It was a chance to meet other Latinos with disabilities from across the nation over coffee and rolls in the mornings. It was a time to meet with resume specialists and job developers for job-hunting advice. It was an opportunity to learn how to use the Internet, with appropriate adaptive technology, to search for employment. But these activities weren't even the main event. All were woven among plenary sessions and a total of 14 breakout workshops and round table discussion sessions on topics ranging from strategies for making the work place accessible to making the best use of local state vocational rehabilitation services to career opportunities with the federal government.

This year's Proyecto Visión National Training Conference, held August 6-9, enabled approximately 225 registered participants to gather together in Manhattan, New York, to exchange knowledge, advice, and resources for helping Latinos with disabilities find employment. The participants included service providers, disability rights specialists and Latinos with disabilities who were seeking employment. The conference began on the evening of August 6 with a welcome reception, an opportunity for participants to mingle, sample an array of food, and become acquainted.

August 7, Opening Plenary Session

Moderator Francine Tishman, the Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer at Abilities Inc. at the National Center for Disability Services, set the tone for the conference as a whole. "Our philosophy is that people with disabilities should be treated the same, and should have access to employment," she said. "Latinos and other people with disabilities need to be valued as members of the American economy." Tishman observed that a number of federal and state agencies were represented at the conference. "We, they, and you are here to help build bridges to employment," she said.

Proyecto Visión Project Director Kathy Martinez continued in that vein welcoming conference-goers (to the 'Gran Manzana') in English and Spanish, and encouraging them to work together to build employment opportunities and share experiences. "One of the things that we're doing at this conference is to provide a space to talk about what it is like for our families, for us to be Latinos with disabilities," said Martinez. "We also are here to create networks, meet service providers and get assistance to find employment," she added.

After a brief summary highlighting project successes, challenges and goals for the next year, Martinez turned the microphone over to the first featured guest speaker.
Dr. Robert Pasternack, Assistant Secretary in the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitation Services in the U.S. Department of Education, gave the first plenary presentation, which is covered in a separate Proyecto Visión story. Peggy McLeod, Ed.D., the Deputy Director of the National Association for Bilingual Education, who spoke of the increasing number of students in the United States who have limited English skills, followed him. "Often people call us to ask, 'How do we provide services for these kids,'" McLeod said. "The schools are overwhelmed." McLeod discussed laws that may help children of immigrant parents obtain a better education, including the Development, Relief, and Education for Minors Act (DREAM Act) and the Higher Education Act (HEA) [more information on the DREAM Act in English or more information on HEA].

Rick Anderson, Regional Employment Specialist and New York State Representative for the Rehabilitation Services Administration in the U.S. Department of Education, told Proyecto Visión conference participants that 85 percent of Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) consumers continued working for at least three years after obtaining jobs. More information and statistics are available on the web. Manuel Esteban, Assistant to the Executive Director at the Queens Child Guidance Center, encouraged conference participants to network with each other and exchange phone numbers so they could help each other find employment.

August 7, Large Group Workshop: "Successful Solutions in the Workplace: Employers and Employees Discuss Strategies on How They Make Work Work"

Latino employees with disabilities and their employers from three different companies shared their experiences in making the workplace as fully accessible as possible. Ann McDermott-Kave, Associate Director of Community Relations at OSI Pharmaceuticals, Inc., recommended that employers work with organizations such as the Career and Employment Institute (CEI) at the National Center for Disability Services (NCDS), which works with Fortune 500 corporations in interviewing, hiring, and accommodating people with disabilities. (More information about CEI is available online and at the main NCDS site) Edgar Ramirez, a deaf Production Support Analyst at IBM, and his supervisor, Robert Wisnack, shared their experiences using AOL chat for team meetings with each other and co-workers. Ramirez also described his use of TTY relay services for using the telephone, Real Time Captioning for full access to meetings, and a Wyndtell Pager which enables him to use email, the TTY, fax, and on-line chat programs while away from home or the office. Nora Sherry, Import Brokerage Manager at DHL Worldwide Express, described DHL's efforts to recruit students with hearing disabilities for internship programs as file agents from the League School in Brooklyn.. About 50 percent of these interns have been Latinos, Sherry noted. "Bilingual skills are a good thing" at DHL Worldwide Express, said Sherry, because "Our mail comes from around the world. About 10 to 20 percent are in different languages."

