Upcoming Events – March 2023

Posted on by Pathfinder
Image with a dark background. There are dark pink and white flowers presented to the left of the image. The text to the right of the image is in orange, blue, and white and reads "UPCOMING EVENTS MARCH 2023."

Find what’s happening in your area by visiting our Community Calendar and begin your journey with events that enhance your life experiences.  Also, follow us on social media to stay up to date with events in the disability community.

Charting the LifeCourse helps individuals with disabilities and their family members share their ideas, hopes, and fears for the future to determine how best to plan for it. Attend this informative webinar to learn how the presenter has used the framework and tools professionally and personally in supporting her brother who has an intellectual and developmental disability.

Thursday, Mar 30, 2023 from 11:30 AM – 12:30 PM CDT

This webinar will be presented in English via Microsoft Teams with interpretation provided in Spanish via Closed Captioning. Register here.

Emma Shouse Garton

Public Information Specialist, Tennessee Council on Developmental Disabilities
Emma Shouse Garton lives in Nashville, TN and works for the Tennessee Council on Developmental Disabilities as their Public Information Specialist. Emma has been with the Council since 2011 and helps lead the Council’s communications efforts, including their website, social media, email newsletters and community outreach efforts. She leads the Tennessee Adult Brothers and Sisters (TABS) statewide sibling support network, launched by the Council and Vanderbilt Kennedy Center over a decade ago. TABS provides information and peer support to siblings of people with disabilities. She also serves as chair of the Sibling Leadership Network’s chapter development committee (TABS is TN’s chapter of the SLN). She was Tennessee’s representative in the national Supporting Families Community of Practice from 2012-2017. This project created the “Charting the LifeCourse” framework and tools, and continues to explore how families can be better supported throughout the lifespan by state systems and communities.

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The Blount County School system is having a Disability Resource Fair on March 9, 2023, 1 PM to 5 PM ET. For more information contact Jennifer Carpenter, vocational transition case manager, Blount County Schools at jennifer.carpenter@blountk12.org or (865) 984-8110

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Image of a stadium with blue lights and a background of Nashville in the far distance. At the fron center of the image is a hand hold a cell phone with text on the screen, "LIGHTS UP BLUE DISABILITY ADVOCACY DAY." At the top of the image is text, "SATURDAY, MARCH 11TH," and at the bottom of the image underneat the cellphone is text: "Text TEAMWORK to 72690 for all thinkgs disability in TN!"

Disability Advocacy Day: March 11th, 2023 – All Day!

Join us as Tennessee lights up “Coalition Blue” to celebrate disability advocacy across the state. Landmarks and buildings across Tennessee will be lit up in solidarity. And those who can, and perhaps don’t have the ability to change the lights in your building, wear blue in support! Follow Tennessee Disability Coalition on social media @TNdisability to see all the exciting things on this celebratory day! Check out our current list of participating locations!

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Green, white, and blue flyer about a workshop for Educators from the Vanderbilt Kennedy Center. The title of the Webinar is "The Britt Henderson Training Series for Educators." Workshop Dates are written in green and read "Tuesday, March 28, 2023: What is Tennessee Disability Pathfinder. Tuesday, April 11, 2023: Best Practices when writing goals, and Tuesday, April 25, 2023: Best practices in the IEP meeting." The link to register is underlined and written in black and says "vkc.vumc.org/HTS." Pathfinder's branded graphic is at the bottom left of the flyer. The Vanderbilt Kennedy Center logo is on a green background at the top of the flyer.Britt Henderson Training Series for Educators: Practical Evidence-Based Strategies to Improve Instruction for Students with Diverse Learning Needs
What is Tennessee Disability Pathfinder?
Tuesday, March 28, 5:30-7:30 p.m. CT

This annual series of workshops provides training for school teams that include both general and special educators. Workshops focus on innovative evidence-based practices to improve the quality of education for students with diverse learning needs. Founded in 1996, the Britt Henderson Training Series is made possible at no cost to participating schools through an endowment from the Robert and Carol Henderson family in memory of their son Britt.

Individuals and school teams are welcome to attend. When possible, school teams (e.g., general and special educators, behavior specialists, counselors, and school administrators) are encouraged to attend. Participation is open to public and private schools, as well as community organizations and community members.

Spring 2023 Workshop
Would you like to enhance your IEPs and learn about resources to help your students access services outside of school? Join us for this interactive workshop, which will provide an overview of Tennessee Disability Pathfinder, opportunity to enhance and practice IEP goal writing, and gain feedback and community from other educators. Sessions will be held from 5:30-7:30 p.m. CT, March 28th, April 11th and 25th (virtual).

Target audience:
Special educators in Tennessee. We also welcome school staff, parents, and family members.

To register for series, click here.

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Webinar: Choices at Transition: Tips and Tools to Navigate the IEP Process
Tuesday, April 18, 2023
6-7 pm (EST)

Early Autism Services and Heather Wright, special education consultant and Master IEP Coach, are co-hosting a webinar to help parents navigate the IEP process. Heather will be discussing special education basics and what tools and resources are available for your child. She will also be sharing the importance of a parent input statement and how this helps you to be an equal member of the IEP team. Parents have many choices to best support their children when they transition out of state early intervention programs and enter the school system. Heather and Early Autism Services are here to help ease the process.

Suggested gift of $5 to assist Spectrum Autism Support Group
RSVP Here: https://hipaa.jotform.com/230574709435056

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The Tennessee Disability MegaConference is a statewide gathering made possible through collaborations and partnerships of many disability advocacy organizations in Tennessee. For more information and to register click the link.