PATH's Online Auction Is Coming Soon!

The PATH Annual Online Auction will begin on Friday, November 24th, and run through Sunday, December 3rd. We are actively seeking donations of products, services, gift baskets, gift certificates, and other items. If you would like to contribute to our online auction, please contact Marni McNiff at mmcniff@pathct.org. All donations are tax deductible.

This auction is PATH's main fundraiser for the year. Help us keep PATH's programs and services free to families in Connecticut with your donation. If you don't have a product or service to donate to the auction, monetary donations can be made HERE.

A preview of some of this year's auction items will be in our October newsletter.

Special Education Today Webinar

On September 6th, Kevin Daly hosted a Special Education Today webinar. In case you missed it, we have covered a link to the webinar recording below. This webinar covered:

What will the new school year be like for Connecticut's special education students? How will the shortage of teachers and staff affect students with disabilities? What is being done to support public school students with emotional disabilities? What's new this year for older students who attend transition programs?

This edition of Answers: Special Education Today will explore the answers to these questions and more. Also, there will be interviews with special guests Bryan Klimkiewicz, Special Education Director for the Connecticut State Department of Education, and Brian Gresko, Transition Advisor for the Connecticut Department of Developmental Services.

PATH Is Hiring!

We are looking for a Statewide Bilingual Health Information Specialist. To learn more about this opportunity click here.

LifeCourse

Life Domain Vision Tool: Family Perspective

Forming a vision and beginning to plan for the future in each of the life domains helps plot a trajectory for a full, inclusive, quality life in the community. This tool is to help you start thinking about your family members’ vision for their life in the future, and narrow down what life domain(s) to focus on at this point in time.

Parent Support

Are you a parent of a child with a disability who would like to offer support to other parents? Join us for our Parent Support Training where you will learn to provide informational and emotional support to parents with children that have been newly diagnosed with special needs. Upon completing this self-paced, online training, you will be matched with a parent of a child with a similar disability. You can be a source of strength for families raising a child with special needs.

We are currently in the process of taking registrations for our November cohort for PATH’s Parent Support Training. This training is a one-month web-based/self-paced training. If you are interested in becoming a support parent, you can contact us by:

Email: info@pathct.org

Phone: 203-234-9554

Text: 203-215-9257

You can learn more about our Parent Support Program HERE. If you would like to be connected with a trained support parent, reach out using the contact information above.

September is Newborn Screening Month

CT Sibling Network

CT Sibling Network (CT Sibs) is an Affiliate of the National Sibling Leadership Network. CT Sibs recognizes PATH as the leading CT family support organization and has partnered with us to deliver programs and resources to siblings. Currently, we are serving siblings ages 18 and older.

CT Sibs believes that the lives and opinions of siblings are important.

We recognize that siblings are the family members who will have the longest relationships with individuals with disabilities. While there are many positive aspects of having a brother or sister with a disability, we respect that it can be a difficult journey for a sibling with unique challenges. Siblings deserve opportunities for support and understanding, as well as information and tools to advocate for their interests and the needs of their brothers and sisters with disabilities.

If you are interested in taking our Sib2Sib training, or connecting with another sibling in our network, contact us at info@pathct.org.

Announcing the Supported Decision Making Fall Webinar Series!!

The Supported Decision Making Coalition of Connecticut is pleased to present three webinars on Supported Decision Making topics.

All webinars are free. You must register separately for each webinar.

October 4, 2023 6-7:30PM via Zoom

Supported Decision Making and Transition

To register for this webinar, click here.

October 18, 2023 6-7:30PM Via Zoom

Supported Decision Making and Vocational Rehabilitation

To register for this webinar, click here.

The presenter for all three webinars will be

JONATHAN MARTINIS, ESQ., J.D.

Jonathan Martinis, Esq., J.D., is the Senior Director for Law and Policy in the Burton Blatt Institute (BBI) at Syracuse University. He is based at BBI’s Washington, D.C. office and leads the institute’s national and international efforts.



Martinis has over 20 years of experience representing and advocating for people with disabilities under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Most notably, in 2013, Martinis represented Jenny Hatch in the nationally acclaimed “Justice for Jenny” case. Martinis helped Ms. Hatch secure her right to live where and how she wants, to make her own decisions, and direct her own life. Jenny’s case was the first trial to hold that a person with disabilities has a right to engage in “Supported-Decision Making,” where people work with trusted friends, family members, and professionals to help them understand the situations and choices they face, so they may make their own decisions – rather than be subjected to an unnecessary permanent, plenary or full guardianship. 

Free Covid Tests

Beginning on Sept. 25, every U.S. household can again place an order to receive four more free COVID-19 rapid tests delivered to their home by visiting www.covidtests.gov.

Looking for fun alternatives to Trick or Treating?

Many kids love to go trick or treating. But, maybe your disabled child does not enjoy it. Or, maybe we’re in the middle of a pandemic, so you don’t feel like you can trick or treat safely. Either way, you need alternative activities to trick or treating, and here is a great list.

Read more from A Day in Your Shoes.

9 Examples of Assistive Technology and Adaptive Tools in School

by Amanda Morin, Understood.org

Assistive technology is one of the core strategies to help with learning and thinking differences in the classroom. Some adaptive tools are low-tech and some are pretty fancy. Here are some common examples.

1. Audio players and recorders

Kids may find it helpful to listen to the words while reading them on the page. Smartphones and tablet computers come with text-to-speech software that can read aloud anything on the screen. And many e-books have audio files. If a student has trouble with writing or taking notes, an audio recorder can capture what the teacher says in class. Then the student can listen to it again at home. Devices like laptops, tablets, and smartpens also have a recording feature.

Read the complete article at Understood.org.

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