August 7, Breakout Session: "Programs and Initiatives Meeting the Needs of Latinos"
Panelists representing three social service programs shared their experiences meeting the needs of Latino consumers. One consumer, Ricardo Mendez, described his experience participating in a 13-week training program in Buffalo, New York, run by the Statler Center for people with disabilities throughout the United States who want to work at a hotel, travel agency, cruise line, or other employer in the hospitality industry. "There were people in the program who had gone to college, some who had some high school, some with computer skills, and some without," said Mendez. "We helped each other." Renee DiFlavio, Vice President of Employment & Education at the Statler Center, said that only 12 students are accepted for each class out of about 30 to 40 people who apply (http://www.statlercenter.org).

Luis Aguilera, Manager of the Transition Adjustment and Career Education Program, told workshop participants that in El Paso, Texas, 80 percent of the residents are Mexican, and 10 percent are unemployed. His program has placed 200 people with disabilities in jobs and has started to set up micro enterprise contracts for clients with various disabilities including intellectual disabilities and autism.

Harlem Independent Living Center Program Coordinator Nila Salgado emphasized the importance of adapting to the varying cultural and linguistic needs of individual Latino clients. In particular, she pointed out that, sometimes, even written material that has already been translated into Spanish may still not be appropriate for some Latino consumers. "Some don't understand advanced Spanish vocabulary," said Salgado. "They may not be highly educated." Salgado also advised service providers to go to places that Latinos in the community frequent, such as Latino churches or even laundry rooms. Doing so sends the message to consumers that, "Wow, they really care about me-they have entered my community," said Salgado.

August 7, Breakout session: "Maneuvering Through Social Services: Learning Advocacy Skills to Get What You Need"

Sometimes having information about job-hunting resources and services isn't enough, three panelists agreed. Sometimes Latinos with disabilities also need to overcome their fears long enough to use what's available to them. "Often clients are motivated, but they're scared," said Daniel Gutierrez, Project Associate at Proyecto Visión. "I often find that it takes a few phone calls before they really use the information properly. I harass them all the time: Are you using the information to look for a job?" One of his clients spends all day in bed because of her disability; she now makes $36 an hour as an on-call telephone Spanish-English interpreter for the local police station.

Having the support of one's family can also be crucial in overcoming fears, indicated Jorge Pineda, an Accountant at the National Center on Independent Living who was born with a mobility impairment in Mexico. "At that time, my parents didn't know how to get crutches or training to use them. My mother found services. I went to regular school where they had low expectations of me, but not my family-they said I could do it." The disability and Latino communities are also key resources, said Judith Heumann, an Advisor in Disability and Development at the World Bank. "It's important for us to support each other," she said. "We need to go out and meet other people." She shared her experience in persuading her husband, Pineda, to contact a non-Mexican Latino American accountant for resume advice. "He thought it 'wouldn't work' because they had different cultures," she said.

August 8, Second Plenary Session

William Haig, the Departmental Disability Employment Program Manager at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), delivered one clear, unmistakable message to conference participants: the USDA has 800 to 1,000 job openings throughout the United States at any given time, and they want Latinos with disabilities as employees. "If you're a service provider, please tell your clients about us," said Haig, as he urged the audience to look at the USDA web site at http://www.usda.gov. "If a person emails me a resume I will forward it to 20 disability specialists at USDA," he said. Haig pointed out that people with disabilities who are qualified for openings in the federal government, including at USDA, can be hired without competition by using Schedule A through their vocational rehabilitation counselor. Haig can be reached by email at William.Haig@usda.gov. Dr. Roy Grizzard, Assistant Secretary of the Office of Disability Employment Policy at the U.S. Department of Labor, and Dinah Cohen, Director of the Computer/Electronic Accommodations Program (CAP) at the U.S. Department of Defense, also delivered plenary presentations, and are covered in separate stories.

August 8, Breakout session: "Broadening Horizons and Shaping Careers through International Experience"

Traveling to nearly any country is possible for people with a wide range of disabilities as long as the travelers are creative, resourceful, patient, and flexible, four panelists said. Once, Alicia Contreras, Program Director of Whirlwind Women International, was so determined to make a trip to Honduras that even the lack of a wheelchair accessible bathroom did not dismay her: she brought a wash cloth to use instead of taking a shower.. For many travelers, the potential benefits of visiting or living abroad can be well worth the trouble. "I lived in Israel for 10 years, and it changed my life," said Ellen Rubin, a Consultant at the National Clearinghouse on Disability and Exchange (NCDE) at Mobility International USA (MIUSA). Rubin, who is blind, worked as a rehabilitation teacher in Israel, helping to train other people to become rehabilitation therapists. "I became a famous person because I knew more than everyone in Israel about rehabilitation," she said. Judith Heumann, who now works as an Advisor on Disability and Development at the World Bank, obtained her current position in part because of her extensive travel experience abroad for the past 30 years through her work with Rehabilitation International, Disabled People International, the World Institute on Disability and the U.S. Department of Education. Marie Sharp, an experienced exchange student with NCDE indicated that MIUSA will soon be publishing a "Survivor's Guide for Travel Abroad" for people with various disabilities. She also said that students can sometimes get scholarships for international travel through their universities. In addition, she indicated that people who receive SSI benefits might be able to obtain approval for international trips for longer than a month if the trip is taken for educational purposes, for example through a university.

