Center for Community Inclusion and Disability Studies

Source: HHS to Expand Access to COVID-19 Vaccines for Older Adults and People with Disabilities (Administration for Community Living, News Release, March 29, 2021) CDC and ACL Will Provide Nearly $100 Million in Grants to Aging and Disability Networks in Every State and Territory As part of President Biden’s announcement today that the administration will […]

Source: NH-ME LEND Spotlight, LEND Field Experiences in the DD Network, (March 24, 2021) In the March 2021 edition of the NH-ME LEND Spotlight, Dr. Kelly Nye-Lengerman, Director of the University of New Hampshire Institute on Disability; and Dr. Alan Cobo-Lewis, Director of the University of Maine Center for Community Inclusion and Disability Studies; discuss the importance of the Developmental […]

The University of Maine Institute of Medicine, Center on Aging, Center for Community Inclusion and Disability Studies, and the University of Maine at Augusta invite you to attend a free Virtual Symposium on Mental Health in the Time of COVID-19, on Monday, April 5, 2021 from 9:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. The Symposium Program (PDF) includes speakers and descriptions of presentations […]

For over 30 years, Maggie Hoffman has worked to strengthen and support families of children and adults with disabilities and special health care needs. She is a co-founder and former executive director of Project DOCCSM – Delivery of Chronic Care: a medical education curriculum developed by parents to teach pediatric doctors in training about living […]

Dr. Alan B. Cobo-Lewis, the director of the University of Maine Center for Community Inclusion and Disability Studies, has posted a position paper in response to Maine’s recent move to age-based prioritization for Covid-19 vaccines (modified shortly thereafter to prioritize teachers and child care providers). The justification was that age is very strongly associated with […]

Each March, the Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month social media campaign seeks to raise awareness about the inclusion of people with developmental disabilities in all facets of community life, as well as awareness of the barriers that people with disabilities still sometimes face in connecting to the communities in which they live. This year’s artwork was created […]

Disability Rights Maine (DRM) and Speaking Up for Us (SUFU) recently collaborated on a recorded training, Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) Settings Rule: Basics & Advocacy (YouTube). The training was led by Abbott Philson, SUFU Board Chair; and Lauren Wille, Esq., DRM staff attorney on the developmental disabilities team. A sign language interpreter is provided. The […]

CCIDS colleagues Cynthia Thielen and Alan Kurtz shared their perspectives on digital equity during the pandemic in a newsletter article, Digital Equity in the Time of COVID-19 (PDF), published in the Winter 2021 edition of The Communicator, a publication of the Autism National Committee. Kurtz and Thielen are members of the CCIDS Social Undistancing Committee that was established in Spring […]

“Suicide is now the second leading cause of death for adolescents and young adults aged 15 to 24 in the United States, and suicide attempts are significantly higher among youth, compared to adults.” (SAMHSA, Treatment, pg. 3) The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) has published a new guide, Treatment for Suicidal Ideation, Self-harm, and Suicide […]

Following a successful pilot program, the University of Maine Center for Community Inclusion and Disability Studies (CCIDS) again collaborated with the Maine Department of Labor Division of Vocational Rehabilitation (VR), the UMaine College of Education and Human Development, and Student Accessibility Services to deliver the Step Up Program for high school students with autism spectrum […]