The UConn University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCEDD) joined sister agencies of the CT Developmental Disabilities Network (DD Network) at a legislative breakfast in the Legislative Office building on 2/21/18. (more…)

Congratulations to the scholars in the Early Intervention Credential Program for successfully completing the year-long program! (more…)

Musical theatre student Evan W. Gadda has heard stories about Burning Man but hasn’t made the journey himself. He is asthmatic. and because of cerebral palsy, paralyzed and confined to a wheelchair, so making the trip to Black Rock City has been deemed impossible, until now. Through a HTC Vive VR headset, he was able to attend the desert event virtually. (more…)

The Early Childhood Personnel Center (ECPC), funded by the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitation Services, Department of Education, will continue and build on the work of the current Early Childhood Personnel Center to increase the capacity of State IDEA Part C and B/619 administrators, along with administrators in other early childhood service sectors and early childhood faculty teaching at institutions of higher education to improve outcomes for young children with disabilities and their families across the country. (more…)

By Steve Silberman

Diane Craglow was caring for a 14-year-old autistic boy named Connor Leibel in Buckeye, Ariz., one day in July. They took a walk to one of his favorite places, a park in an upscale community called Verrado. She was not hesitant to leave Connor alone for a few minutes while she booked a piano lesson for his sister nearby, because he usually feels safe and comfortable in places that are familiar to him, and he learns to be more independent that way.

When Ms. Craglow returned, she couldn’t believe what she saw: a police officer looming over the now-handcuffed boy, pinning him to the ground against a tree. Connor was screaming, and the police officer, David Grossman, seemed extremely agitated. (more…)

By Adrienne Benjamin and Arlene Reith

We are two moms who met recently and although we are different in many ways — one a Republican and one a Democrat — we share a deep bond.

Our daughters, Sarah and Zoe, have never met but have a lot in common. They are 21-year-old women who have severe intellectual disabilities and autism. They just graduated from their school programs. But their graduation has not brought celebration.

The lack of a state budget is not an abstraction for our families. It means no funding for the daily program our girls urgently need. The Department of Developmental Services offers programs with structure, activities and goals to work toward. Our daughters are among the 330 new graduates who are waiting for the funding of these core services. They have waited more than two months so far. (more…)

By Cyrus Dos Santos – September 1, 2017

HARTFORD, CT — The capital city will no longer offer free metered parking for commuters with disabilities starting today.

But the head of the Hartford Parking Authority said it’s not about increasing revenues for a city flirting with bankruptcy.

“It’s too difficult to determine if a valid permit is used validly,” Hartford Parking Authority CEO Eric Boone said Wednesday. He also stated that current laws make enforcing violations extremely difficult.

According to a Hartford Parking Authority website, one in six vehicles at a meter displays an accessible parking permit. The website goes on to say this indicates that “there is a significant amount of permit abuse.” (more…)

To the UConn Community,

Last weekend, the world watched in horrified shock as scenes of brutality fueled by racist, hate-fueled ideologies played out in the town of Charlottesville, Va., home of one of our country’s greatest public universities. By the end of the day Saturday, three people were dead: two Virginia state troopers who had been monitoring the march from a helicopter, and a peaceful protester who had come to courageously bear witness against the noxious philosophy of white supremacy.

As our nation struggled to process these horrific events, we learned that groups motivated by the despicable ideologies of fascism and racism are planning more such rallies, particularly targeting public universities as symbols of all that they most despise: diversity, inclusion, and a relentless pursuit of the truth.

Let me be very clear: as a university, we are committed to fearless intellectual debate and to the free speech that makes it possible. Those commitments are essential to another elemental aspect of our identity, which is our determination to create an intellectual community composed of dignity, compassion, and respect, which constitute the foundation of a free society. (more…)

By Kyle Spencer – August 3, 2017

Half a dozen students, some in Syracuse University T-shirts, sat around a conference table joking about appropriate job interview outfits. No bathing suits, pajamas or Halloween costumes. Added their instructor, not joking: “No tank tops.”

Then Brianna Shults, leading the workshop with a kindhearted but no-nonsense approach, launched into the Q. and A. section. “So if I identify my interview outfit, should I wear it to bed the night before so I’m all dressed and ready?”

“No!” the group responded in unison.

“And before you put your clothes on, what’s the most important step?”

“Shower!” a few called out.

Ms. Shults, an internship and employment coordinator, closed the conversation with a sartorial tip that experience has taught her needs mentioning: “No dirty clothes!”

Why not? Meghan Muscatello piped in: “Because then you’d be smelly.” The room erupted in laughter. “And if you have a cat or a dog, make sure you leave it hanging so they don’t get it all hairy.” (more…)

By Dhruv Khullar – July 11, 2017

Growing up, my sister never let our family get a blue “handicapped” placard for the car.

Born three months prematurely with cerebral palsy, she uses forearm crutches to get around. But she’d rather walk half a mile across a mall’s parking lot than take the reserved spot next to the entrance. (I found this particularly exasperating during the holiday season when a ready parking spot is more precious than the presents inside.)

But the prospect of less stigma and greater support for people with disabilities was a central reason my family immigrated to the United States. My sister was born the same year the Americans with Disabilities Act (A.D.A.) was passed — a law that reaffirmed America’s moral and practical commitment to equality.

More than 20 percent of Americans — nearly 57 million people — live with a disability, including 8 percent of children and 10 percent of non-elderly adults. And while the medical profession is devoted to caring for the ill, often it doesn’t do enough to meet the needs of the disabled. (more…)