Wisconsin Personnel Development System (WPDS)--E-Newsletter 3/5/09

Parent Leadership Hub Weekly E-Newsletter for March 5, 2009

The attached "Parent Leadership Hub" Weekly Email Update is sent to you from WSPEI and WI FACETS. The Parent Leadership Hub supports parents/family members, educators and other community partners to build capacity regarding meaningful family involvement. The Hub serves three primary purposes:
(1) To support parents of children with disabilities between birth and 26 years of age to participate as partners in the professional development activities of each of the other Statewide Initiatives as they design, deliver and support professional development experiences; and
(2) To facilitate opportunities for parents/family members to build leadership skills; and
(3) To provide Content Focused technical assistance concerning family involvement.

Parent/Personnel Development Opportunities

Save A Date – CESA #3 “Encouraging Language”
Wednesday, April 1, 2009, 6:00 PM-8: 30 PM at CESA #3, 1300 Industrial Drive, Fennimore. Presenter: Danielle Walters, MS, CCC-SPL, Certified SPl by Department of Public Instruction and the Hanen Program. Ms. Walters also co-developed the Parent and Communication Teams-Wisconsin Model. (PACT) Ms. Walters is a private practitioner in the Sun Prairie area where she provides in-home speech services to children ages 3-12. Parents, teachers, childcare and community agency providers should attend. “Encouraging Language” presentation addresses; How to identify children’s conversation styles and the role we play in the interactions as well as understand how these affect a child’s ability and willingness to communicate. How to implement steps to follow the child’s lead Help children become better conversation partners by using appropriate questions, comments and other turn-taking cues. A meal will be served from 6-6:30. There will be a $5.00 cost to attend. You must pre-register by March 25th. For additional information or to register please contact Martha Hestad or Kate Hennessy at CESA #3, mhestad@cesa3.k12.wi.us or khennessy@cesa3.k12.wi.us 1-800/261-0000 ext 206 or 214
Alert Program for Self-Regulation
How Does Your Engine Run? The Alert Program for Self-Regulation will be broadcast through Interactive ITV to sites in Ashland, Green Bay, La Crosse, Madison, and Milwaukee on March 27-28, 2009. Instructors are Mary Sue Williams, OTR, and Sherry Shellenberger, OTR, authors of the program. Participants will receive the required textbook, “How Does Your Engine Run? A Leader’s Guide to the Alert Program for Self-Regulation”. (Williams & Shellenberger, 1996). Contact the Wisconsin Occupational Therapy Association (WOTA) at (608) 287-1606 or wota@execpc.com for a registration brochure.
“Advocacy for Change” Event
Extended Deadline to Apply to March 18, 2009
Family Voices of Wisconsin, in collaboration with the Survival Coalition, the Wisconsin Board for People with Developmental Disabilities, Wisconsin Family Ties and Wisconsin FACETS, invites you to submit a request to participate in its upcoming advocacy institute that will be held in Madison on March 24 and 25. This event is a learning and action forum for parent advocates across Wisconsin to gain new information and skills that will enhance their efforts to improve the lives of children and young adults with disabilities and/or special health care needs. Participants will be part of issue briefings and skills development sessions, and will be able to schedule a visit with their legislator. The registration fee, conference materials, lodging and meals will be covered by the sponsoring organizations.

For more information, and to access forms to submit, please visit the
Family Voices of Wisconsin website at www.wfv.org/fv. If you have any questions, please contact Barbara Katz at 608-233-3726 or by email at barb@fvofwi.org
The 7th Annual Statewide Family Conference
March 13-15, 2009 at the Concourse Hotel & Governor's Club in Madison, Wisconsin.
The goal of the conference is to bring families of children who are hard of hearing, deaf, deafblind and deaf with additional disabilities together in a supportive, educational, and enjoyable atmosphere. The conference offers parents the opportunity for valuable personal contact with other parents and children from around the state of Wisconsin, as well as professionals in the field through workshops, discussion groups, and exhibits. The conference is designed with many fun and educational activities to support each family’s development and growth. Questions? Please contact Laurie Nelson at 608-822-3756 or laurie.nelson@wesp-dhh.wi.gov or go to: https://www.regonline.com/63356_654287S

Family Involvement Resources

New Resources from ODEP
New Monthly Data Series on the Employment Status of People With a Disability.The data can be found at http://www.bls.gov/cps/cpsdisability.htm and at http://www.dol.gov/odep

Disability History: An Important Part of America’s Heritage
This fact sheet can be found at http://www.dol.gov/odep
Directory of Federally Funded Projects and Centers Focusing on Transition
The Federal Interagency Partners in Transition Workgroup has developed a directory of federally funded projects and centers focusing on youth transition. The directory includes fifteen descriptions, detailing the name of the project or center, the funding agency, and the target audience. The directory also contains a brief description of each center's purpose, the services they provide, and links to center websites and publications. It is important to note that the document is not exhaustive of all transition services extended through federal, state, or local entities. The directory can be found at http://psocenter.org/Docs/Resources/SecondaryTransition/Transition
ResourceDirectoryfinal.pdf
Are You the Parent of a Child Aged 2-18 Years Old with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)?
Would you like to participate in a study? The study looks at how parenting stress and relationships with a spouse affect the health of parents of children with ASD.
What will I have to do? If you participate in the study, you will be asked to complete 4 questionnaires on secure website. This will take approximately 20-40 minutes. We would like both parents to fill out a set of questionnaires.
Will I receive anything for participating? No
Are there risks or benefits? The study requires your time. Answering the questions may be stressful. The benefits may be that the understanding may lead to better support for parents of children with ASD. If you would like to participate or want more information please contact Norah Johnson RN MSN CPNP PhO(c) at njohnson@chw.org or 414-337-7718 OR You can visit the website: http://www.mommyruns.com and click on the button: link to the secure study website.
What Parents of Students with Disabilities Need to Know: Guide to NCLB and IDEA**
The No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) are two major federal laws on the education of children. NCLB seeks to improve the education of all children, especially children from low-income families. IDEA seeks to make sure children with disabilities receive specialized services. Both laws are important to parents of students with disabilities. This guide, written by The Advocacy Institute for the National Center on Educational Outcomes, highlights how these two federal education laws work together to improve the academic achievement of students with disabilities. It identifies what parents can do to make sure their child with a disability benefits from education. The guide is available in Spanish at http://cehd.umn.edu/nceo/OnlinePubs/NCLBeIDEA.pdf and in English at http://cehd.umn.edu/nceo/OnlinePubs/Parents.pdf From: Advocacy Institute [news@advocacyinstitute.org]
Parent Training Modules on Promoting Children’s Social & Emotional Skills
The Center on the Social and Emotional Foundations for Early Learning (CSEFEL) has created Parent Training Modules which provide information for families on promoting children’s social and emotional skills, understanding their problem behaviors, and using positive approaches to help them learn appropriate behaviors. The modules are available online at http://www.vanderbilt.edu/csefel/parent.html.
Storynory: Free Audio Books for Kids
Storynory is an online treasure trove of audio stories. Here you will find a mixture of new stories, fairy tales, and specially adapted myths and histories. They have published an audio story every week since November 2005. Storynory can be found at http://storynory.com/

DISCLAIMER
Inclusion of information in this e-mail does not constitute an endorsement by the Wisconsin Statewide Parent-Educator Initiative, Wisconsin FACETS, the Department of Public Instruction, the U.S. Department of Education, or the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.