Products

Teaching Self-Determination in Alaskan Schools: A Toolkit for Educators

Teaching Self-Determination in Alaskan Schools: A Toolkit for Educators is now online at www.alaskachd.org/toolkit. The Self-Determination Project promotes student-directed learning and capturing dreams. The Toolkit is a project sponsored by the Alaska Department of Education and Early Development. The kit has been developed for teachers, parents, students and other professionals who are interested in promoting self-determination within home, school and community settings. If students with disabilities are to be successful in maximizing opportunities for self-determination in adulthood, they need to be equipped with the knowledge, beliefs, and skills that lead to self-determination in their educational programs. 

Employment Barriers Survey Reports

The Governor’s Council on Disabilities and Special Education (GCDSE) contracted with the Center for Human Development (CHD) of the University of Alaska Anchorage to provide evaluation services for the Alaska Works Initiative. The Alaska Works Initiative helps individuals with disabilities find and/or maintain employment, and is administered by the Governor’s Council on Disabilities and Special Education. This study was requested by the GCDSE to gather information about the population of people who received disability benefits through Alaska’s Division of Health Care Services (DHCS). The primary goal of the survey was to gather information from a population of people with disabilities to learn about their experiences with employment. The Governor’s Council wanted information to provide informed policy recommendations regarding the reduction or removal of barriers that prevent people with disabilities from being employed.

http://www.alaskaworksinitiative.org/reports/

Far North Parent-Professional Partnerships

There is a growing acceptance that families and professionals working together as partners, rather than client and provider, are the best resource for children and family members with disabilities. However, the partnership framework is radically different from the family/provider association in which most professionals and families were educated.

This manual was written to provide a foundation for establishing collegial family and professional alliances. The manual is divided into three sections: Building Parent & Professional Partnerships, Understanding Basic Systems and Best Outcomes: Person Centered and Self-directed.

Check out this newly-produced manual on our Far North Parent-Professional Partnerships page.

STARS (Specialized Training for Associates and Paraprofessionals in Rural Settings)

This complete Early Childhood Home Visitor Training program is designed to offer standardized, distance-delivered training in rural areas for paraprofessionals who conduct early childhood home visits.

In the Driver’s Seat

This 25-minute, closed-captioned video, accompanied by an 18-page workbook, demonstrates successful strategies for negotiating and conducting productive parent/professional meetings. In the Driver's Seat is available for purchase from Program Development Associates (opens in a new window).

Video Futures Kit

Video Futures is a stand-alone training kit that presents the basics of self-modeling for service providers, educators, parents, and others who work with persons with disabilities. It provides tools by which self-motivated practitioners may acquire a basic level of expertise in planning and implementing self-modeling interventions for people with disabilities. This training also lends itself to collaborative learning over a several-week period.

Guide to Developmental Disability Services

The Guide to Developmental Disability Services is designed to provide families an overview of Alaska’s Developmental Disability Program and how it works for individuals with disabilities and their families.

Ability and Beyond: Leaders in the Field

This high-quality VHS video production covers a wide range of topics concerning people and family members with disabilities. “Leaders in the field” is a compilation of interviews with individuals who experience disabilities and have achieved positions of leadership and responsibility within Alaskan communities. These leaders discuss how they live in the community, how they have faced and overcome various obstacles, and the qualities each one believes makes an effective leader. This video has an 8-minute, a 20-minute, and a 37-minute version of the interviews that allows for better customization in a presentation. For more information e-mail us at info@alaskachd.org

Other Product Resources

Quality Mall http://www.qualitymall.org/ (opens in new window) at the University of Minnesota Research and Training Center on Community Living is a carefully selected collection of person-centered supports for people with developmental disabilities.

Information Dissemination

A major focus of the Center is to raise awareness, knowledge, and sensitivity about persons with disabilities. Information is provided to the community, or disseminated, in a variety of ways.

Multimedia Production

In addition to project specific dissemination, the Center offers technical assistance and training to community agencies and individuals involved in disability programming, as they build multi-media capacity.

Website

Our website provides up-to-date information, including more complete descriptions of all of our programs and projects. We provide information on many Alaska Service Providers for developmental disabilities services, services to older adults, and mental health resources. The site is updated quarterly to provide current information.

Full Lives Conference

The Full Lives conference for direct support staff is presented by the Center for Human Development in cooperation with many other organizations and individuals in the spring. This annual conference is an exciting professional and personal development opportunity for staff and supervisors providing services and for individuals/families receiving services.