A shout out to Twin Tiers TV, Channel 18, for coverage of The Arc of Chemung’s employment efforts. and for the intern opportunities for members of the community with I/DD. Collaborative Team members Sean Eagaen, Diane Marshall and board member Mike Doherty, PhD are featured in the TV segment: Arc of Chemung & Channel 18.
Joe Damiano with Tom Hyland of Rep Tom Reed’s Office (left) and Melanie Ryan, Disability Coordinator for Alfred State College (right).
Joe Damiano, Chair of the Collaborative’s Self Advocates Team recently completed the Self Advocacy of NYS educational program, The School of Grassroots Advocacy. Congrats Joe! Graduates who joined Joe D on stage at Alfred State College were Jeremy Brooks, Sara Dibiase, Alicia Hodgson, Sherri Merrell, Brittany Smith and Adam Waasdorp.
According to SANYS, the program’s curriculum is designed to “give individuals with disabilities and direct support professionals a more thorough understanding of the important subject of self-advocacy and help develop future leaders for the self-advocacy movement”.
Sessions include:
The graduation event included important thoughtful speeches by The Collaborative’s own Mike Damiano (Board member) and Joanne LaForge (Quality member). Essence Jackson and Sophia Roberts provided the insight to the Grassroots Advocacy program, “SANYS U” and the goals of the self advocacy movement. And real applause goes out to everyone involved in the program: the College’s R.I.S.E. PM, Kathy Newton, teachers Jessica Levesque and Mike Rogers (along with Jackson and Roberts) and assistants Louise Jordan and Pamela Guinnip.
Moving advocacy forward one person at a time or in the case of the Aug 19, 2016 graduation at Alfred State, 7 people at a time! Congrats to all!
Artist Charles Fitzpatrick with “dragon RSSSSSSZ”
You won’t want to miss the 8th Annual Studio Portfolio and Exhibition at Spot Light Studio in Auburn, NY on First Friday, September 2nd. The exhibition will be open from 4:00 pm to 6:00 pm at 39 Genesee Street when you can meet and greet the artists. All artwork will be for sale with the proceeds going to the artist; music will be provided by Bob Piorun. Spot Light Studio is the arts and entertainment program operated by Arc of Seneca Cayuga and overseen by Ed Sayles. Artists with developmental disabilities migrate to this open art studio where creativity, independence and self-direction abound. Guided as well as self-directed experiments are used to explore a range of art. Individual instruction is available and life skills begin to take hold at Spot Light Studio. Contact Katie Smith, Studio Coordinator, at Mozaic.
The Collaborative Grows! Barb Wale, president of the Collaborative of the Finger Lakes, and everyone at The Collaborative, extend a warm welcome to Arc executive Ellen Gutmaker and everyone at The Arc of Onondaga! As of May, “Arc On” joins the 12 other Arc members of the Collaborative.
Next, a little name dropping, if you don’t mind.
First, A List of Team Reps From Arc On: Jimmy Curtin, Troy McKee, Michelle Gillespie, Donna Loveland, Kristen Morey, Michelle Podeswik, Sandy Radziwon and Lynne Ryan.
Second, A List of Member Arcs: Allegany Arc, The Arc of Chemung, Genesee ARC, Livingston-Wyoming Arc, The Arc of Monroe, Arc of Onondaga, Ontario ARC, The Arc of Orleans County, The Arc of Schuyler, Arc of Seneca Cayuga, The Arc of Steuben, Wayne ARC and The Arc of Yates.
With the Arc of Onondaga joining The Collaborative, we continue to grow and “Share Excellence for the Individuals We Support.” Welcome aboard, Arc On!
If you are interested in exploring a career choice with a future, now’s your chance. Ten people will be selected from a pool of applicants for PAID ON-THE-JOB TRAINING to be CERTIFIED AS A DIRECT SUPPORT PROFESSIONAL! After completing the 26-week training program, individuals will have learned enhanced computer skills, CPR, first aid, medication administration, record keeping techniques and improved communication skills. Contact the HR department at the Arc of Seneca Cayuga on their website: www.arcsencay.org.
New to the work of a DSP? DSPs assist individuals who have an intellectual/developmental disability to lead self-directed lives and to contribute to the community. A DSP may provide supports to a person at home, work, school, church, and other community places and also acts as an advocate for people with disabilities in communicating their needs, self-expression and goals. Adam Erb, a DSP Skills Enhancement Specialist who has been with Arc for three years, sums up his work experience like this, “It is very rewarding. When we’re hired, we’re told we are here to enhance the quality of their lives, but by supporting them, they’ve helped me become a better person all around. They teach us unconditional love, expecting nothing in return. It’s a ton of fun; every day is different. I hope I’ve made as much of an impression on some of them as they have made on me!”
The Arc of Seneca Cayuga received two generous grants to pay for Direct Support Professional (DSP) training and certification from the Walmart Foundation State Giving Program and the NYS Regional Economic Development Council. This fully-funded, on-the-job training initiative is, according to Kevin Smith, Executive Director for the Arc of Seneca Cayuga, “…wonderful news! These two grants will enable us to recruit and retain direct support staff, the very core of our agency.”
