1962/2012 Minnesota Survey of Attitudes
Regarding Developmental Disabilities

Perceptions, awareness, beliefs, and attitudes about people with developmental disabilities have changed substantially in the past 50 years. MarketResponse International has just completed a survey of the general population in Minnesota that shows these marked shifts. (4/3/12)

Flash (PowerPoint)   PDF   Text Only


The History and Evolution of Behavioral Approaches
and Positive Behavioral Interventions

Derrick Dufresne

Jim Conroy

Derrick Dufresne is the founder and a Senior Partner of Community Resource Associates, Inc. (CRA), a training and management consulting firm that is dedicated to promoting full community inclusion for individuals with disabilities. He possesses a wealth of knowledge and experience in financing and subsidies, and has utilized creative approaches to establishing affordable integrated housing for individuals with disabilities throughout the United States.

Video interview conducted February 1 2012


The Evolution of the Quality of Care
in Developmental Disabilities

Jim Conroy

Jim ConroyJim Conroy is the founder and President of the Center for Outcome Analysis, Inc., a non-profit firm that is devoted to evaluation, research, training, and policy analysis on quality of life issues in the developmental disabilities field. The Center is founded on the principle that service agencies should be guided by measurable quality of life outcomes regarding the services and supports received by individuals with developmental disabilities.

The video interview was conducted December 7, 2011.


Ed Roberts, Activist

Ed Roberts was a pioneering leader of the disability rights movement. Ed declared that people with disabilities are fully human; that they have a right and a responsibility to take control of their own lives, to help build a new culture in which they and all people participate fully in the leadership, the labor, and the fruits of society.

Ed Roberts Day was Monday, January 23, 2012.

An interview with Ed's son, Lee Roberts and Ed's colleague, Dr. William Bronston, conducted at Ed's induction to the California Hall of Fame, has been added to the Ed Roberts website section.


The METO Lawsuit and Settlement Agreement

At the December 1, 2011 Fairness Hearing before United States District Court Judge Donovan Frank, the METO Settlement Agreement was accepted. Judge Frank issued the official Order on December 5, 2011. In this first videotaped interview with Shamus O'Meara, counsel for the Plaintiffs in the METO class action lawsuit, he talks about his decision to take the case, the legal issues involved, and some of the critical aspects of the Settlement Agreement, including the focus on staff training around person centered planning, and the establishment of both an Olmstead Committee and Rule 40 Committee.

Following the Fairness Hearing, Shamus O'Meara was interviewed by Minnesota Public Radio (MPR). A related article was featured on MPR's "All Things Considered" on December 1, 2011.

Pamela HoopesRoberta OpheimRoberta BlomsterMary Raasch

Interviews about the METO Lawsuit and Agreement were conducted with Shamus O'Meara, Counsel for the Plaintiff; Steve Larson, The Arc Minnesota; Pamela Hoopes, Minnesota Disability Law Center; Roberta Opheim, Ombudsman Office for Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities; and Self Advocates.

Olmstead Planning Committee

The Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS) will convene an Olmstead Planning Committee to comply with the METO Class Action Settlement Agreement, Jensen, et al. v. Minnesota Department of Human Services, et al., Court File No. 09-CV-1775 (DWF/FLN). The Committee will issue recommendations on the development of the Minnesota Olmstead Plan to the DHS in November 2012.


Professor John McKnight:
Capacity Building Beyond Community Services

Video Interview, Resources, and Documents

Introduction by Ed Preneta, Retired Director,
Connecticut Council on Developmental Disabilities

Anyone interested in successfully including people on the margins into neighborhood and community life needs to listen to John McKnight and study asset based community development. John is a community organizer, an academic and a brilliant story-teller. He is deeply committed to promoting the ability and capacity of people, their neighbors and their associations. He believes every community has welcoming places and people and that every person has a gift, ability or skill to share.

In addition to the video interview, a collection of John McKnight's papers, where he further explains the building blocks and assets that make for an inclusive community, can be found at John McKnight Resources and Documents.

John McKnight

Videotaped Interview:
August 3, 2011
Posted: September 15, 2011


Ethical Issues, End of Life Conversations
and Developmental Disabilities
(8/5/11)

Honoring Choices

Honoring Choices is a collection of stories by ordinary people about end of life conversations with family and friends, each of whom is sharing their perspective from their personal and professional lives. (8/26/11)

http://honoringchoices.org/videostories/#!developmental%20disabilities

The Council thanks Bill Hanley and Pam Palan for inviting our participation in this important initiative. Developmental Disabilities is one of 16 different identity groups included in the online archive of conversations. Please note: These stories are not closed captioned.


Thinking Ahead

Thinking Ahead: Thank you to the California Department of Developmental Services for creating resource materials in plain language that can be used with self advocates to discuss end of life issues. This guide can be useful in assuring that self advocates express preferences about end of life decisions. Please note: this is not a legal document.

http://www.dds.ca.gov/ConsumerCorner/ThinkingAhead.cfm


Carlton Sherwood

CNN Special Assignment: "Okahoma Infanticide": A three part series by Carlton Sherwood describes the lack of medical treatment for babies born with spina bifida in Oklahoma in 1984. Centuries of discrimination and oppression have resulted in the abuse, neglect, and deaths of people with developmental disabilities as documented in Parallels in Time and Parallels in Time, Part 2.



