1. Monthly Board meeting is Feb. 28
The Lucas County Board of Developmental Disabilities will hold its monthly meeting virtual-only Monday, Feb. 28, at 5:30 p.m. With the recent passage of Substitute House Bill 51, Ohio public bodies are once again permitted to hold public meetings by teleconference, video conference or any other similar electronic technology through June 30, 2022. Click here to join via Zoom and to see the meeting agenda.
2. Board to cosponsor training series the Dementia Coalition
As part of its ongoing partnership with the Dementia Coalition, the Lucas County Board of Developmental Disabilities is again cosponsoring a training series with Dr. Phil McCallion, a world-renowned expert in dementia and intellectual/developmental disabilities. Click on any of the six sessions for more information. Free social work, counselor and DODD certification credits are being offered for attending these sessions. The schedule is as follows:
- The Basics of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities and Dementia – Monday, March 7, from 1-3 p.m.
- Symptom Identification and Assessment for Individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities and Dementia – Tuesday, March 15, from 1-3 p.m.
- Advanced Dementia Care for Individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities – Monday, March 21, from 1-3 p.m.
- Redesigning Day, Employment and Living Situations for Individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities and Dementia – Monday, March 28, from 1-3 p.m.
- Ask the Expert Session with Dr. Phillip McCallion, Ph.D., director of the Temple University School of Social Work – Tuesday, April 12, from 1-3 p.m.
- Train-the-trainer for Basics of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities and Dementia – Friday, April 22, from 1-3 p.m.
3. Enter the 2022 Autism Walk T-Shirt Design Contest
The Autism Society of Northwest Ohio is accepting entries for its 2022 Autism Walk T-Shirt Design Contest. The contest is open to anyone, and designs are limited to three colors. The winner, chosen by popular vote via an ASNO email blast, will be announced March 15. The winning design will be used as the official walk shirt, which will be given to all participants and be for sale at the walk itself. The submission deadline is March 1, and all entries should be submitted to executivedirector@asno.org.
4. Register for the 2022 Autism Walk
The 9th annual Autism Walk takes place at the Franklin Park Mall on Sunday, April 3, at 10 a.m.
Participants will walk the hallways of the mall before enjoying post-walk festivities in the food court area. There will be games, crafts and an Autism Resource Fair featuring service organizations in the area. All proceeds from the Autism Walk fund programs that support, advocate and educate on behalf of the autistic community. To register or donate click here.
5. DODD seeks input from direct support professionals
The Ohio Department of Developmental Disabilities recently worked with the Ohio State University Nisonger Center to develop a short survey for direct support professionals (DSPs) to learn about the needs of this essential workforce and to identify the factors that would encourage people to stay in the field longer.
The survey will take between five and 10 minutes to complete and closes Friday, March 11. Answers are completely anonymous, will not be linked to you in any way and will be used to better support DSPs across the state. Click here to take the survey.
6. Wednesdays with Wade
The next meeting of Toledo Mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz’s “Wednesdays with Wade” series will take place March 2 at 4 p.m. Once the meeting starts, audience members are invited to post questions for the mayor or city staff on the event’s Facebook page. The meeting can be joined here.
7. The Ability Center offers college scholarships
Ensuring that people with disabilities have opportunities to achieve higher education is critical. That’s why, in partnership with its auxiliary, The Ability Center of Greater Toledo has provided nearly $500,000 in college scholarships to area students with disabilities. 2022 scholarship applicants must meet all eligibility requirements and apply by March 31. For more information and to apply, click here.
8. Register for Courageous Acres
Registration is now open for summer 2022 camp sessions at Courageous Acres. Each session is themed and tailored for a specific age group. Dates are available from June to August. To learn more and to register, click here.
9. DODD seeks feedback from families
The Ohio Department of Developmental Disabilities (DODD) works to communicate and connect with families and people with lived experience. To align its communication and resources with these preferences, the DODD invites families of people with disabilities to take this short survey about what DODD family resources they use and how they were involved with DODD during the past year. The results will inform DODD how to best support families in 2022. This survey closes March 18, 2022. To take the survey, click here.
10. Providers invited to join OhioISP
The Ohio Department of Developmental Disabilities (DODD) is actively preparing for the release of OhioISP and wants to assure all providers that the OhioISP is available to them, even those working with a county board that uses a third-party vendor. With OhioISP, providers working with multiple counties can find all the assessments and ISPs for the people they support in OhioISP with one simple login. Also, there is no cost to use the OhioISP. There’s more information to come, including training videos and materials. If you have any questions about using the OhioISP, contact OhioISP@dodd.ohio.gov.
11. March Forth to Employment Conference
Nationwide Children’s has scheduled its March Forth to Employment Conference for March 4 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. There are two tracks for this virtual conference. The first track focuses on information valuable to individuals, families and providers who are working towards and gaining skills for employment. The second track highlights organizations that have successfully hired individuals with disabilities and the ways employers can increase their accessibility practices. Guests are welcome to attend presentations within both tracks.
For a complete schedule and to register, click here.