The "R" Word - What it really stands for!

PSA - The R Word

Hello all,

The Autistic Self-Advocacy Network (ASAN) is pleased to announce the release of a new Public Service Announcement
regarding the R-word and why it is such hateful speech. This commercial was produced by Christschool, a talented video
maker who is both an autistic self-advocate and a father of an autistic son, and features a professional voice actor.
We are working on getting this video out to as many people as possible, and would love it if other members of the
coalition would do the same by posting it on their websites, encouraging members to e-mail it to others, etc. The video
can be found here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JzgQ3LVNhps

We are hoping for the video to get so many views that when people enter in "Tropic Thunder" as a search, this video
comes up as one of the top results. Thank you.

Sarah Pripas
The Autistic Self-Advocacy Network

Autism Speaks Announces Launch of New Autism Social Networking Site

Autism Speaks announced the launch of its new autism social networking site which will provide a new venue for members of the autism community to share insights, opinions and information. Members are able to create their own personalized profile, start a blog, join a number of new forums with a range of autism-related topics, and post photos and videos. They can also join a variety of user groups, such as groups for individuals with autism, parents, grandparents, educators and others. Read more and visit the new autism social networking site here:

http://www.autismspeaks.org/press/ning_social_network.php

http://autismspeaksnetwork.ning.com/

Walk Now For Autism Kickoff Luncheons

Walk Now for Autism Kickoff Luncheons

The Southwest Florida Walk Now for Autism kickoff luncheons will be held on
Saturday, September 6 from 11:30am – 1:30pm at The Three Oaks Banquet
Center in Estero and Saturday, September 13 from noon – 2pm at Carrabba's
in Port Charlotte. Both events are free, open to the public and include
lunch provided by Carrabba's.

Attendees will learn about the Southwest Florida Walk Now for Autism, how
to create a team, and how the money raised helps Autism Speaks with their
mission of increasing awareness and funding research, advocacy and family
services.

The Southwest Florida Walk Now for Autism will be held on Saturday,
November 8 at Estero Community Park, 9200 Corkscrew Palms Boulevard,
Estero. Attendees from Sarasota to Naples are expected to participate.
Last year's walk drew over 2,500 participants and raised over $235,000.

Today, 1 in 150 children is diagnosed with autism (1 in 94 boys) and a new
case is diagnosed almost every 20 minutes. Autism is the fastest-growing
serious developmental disability in the United States. More children will
be diagnosed with autism this year than with AIDS, diabetes & cancer
combined.

To rsvp for a luncheon or to register for the walk, go to
www.walknowforautism.org/southwestflorida and click on "register" and
"attend a kickoff" or call (866) 441-6227.



About Autism
Autism is a complex brain disorder that inhibits a person's ability to
communicate and develop social relationships, and is often accompanied by
extreme behavioral challenges. Autism spectrum disorders are diagnosed in
one in 150 children in the United States, affecting four times as many boys
as girls. The diagnosis of autism has increased tenfold in the last decade.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have called autism a
national public health crisis whose cause and cure remain unknown.

About Autism Speaks
Autism Speaks is the world's largest autism advocacy organization,
dedicated to increasing awareness of autism spectrum disorders, to funding
research into the causes, prevention and treatments for autism, and to
advocating for the needs of individuals with autism and their families. It
was founded in February 2005 by Suzanne and Bob Wright, the grandparents of
a child with autism. For more information about autism and Autism Speaks,
please visit www.autismspeaks.org

DD/HCBS Waiver Handbook

RE: DD/HCBS Waiver Handbook

The handbooks for Medicaid are now on the EDS website. EDS is the new
Medicaid fiscal agent and can be accessed at the following website:
[url]
http://www.mymedicaid-florida.com/[/url]

Once you get there click on Public Information for Providers, then on
Provider support, and then on Provider Handbooks. All of the handbooks for
Medicaid are listed there. If you are looking for our DD waiver then click
on Developmental Services Waiver. Then you are there!


Thanks,
Beverly C. Benkhatar
Agency for Persons with Disabilities
Area 8
Street Address- 2295 Victoria Avenue
Fort Myers, FL 33901
Mailing Address: Post Office Box 60085
Fort Myers, FL 33906
PHONE: 239. 338.1362
FAX: 239. 338.1359
E-mail address: [url]beverly_benkhatar@apd.state.fl.us[/url]
Toll Free: 1-866-APD-CARES or 1-866-273-2273
[url]http://apd.myflorida.com[/url]

Judge Upholds Rule On Disability Waivers

Judge Upholds Rule On Disability Waivers


TALLAHASSEE, FL---A judge has issued a final order in favor of new rules
concerning the delivery of services to Floridians with developmental
disabilities. Administrative Law Judge Eleanor Hunter ordered today that
the rules established by the state Agency for Persons with Disabilities
(APD) are "not invalid exercises of delegated legislative authority."