The Evolution of Disability Rights Litigation
(and some stories)

David Ferleger
David Ferleger, J.D. of Philadelphia, PA, has a national law and consulting practice, specializing in public interest, civil rights and disability law. He has litigated landmark disability cases, argued five times before the Supreme Court of the United States, assisted the courts, represented individuals and government agencies, taught law school, and has written, lectured and consulted nationally.

David Ferleger on Disability Rights Litigation>>>

Institutions to Independence

Institutions to Independence"Institutions to Independence" is a 30 minute documentary produced by TPT (public television) in cooperation with Lutheran Social Service of Minnesota, the law firm of Fredrikson & Byron, P.A., the Minnesota Governor's Council on Developmental Disabilities, and Government Training Services. This documentary tells the story of services in Minnesota from the 1860s into the 21st Century through the telling of stories of people with developmental disabilities, families, and professionals.

Know Your RightsIn addition to the documentary, the Minnesota Governor's Council worked with TPT to create "Know Your Rights", an Illustrated Essay by David Gillette regarding the Rights of People with Developmental Disabilities.

Visit the Institutions to Independence section for interviews about rights and social justice issues >>


Meet the Future Face of Employment
Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder in Technology Fields

Meet the Future Face of Employment, offers a broad range of information and resources to help anyone interested in supporting individuals with autism spectrum disorder to be employed in technology fields.
Meet the WOW People
We are very grateful to the Vocational Rehabilitation Services Division of the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development for their support of this project.
News and InformationMore News...

25 Years of Partners in Policymaking!
On May 10, 2012, the Partners in Policymaking program will celebrate its 25th Anniversary, a quarter century of leadership training that began here in Minnesota, teaching self advocates and parents about the power of personal and group advocacy, and best practices in the field, to change the way people with developmental disabilities are supported, viewed, taught, live, and work. With 850 Partners graduates in Minnesota, 21,000 Partners graduates in the United States, and 2,000 Partners graduates internationally, important issues have been confronted and dramatic changes have been made. The Partners network will expand and be strengthened in the years ahead, and this work will continue.

An Open House is being planned and will be held on Saturday, May 12, 2012 from 2:00 – 4:00 p.m. at the Minneapolis Airport Marriott, Bloomington, Minnesota to celebrate this milestone event. Please register at www.regonline.com/partners25
(Updated 5/1/12)

The Minnesota State Council on Disability and the Metropolitan Center on Independent Living are cosponsoring a Town Hall Meeting on Olmstead in Minnesota. This meeting will be held on Tuesday, May 8, 2012 from 9:00 a.m. to 12 Noon via video conference and web stream at 15 locations throughout the state. Registration is required, deadline is May 3, 2012, and handouts will be mailed in advance. Registration information and further details are available here. (Updated 4/18/12)
Notice of Request for Proposals for Self Advocacy: The Governor’s Council on Developmental Disabilities (GCDD) is pleased to announce the availability of a total of $100,000 in federal funds under provisions of the Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act of 2000 (DD Act)(P.L. 106-402) to expand and strengthen self advocacy in Minnesota. Proposals must include support of local self advocacy groups at the grassroots level in the Twin Cities metropolitan area and Greater Minnesota, strengthen existing groups and help develop new self advocacy groups where currently there are no groups, provide learning and teaching opportunities for self advocates to improve their leadership skills, and expand their participation in cross-disability and culturally diverse coalitions. Application deadline is Monday, May 21, 2012 at 3:00 p.m. (Updated 4/16/12)

1962/2012 Minnesota Survey of Attitudes Regarding Developmental Disabilities: Perceptions, awareness, beliefs, and attitudes about people with developmental disabilities have changed substantially in the past 50 years. MarketResponse International has just completed a survey of the general population in Minnesota that shows these marked shifts.
Flash (PowerPoint)   PDF   Text Only (Updated 4/3/12)

Recruitment is underway for Partners in Policymaking, Class 30, scheduled to begin the weekend of September 28-29, 2012. All weekend session dates have been finalized. The full application booklet and online application form are available at http://mngts.org/partnersinpolicymaking/index.html. (Updated 3/27/12)

The Autism Society of Minnesota not only offers a broad range of services for individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and their families but values and supports the many partnerships with community resources and other service providers. Further information about these services, educational classes, and support groups is available here:
AuSM-mental-health-services-brochure.pdf   MHS-We-are-growing.pdf  (Updated 3/6/12)

FFY 2012 Training Conferences Cosponsorship Funds Awarded: Thirteen Minnesota organizations were recently awarded cosponsorship funds for training conferences. The conferences provide opportunities for participants to learn about best practices, and develop or strengthen their personal leadership skills. The expectation is that these training experiences will result in increased independence, productivity, self determination, integration and inclusion of people with developmental disabilities and their families. (Updated 2/21/12)

The Governor's Council on Developmental Disabilities (GCDD) has issued its 2011 Annual Report. (Updated 1/4/11)

In 2010, the Disability Services Division, Minnesota Department of Human Services, implemented a statewide Participant Experience Survey for individuals receiving home and community based services under the state's four waiver programs. Survey results are contained in this report. (Updated 12/21/11)

Partners in Making Your Case, the online course that explains the importance of personal advocacy, and how to work most effectively with elected officials and other policymakers in bringing about positive systems change, is now available in Spanish. Comments are always welcome. A Feedback Form is also included in this course.
(Updated 12/05/11)