Digital Commons Network^™

Advancing A Universally Designed (Ud) Curriculum: How Nh-Me Lend Is Creating An Accessible Program For All, Susan Zimmermann, Amy Frechette, Kathleen Bates, Marnie Morneault, Stacy Driscoll, Susan Russell, Betsy Humphreys

Poster Presentations

To meet the recent requirement for LEND programs to develop a Self-Advocacy Discipline, faculty and staff members of the NH-ME LEND Program established a workgroup to consider how best to support trainees and faculty, including those with disabilities. The focus of the group evolved to include universally designed (UD) principles into the curriculum to accommodate the wide range of learning styles of all NH-ME LEND trainees.

Collaboration To Empower Every Learner, Shilo Goodhue

Poster Presentations

A review of how two nonprofit agencies in Maine are collaborating with the creators of Empower the Learner, a student advocacy program, to make the materials accessible to students who are more significantly impacted by disability.

Collaboration To Empower Every Learner, Shilo Goodhue

Poster Presentations

The vision of Empower the Learner is that “Each child is unique and needs to be understood, valued and empowered to…..achieve agency, self-advocate for their learning and realize their hopes and dreams.” To support this, ETL has created a tool to help students recognize their strengths and learning challenges and express those to the educational team. The Maine Parent Federation and the Autism Society, with funding through the Maine Developmental Disabilities Council, joined with ETL to modify the program to make it accessible to children who are impacted more significantly by their disability. The goal is to not only empower …

Immersion For Change: A Cultural Discovery Project To Lessen Educator Bias By Increasing Perspective, Kari Payne

Poster Presentations

This cultural project focused on increasing cultural competency and lessening implicit bias for both myself and the agency I work for. The process highlighted how important relationships and ongoing connection are when blending the needs of the New Mainer Population with those serving the children in the community.

Inclusion/Services And Family Engagement: Leadership Opportunities, Nicole Drown

Poster Presentations

Project was created to provide: data driven materials to Maine's Child Development Services; resources and supports to families; and exploration into Applied Behavioral Analysis for Behavioral Intervention Support learning.

Examining Restraint, Isolation, And Seclusion: The Process, The Literature, And The Data Of A Research-Based Lend Leadership Project, Desiree Peña

Poster Presentations

The University of Maine’s Center for Community Inclusion and Disability Studies (CCIDS) embarked on a study, funded by the Maine Developmental Disabilities (DD) Council, to analyze the effect of increased support and training may have in reducing restraints, isolation, and seclusions at a private agency with residential and educational programs in various cities in Maine.

• Across all of its sites, this private agency has been utilizing Therapeutic Crisis Intervention (TCI), a comprehensive crisis management program, designed by researchers at Cornell University. A team from Cornell is currently providing additional training in TCI implementation to agency staff at a specific site. …

Partnership Of Nh-Me Lend And New Mainers Public Health Initiative To Offer Training Experiences With Culturally And Linguistically Diverse Populations, Susan Russell, Betsy Humphreys

Poster Presentations

Over the past two decades, the geographic area served by the NH-ME LEND Program has experienced rapid growth of racially, ethnically and linguistically diverse populations, as has the U.S. in general. While the NH-ME LEND clinical and leadership placements provide opportunities for frequent contact with underserved populations, Maine trainees, in particular, have had few opportunities for training or fieldwork with culturally and linguistically diverse populations. With funding support from a 2018 Focused Assistance to Support Training Project (FAST) grant, the NH-ME LEND partnered with New Mainers Public Health Initiative (NMPHI) in Lewiston, Maine, to build the LEND’s capacity to offer …

Cds State Data Review Project: Data Tells The Story, Katharine Appleyard

Poster Presentations

This poster presents data that identifies state and regional site-level trends, outliers, etc., with regard to federal reporting indicators and other factors, in the Child Development Services system.

Educational Videos About Restraint And Seclusion, Jodie Hall

Poster Presentations

The Coalition Against Restraint and Seclusion (C.A.R.S.) is a group of stakeholders whose mission is to prevent the overuse of restraint and seclusion within the educational setting. As part of Jodie Hall’s training with the New Hampshire-Maine LEND Program, she worked with C.A.R.S. to update their resources and parent education materials. This poster presentation reports on the outcome of her work and the development of a series of short informational videos which may be accessed via the internet.

Coaching Lend Faculty In Implementing Team-Based Learning Across Two States: Lessons Learned Over Four Years, Alan Kurtz, Rae Sonnenmeier, Betsy P. Humphreys, Susan Russell

Poster Presentations

This poster describes the implementation of team-based learning (TBL) in the didactic seminar component of the NH-ME LEND program over four years. TBL has been found to be an effective instructional method, fostering communication, collaboration, and conflict negotiation among interdisciplinary teams. The process of coaching a large faculty across two states to implement TBL, faculty perceptions with TBL, lessons learned, and quality improvement strategies is described.