August 8, Breakout session: "Building Bridges Between the Latino and Disability Communities"

Many agencies not only fail to reach Latino and African American communities but also may not have any multicultural or bilingual staff, or a clearly written policy on diversity, or any Latino board members with disabilities, or an outreach plan, or any community involvement, or any cultural or disability seminars, said Javier Robles, Deputy Director of the New Jersey Division of Disability Services. "You should meet people, go out and meet consumers, including Latinos, and talk to them about what you do" Robles advised service providers. He also emphasized the importance of including Latinos on boards of directors. "They will have perspectives you might not have thought of," he said.

Robles also advised Latinos with disabilities themselves to accept their cultural bias. "It is difficult for Latinos with disabilities to accept that we live in a culture that tells us that we won't succeed," he said. "People in other countries and in Puerto Rico are amazed at what we can do. The expectations are low. Accept that you are part of a disenfranchised group. Accept your disability. That sounds simple, but it's not simple for people disabled later in life. For Latinos and Asians, especially men, it's hard for them to accept that they can't do what they did before." Robles also encourages Latinos with disabilities to work as advocates for their own community. "If you see an agency that doesn't serve us, go in and ask, 'Why don't you serve our community? We meet the criteria,'" said Robles.

Jorge Pineda of the National Council on Independent Living, cited the challenges he has experienced in working with Latino parents in the United States who have children with disabilities. He noted that, often, the biggest problem in delivering services to Latinos with disabilities and their families is the language barriers. He has also found that parents "Don't want to join me in the fight for rights," he said. "They don't know they have rights in the United States. If you know the laws and the rights you can succeed a lot in the United States."

Other Workshops

A workshop, entitled "Transitions from Benefits to Work," provided participants an overview of work-incentive programs that enable people with disabilities to continue receiving benefits while working for trial periods. Examples include the Social Security Administration's Plan for Achieving Self-Sufficiency (PASS), Tickets-To-Work Act, and Benefits Planning Assistance and Outreach.

Consumers who attended a workshop entitled "What Can the Department of Rehabilitation Do for Me?" were able to learn about the kinds of services provided by the Department of Rehabilitation in various states and how they can apply for these services in their home states.
Conference participants who chose to attend "Transitions from Welfare to Work" received a general overview of the PRIDE Program which has helped consumers transition from welfare to employment since 1999. Representatives of the PRIDE 2000 Program at Abilities Inc. at the National Center for Disability Services and the PRIDE Income Support program at the New York City Human Resources Administration shared their experiences and statistical highlights.

The roundtable discussion, "Defining Research Topics: Moving Forward," gave participants the opportunity to learn about recent research findings and help identify the most important issues facing Latinos with disabilities who want success in employment.
Experts in dressing for success, telephone etiquette, and interviewing skills, advised consumers in these areas at the workshop entitled "Making a Good Impression: Everything You Should Know to Get the Job of Your Choice."

Consumers interested in working in the federal government were able to learn more about their legal rights and responsibilities, including Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act. In particular, they were able to learn when and how to handle discussing or disclosing their disabilities with prospective employers, request reasonable accommodations, and how to file an ADA complaint, at a workshop entitled "Disability Employment Rights and Career Opportunities with the Federal Government."

Job hunters had the chance to learn how to make better use of the Internet to find job banks, job leads, training opportunities, support groups. They also learned about resume banks where they can put their resume online for prospective employers to see.

People who were interested in beginning or changing jobs were able to attend "Employment and Internship Opportunities" to learn about opportunities in the private sector, in the government, and at non-for-profit agencies. In many cases, these opportunities are arranged through programs such as Emerging Leaders, Entry Point, and the Hispanic Association of College and Universities' National Internship Program.
Two more workshops taught participants how to make the best use of job coach services and how to benefit from One-Stop job search centers and Workforce Investment Boards (WIB).

Closing Banquet Dinner and Celebration

After enjoying their meal, conference participants entertained each other with songs, cultural dances, jokes, and other performances.

The conference was organized by Proyecto Visión, a project of the World Institute on Disability; the National Business and Disability Council at Abilities, Inc., a division of the National Center for Disability Services; Harlem Independent Living Center, and Rehabilitation International. The Department of Education's Rehabilitation Services Administration sponsored the conference.

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