Long day in the Capitol on Thursday. The House Appropriations Human Services
Committee heard testimony for four hours on the cuts and devastation to the human
service safety net. Families with young children, providers and advocates spoke to a
standing room only hearing. Only half of the agenda was covered so Chairperson Harris
stated additional hearings will be scheduled soon. I must comment about the exceptional
testimony of Rahnee Patrick from Access Living. Her testimony reminded me of Lester
Pritchard. You go girl! Developmental disabilities advocates did not get to testify at this
hearing so it is on to the next hearing.
New DHS Secretary?
Also at the House hearing, I asked when we would be seeing Secretary Turner taking
over the helm at the Dept. of Human Services? I was informed that while Mr. Turner is
assisting in the transition, he is not going to be Secretary. The search for a new DHS
Secretary continues. Acting Secretary Bassi really took many hits at the Senate and
House Committee hearings. Bassi protected his staff by outlining all of the cuts on his
own rather than having the Directors take the heat. I told him I appreciated his
leadership in that regard.
Ligas
Tony Records made it official, he is retiring in six months. He informed the parties at their
meeting last week. Tony is an incredible Court Monitor and we are lucky to have him
here in Illinois. Tony Records will be a speaker at The Arc’s Annual Convention, April 22-
23, at the Hilton in Lisle.
Moving On Up!
Congratulations to Amie Lulinski!
Amie Lulinski Appointed Director of Research and Evaluation at The Arc.
The Arc, the nation’s leading nonprofit advocating on behalf of and serving people with
intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD), is pleased to announce the
appointment of Amie Lulinski, PhD, to serve as Director of Research and Evaluation, a
new position in the organization
About Amie Lulinski:
Amie brings to this position over 20 years of experience, including as a Direct Support
Professional, a Service Coordinator, and a Director of Quality Assurance and Training
at agencies serving individuals with developmental disabilities as well as research roles
in university settings. Prior to joining The Arc in July of 2014 as Director of Rights Policy,
Amie served as Senior Research Specialist in Developmental Disabilities at the Institute
on Disability and Human Development at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) which
is the University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities for the state of Illinois.
During her nearly eight years of employment at UIC, Amie received an MS in Disability
and Human Development in 2008 and then went on to earn a PhD in Disability Studies in
2014. While there, Amie led the evaluation of the closure of a state operated institution
as well as a longitudinal study examining outcomes of individuals who transitioned out of
state operated institutions. Amie was also as a member of the State of the States in
Developmental Disabilities team, co-authoring the 2013 monograph.
Amie is a long-time member of The Arc family. Her first job out of college was as a DSP at
the then McLean County Arc before she relocated to St. Louis where she worked at the
then St. Louis Arc. In addition, Amie served as Secretary of the Board of The Arc of Illinois
and Chair of its Managed Care Task Force.
.
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@thearcofil.org
