The Connecting Point

Volume 3 Issue 10 August 15th, 2005

In This ISSUE:

1) Moviesforfree.org
2) Home Accessibility Design and Funding Guides
3) Resources to Help Prepare Students with Disabilities for Transition
4) Health History Summary for Teens – From the Adolescent Health Transition Project

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Guest Editorial: Trading Places by Kathie Snow copyright 2005

1) Moviesforfree.org is a non-profit organization that distributes movies at no charge to individuals with disabilities. Those who are eligible must meet at least one of the following criteria: Be receiving disability insurance, short or long term disability through your employer, or are permanently disabled by injury or illness and unable to work. Or, if you are the parent or legal guardian of a minor with a chronic permanent disability you are eligible to receive a free DVD or VHS movie of your choice. Individuals may request one movie per year.

To obtain the movie, individuals must use the website form titled "Movie Request Form". There is not a catalog of available movies at this time, however an online inventory catalog will be available soon. Currently individuals may request their top 3 favorites. Moviesforfree.org tries to fill these requests in order based upon availability of inventory and donations received.

Moviesforfree.org accepts donations of movies or DVDs that are new or lightly used. http://www.moviesforfree.org

Households exploring how to make existing homes more accessible may need design and financing information. While this resource was written in Minnesota it contains many resources that apply in Washington State as well. http://www.qualitymall.org/products/prod1.asp?prodid=1772

3) Resources to Help Prepare Students with Disabilities for Transition - CORE (Choices, Options, Resources, Education) Project of Washington PAVE, has developed several resources designed for Students with Disabilities who are preparing to transition from School to adult life. The colorful and easy to understand materials are designed to accompany a powerpoint training available to students in Washington State. Three topics are currently available for students.

Student Transition Guide http://projectcore.org/PDF/StudentTransitionGuide.pdf

A Guide to Your Student Rights in Special Education http://www.projectcore.org/PDF/Student_Rights_Updated.pdf

Transition Planning Timeline http://www.projectcore.org/PDF/Transition%20Timeline.pdf

They are available on the web in PDF files and WORD. They will be available in Spanish and Text Reader Format shortly. Go to www.projectcore.org and http://www.projectcore.org/PDF/corebulletin2.pdf for more information about the CORE Project.

4) Health History Summary for Teens – From the Adolescent Health Transition Project -
As adolescents become adults, they must assume responsibility for their health care. Assuming responsibility for one's own health care, as they are developmentally able, is part of growing up, becoming independent from one's family, and finding a place in the adult community. The Health History Summary can be completed by a teen and his/her parent(s) together. It is a tool for the teen to learn more about his/her general health and specific special health need and/or disability, how to access information and how to articulate knowledge of his/her condition with adult health care providers and others. It is also a tool to help parents know what their teen knows about his/her condition and therefore what gaps in knowledge and experience must be learned before the teen transitions to adult health care, work and independence. More information about the document is available at http://depts.washington.edu/healthtr/healthhistory/default.html . The Health History Summary can be downloaded at: http://depts.washington.edu/healthtr/healthhistory/summary.doc

The Adolescent Health Transition Project is designed to help smooth the transition from pediatric to adult health care for adolescents with special health care needs. This site is a resource for information, materials, and links to other people with an interest in health transition issues. http://depts.washington.edu/healthtr/

Trading Places by Kathie Snow copyright 2005

Whether or not you watch a lot of television, you're probably aware of the slew of "reality" TV shows that permeate today's American culture. While I'm not a big TV-viewer, I was intrigued by the concept of people "trading places" on several different TV programs. And it set my mind in motion...

The first step was thinking about people I interact with on a somewhat regular basis. Would I trade places with an airline flight attendant for a day, and would she trade places with me---and become an airline passenger? Yep---I'd have fun being the "boss" on an airplane, and the flight attendant would probably enjoy being able to take a snooze and have a soda and pretzels served to her. Would I trade places with a clerk at Target for a day, and would he trade places with me? Yep! I'd like to have the employee discount for a day, and the Target clerk would probably like being a shopper instead of a stocker! You get the picture, right? These scenarios represent me trading places with people who provide services to me.

Next, I took my thoughts on the road. While presenting to different audiences that included providers of disability-related services, I asked, "Would you be willing to trade places for a day with the people with disabilities you serve?" Sadly, you probably know the answer---a sheepish, but resounding, "no."

The discussions that followed revealed that it wasn't the presence of a disability which resulted in a negative response. Many people agreed it wouldn't be such a big deal if they needed to use a wheelchair, or had another type of disability. Instead, the negative response to my proposition was based on people's knowledge of where and how many individuals with disabilities spend their time!

Employees in the adult service system didn't want to live in a group home, nor did they want to spend their days in a sheltered workshop, day program, or other congregate setting. And they most definitely did not like the idea of having little or no control over their lives!

Educators had similar responses. They did not relish the idea of spending the school day in a segregated, special ed environment, with few opportunities to enjoy the typical experiences of being a school-aged child. Equally important, people added they wouldn't want to be thought of as "incompetent," "unable," "less than," and other characteristics they associate with people who are in "special" (segregated) settings.

As the discussions progressed, I asked if there was any other population which they would not consider trading places with for a day. The consensus reply: people in prisons. And, again, the response was based on where and how people spend their time.

What a terrible, terrible state of affairs---people with disabilities and prisoners in the same metaphorical boat!

The good news? For the most part, those I informally surveyed said they would be willing to trade places with children or adults with disabilities who are included in schools, communities, and workplaces. And what makes the difference for this group of people with disabilities? It's not about the type or "severity" of disability---it's about their having the assistive technology devices, supports, and/or accommodations that ensure their success in inclusive environments!

What about you? Would you ---whether you're a parent, teacher, human services staffer, or have some other role---be willing to trade places for a day with the children and/or adults with disabilities in your life? If your answer is "no," I hope you'll sit and ponder this issue. And then I hope you'll think about what it will take for you and others to make changes in the person's life--- in where and how he spends his time ---so you would be willing to trade places for one day.

Copyright 2005 Kathie Snow. If you would like a handout version (PDF) of this article, please send your request, along with the title of the article (Trading Places) to: kathie@disabilityisnatural.com . You may share and/or distribute this Email or the PDF version of the article to others (non-commercial use only). As a courtesy, please let me know how/when you use it. Request permission before reprinting in publications, chat rooms, or on web sites.

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