NYSILC’s next Full Council Meeting will take place on Friday, April 30^th, 2021 from 10 am – 12:30 pm. The meeting will be held on Zoom video conferencing. The meeting is open to the public, but due to security concerns using online video conferencing, we request that any members of the public who would like to participate and join our meeting contact us ahead of time for the meeting invite. Our contact us page can be found here: https://nysilc.org/contact-us

 Please let us know in the message if you need an interpreter and/or captioner during the meeting.

The agenda for the meeting is available at the calendar/event webpage link: https://nysilc.org/component/dpcalendar/event/56

We look forward to having you join us. Thank you!

NYSILC’s next Full Council Meeting will take place on Friday, January 29^th, 2021 from 10 am – 1 pm. The meeting will be held on Zoom video conferencing. The meeting is open to the public, but due to security concerns using online video conferencing, we request that any members of the public who would like to participate and join our meeting contact us ahead of time for the meeting invite. Our contact us page can be found here: https://nysilc.org/contact-us

 Please let us know in the message if you need an interpreter and/or captioner during the meeting.

The agenda for the meeting is available at the calendar/event webpage link: https://nysilc.org/component/dpcalendar/event/55

We look forward to having you join us. Thank you!

Our friends at Disability Education and Awareness for Municipalities are hosting two free events in January! Read below to find out more about each event.

Event #1

Niagara University First Responder Advocacy Training - New York State

Do you want to make sure First Responders are educated on responding to people with disabilities?

The Niagara University First Responder Advocacy Training (FRAT) for Disability Advocates provides you with the opportunity to receive the tools to work with your police and fire departments, EMS/ambulance services and your 9-1-1 Call Centers to make sure they not only know your needs but the needs of others in the disability community.

The First Responder Disability Awareness Training project at Niagara University is pleased to announce the New York First Responder Advocacy Training for people with disabilities, disability advocates, and those invested in the disability community.

This two-hour training provides you with guidance on how to advocate with first responders, inform them of your needs, how to be a partner with first responder agencies, and how to become a resource for those agencies.

Upon completion of a five-step follow-up program, participants will receive a certificate and be recognized as a FRAT Advocate and eligible to be on a Disability Advisory Panel. There is no fee. Registration is limited to the first 30 participants. This is a virtual training. Link to attend will be provided the day before training begins.

For more information, please contact:                                            

Cary Newman, Program Manager                

Phone: (716) 286-8139

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

https://frdat.niagara.edu/

www.facebook.com/nufrdat

Event #2

Disability Education & Awareness for Municipalities: Communities Including & Empowering Citizens with Disabilities - New York

Disability Education & Awareness for Municipalities (DEAM) is a FREE, innovative virtual training program developed and offered by Niagara University Disability Awareness Training (DAT) and the Erie County (NY) Office for People with Disabilities for municipal employees, elected officials, individuals with disabilities, disability advocates, and people interested in developing the whole community.

This customized curriculum is designed to train and educate both municipal employees and individuals with disabilities to work together to ensure acceptance, accessibility, and proper and proactive response to the needs of ALL citizens. It introduces municipal employees the necessary tools, resources, and materials for both inclusion and compliance.

Dave Whalen is currently the Project Director for DAT, past-Chair for the Town of Amherst’s Committee on Disabilities and member of the Erie County Disability Advisory Board, and past member of NYS Independent Living Council. Frank Cammarata is the executive director of the Erie County Office for People with Disabilities. Between them, they have over 60 years’ experience in the field of disabilities. They will provide attendees with information, strategies, resources, and techniques that will address the following:
 

• Municipal Committee on Disabilities structure and development
• Proper Etiquette and interaction skills to include Person/Identity First Language
• Americans with Disabilities Act and local governments: Common Problems
• ADA Coordinator role within a municipality
• Accessibility & inclusivity in a municipality
• Specific department roles and responsibilities
• First Responders and Emergency Management
• Hiring practices
• Program options (i.e., recreation, parks)

This program will be the modified version. It is available to anyone who resides in the state of New York. Self-advocates, family members of people with disabilities, disability advocates, people invested in the disability community and municipality employees are encouraged to apply to attend this FREE program.
This program provided from funding secured by NYS Assemblymember Karen McMahon

CHOICE 1: FRIDAY, January 22, 2021
WHEN: 9:00am-12:00pm

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER(need link)

This program provided from funding secured by NYS Assemblymember Karen McMahon

The results from NYSILC’s New Yorkers with Disabilities Critical Needs survey are in!

You can find the results and findings from our survey in our document located here: New Yorkers with Disabilities Critical Needs Survey Results

We want to thank everyone who took the time and participated in our survey this past Spring.

The New York State Independent Living Council, Inc. (NYSILC) is conducting its fourth Presidential post-election survey. All registered voters who participated in the recent election are encouraged to respond. This is a confidential, non-partisan survey conducted to analyze the voting trends of New Yorkers with disabilities compared to voters without disabilities.

To participate, please click on the following link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/KRZ5CTJ

Encuesta posterior a la elección 2020 de NYSILC: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/KRV52NB

Please answer each survey question and click on the “done” button at the bottom of the survey to send. The survey should take approximately 5-10 minutes to complete.

This post-election survey will remain active for a four-week time period from November 4^th to December 4^th, 2020

Feel free to share this with friends, colleagues, and stakeholders during this time period to help increase participation. 

If you have any questions about the survey, or if you need an alternative method to participate, feel free to reach out to us via our Contact Us page, which can be found at the following link:

https://nysilc.org/contact-us

Election Day is November 3rd this year.

Here are some helpful links to get you ready to vote in the upcoming election!

Helpful Websites:

http://whosontheballot.org/

https://www.vote411.org/

NCIL Voter Registration Toolkit

Available in PDF, Word, and plain text formats

Link to general information on requesting an absentee ballot:

https://www.elections.ny.gov/VotingAbsentee.html
 

For New York State residents outside of New York City, the link to request a paper absentee ballot online is:

https://absenteeballot.elections.ny.gov/


For New York State residents inNew York City, the link to request a paper absentee ballot online is:

https://nycabsentee.com/

Articles on Voting Issues

1-City Board Of Elections Launches Tracking System So Absentee Ballots Don't Get Lost In The Void - Gothamist

https://gothamist.com/news/city-boe-launches-tracking-system-so-absentee-ballots-dont-get-lost-void

2-DOE: Schools Will Be Used as Poll Sites on Election Day

https://www.ny1.com/nyc/all-boroughs/news/2020/09/02/could-schools-be-nixed-as-poll-sites-this-november-

3-Manhattan elected officials push for ballot drop boxes across New York state - amNewYork

https://www.amny.com/elections/manhattan-elected-officials-push-for-ballot-drop-boxes-across-new-york-state/

4-Plain facts about vote-by-mail: It doesn’t advantage either party

https://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/ny-oped-plain-facts-about-vote-by-mail-20200831-k4khbbxdf5ampne5ezf6spavwy-story.html

5-New Voting Machines Could Help With Early Voting But Undermine Ranked-Choice Voting

https://www.gothamgazette.com/city/9718-city-can-use-existing-machines-for-ranked-choice-voting-report-says?mc_cid=6e4323476a&mc_eid=3eb441a677

Remember, there's still time to respond to the Census. As of now, approximately 80 percent of New Yorkers have completed the Census — but we need everyone to respond. You can respond by mail, by phone at 844-330-2020 or online at https://my2020census.gov. Spread the word and let's Get Counted, NY.  

If you know of any other resources we should have on our page, feel free to tell us via our Contact Us page, located here: https://nysilc.org/contact-us