As of August 17, The Inclusive Education Certificate Program (IECP) at Metropolitan State University – Denver is providing a fully inclusive college experience for students with different intellectual or developmental abilities who do not meet the university requirements for admission as degree-seeking students. This is the first program of its kind in Colorado! > IECP participants enroll in MSU Denver courses as non-degree seeking students > IECP students receive individualized accommodations and modifications to their inclusive coursework > IECP students participate in social activities and events, career exploration, vocational apprenticeships click here to read more

Applying for Social Security Disability Benefits in Colorado

Contributed by Deanna Power, Community Outreach Manager, Social Security Disability Help

If you become disabled and can no longer work, there could be financial assistance available. The Social Security Administration (SSA) offers Social Security Disability benefits for people of all ages to help pay for medical bills, therapy, and the cost of day-to-day living.

There are two forms of benefits available for click here to read more

Contributed by Mandy Kent.

Up until a year and a half ago I was completely unaware that groups of siblings formally met to provide support and share their experiences of having a brother or sister with special needs. Sure, I knew my sister and I weren’t the only people on the planet with a brother with a disability, but why would I assume there was support and camaraderie out there click here to read more

By: Mary Hartley on May 28, 2015

What can we do? As parents, we’ve learned there are no guarantees and no magic solutions that work for everyone. However, we’ve also learned that certain factors in the process, like becoming well educated in IEPs, advocacy and connecting with the right parents, administrators and teachers, finding the right insurances, doctors, medications, therapists, social experiences and summer camps, make our children’s odds better. As our children head into the next phase of their lives, young adulthood, many of us are asking how can click here to read more

In the Fight for Global Gender Equality, Women and Girls of all Ages and Abilities Must be Counted

By Kathy Greenlee, Assistant Secretary for Aging and Administrator of ACL

The importance of rigorous data collection to inform international development programs aimed at empowering women and girls can hardly be overstated. For these efforts to be successful, however, all women and girls, regardless of age or ability, must be included.

A recent report from the Thomson Reuters Foundation brought attention to the troubling absence of older women click here to read more

Contributed by Sandra Tucker, Executive Director of Sibling Tree.

Siblings spend more time with each other than they do with anyone else in their life and with summer quickly approaching, they’re about to spend even more time together. This is a great opportunity for siblings to create great memories together. My brother and I grew up in Arizona, where we spent our summers swimming, biking and playing in any mud we could find. As we got older, we started to volunteer at summer camps together. During one summer camp, my click here to read more

In celebration of National Siblings Day (April 10th) and in support of the siblings of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, the Council is pleased to announce the launch of SibsCorner!

For many of us, the sibling relationship represents the longest lasting relationship we will have in our lifetime. From the time they are born, our brothers and sisters are our protectors, scolds, playmates, tormentors, and co-conspirators. They are our role models and teach and counsel us through the decisions we make in our lives. This sibling bond is no click here to read more

Sunday, July 3, 2011

Ah, vacation. I am sitting on a porch in a house in the Great Smoky Mountains, altitude about 4,000 feet, in just about near-perfect weather. My family and friends have enjoyed great food, good company, music, hiking and other pleasures. It makes me consider the nature and value of community. In the disability field, we talk about the community as if it were a single place where one lives, including its various surrounding people, businesses and social groups. But actually, there are multiple communities we all click here to read more

Photo of Katherine Archuleta, Director of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management By Guest Blogger Katherine Archuleta, Director of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management

Four years ago, President Barack Obama signed an Executive Order (E.O.) stressing the importance of hiring people with disabilities in the federal government. He set a goal of hiring 100,000 people with disabilities. I am proud to say that we are more than halfway toward reaching that milestone.

The Office of Personnel Management’s (OPM) latest click here to read more

By Aaron Bishop, Commissioner, Administration for Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, and Edwin Walker, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Aging

For many years, state courts have routinely assigned guardians to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities as they became adults. Older adults with dementia-related disorders also frequently have been assigned guardians.

The trouble with guardianship is that it is a legal process. A court deems a person incapacitated or legally incompetent and assigns a substitute decision-maker for that person. Guardianship laws vary by state, but in some states, guardians are given the click here to read more