Congratulations to our newest cohort of graduates!
This dedicated group includes teachers and administrators currently serving in Connecticut’s special education system who are preparing to step into leadership roles as Special Education Directors across the state. This initiative is vital, as Connecticut faces a limited pool of qualified candidates—due to the state’s many school districts, a retiring generation of special education leaders, and a growing number of students eligible for services under IDEA.

UCEDD staff and students attended the AUCD conference “Emerging Leaders: Shaping the Future” in Washington DC this week.

Presentations:

• OSEP Model Demonstration Project – Developing Identification, Screening, Referral and Tracking Systems for Infants and Toddlers

Posters:

• The use of Intelligence Quotient as an Eligibility Criterion for Intellectual and Developmental Disability Services: A Review of the States
• Accommodations and Accessibility of COVID-19 Vaccinations for People with Disabilities in CT
• Local Health Departments Inclusion of Persons with Disability: Results from a Training Needs Assessment in Connecticut
• The Availability of Information on Accomodations for Students with Disabilities on Medical School Website

Staff and Students also visited Capitol Hill for the Address for Closing Plenary, speakers included Senator Tammy Duckworth, Assistant Secretary Katy Neas, Peter Mills, Chief Legal Aid at Senator Murphy’s office and Senator Bob Casey.

Connecticut has created the CT Transition Community of Practice (CoP) to centralize all activities, resources, and initiatives related to secondary transition and to provide information and support to students, families, and professionals. The CoP is comprised of multiple stakeholder groups that have come together with a single focus: enhancing the transition of youth with disabilities to adult life. Come learn what we are all about! See how your ideas fit into Connecticut’s overall plans and help us plot our course for improving student outcomes. To learn more visit CT SDE or  SERC

https://www.epilepsy.com/

Governor Lamont Proclaims October as Disability Employment Awareness Month

Governor Ned Lamont today announced that he has proclaimed October 2023 as Disability Employment Awareness Month in Connecticut in recognition of all Connecticut residents with disabilities in the workplace and in honor of their many accomplishments. #NDEAM #access #equity

“Disability Employment Awareness Month celebrates the important role of workers with disabilities, past and present, and showcases supportive, inclusive employment policies and practices that benefit employers and employees in Connecticut,” Governor Lamont said. “I am proud of the way that Connecticut has been a leader in protecting the rights of people with disabilities when it comes to employment issues, and particularly proud of the many businesses in our state that make every effort to include people of all abilities as valued members of their workforces.”

To read the proclamation

FALL 2023 Health Care Challenges for People with Developmental Disabilities Speaker series
The Connecticut Council on Developmental Disabilities, UConn Center for Excellence in
Developmental Disabilities (UCEDD) and CT Health Policy Project are inviting you to virtually attend
a series of sessions for leaders and decision makers to examine barriers to health care for those
with developmental and related disabilities. The purpose of these sessions is to collectively develop
recommendations to address these health care inequities.

Tuesday, October 3, 2023 | 1:00pm

To register

Ann and Rud Turnbull are Marianna and Ross Beach Distinguished Professors Emerita in Special Education. They co-founded and co-directed the Beach Center on Disability at the University of Kansas.

LEND Trainees during this fourth seminar learned about disability as a construct and IDEA.