The Special Needs Consortium in partnership with The Institute for Nonprofit Resources at Slippery Rock University is proud to introduce the inaugural Butler County Disability Summit. Informative session topics include financial and estate planning, transition, IEP's, autism and law enforcement, and advocacy. Resource Vendor Fair with transition service providers, post secondary education organizations, advocacy & support groups and employment opportunities. Valuable information for parents and adult individuals with special needs as well as social workers, therapists, educators and human service professionals, among others, who have or work with individuals with special needs. Please see the expanded summit agenda below.

Continuing Education

All continuing education credits are provided free of charge. Please sign in at the registration table to receive your evaluation form. To complete your CEU/Act 48 registration return your completed evaluation form to the registration table at the end of the summit to receive your certificate.

The Butler County Disability Summit has been approved for five (5) continuing education credits for PA licensed social workers. The Slippery Rock University Social Work Program is approved by the Pennsylvania State Board of Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapists, and Professional Counselors to provide and sponsor continuing education for licensed social workers.

All sessions are approved for Act 48 credit for educators in Pennsylvania through Slippery Rock University. A maximum of 5.0 hours can be earned at this event. To ensure that your Act 48 hours are correctly reported to the Pennsylvania Department of Education, provide your seven-digit professional personnel identification (PPID) when completing your registration.

Boxed lunch will be provided for registrants. NO OUTSIDE food or drink are permitted inside the conference facility.

REFUND POLICY: Refunds will be issued for cancellations within 7 days of the event, minus Eventbrite fees.

Questions? Please email us at: sncsummitregister@gmail.com.

PARKING: PLEASE SEE MAP BELOW. The event is being held at the Student Center , number 40. The closest three lots to the Student Center (40) are the Student Center lot next to the Student Center, the University Union Lot between the University Union (42) and Boozel Dining Hall (41), and the School of Physical Therapy lot behind the Physical Therapy building (37). Complimentary shuttle service from the University Union lot and School of Physical Therapy lot will be provided by Alliance for Nonprofit Resources (ANR).

About The Special Needs Consortium

The Special Needs Consortium (SNC) was formed in 2018 with the mission of "working together to increase the awareness of resources available to the special needs community through networking, promotion, and advocacy”. We exist to provide a place where all services and opportunities can be shared to support families and individuals. In Spring of 2021, we were granted non-profit status and established our board of directors in order to better promote our mission and make events like this possible. For more information, please visit us at www.specialneedsconsortium.org or follow us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/Special-Needs-Consortium-108347124936739, and Instagram https://www.instagram.com/specialneedsconsortium/.

About The Institute for Nonprofit Leadership at Slippery Rock University

Provides individuals and organizations the education, research, services and networks necessary to understand, strengthen and advance the work of the nonprofit sector. For more information, please visit us at https://www.institutefornonprofitleadership.org/ or follow us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/theinstitutesru and Instagram @theinstitute_sru.

2022 Butler County Disability Summit Agenda

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8:30 am Registration, Continental Breakfast & Resource Vendor Fair

9:30 – 9:45 am Opening Remarks

9:45 – 10:45 am Keynote

Transitional Challenges to Expanding Services to the Underserved by Marque Rudolph Stansberry, Director of Support Services & Program Development, Jasmine Nyree Homes, Inc.

• Understand the complexities of providing center-based services in low-wealth communities
• Act with empathy in the face of seeming community hostility or ambivalence
• Strategically partner with stakeholders
• Develop collaborative networks of support with allied agencies
• Navigate practical considerations and restraints for starting a business in a low wealth environment
• Know your audience and anticipate roadblocks and barriers

10:45 -11:00 am Break

11:00 -12:00 pm Breakouts

A. Out of the Box Transition Planning by Erin Weierbach, Youth Empowerment Coordinator, PEAL Center

• Identify barriers to successful transition from high school
• Learn how others have used creative strategies to provide opportunities to young people in transition
• Learn about new and existing resources

B. Autism and Interacting with Law Enforcement: How to Keep Everyone SAFER by Kate Hooven, MS, Justice Project Coordinator, ASERT Collaborative, A.J. Drexel Autism Institute, Drexel University

