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HELLO SELF ADVOCATES AND ALLIES!

There's a lot of events going on across PA this fall!!

Keep Reading For The Latest News YOU CAN USE!

UPCOMING EVENTS FROM SAU1

📅 Date: Tuesday, October 27th

🕙 Time: 10:30am - 11:30am

Power Talk with ODP is monthly chat with staff from the PA Office of Development Programs (ODP), the government office that oversees and funds those supports and services. People with ID/A can speak up with ODP while staff and others are welcome to listen and learn.

Our call starts with reviewing the questions we sent to ODP for this call.

What questions or concerns do you have about supports and services for people with intellectual disabilities

and or autism (ID/A) in PA?

Please email them to christine@sau1.org by Friday, October 16th.

After the ODP staff leave, stay to talk about what we heard, and offer questions to send to ODP for next month.



PAID WORK OPPORTUNITY

UPCOMING EVENTS FROM PA AGENCIES

Monday, October 19, 2026

10:00 AM – 3:00 PM at PaTTAN Harrisburg

Who should come: employment specialists, job coaches and developers, IPS and mental health employment staff, supports coordinators, VR professionals, provider leaders, educators, and advocates.

Lunch is included.

People live one life, but their services come through many systems that don't always connect.

Join employment professionals, state leaders, and advocates from across Pennsylvania for a day focused on making those systems work together for job seekers with disabilities.

Agenda For The Day



10:15 AM Statewide policy and systems updates

Hear what's changing from:

Office of Vocational Rehabilitation: Ryan Hyde

Office of Developmental Programs: Jamie Bonser and Alex Kozitzky

Office of Long-Term Living: Ryan Dorsey

PA CareerLink: Crystal Houser

PA Workforce Development: James Martini

11:30 AM Keynote: One Life, Many Systems

Dr. Drew Karhan of San Diego State University's Interwork Institute on how customized employment, supported employment, and IPS can work together, and what Medicaid, WIOA, SSI, and ABLE accounts mean for the road ahead.

1:00 PM From Silos to Solutions

Dr. Karhan leads this hands-on working session. Work in small cross-system groups to find the root causes of barriers, and leave with at least one action you can take right away.

2:30 PM Employment success stories

Hear how customized employment, supported employment, and IPS are leading to real jobs when supports and systems work together.

For CESPs: 4.25 hours of CESP™ continuing education credit is pending approval.



Accommodations: let us know what you need when you register, or email PAAPSE@APSE.org.

Pennsylvania Autism Training Conference (PATC) 2026:

Life In Motion

November 4-5, 2026

Hosted Virtually

The Pennsylvania Office of Developmental Programs (ODP) invites you to register for PATC 2026! PATC invites professionals, clinicians, autistic self-advocates, and their families/caregivers to learn from leading experts in the field of autism supports.

Overview

PATC 2026 will be hosted virtually on November 4^th and 5^th through the Whova online conference platform. The conference theme is Life in Motion – a two-day program focused on navigating daily tasks, unique challenges, and regulation techniques for individuals with autism. Personal stories from self-advocates will play throughout the conference.