No Escape, by Judith Carlin. “A painting showing how unescapable depression can seem.” Souce: Wikimedia Commons
At Advancing Opportunities, we excel in providing residential and respite services to people of with all disabilities, along with advocacy and education services for parents and guardians and assistive technology support. As a leader in the field, we are pleased to share our experience, knowledge, and expertise with the disability community through our social media outlets: Facebook, Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn, YouTube, and Pinterest. In our Disability and Ability Highlights of the Week column, we will select the best of what we found and shared and present them. Please click on the titles with embedded links to find the full article.
In addition, we are specialists in the area of assistive technology and offer a huge array of services; the Assistive Technology Center is New Jersey’s premier source of information and equipment.
Advancing Opportunities job announcement of the week:
We’re hiring!
Advancing Opportunities has immediate openings for part-time Direct-Support Professionals in residential care programs throughout New Jersey. In May, we will be holding job from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., as follows:
- Thursday, May 11. Phillipsburg Event. Phillipsburg Free Public Library, 200 Broubalow Way, Phillipsburg, NJ 08865
- Wednesday, May 17. Parsippany Event. Family Resource Network, 322 U.S. Hwy. 46, Ste. 290, Phillipsburg, NJ 08865
- Tuesday, May 23. Marlboro Event. Marlboro Free Public Library, 1 Library Ct., Marlboro, NJ 07746
Advancing Opportunities provides supports to individuals with disabilities and their families, so they can live fully in the community.
Our team includes a diverse collection of men and women committed to treating the people and families we serve with dignity and respect and providing the highest quality services and supports.
Employees of the agency enjoy paid training and an excellent array of benefits, including health care and dental benefits for all eligible full-time staff and a 401(k) retirement plan for all eligible employees.
If you are unable to make it to one of the job fair open houses, you can also visit us online, at: https://advopps.org/careers/
Disability in the news (mostly in New Jersey, the population we serve):
The foremost news item of the week is Thursday’s legislative action in the House of Representatives. Much has been written about this, not only in the mainstream press, but also among the many disability advocacy and self-advocacy organizations. However, the topic so broad, it would not be possible to do it justice in this space. We have, therefore, elected not to cover it here.
For parents of a child with a disability (parenting):
Boy dolls? Absolutely! One toy company has a unique mission of accept and respect – for the boys who play with the dolls and the people with disabilities who make them. Some of the dolls also depict children with Down syndrome and other disabilities, furthering disability understanding and acceptance among children.
Assistive technology:
A company has developed the world’s first wearable electromyographic (EMG) assistive technology for people with spinal cord injury.
Advocacy and self-advocacy:
Dorothea Dix is well known for her actions on behalf of the poor. She was also an advocate for people with depression and other mental illnesses.
ASAN, the Autistic Self-Advocacy Network, has published an accessible guide about Medicaid.
Employment for people with disabilities:
A young woman with cerebral palsy finds her voice and passion in her blog.
Informative, positive, noteworthy (or all three!):
When a physician intern discovered something was missing from her medical school training, she did something about it. Realizing there was no instruction on how to treat patients with disabilities, the intern created a multiyear curriculum that has evolved into a mission for her School of Medicine.
People with a disability in the community (disability rights and acceptance; inclusion):
We are increasingly familiar with sensory-friendly theaters and amusement parks. Now, in Ireland, we have an autism-friendly town! This initiative will also be a community and tourism boost for the town, and other municipalities are looking to replicate this honorable effort.
A student with Down syndrome delivers a powerful speech to the UN.
Medical news—research:
Children with autism who have both severe repetitive behaviors and sensory sensitivities tend to have had unusually structured nerve tracts in infancy.
A greater capacity to detect sound gives autistic people an advantage.
