CAC Corner.

CAC Corner: News from the Community Advisory Committee

October 30, 2020 Newsletter Articles

The CCIDS Community Advisory Committee (CAC) held its fall meeting via Zoom web conference on Monday, October 19, 2020. It was the final meeting led by co-chairs, Kile Pelletier and Maryann Preble. Results from the 2020 CAC Membership and Leadership Election appear below.

Before proceeding to the October 19th meeting highlights, CCIDS and the CAC offer heartfelt congratulations to the following members:

  • Kathy Adams on her retirement as program director of Maine CITE after a 45-year career as an occupational therapist in hospital rehabilitation, community-based services, program administration/management, and assistive technology.
  • Kile Pelletier and Stephanie (Tardif) Pelletier on their August 22, 2020 wedding. A video of the wedding is available online.
  • Maryann Preble on her election as Co-Chair of the Maine Developmental Disabilities Council.

Highlights from the October 19th CAC meeting (download the meeting agenda here [PDF] ):

Results from the 2020 Membership and Leadership Election

  • The CAC expressed its gratitude to the following members for their service on the committee:
    • Kathy Adams – CAC Member (2014-2017; 2018-2021)
    • Dr. Mark Kavanaugh – CAC Member (2017-2020)
    • Maryann Preble – Service as Co-Chair (2015-2017; 2018-2020)
  • The CAC voted to approve the following members’ reappointment to new three-year terms (2021-2024):
    • Dave Lawrence
    •  Jon McGovern
    • Kile Pelletier
    • Kate Quinn Finlay
  • The CAC extended a warm welcome to the following new members who were elected to three-year terms (2021-2024):
    • Melany Mondello – Family Member
    • Stephanie Pelletier – Speaking Up for Us (SUFU) Representative
    • Libby Stone-Sterling – Director, DVR, ME Department of Labor
  • The CAC elected the following members to serve as Co-Chairs for a two-year term (2021-2023):
    • Kile Pelletier
    • Kate Quinn Finlay

Virtual Halloween Party: A Nightmare on Zoom!

  • Cynthia Thielen shared information about the latest activity of the CCIDS Social Undistancing Committee – a virtual Halloween event on October 31st from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. called A Nightmare on Zoom!

AUCD Virtual Conference

  • Cynthia Thielen shared details about a peer-reviewed poster presentation, Supporting Virtual Connections During Social Distancing, that will be presented virtually during the Association of University Centers on Disabilities (AUCD) Annual Conference in December. Presenters include Alan Kurtz, Janet May, Cynthia Thielen, Bonnie Robinson, Rachel Dyer and Margaret (Maggie) Carter.

CCIDS COVID-Related Goals and Objectives for Year 3

  • Alan Cobo-Lewis reviewed the COVID-related goals and objectives in CCIDS’ Year 3 work plan and asked for members’ suggestions and feedback on this work.

Institute of Medicine

  • Alan Cobo-Lewis reported that CCIDS (and the Center on Aging) are now part of UMaine’s Institute of Medicine, which brings together university resources with community resources in medicine and public health. CCIDS will now be reporting directly to the Institute’s Director, Dr. David Harder, and indirectly to UMaine’s Vice President for Research. While some CCIDS activities are clearly related to medicine or public health, others are not. As a University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCEDD), CCIDS will continue to engage in the full range of research-education-service-dissemination activities related to disability. Alan would like to invite Dr. Harder to attend the Spring 2021 CAC Meeting so members can ask questions and share any concerns.

Looking Ahead: Spring Meeting 2021

  • The Spring 2021 CAC Meeting will be held online.

Screenshot of the CAC Zoom Meeting.

Photo credit: Building corner image by Ben Vaughn (https://unsplash.com)