The Navigator
Fall 2016
Arizona Ranks #1 Again!
The Case for Inclusion 2016 ranks Arizona #1! Every year since 2006, United Cerebral Palsy (UCP) has released  The Case for Inclusion, the preeminent annual ranking of how well state Medicaid programs serve Americans with intellectual and developmental disabilities (ID/DD) and their families.
Arizona has been ranked as the best performing state in the United States:

For the past five years!

For eight out of the past 10 years!

Arizona has ranked either #1 or #2 for the past 10 years!

In This Issue
Pima Community on Transition  
Collaborating to Transition Youth with Disabilities
 
Through effective community collaboration and action-driven outcomes, Pima Community on Transition (PCT) will increase the well-being of youth and young adults with diverse disabilities by reducing barriers, providing opportunities, and engaging community partners.

Members include: Educators; Service Providers; Youth and Young Adults with Disabilities; Parents; Community Members; and Local and Corporate Business Owners.

The Goals include:
  • Outreach and community education about effective transition of youth with disabilities from high school to higher education, work, and/or living independently
  • Addressing unmet transition needs
  • Evaluation the transition process and recommending program, system and policy improvement

In the coming months, PCT will form advisory committees of youth and young adults with disabilities, parents, etc. to guide their work.

To join contact Vanessa Zuber at vzuber@ucpsa.org or Brenda Miller at millerb@azdes.gov
Getting To Know Pilot Parents
Have you ever wondered how Pilot Parents of Southern Arizona got its name?

In the early 1970's a mother in Omaha, Nebraska realized how helpful her connections with other parents of children with disabilities was and wanted to connect with and share her knowledge with parents who were starting out. She yearned to find a way to help parents connect with other parents so that information and emotional support could be easily shared. This parent along with a social worker and leading psychologist Wolf Wolfensberger formed an alliance around this vision and spent a year developing the Pilot Parents model and planning the first formal Parent to Parent program.
The heart of the Pilot Parents model is a one-to-one match between an experienced, trained mentor parent, called the pilot parent, and a parent seeking individualized support from another parent who has been there.
Your Vote Counts!
  
Voting is a fundamental right for all Americans, and there are numerous federal laws that protect the rights of persons with disabilities in the voting process. The U.S. Supreme Court has stated, "No right is more precious in a free economy than that of having a voice in the election of those who make laws under which, as good citizens, we must live. Other rights, even the most basic, are illusory if the right to vote is undermined." (Westbury v. Sanders, 376 U.S. 1, 17 (1964)). Yet, historically, for a person with a disability, voting has been a difficult and cumbersome process, resulting in persons with disabilities being dissuaded from participating in the electoral process.
 
On Election Day, the Arizona Center for Disability Law staffs a hotline from 6am to 7pm to address election concerns for individuals with disabilities related to the right to vote independently, accessibility, and voting machines.
Call 602-274-6287 or 1-800-927-2260
Congratulations to the
2016 AZ Partners in Leadership Graduates

Maricopa County                    Pima County                    Pinal County

Dawn Bailey                             Pauline Alshuk                  Crystal Benzing

Najwa Ghatttas                        Jillian Benfield                   Shauna Marconato

Jeanine Legler                         Adrienne Crawford

Heather Joy Magdelano          Mandy Feld                        Yavapai County

Sarah McTighe                        Gabrielle Ficchi                  Cindy Schulze

Chris Meachum                       Catherine Galyon               Kristi Wolford

Mark Tolman                           Lori Hayes

                                                Jill Jorden Spitz

                                                Ciara Martinez

                                                Laura Petersen

                                                Nykole Recinos

                                                Andrea Taube 

Supported Decision Making
EVERYONE has the Right to Make Choices
 
Supported Decision-Making is a way people can make their own decisions and stay in charge of their lives, while receiving any help they need to do so.  Supported Decision-Making is just a fancy way of describing how we all make choices. We all need help making decisions, every single day. Think about it: when the doctor says you have a "somatic injury" or a "brachial obstruction," or something else that sounds like a foreign language, what do you do? When you don't know the difference between "itemized" and "standard" deductions, how can you file your tax return? When the mechanic says your car has a "blown head gasket," how do you know whether to pay for repairs? You probably ask a friend or family member what to do or if they know someone who can help you cut through the jargon so you can understand what's going on and what you need to do. It's just common sense, right? When you don't know enough to make a good decision, you find people who can help you. It could be going to your brother the accountant with tax questions or talking to your friend the nurse when you need medical information.
When you do that, you're using Supported Decision-Making. You're getting the help you need and want so you can make the decisions you have to make.
 
LEARN MORE
AZ Partners in Leadership Now Accepting Applications

A FREE Leadership training for young-adult self-advocates and parents of children with disabilities

The AZ Partners in Leadership program is designed to provide information, training, resources and skill building so that individuals can become better advocates for themselves or their children. Participants have the opportunity to meet and unite with others who have similar concerns to create a powerful voice on important issues. Participants learn how the legislative process works at the local, state and national levels. The goal of the training is to develop productive partnerships between people who need and use services and those in a position to make policy and law.

 

APPLY NOW
LEAP Scholarship Funding Extended
  
The LEAP program will continue to review and make scholarship awards for events taking place through December 31, 2016 until all program funds have been used. Please note that funds for out-of-state events are limited to individuals that have not previously been supported with LEAP funds to attend national events. Visit the Pilot Parents website to review eligibility and applications requirements.
APPLY NOW