PRESS RELEASE OUT:
The 7th Annual ARTS Experience, a festival celebrating inclusion and the arts, begins Friday, April 1 and continues through Friday, April 8, 2016. The festival unites the Hobart and William Smith Colleges community, people with developmental disabilities, and the general public to explore various means of expression through the arts. The festival features workshops and events that are free, wheelchair accessible, open to the public, and take place at the Geneva Community Center (April 1) and on the HWS Campus (April 4-8). Approximately 1,000 attendees are expected.
Throughout the Festival: Twenty-four events, including twenty workshops in creative movement and dance, visual arts, and music will take place throughout the festival. Workshops require registration at www.hws.edu/festival. The public is also invited to view an art exhibit celebrating local artists with and without disabilities during the gala finale on Friday, April 8 which will feature a performance by the nationally-renowned band FLAME (http://www.flametheband.com/).
Arts Workshops: Representative workshops include: Jazz Music & Painting, led by Kevin Carr, Geneva Boys and Girls Club; Drum-making and Drum-Circle, led by Katie Smith and Amanda Tallcot, Arc of Seneca Cayuga, Sharing Stories: Memory Quilt, led by Natalie Reichel, United Cerebral Palsy of NYC, and Move-Ability, co-led by HWS student Jesse Singleton and HWS Professor Donna Davenport.
Events: Many exciting events also comprise the 2016 festival calendar. Highlights include a talk by Carrie Bergeron, sharing about her experiences as a self-advocate with Down syndrome, and a screening of the award-winning documentary “Shooting Beauty,” which includes a talk by photographers from Arc of Livingston-Wyoming who participated in the 100 Cameras Project highlighted in the documentary.
Gala Finale: The festival closes with its signature Gala event on Friday, April 8, featuring the band FLAME, an interactive movement chorus performance with Professor Cadence Whittier and students from Hillside Children’s Center, live painting with local artist Filomena Jack, Lego creations by teen brick builders from Ontario Arc’s Autism Center, an art exhibit from local artists, along with opening remarks from HWS President Mark Gearan and Barb Wales, Board President of the Collaborative of the Finger Lakes, Inc.
The festival is a collaboration of Hobart and William Smith Colleges and
the Collaborative of the Finger Lakes, Inc., a network of twelve NYSARC, Inc. chapters
providing supports to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
Please visit www.hws.edu/festival for the festival schedule and workshop and event information. Attached is the calendar of events for easy reference.
Registration for the 7th Annual Arts Experience Festival April 1-8, 2016 is strong. 14 of the 23 workshops have filled, but some great sessions are still open – Check out the lists below or the Festival site by clicking here. Don’t forget to join us for the Gala finale on Friday, April 8th 5-7:30pm with the band FLAME the annual art exhibit and much more! The Gala is a PAR-TAY! Celebrate the arts and the artists with dancing, light refreshments (gluten-free and veggie options), hands-on art and performance and more. Dress is casual AND The Gala is free of charge, wheelchair accessible and open to the public. Drop in Friday, April 8th for a moment or stay for awhile (5-7:30). HWS Scandling Center, 2nd Floor, 300 Pulteney St. Geneva, NY 14456.
Here’s the line up of available workshops:
Fri, April 1 Geneva Community Center – Boys and Girls Club, 160 Carter Rd, Geneva, NY
Mon, April 4 sessions filled
Tues, April 5 Hobart and William Smith Colleges
Wed, April 6 Hobart and William Smith Colleges
Thurs, April 7 Hobart and William Smith Colleges
Friday, April 8 Hobart and William Smith Colleges
Please register by Monday, March 21.
“Parking Meters” by Chase Ferguson
The Art Studio for Non-Main Stream Artists
(think art by people with autism, intellectual or developmental disabilities, mental health conditions…)
Mark your calenders for “Showtime”, a talent show by cast members of the Arc of Seneca Cayuga’s theatrical program, FAME: Thursday, February 11th, at 39 Genesee Street in Auburn, and you guessed it, showtime is 6:30pm. What’s not to like about this opportunity – Free entertainment (that’s right, no entry fees!) and light refreshments on hand. It all makes for a great night out especially in mid-winter!
You can also learn more about FAME’s excellent arts program. This is a truly wonderful opportunity for people with developmental and other intellectual disabilities to express themselves and explore their world and the world of others. FAME has classes in Voice, Dance, Acting, Video Production, and the Visual Arts, including painting and sculpture. The classes at FAME are conducted by Arc staff members and a team of professional consultants, including Bob Piorun and Ed Sayles.
Here are some updates, bullet style, on this year’s Arts Experience Festival, a joint venture between The Collaborative of the Finger Lakes and Hobart & Wm Smith Colleges in Geneva, NY.
Now on to a great festival for 2016!