In 2007, the Florida Legislature required APD to establish four tiers for
the state's Medicaid developmental disability waivers. The tiers are based
on levels of need. Three of those levels will have annual caps on
spending. The Advocacy Center for Persons with Disabilities had brought a
lawsuit before the Division of Administrative Hearings to challenge APD's
rules for implementation of the tiers. Today's ruling permits APD to
proceed with implementation of the Legislature's requirements.

APD Interim Director Jim DeBeaugrine said, "Our agency works hard to comply
with the law, and today's ruling supports that. Although most of our
customers will not be affected by the tiers, we are sensitive to the fact
that our customers have anxiety about possible service reductions. We are
just as concerned as they are, and we are fully committed to assisting them
through this transition. This is a somber task for us to perform, and we
pledge to carry it out with fairness and caring for the people we serve."

APD will send letters to all of its customers notifying them of the
official start date for the waiver tiers, which has not yet been
determined. Customers who must reduce their services will be able to make
choices in order to do so. APD will provide guidance for readjusting
services and identifying community and nongovernmental supports.

In creating the four "waiver tiers" for individuals who are receiving
waiver services, the Legislature imposed annual limits on how much the
state can spend for people in three of the waivers. The four tiers and
their annual financial limits are:

Tier One – No cap
Tier Two – Cap of $55,000
Tier Three – Cap of $35,000
Tier Four – Cap of $14,792

In addition, the Legislature established criteria for each of the four
waiver tiers. The criteria cover the individual’s needed level of service,
along with other important characteristics and the person’s current living
situation. APD is currently determining which waiver tier is appropriate
for individuals receiving Medicaid Waiver services from APD based on how
their needs and characteristics match the established criteria. When the
waiver tiers are implemented, each person will be assigned to, and enrolled
in the tier that has been determined to be appropriate for them.

The services of most individuals will not be affected by their tier
assignment. The state, however, may not be able to pay as much for
services for some people, therefore requiring service reductions. The new
waiver system does allow individuals who have a significant change in
circumstance or condition that impacts their health, safety, or welfare to
migrate from one waiver to another.

APD currently serves about 35,000 Floridians with developmental
disabilities of mental retardation, autism, cerebral palsy, spina bifida,
and Prader-Willi syndrome. For more information on the agency, call
1-866-APD-CARES or visit www.apdcares.org

Nestlé Very Best in Youth Program

Nestlé Very Best in Youth Program

Nestlé is passionate about young people who do extraordinary things. In their honor, Nestlé has launched a national search for the Very Best In Youth -- 13 to 18 year olds who excel academically and work hard to make their community a better place.

The young people selected for this prestigious award will be recognized with $1,000 donation to the charity of their choice, an all-expense-paid trip to Los Angeles for the red carpet treatment at a special awards ceremony plus other fabulous prizes.

For more information, visit:
http://www.nestle-verybestinyouth.com/OnlineApplication/NestleApplication.pdf

Schools on a shoestring: Specialized programs cut to the core

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/education/orl-shoestring1108aug11,0,6000838.story


Erika Hobbs | Sentinel Staff Writer
August 11, 2008

Students across Central Florida will learn a brutal lesson in economics when the new school year starts next week.

For years, school leaders juggled their budgets to prevent the state's chronic money woes from creeping into the classroom. But they're out of options now and scaling back popular programs for gifted students and troubled kids.

Drastic state budget cuts are threatening Orange County's esteemed Advanced Placement program, which serves bright, college-bound students. Officials throughout Florida's 67 districts are scrambling to make do with two-thirds of what they had planned -- by cutting teachers and classes or by charging students to use the expensive textbooks.

"Frankly, it's a big hit," said Bill Gordon, principal of Winter Park High School, which stands to lose as much as $500,000 in AP funding.

Orange, Volusia and others also are trimming special programs such as AVID (Advancement Via Individual Determination), which gives struggling students a chance to go to college. An alternative program called CEP (Community Education Partners), which helped youngsters in Orange recover credits and graduate on time, already is gone.

Core classes such as math, reading and science have not been touched. Most districts have retained music and arts classes, as well. But chipping away at the supplemental classes, officials say, is the first indication that budget cuts are eroding Florida's public education.

"Kids will not have the same quality of education," said Sam Momary, principal of Hagerty High in Oviedo.

Yet he, like other administrators, says that few good options are available as they try to ease the impact of budget cuts. Orange officials, for example, angered hundreds of parents and students when they changed schedules so that middle schools will start earlier and high schools later to save on busing costs. But that wasn't enough to make up for the $94 million that has been lost in state funding.


