Disability Awareness Month! (text only)
Santa Clarita Valley Special Education Local Plan Area (SELPA)
October 2024
Disability Awareness Month
The Santa Clarita Valley SELPA recognizes the month of October as Disabilities Awareness month dedicated to raising awareness about the experiences of people living with disabilities. This year’s theme is “A World of Opportunities” and celebrates the inclusion of all people and the chance for everyone to thrive.
The SELPA recognizes that students with disabilities have a right to and have the ability to learn alongside their non-disabled peers and must be provided equitable and meaningful opportunities to learn and grow. We achieve engaging and excellent education when all of our students learn from and with each other.
“I wish for a world that views disability, mental or physical, not as a hindrance but as unique attributes that can be seen as powerful assets if given the right opportunities” -Oliver Sacks
Rules for an Inclusive Community
Adopt these rules for your family or classroom
- We appreciate that we are each unique.
- We all belong and matter.
- We are respectful, honest and kind.
- We work hard and try our best.
- We are a team and we cheer each other on!
- We always try to be fair, but it won’t always feel equal.
- We help one another.
- We look for the good in others and in ourselves.
Excerpts from “Being Heumann” by Judith Heumann, Disability Activist
Accidents, illnesses, genetic conditions, neurological disorders, and aging are facts of the human condition.
Do we want our communities to be the types of neighborhoods and cities where our loved ones can choose to stay in their communities as they age? Where, if an accident happened to us or one of our children, we would be able to continue living in our community, going to our same school or working our same job?
We need to accept our humanity and design our world around it.
Disability Rights Timeline
1954 - Brown v Board of Education: In addition to ending legalized segregation, this gave public schools permission to education children with significant intellectual disabilities. Prior to this, few children with disabilities attended school and were often placed in institutions.
1968 - The Architectural Barriers Act of 1968: Requires all buildings designed, constructed, altered, or leased with federal funds be made accessible. This set the foundation for the ADA which was passed 22 years later.
1975 - Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975: This act required all public schools accepting federal funds to provide access to education for children with physical and mental disabilities. This set the foundation for IDEA which came 29 years later.
1990 - Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA): This law guarantees Americans with Disabilities unrestricted access to public buildings, equal opportunity in employment, equal access to government services and employment opportunities.
2004 - Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA): is the law that makes available a “free, appropriate public education” to all eligible children with disabilities in the “least restrictive environment.”
Scavenger Hunt
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ensures that people with disabilities have access to public accommodations and commercial facilities. Look around your community to see if you can spot these accommodations which are now commonplace because of ADA.
Tactile Paving is a textured surface that helps people with vision impairments navigate their surroundings.
Handicap Parking Spaces provide more room for people to maneuver in and out of their vehicles, and to assemble and disassemble their mobility equipment.
Braille Signage The bumpy dots added to signs allow people with visual disabilities the ability to read the signs with their fingers.
Handicapped restrooms offer extra space for people in wheelchairs, with reduced mobility, or those who need a care giver to accompany them.
Ramps allow people in wheelchairs access to buildings which have stairs to get to the door.
Accessible Pedestrian Signals use audio cues to help visually impaired pedestrians cross the street.
Elevators are available to allow people in wheelchairs and others who can’t walk up stairs access to higher levels of a building.
Curb cuts make it easier for people to move around, including those with disabilities, those pushing strollers or carts, and those with luggage.
October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM) celebrating the value and talent workers with disabilities add to America’s workplaces and economy.
Watch the Department of Labor’s video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p-_NPgJ4Nvs.
Ideas for Educators during NDEAM
- Share this video: https://www.whatcanyoudocampaign.org/psa-campaigns/i-can-psa/
- Host a discussion
- Create a display or bulletin board
- Organize an assembly or career day
- Implement “soft skills” training
- Educate about disability history
- Engage student leaders
Resources for Home and School
Santa Clarita Valley SELPA Community Advisory Committee (CAC), a group of parent volunteers, educators, and other interested community members who want to make a difference in the education of all children. https://scvselpa.org/apps/pages/CAC
UC Davis Health MIND Institute An interdisciplinary research, clinical, and educational center committed to deepening scientific understanding of the challenges associated with autism and other neurodevelopmental conditions. https://health.ucdavis.edu/mind-institute/
CAPTAIN California Autism Professional Training and Information Network Training focused on promoting the acceptance, support and quality of life for individuals on the autism spectrum and their families. https://captain.ca.gov/
Family Focus Resource Center www.csun.edu/family-focus-resource-center
North Los Angeles County Regional Center www.nlacrc.org
Braille Institute of Los Angeles https://www.brailleinstitute.org/locations/los-angeles/
Down Syndrome Association of Los Angeles www.dsala.org
Inclusive Sol Cerebral Palsy www.inclusivesol.com
John Tracy Clinic Hearing Loss www.jtc.org