October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month, a time to celebrate the ways that people with disabilities strengthen the workforce, the nation, and the communities in which they live, and to commit to a society in which all people can build bright futures for themselves and their families.

In New York State, the Office for People with Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD) will honor selected businesses in the state that have shown that employing people with developmental disabilities is great for business, and that these workers are valued.

On Thursday, October 22 at the New York State Museum in Albany, OPWDD will host an event called Works for Me, which will highlight the inspiring stories of workers with developmental disabilities who add to the success and productivity of businesses across the state. For more information, visit opwdd.ny.gov.

Posted in Autism, New York Special Needs, Special Education Advocacy | Comments Off on New York State Honors Businesses That Employ People with Disabilities
Tags: employing people with disabilities, new YORK, nys, opwdd

• Are you an adult (over 18)?
• Are you the brother or sister (sibling) of an individual with a developmental disability? *
• Does your sibling live in New York State (including New York City)?

If you answered “yes” to these questions, then we want to hear from you! Please complete our New York State Siblings Needs Survey. We are trying to better understand the needs of siblings in New York State. The findings from this survey will help us plan the next steps to support adult siblings of persons with developmental disabilities.  We will also give you a list of sibling web resources at the end of the survey. The survey will take about 10-15 minutes.

To complete the survey, click on this link:

https://cornell.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_byDnruQStwJLQeE

Posted in New York Special Needs, Special Education Advocacy, Special Needs Trusts | Comments Off on Are You the Brother or Sister (Sibling) of an Individual with a Developmental Disability
Tags: adult, aspergers, autism, caregiver, developmental disability, family, manhattan, new YORK, ny, nyc, nys, sibling

A new treatment and research facility for autism is under construction in White Plains, New York.  The Center for Autism and the Developing Brain will be part of New York-Presbyterian Hospital.  The center broke ground on April 4 and will open in 2013.

The new facility will provide a wide range of clinical services to people living with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and other developmental disorders.  The center is a collaboration between the hospital, Weill Cornell Medical College, and Columbia University, along with the New York Center for Autism.  It will be located at New York-Presbyterian’s 214-acre White Plains campus.

Until the center opens, the hospital provides limited clinical services at a temporary location on the hospital grounds and offers ASD assessments through participation in their research studies.  When the permanent center opens, insurance will be accepted, including Medicaid in some situations.

According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), the prevalence of autism is continuing to increase.  The CDC found that, in the communities they studied, the prevalence of autism had increased from one in 88, from one in 110.  Autism continues to be more prevalent in boys than in girls, with one in 54 boys and one in 252 girls in the research group being diagnosed with ASD.  It remains unknown whether the increase is due to more careful diagnoses or another factor.

For assistance with questions regarding your child’s special needs visit our website at https://www.specialneedsnewyork.com/

Posted in New York Special Needs | Comments Off on New Center for Autism Research to Open in Westchester County
Tags: asd, autism, CDC, new YORK, New York Presbyterian Hospital - White Plains, the center for autism and the developing brain, White Plains NY