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HomeMy WebLinkAboutM1999_09_09Mayor's Advisory Committee for People with Disabilities September 9, 1999 A meeting of the Mayor's Advisory Committee for People with Disabilities was held on Thursday, September 9, 1999 at 9:00 a.m. in City Hall. Members present: Allen and Lynda Muller, Marla Muxen, Emily Bennett, Amy Fry, Nancy Hartenhoff, Kurt Cogswell and David Hoyt. Members absent: Jennifer Kampmann, Kristi Bloom, David Bertelson and Kay Cutler. 1. Chairperson Hartenhoff called the meeting to order. 2. Amy Fry was introduced to the committee. Fry is filling the vacancy of Aimee Baltezore. 3. Agenda. (Muxen/L. Muller) Motion/Seconded/Passed to approve the agenda. 4. Minutes. (Bennett/A. Muller) M/S/P to approve the July 15, 1999 minutes. 5. Next meeting: Thursday, October 14th at 9:00 a.m. 6. Announcements. e A Local Affiliate meeting is scheduled for September 28th in Chamberlain. A detailed agenda is not yet available and will be mailed ASAP. Members are to contact Dunn if interested in attending. e A member list was distributed for review. Please notify Dunn of any corrections. Wrap-up Report on ABLE Award. Hartenhoff, along with former Mayor Hauschild, presented the award to representatives of the Brookings School District at a City Commission meeting. Hoyt did a separate presentation during a School Board meeting. 8. Follow-up Reports. A. Accessibility Evaluation Report. Cogswell and Hartenhoff were thanked for their hard work to survey the 1999 Summer Arts Festival and their report of their findings. 1 Dunn requested clarification in the report about conditions that existed in each area (i.e. parking), what is required by ADA, and the recommendations. On "Access to Permanent Restrooms" Dunn requested it be noted that this area is the responsibility of the City. The report should emphasize that accessibility is an ongoing process and mean they are "done". Dunn provided by the Local Affiliate agreement. doing everything in this report doesn't language for a disclaimer as required Hartenhoff, Cogswell and Dunn will meet to review the document. B. Festival and Fair Survey Checklist. Cogswell and Hartenhoff will work on this project. C. Workshop for Building Trades Classes. Hartenhoff contacted the director of the East Central Multi -District and the Building Trades instructor regarding an accessibility workshop for their building trades students. Both were supportive and the instructor, Dennis Blocker, requested setting something up this spring. Ideally a fall workshop would be better because now is when they are building. Maybe this can be suggested for next year. Mayor's Advisory Committee for People with Disabilities September 9, 1999 D. Website. Cogswell asked the members to checkout disability -related sites and give him ideas and suggestions about things to put on the Brookings website. Local, state and national disability -related resources o Employment information ♦ Travel information "Roadmap" to services 0 Is the State's white resource directory available online? 9. SD Universal Access Local Affiliate - Statement of Work/Action Plan for 2000. Training opportunities for the service industry (sales, food service) to promote a better understanding about the needs of individuals with disabilities is needed. 10. Discussion re arding National Disability Employment Awareness Month (October) Activities. Dunn reviewed activities that have been done in past years. Cogswell commented that finding employment opportunities for people with disabilities seems to be the biggest challenge. Would more resources for those organizations that help people with disabilities getting ready for employment transition help the problem? Bennett said the Project Skills Program works with high school students with disabilities to acquire work experience. There is a need for more job coaching (teaching job skills). Volunteers could be used if properly trained. Another problem is the variety of jobs available. The kids need exposure to a greater variety of work experiences, not just food service. More exposure with help with the transition when they leave high school. Shadowing gives exposure to work experiences but doesn't give any skills. Many employers are hesitant to allow shadowing because it may take too much time. More willing employers and job coaches are needed for students to acquire successful work experiences. Ajob coach would just need a basic understanding of task analysis. "Take a student to work day" would be one step before any intense work experiences. Is liability a problem? The state does have insurance for the kids. Could do a presentation for Project Skills participants' parents about the need for volunteers. 2 Mayor's Advisory Committee for People with Disabilities September 9, 1999 The idea of career fair for special education/504 students was suggested. The cities of Sioux Falls and Brandon have successful fairs. Employers come in and students go to each booth asking questions about potential jobs. Bennett and Hoyt will get together to discuss specifics. A "roadmap" advertisement about the services available to people with disabilities. How to get training, job placement, accommodations. Work with Rehab Services on the ad. A public service announcement on the lesser known, less visible disabilities was suggested. One problem is that employers often don't consider mental illness as a disability. The committee will contact Amy Dunkle from the Brookings Register about a series on what the different agencies provide. Taking the angle of relatives of people with disabilities - "this is how you can help my daughter, husband, etc.". Bennett said the Coalition provided funding for a table tent project last year so there might be money available. It is too late to pull together a job fair for October. March (Barrier Awareness Month) was suggested. o Middle school location ® Invite outlying schools ® Involve the personnel association in the project ® How many kids with disabilities are in Brookings? ® The job fair should be for everyone, notjust kids with disabilities. Emphasize that all people have the right to work. o Provide an obstacle course that would be seen by the kids and the employers. Radio program: Bennett volunteered to speak for Rehab Services. Need to provide the radio station with a list of questions before hand. e Invite employers of people with disabilities to speak (SDSU, Register, Daktronics) ♦ Contact radio station to reserve times Bennett will work on a PSA on hidden disabilities. 11. Distribution of Governor's Awards Nominations. Dunn distributed a press release and short nomination form. The committee has in the past solicited nominations in September, recognized nominees in October (Awareness Month) and prepared long nominations for submission to Pierre in December. The committee decided to send a copy of the nomination and press release to major employers in Brookings with a follow-up call. Cogswell will work with Dunn on this. 3 Mayor's Advisory Committee for People with Disabilities September 9, 1999 12. Election of Officers. (L. Muller/Muxen) Motion to nominate Cogswell as chair and Hartenhoff as Vice Chair. All present voted yes; motion carried. 13. ADA Coordinator's Report. e The missing traveling exhibit light bar has been found in a storage room in city hall. ♦ The committee discussed opportunities to meet the new city council members and mayor to introduce themselves and explain the role and activities of the committee. Cogswell will write a letter to the mayor and council and deliver the mayor's letter. Meeting adjourned at 11:30 a.m. Submitted by Shari Dunn S