Heading to the Capitol early this morning which promises to be one of our largest rally’s in
the Capitol ever! We then get down to the business of the state budget and believe me this
is going to be a very political year focusing on the November elections.
Check out our Facebook page for updates of the rally!
Thanks for all of your support!
Tony
Capitol Insider
March 26, 2014
Announcements
Housing – Department of Housing and Urban Development to Host Webinar on Section 811
Supportive Housing for Persons with Disabilities NOFAOn March 26, 2014 at 1:00 pm EDT,
the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) will host a webinar providing
an overview of the Section 811 Project Rental Assistance (PRA) Program. This webinar is for
state housing finance agencies interested in applying for PRA under the Notice of Funding
Availability (NOFA) released on March 4, 2014 making available approximately $120 million
from FY13 and FY14 appropriations. The Section 811 PRA Program provides project-based
rental assistance to state housing or other appropriate housing agencies to create permanent
supportive housing for extremely low-income persons with disabilities. Applications are due
May 5, 2014. Register for this Webinar.
Health Care – New Affordable Care Act Resources From The National Disability
Navigator Resource Collaborative
The National Disability Navigator Resource Collaborative (NDNRC) has released two more fact
sheets to help navigators and other assistors better work with people with disabilities. The
most recent fact sheets address prescription drugs and working with disability organizations.
In addition to the series of fact sheets being produced by the collaborative, NDNRC also
developed a disability guide.
The NDNRC is comprised of seven national disability organizations which represent unique
cross-disability experiences. The seven cross-disability organizations that are part of the
collaborative include the American Association on Health and Disability (AAHD), the American
Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD), the Disability Rights Education and Defense
Fund (DREDF), the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), the National Multiple Sclerosis
Society (NMSS), The Arc, and United Spinal Association. The NDNRC is funded through a
grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
Long Term Services and Supports – Technical Assistance to Help States Comply
With New Home and Community-Based Setting Rules
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) reposted technical assistance
documents for states to assist them in complying with the new home and community-based
setting rules. Documents originally posted on the CMS website were taken down and the
original links are no longer active. A new set of documents was posted on March 20 and
stakeholders may want to review them for any changes.
Education – Office for Civil Rights Data Releases New Data About Students With
Disabilities
The Department of Education Office for Civil Rights (OCR) released data it collected during
the 2011-2012 school year. These data were collected from every school and district in the
country, reflecting information about 43 million students without disabilities and 6 million
students with disabilities. OCR reported that:
[S]tudents of certain racial or ethnic groups and students with disabilities are disciplined at
far higher rates than their peers, beginning in preschool. The CRDC data also show that an
increasing number of students are losing important instructional time due to exclusionary
discipline.
OCR prepared a data snapshot that summarized some of its findings pertaining to students
with disabilities and discipline. Data reveal that high school students with disabilities are
retained or held back a grade at higher rates than students without disabilities. Students with
disabilities make up 12% of high school enrollment but 19% of students in high school held
back a year. Students with disabilities are twice as likely to be suspended as students without
disabilities. Students with disabilities represent a quarter of students arrested and referred to
law enforcement.&n bsp; Students with disabilities represent 58% of students placed in
seclusion and 75% of those physically restrained. Black students represent 19% of students
with disabilities but 36% of students with disabilities restrained using mechanical restraints.
The data snapshot included state-level data.
Education – New Information About Discipline Disparities For Children With
Disabilities in Public Schools
The Discipline Disparities Research-to-Practice Collaborative released several resources
concerning discipline policies in public schools. The Collaborative produced the resources
in response to its findings that students with disabilities are suspended at disproportionately
high rates – almost twice as frequently as their peers who do not have disabilities and for
longer peri ods of time. The intersection of race and disability results in even larger
disparities. Twenty-five percent of African American students with disabilities were
suspended in 2009-10 compared to nine percent of white students with disabilities. The
Collaborative reported that during the 2009-10 school year, more than 3 million students in
grades K-12 were suspended. The Collaborative is comprised of 26 nationally recognized
experts from the social science, education, and legal fields.
Education – Grant Opportunity to Improve Academic Outcomes For Students With
Disabilities
The Department of Education announced the start of the $134 million i3 grant competition
for 2014. The Investing in Innovation grant competition includes among its six priorities
improving academic outcomes for students with disabilities. The notice states:
There is a great need for effective supports to help students with disabilities meet academic
content standards, particularly with the transition to new college- and career- ready
standards in most school districts.
Letters of intent to submit pre-applications for the development grants, which fund applicants
with promising but untested ideas, are due April 3, 2014.
Tony Paulauski Executive Director
The Arc of Illinois
20901 S. LaGrange Rd. Suite 209
Frankfort, IL 60423
815-464-1832 (OFFICE)
815-464-1832 (CELL)
Tony@www.thearcofil.org
