Education Plan (IEP), and the
IOD’s Mary Schuh was fortunate enough to
participate in the process, providing critical
technical assistance to ensure that Henry would
receive the necessary supports at Wilson. After
six months of correspondence and over 14 hours
of meetings, district officials agreed to let Henry
attend the school of his choice.
“I will go to Wilson. Yes!” Henry posted to
Facebook after learning the news.
“We have been blown away by the outpouring
of support and excitement from our community
regarding the outcome of the IEP,” said Henry’s
mother Lauri Hunt in a recent blog post. “Many
parents, students, and teachers from Wilson
have reached out expressing how great this is
for everyone and how thrilled they are to have
Henry attend.”
To follow Henry on Facebook, visit
www.facebook.com/IStandWithHenry.
Stay Connected
For the latest IOD news, follow the Institute on Disability on Facebook and Twitter:
www.facebook.com/instituteondisability
www.twitter.com/unhiod