Center for Community Inclusion and Disability Studies

Jennifer Maeverde, MA, LCPC, (pictured above) a Research Associate with University of Maine Center for Community Inclusion and Disability Studies (CCIDS), has been selected to participate in the Fall 2018 Georgetown University Leadership Academy, a component of the Leadership Institute for Cultural Diversity and Cultural and Linguistic Competence. The Academy is designed to build the capacity of leaders […]

The Temple University Collaborative on Community Inclusion has published two new resources to enhance the community participation of individuals with psychiatric disabilities through the use of social media and web-based communication. Building An Online Presence: Using Online Media to Promote Community Inclusion (PDF) is a toolkit that examines how agency programs (or) individuals with mental illnesses can use […]

Source: Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee The Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee’s (IACC) April 2018 publication, 2017 Summary of Advances (PDF), provides short, plain language summaries of the top 20 research articles selected by the IACC. The studies selected for 2017 have provided new insight into potential biomarkers to predict risk of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), developmental trajectories of children […]

Source: John T. Gorman Foundation​ All young people deserve an equal chance to be healthy, happy, safe, and nurtured as they transition from adolescence to adulthood. Unfortunately, not all young people in Maine have the essential support needed to successfully make this transition and reach their full potential. ​From Adolescence to Adulthood: A Blueprint for Helping Maine’s […]

Two Maine parents of children with disabilities have produced a series of six videos to help educate parents about appropriate and incorrect uses of restraint and seclusion in educational settings in Maine. Jodie Hall, a 2017-2018 family trainee in the New Hampshire-Maine Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities (NH-ME LEND) Program, recently completed a 70-hour community leadership placement with the Maine Coalition Against […]

Thirty-four University of Maine students were honored on May 1, 2018 during the 2018 Interdisciplinary Disability Studies Celebration of Achievement at Wells Conference Center. Five students were recognized for completing the 9-credit Graduate Certificate in Interdisciplinary Disability Studies. Twenty-nine undergraduates were recognized for completing the 24-credit Minor in Interdisciplinary Disability Studies. Students completing the Minor represented […]

Maine AgrAbility has produced a series of videos on the assistive technology in use at Chapter Three Farm in Newburgh, Maine. Farmers Stephen Gilson and Elizabeth DePoy, both University of Maine professors of social work and interdisciplinary disability studies, talk about the assistive tools and modified work routines they use to continue to work successfully […]

Source: State and National Fact Sheets:​ ​America’s Opioid Crisis: The Unseen Impact on Children A key American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) advocacy priority is addressing the needs of vulnerable children impacted by the ongoing opioid epidemic. This crisis has significant and multifaceted impacts on child and family health and wellbeing. As families affected by parental substance use around […]

E​ac​h​ ​spring​, University of Maine graduate and undergraduate students present their peer-reviewed research and creative achievements in an academic-conference-style event​. (Above photo: Holly Hegarty with faculty mentor Dr. Alan Kurtz.) The 2018 University of Maine Student Symposium​ (UMSS​18​)​ was held on April 17, 2018 at the Cross Insurance Center in Bangor, ME. Oral presentations and […]

The Maine Developmental Disabilities Council honored high school students, educators and Senator Angus S. King (I) during the third annual Inclusion Awards held on April 25, 2018 at the Maine Statehouse Hall of Flags. ​Students from 20 Maine high schools submitted essays and/or works of creative expression. Essayists responded to the ​following ​questions, “What does […]