Developing The State Interagency Coordinating Council For Maine Child Developmental Services, Olivia Shaw

Poster Presentations

Each state is required by the federal Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA), 20 U.S.C. 1441 to have a State Interagency Coordination Council to act as an advising council for their state Early Intervention Program. My leadership project mentor, Roy Fowler, the state director for Maine’s Early Intervention Program, Child Developmental Services (CDS), tasked me with helping him to develop a new and effective SICC for CDS. Doing this required extensive research into the federal requirements for an SICC including, participant requirements, responsibilities of the SICC, and the overall process for applying to be a member. Once the research was completed …

Enhancing A Disability Advocacy Organization's Online Capacity To Provide Families With Essential Information About Secondary Transition, Taylor Harris

Poster Presentations

This poster describes my work assisting the Maine Coalition for Housing and Quality Supports conducted as part of my NH-ME LEND Leadership Project. The purpose of the project was to enhance an existing online timeline designed to help family members of individuals with developmental disabilities in Maine. In particular, I searched for essential resources, materials, and data related to effective secondary transition. The outcome was to provide a better resource for families as they identify services and supports that will help their children to have a smooth transition to adult life. Throughout this project, I collaborated with my leadership mentor …

Educational Videos About Restraint And Seclusion, Jodie Hall

Poster Presentations

The Coalition for Restraint and Seclusion (C.A.R.S.) is a group of stakeholders whose mission is to prevent the overuse of restraints and seclusion within the educational setting. As part of my training with the New Hampshire-Maine Leadership in Education in Neurodevelopmental Related Disabilities Program (LEND), I have been working with C.A.R.S. to update their resources and parent education materials. We created a series of short informational videos which will be accessed via the internet, in order to provide materials which are easily digestible and accessible for parents. My poster will provide descriptions of the content included in each of the …

Improving Effective Interdisciplinary Team Work Using Team-Based Learning Within The Nh-Me Lend Curriculum: Comparing Years 1 – 3, Alan Kurtz, Rae Sonnenmeier, Betsy P. Humphreys, Susan Russell

Poster Presentations

This poster provided an update on an ongoing effort by faculty in the New Hampshire-Maine Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities (NH-ME LEND) Program to implement Team-Based Learning (TBL). Three years of evaluation data was presented. Changes made to improve the process were identified as well as some of the unique obstacles to implementing TBL in a seminar that was conducted in two classrooms connected through video conferencing and had a high faculty-to-student ratio.

Engaging Lend Trainees In A Leadership And Policy Experience, Susan Russell, Betsy P. Humphreys, Alan Kurtz, Rae Sonnenmeier

Poster Presentations

This poster illustrated how faculty from the New Hampshire-Maine Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities (NH-ME LEND) Program re-envisioned and implemented a comprehensive set of leadership, policy and advocacy experiences to further build upon the leadership potential of 23 LEND trainees by intentionally threading leadership skill development throughout the LEND curriculum.

Assessing Trainee Understanding Of Health Equity & Diversity, Betsy P. Humphreys, Susan Russell, Alan Kurtz, Rae Sonnenmeier

Poster Presentations

The NH-ME LEND Program engages in quality improvement efforts aimed at increasing trainee’s understanding of health equity and cultural competence. This poster 1) provided an overview of the curricular components related to health equity and diversity, 2) reported on six cohorts of trainees’ self-assessments in these areas, and 3) shared trainees’ personal reflections on their growth. Finally, ongoing program improvements efforts in these areas were discussed.

Nh-Me Lend: Advancing Health Equity For Children And Youth With Asd/Ndd And Their Families Through Continuous Quality Improvement, Betsy Humphreys, Susan Russell, Rae Sonnenmeier, Alan Kurtz

Poster Presentations

Over the past two decades NH and Maine have experienced rapid growth of racial, ethnic, and linguistic minority populations. New Hampshire’s foreign-born population was 5.7% in 2013, while Maine’s foreign-born population was 3.4% during the same time period (American Immigration Council, 2017). In addition, NH and Maine are designated refugee resettlement areas. NH is now home to refugees from over 40 countries (NH DHHS, 2010) and Maine is home to refugees from over 30 countries (Catholic Charities Refugee and Immigration Services, 2015).

Reaching Local Community With The Message Of Developmental Milestones And Early Identification Of Autism, Hope M. Duncanson

Poster Presentations

This poster presents project activities for a pilot program for effectively distributing Learn the Signs, Act Early materials to a small study group in a community in Maine.

Improving Effective Interdisciplinary Team Work Using Team-Based Learning Within The Nh-Me Lend Curriculum: Evaluation From Year 2, Rae Sonnenmeier, Alan Kurtz, Betsy Humphreys, Susan Russell

Poster Presentations

This poster provided an update on the implementation of Team-Based Learning (TBL) by NH LEND faculty during Academic Year 2015-2016. Improvements to the Readiness Assurance Process included defined learning outcomes, use of reading guides, and improved assessment of trainee knowledge of concepts. Evaluation data from Years 1 and 2 regarding the use of TBL were presented, including positive outcomes and challenges described by faculty and trainees.