• The audience will learn what individuals with autism/ID should do and not do during a police interaction
• The audience will learn what it means to break the law and the various outcomes if a law is broken
• The audience will become aware of the various resources available through ASERT to increase the likelihood for safe interactions between the autistic/ID community and law enforcement

C. Executive Function: Foundations and Connections by JT Kordesich, Director, Total Learning Centers

• Clearly define the importance of executive function as it relates to transition skills (academic, career training, job skills)
• Understand the signs that executive functioning skill gaps may be impacting a student/client/child's transition readiness
• Recognize the foundations of how to improve executive function skills to ensure successful transition to post-secondary education or a career

12:00 -1:00 pm Lunch and Resource Vendor Fair

1:00 - 2:00 pm Breakouts

D. Protecting Your Money While Maintaining Government Benefits by Bryan Gratton, Financial Planner and Chartered Special Needs Consultant, Gratton & Kerr Financial Group, Founder/ Director of “A Night to Remember”

• Help parents who have special needs loved ones achieve peace of mind knowing that if they pass away their loved one will still be cared for financially
• Help people get a working knowledge of assets that should be held in a Special Needs Trust
• Help people get a working knowledge of the proper use of an ABLE Account

E. Community Connections by Valerie McMahon, Board of Directors, Parents in Toto and Tammi Morton, Project Coordinator, PEAL Center

• Identify reasons why community engagement is so important
• Create a relationship map to chart the course of making connections in the community
• Develop a plan for using specific community resources

F. Transitioning From High School to College/Working Life with a Disability by Nick Sinagra, Founder, Able IT Pros

• Provide participants with suggestions for navigating college life with a disability
• Provide participants with suggestions for beginning a career with a disability
• Discuss several personal stories to help ease any nervousness

2:15 - 3:15 pm Breakouts

G. Understanding How to Access OVR Services: Pre-Employment Services, Transition Services, Post-Secondary, Accommodations to Employment by Ryan Mortimer, MS, Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor and Bridget Rizzardi, BSW, Early Reach Coordinator, New Castle Office of Vocational Rehabilitation, PA Dept. of Labor & Industry

• How to apply for OVR services
• Understand the progression of an OVR case and potential services
• Understanding what Pre-Employment services are and when to expect to receive them

H. Student-Centered Postsecondary Transition by David Dulaney and Tammy Rose, Transition Managers, PA Connecting Communities

• How to center transition planning with students
• Use tools to support personal growth and self-determination
• Discuss creative ways to engage students remotely

I. Autism & Adaptation with the ICONz® Strategy: Positive Steps for Handing Everyday Change by Brian Kluchurosky, MS, Executive Vice President of Autism Services, Progress City, LLC

• Understand how adapting to everyday change requires adaptability skills that include: inhibitory control, cognitive flexibility, perspective taking and adaptive behavior
• Understand that everyone has their own unique level of adaptability skills that are “naturally developed” as a combination of genetics and life experiences
• Understand for those individuals who struggle with adaptability and/or lack significant natural adaptability skills, a manual strategy ICONz® can provide support and resolution

3:15 - 3:30 pm Break

3:30 - 4:30 pm Breakouts

J. Protecting the Future of your Adult Child with Disabilities: Understanding the Importance of Estate Planning and Special Needs Trusts by Michael E. Fiffik, Esquire, Managing Member of Fiffik Law Group, P.C.

• Empower Parents/Guardians to plan for their child’s future
• Inform Parents/Guardian of the different tools they can use to protect their child’s future
• Give Parents an action plan to find resources and services to have a Special Needs Trusts established

K. It Starts with an IEP and It’s Your Responsibility by Melissa Allen, Director and Sarah Sharpe, Independent Living Coordinator, Disability Options Network, Center for Independent Living

• Understand the power in the IEP for preparing for major life transition out of high school and transitioning that to an Independent Living Plan
• Describe the Social Security benefit with regards to work incentives planning and why it matters
• Develop a “selfie” profile that identifies essential elements of self-awareness that leads to effective self-advocacy in transition

L. Project Search by Martin Meyer, PhD, Psychologist and Amy Donston, MA, Vocational & Psychological Services

• Participants will be able to summarize the components of the Project Search mode
• Participants will be able to identify the importance of collaboration and its application in the UPMC Jameson Project Search program
• Participants will be able to identify the skill set of differently abled individuals related to employability

4:30 pm Departure