Monday, July 30, 2012

Georgia APSE SUPPORTED EMPLOYMENT Conference Registration Open!

Announcement from Georgia APSE
Georgia APSE SUPPORTED EMPLOYMENT Statewide Conference Registration is open and ready to go!  If you have mailing lists and/or listservs, please share this information as widely as possible.  We look forward to seeing you in Athens!

Date: 
Wednesday, October 10, 2012 - Friday, October 12, 2012
Location: 
UGA Hotel and Conference Center
1197 South Lumpkin Street, Athens, GA 30602
United States
 Welcome to the registration site for the 2012 GA-APSE state conference, "Real Jobs For All: The Expectation, not the Exception!" We anticipate a wonderful conference filled with presentations focusing on moving Georgia forward towards a more inclusive workforce. Changing hearts, minds, and policy to reflect numerous employment options for all people will be a great beginning in our state.
Invited keynote presenters include Dr. Lisa Razzano, Associate Director of Training and Education for the University of Illinois, Chicago, Department of Psychiatry. We wanted to make sure she made it back to Georgia after her rousing speech at The Carter Center SE Forum.
We also look forward to finalizing keynote agreements with Dr. Lori Davis and Michael Callahan, and will feel fortunate to have both of these stars in the fields of Customized and Supported employment available to share their prospective visions.
We anticipate hearing from Rich Toscano and David Lynde, both nationally known employment experts with a wealth of experience, who will share their ideas about the IPS model and how implementation depends not just on the "front line", but also how policy and administrative decisions can positively affect evidence-based supported employment.
We are anticipating a large roster of sessions including an encore appearance by Jennifer McGee, advocate and mother of sons who experience autism. We will have appearances by a well-renown motivational speaker and self- advocate who is also a business person, and a father and son whom will share their ideas about what it takes to make a real life in the community. Ruby Moore, ED of The Georgia Advocacy Office, will present "Real Jobs, Real Lives." Ruby has over thirty years of experience in advocating for people previously considered "unemployable". GA-APSE's own Doug Crandall will share "Creating Communities of Excellence," a panel discussion which is sure to get conversation and ideas flowing. We are working hard to offer meaningful sessions on job development, collaboration around funding for SE, and other topics sure to add tools to the toolbox of SE for all in attendance. The GA-APSE Board of Directors welcomes you to Athens!

Thursday, July 26, 2012

Dave Blanchard Named DBHDD Deputy Assistant Commissioner



Press Release from DBHDD



DAVID BLANCHARD NAMED DBHDD
DEPUTY ASSISTANT COMMISSIONER


ATLANTA -- David Blanchard, a longtime advocate, service provider, and current Executive Director of All About Developmental Disabilities in Atlanta, will be joining the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities (DBHDD) as its new Deputy Assistant Commissioner.

“Georgia is in the midst of tremendous change as we work to serve more people closer to home,” noted Dr. Bryce McLaulin, DBHDD’s Acting Assistant Commissioner for Developmental Disabilities. “Dave brings experience and credibility in advocacy, public policy, and management to the task.”

DBHDD is the state agency that’s responsible for policies and programs that serve people with mental illness, developmental disabilities, and substance use disorders. The agency is engaged in a five-year project to expand community services for people with developmental disabilities so that they can live as independently as possible in the most integrated settings possible and none have to be isolated in state hospitals or other institutions.

All About Developmental Disabilities (AADD) is an Atlanta-based non-profit that provides support services to families of people with developmental disabilities, allowing individuals to experience personal empowerment, family stability, and community participation. With more than 50 years of service, it’s one of the longest-serving organizations for developmental disabilities in Atlanta and the state. Blanchard has worked with AADD in various capacities since 1999 and has been Executive Director of the organization since 2009.
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DAVID BLANCHARD – page 2 of 2

Blanchard is a member of the Boards of the Georgia Budget and Policy Institute and the Georgia American Association for Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. He holds an MS in Family Studies from Auburn University and an AB in Psychology from the University of Georgia.

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Thursday, July 19, 2012

Georgia Mental Health Consumer Network Conference Coming Up!


The Georgia Mental Health Consumer Network 
21st Annual Summer Conference 

Working Toward Wellness Through Coaching 
August 21-23, 2012 
Epworth by the Sea 
St. Simon's Island, Georgia 
  

Conference Information
Conference Date
August 21-23, 2012

Conference Location
Epworth By The Sea
St. Simons Island, Georgia

Registration Deadline
All Registration Forms must be
received on or before August 1, 2012

Conference Check-In
Check-in will begin at Epworth on
Tuesday, August 21st at 2:00 pm in
Strickland Auditorium

PLEASE NOTE: Everyone is responsible for their own lunch on Tuesday.
Supper is included in the conference cost.

Conference Questions
All questions regarding the 2012
Conference should be directed to the
Georgia Mental Health Consumer
Network office:
Tel: (404) 687-9487
1-800-297-6146
Fax: (404) 687-0772
E-mail: lynn@gmhcn.org