Colorado Developmental Disabilities Council

Looking for plain language resources on the Colorado ballot? Check out https://lnkd.in/gM9XpQgR for a handy printable in English, Spanish and Read-to-You accessible formats.

We join our community in taking a collective deep breath this week as we process the election results and the range of feelings people are experiencing. Voting is not just about political parties and candidates - it has real consequences for people and communities. To those who are needing extra support right now, we see you. You are loved. You matter. You are not alone. Today and every day, we are grateful to be part of a strong disability justice community here in Colorado ready and able to ensure that we continue to work towards progress. The Council remains committed to our mission and our bipartisan work to ensure that people with IDD can live a meaningful life of freedom, choice, purpose and joy of their own design. If you would like to make your voice heard, follow us for upcoming information on community events, meetings, and advocacy opportunities across Colorado.

The Council hiring for a Program Assistant! Our amazing PA Vanessa Hernandez was promoted to Community Engagement Specialist earlier this month. The Council has a small team of six that is fully remote. We value connection, collaboration and community and we cultivate relationships through regular IM, virtual meeting and email communications, biweekly virtual staff meetings, weekly or biweekly virtual 1:1s and quarterly half-day in person staff meetings that are scheduled in community spaces. We use Gallup Strengths Finder to leverage our strengths and support each other, and we see ourselves as a learning organization with a growth mindset. We work with a wide variety of community partners, council members and stakeholders so we value communication and transparency in all that we do. Above all, we believe in creating the systemic and societal conditions that ensure people with intellectual or developmental disabilities get to experience their own vision of a meaningful life of freedom, choice, love, joy and purpose and are valued for the contributions they bring to our communities. This position will contribute to the strength of the Colorado Developmental Disabilities Council staff and Council members by providing high-quality program, membership and administrative support. https://lnkd.in/gPxuFK9K Please share widely with your networks.

The Council's fall update is posted - Read on to find out more about our meaningful life model, election accessibility, community and Council membership: https://lnkd.in/gqG87f6Y

?Grant Opportunity!? Disabling Barriers is a non-profit that provides grants to address the unmet needs of Southern Colorado’s children and young adults with intellectual or developmental disabilities (IDD). They currently are accepting grant applications for programs (discrete projects), equipment only, and capital requests for serving folks with IDD. Grant applications will close on August 31st, 2024. Go to online grant for Disabling Barriers by contacting [email protected] or call Laura (719) 644-0622.

?? When was the last time you checked your meetings and materials for accessibility? The Council has a resource list to help! ? Accessible meetings ? Accessible presentations ? Accessible documents ? Accessible spreadsheets ? Accessible web content ? Accessible PDFs ? Accessible communications ? Accessibility features in Google and MS Office ? Communication, Framing and People First Language ? Plain Language ? Translation and Limited English Proficiency ? And more.... Find this and more resources on our website at https://lnkd.in/dc3XPNTc. What's your favorite accessibility resource? Drop us a comment - we might just add it to the list!

Please join in! NOW is the time to work together to make a difference in the coming legislative session for people with disabilities. Jack Johnson Elizabeth A. Moran, MFA, JD Kristina Ericson, MSW, CPACC, ADAC

The Council is excited to announce a new grant opportunity: Social Networks for Transition-Age Youth with I/DD. Proposals are due on September 4, 2024. Join us for the Youth Transitions Pre-bid Conference (Optional) Tuesday, August 13 · 12:00 – 12:45pm MST Learn more at: https://lnkd.in/guC-D6Tc

ICYMI, the Council sends a quarterly update/recap and what's coming next via email each season. Drop us a line if you'd like to get these in your inbox! ?? https://lnkd.in/gqc2TuRn

?? We are hiring! The Council is excited to announce our Planning Specialist III position is officially open and accepting applications until July 28th! Position details and application are at https://lnkd.in/g6NGquKg Please apply through the State of Colorado job board website. Questions to Joel Drahos - [email protected]