The Institute on Community Integration (ICI), the University’s Department of Pediatrics and Department of Educational Psychology, and the Minnesota Department of Health are collaborating on a project to determine whether there are true differences in the prevalence of Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) between Somali and non-Somali children in Minneapolis. The year-long study is one effort to provide answers to reports from advocates in the Somali community that children of Somali descent living in the city have, in the past few years, been classified as having ASD at a higher-than-usual rate. To learn more, see the November issue of the Institute’s staff newsletter, FYI.
NCEO receives funding for National Assessment Center
The National Center on Educational Outcomes in the Institute on Community Integration has received funding for its National Assessment Center through a 5-year, $5 million grant from the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services, U.S. Department of Education. The center, under the direction of Martha Thurlow (left) and Sheryl Lazarus (right), gathers and disseminates research-based information on the inclusion of K-12 students with disabilities in State-level assessments aligned to academic content standards, and provides technical assistance for States and Consortia to support appropriate inclusion of students with disabilities in existing and emerging high quality assessment systems.
Global Resource Center supports inclusive education around the world
Serbia, Macedonia, Bangladesh, and Tanzania are just some of the places in which the Global Resource Center for Inclusive Education at the Institute on Community Integration has been working to support inclusion of all young people, including those with disabilities, in their nation’s educational systems. Since 2006 the center has assisted education agencies around the globe to make “Education for All” a reality and work toward systemic improvement of their education programs, practices, and policies that affect underserved and disadvantaged populations. To learn more, see the September issue of the institute’s staff newsletter, FYI.
Film about self-advocates wins international awards
Jerry Smith, filmmaker and media director in the Institute on Community Integration, has won two awards for We Have Choices, the documentary that RTC Media produced with the Self-Advocacy Association of New York State.
Smith received the highest honor from the Silver Telly Council, a judging and oversight body that receives over 13,000 competition entries from around the world every year. In May, We Have Choices received a second award, this time a Platinum Award at the 2011 Hermes Creative Awards (another international competition), in the documentary category.
The film, which is about people with disabilities who advocate for themselves, can be viewed at http://rtc.umn.edu/rtcmedia/wehavechoices/.