College-track classes could become pay-to-play

Students fear that without AP classes, they won't get into top-tier schools. Parents worry that without special programs, their at-risk children will founder in the system.

Boone High School junior Megan Ellis said getting into Florida State University is so important that she would do anything to pay the hundreds of dollars her textbooks and tests would cost to keep her competitive edge.

"I get so much out of those classes," she said. "I'd rather pay than have them cut completely."

Because AP classes help college freshmen skip courses, a dearth of AP offerings in high school could mean students could pay more in tuition later on, said Alvin Wang, dean of the Burnett Honors College at the University of Central Florida. High-school students also may not be as prepared for college-level work, he added.

Or they just might be bored.

"I'd be so upset not to have that opportunity," said Megan, who so relishes the challenge that she has scheduled three of the intense courses this year.


At-risk students could lose important help

But kids who struggle in a traditional setting have far more to lose, said Beth Wonson, a member of the board of the directors at the volunteer-based National Alternative Education Association. Without the proper support, she said, students will end up needing more services or drop out of high school.

"The long-term ramifications are huge," she said.

Tim White of Orlando agrees. Without the Community Education Partners program, his son might have fallen through the cracks, White said.

CEP, a national program, was a two-campus operation in Orange County that cost the district $12 million a year. It served as many as 1,300 middle- and high-school students with academic and behavioral problems. Most of its students were too old for their grade levels and needed help making up credits or improving FCAT scores.

White said CEP pulled his son, Austin, out of his shell and put him on the right academic track for his freshman year this fall.

"I loved everything about it," White said. " . . . It was a controlled environment -- you couldn't go down the hallway without someone knowing."

School officials across the area say they're determined to protect students from the budget fallout. Winter Park's Gordon, for example, said he so far has managed to keep this year's AP program intact -- it is next year that worries him.

Evelyn Chandler, director of Orange's school-choice program, said the district is developing a program to absorb CEP's students.

But that's little comfort to parents such as White.

"If something works," he said, "don't mess with it."




Alia Malik of the Sentinel staff contributed to this report. Erika Hobbs can be reached at ehobbs@orlandosentinel.com or 407-420-6226.

Wrightslaw Training in Spring Hill, FL

If anyone is interested, there is a 2 day boot camp in January. If you register by 9/30/08, the cost is $100 and includes the 2 free books. After 9/30/08, the cost goes up to $125. Again, this is an awesome workshop.......Pete Wright is amazing and it doesn't matter where you are in your level of advocacy and understanding of IDEA. There is a special hotel room rate at Quality Inn in Spring Hill, the cost for the conference is $90 a room, but you must specify that you are there for the Wrightslaw conference. I would suggest getting a few people together to split the costs for gas and hotel. They do have quizzes that you take and you'll quickly realize how much you don't know. I passed my final exam with only 4 wrong, Cyndi with only 1 wrong!!!


http://www.wrightslaw.com/speak/09.01.fl.htm

Tropic Thunder Boycott??

http://www.cinematical.com/2008/08/10/tropic-thunder-boycott-planned/

by Peter Martin Aug 10th 2008 // 6:32PM

Filed under: Comedy, Celebrities and Controversy, Dreamworks, Movie Marketing

"Not only might it happen, it will happen." Timothy P. Shriver, chairman of the Special Olympics, told The New York Times that he and representatives of his group and others will picket the opening of Ben Stiller's Tropic Thunder in Los Angeles on Wednesday. Reportedly, more than a dozen disabilities groups, including the National Down Syndrome Congress and the American Association of People with Disabilities, made plans over the weekend to start protesting on Monday.

Dreamworks already pulled down a promotional web site that was considered offensive a few days ago, as William Goss reported, and has altered some television advertising, but that's as far as they're going. A spokesman told the NYT : "No changes or cuts to the film will be made." Both Stiller and Dreamworks exec Stacy Snider insist they are not targeting the disabled, but the foolish ambition of certain actors. Shriver told the NYT he's asking members of Congress "for a resolution condemning what he called 'hate speech' in the movie." The film's repeated use of the term "retard" is "a particular sore point."

For personal reasons, I have a strong distaste for calling someone who's intellectually disabled a "retard" -- I think it's hateful and insensitive -- but I don't feel that a Congressional resolution or a boycot will do anything more than anger and harden the hearts of the very people who might rethink their vocabulary. To be fair, I haven't seen the movie, but Shriver and other protestors have.

If it happens, will you support the boycott? Or do you think this is another case of "political correctness" gone too far?

CATS Autism Center

CATS Autism Center is going to run two new group programs this fall. The first will be a Social Skills Program for higher functioning children. The second will be a Play Skills Program for younger children. If you woulld help get the word out on these programs, we would greatly appreciate it.



Anyone wishing information can contact us at (239) 985-2287 or at catsautismcenter@gmail.com