Seminar Series: Delivering on the Promise of
Employment First for Students with
Significant Disabilities These webinars will present our learning from schools, employers, vocational rehabilitation counselors, parents, and families. We will highlight tools and processes to empower stakeholders in supporting students with significant disabilities in obtaining competitive integrated employment. - January 20, 2021 | Charting a Course Toward Improved Outcomes | https://bit.ly/35pMhM5
- February 3, 2021 | Student Engagement | https://bit.ly/2UhXWGo
- February 17, 2021 | Family Engagement | https://bit.ly/38zmYJ5
- March 3, 2021 | Employer Engagement |
https://bit.ly/3f0DdjX
Who should join? Teachers, School & District Administrators, District Employment Specialists, Local Vocational Rehabilitation Counselors, Students, Parents, and Families.
This webinar series is a partnership between the University of Kentucky Human Development Institute, the Kentucky Department of Education, and the Kentucky Office of Vocational Rehabilitation.
Learn the latest data about competitive integrated employment outcomes for students with intellectual disabilities (ID), multiple disabilities (MD), and autism in Kentucky. You can also explore the sources to learn more.
Sometimes the low employment rates for people with disabilities can be discouraging, so find out what you can do to improve those outcomes for the youth with disabilities in your life.
The newly seated Kentucky Employment First Council met on Friday, December 4th. The Council elected Katie Wolf Whaley as Chair, and immediately began its work. The Council is charged with advising state government and the Governor, and increasing meaningful opportunities for competitive integrated employment for Kentuckians with disability. There are a total of 31 Council members, who include people with disabilities, family members of people with disabilities,
provider agencies, state agencies, employers and other stakeholders. Employers represented on the Council include Amazon, Anthem, Appalachian Regional Healthcare, Lowe’s, UPS, and the University of Kentucky. The Kentucky Chamber of Commerce is a new member of the Council. The Human Development Institute at the University of Kentucky will administer and support the Council.
You Can Do So Many Things, is a children’s book addressing career exploration and diversity in Kentucky. It was written by KentuckyWorks staff and illustrated by Human Development Institute staff. The book received a 2020 WINNIE award from the Equus Film and Arts Festival in November. It is available online in multiple formats, including Spanish and spoken audio. You can download the book for free at: https://hdi.uky.edu/ecbook. KentuckyWorks staff are working with the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce/Kentucky Equine Education Project for a second book in the series.
The mission of the Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) is to be a partner to districts, schools, families and others to ensure the success of every student. KDE recently released the following documents to provide further guidance to schools and families.
KDE Associate Commissioner and KentuckyWorks State Partner, Gretta Hylton, Receives KDE’s Noland-Miller AwardCongratulations to KDE Associate Commissioner and KentuckyWorks State Partner, Gretta Hylton, on receiving this year’s Noland-Miller Award from KDE. Learn more by reading the Kentucky Teacher article. Congratulations, Gretta—very well deserved!
Erin Fitzgerald Joins HDI to Work on Supported Higher Education ProjectWe're excited to share that Erin Fitzgerald has joined HDI as a Disability Program Specialist to work on our Supported Higher Education Project and will serve as Coordinator of our Comprehensive Transition and Postsecondary (CTP) program at UK. We are in the process of applying to establish a CTP at UK and are incredibly excited that Erin will playing a significant role in helping to shape a model program here at the flagship!
Upcoming Events & News Spotlight- Watch a recording of an HDI Seminar about Employment and Technology for Aging Workers. Watch here.
- Missed a KY SPIN webinar this year? Watch the recordings here.
KY SPIN Webinar: Surviving Challenging Behaviors: Thursday, December 17, 2020 11am-12pm ET. Register here. KY SPIN Webinar: Tips for Math Strategies: Tuesday, December 15, 2020 11am–12pm ET. Register here. 2020 KY APSE Conference: December 16 9:30am – 5pm ET via Zoom. Register here. There are sessions students and family members would find beneficial. United Partners in Kentucky (UP in KY) Virtual Conference for Youth, Families and Professionals: Friday, February 5, 2021 at 7pm ET to Saturday, February 6, 2021 at
5pm ET
This Virtual Conference provides practical information and strategies to help children and youth with disabilities and their families to become successful at home, school, and in the community. Register here. - KY SPIN Regional Conferences in January/February 2021. Check for more details.
Upcoming Webinar SeriesDelivering on the Promise of Employment First for Students with Significant Disabilities, a four-part webinar series designed to support Kentucky school districts in their efforts to create meaningful work experiences leading to competitive integrated employment for students with significant disabilities. The series will present our learning from work with schools, employers, vocational rehabilitation counselors, parents and families, and will include proven tools and processes to support students with significant disabilities in obtaining competitive integrated employment. - January 20, 2021 | Charting a Course Toward Improved Outcomes | https://bit.ly/35pMhM5
- February 3, 2021 | Student Engagement | https://bit.ly/2UhXWGo
- February 17, 2021 | Family Engagement | https://bit.ly/38zmYJ5
- March 3, 2021 | Employer Engagement | https://bit.ly/3f0DdjX
Resource HighlightsWe have so many amazing free resources available at KentuckyWorks to help youth, families, professionals, and employers, and we also created flyers to let you know what resources might be the most helpful for you! Check out all the training modules, infographics, flyers, videos and other resources on the KentuckyWorks resource page! New resources to check out:
Blog Ideas?If you have story ideas that we can share on the KentuckyWorks blog, please send them to Stephanie Meredith at stephanie.meredith@uky.edu
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