Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
July 25, 2011

Presidential Proclamation–Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act

Generations of Americans with disabilities have improved our country in countless ways. Refusing to accept the world as it was, they have torn down the barriers that prohibited them from fully realizing the American dream. Their tireless efforts led to the enactment of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), one of the most comprehensive pieces of civil rights legislation in our Nation’s history. On this day, we celebrate the 21st anniversary of the ADA and the progress we have made, and we reaffirm our commitment to ensure equal opportunity for all Americans.

Each day, people living with disabilities make immeasurable contributions to the diversity and vitality of our communities. Nearly one in five Americans lives with a disability. They are our family members and friends, neighbors and colleagues, and business and civic leaders. Since the passing of the ADA, persons with disabilities are leading fuller lives in neighborhoods that are more accessible and have greater access to new technologies. In our classrooms, young people with disabilities now enjoy the same educational opportunities as their peers and are gaining the tools necessary to reach their greatest potential.

Despite these advancements, there is more work to be done, and my Administration remains committed to ending all forms of discrimination and upholding the rights of Americans with disabilities. The Department of Justice continues to strengthen enforcement of the ADA by ensuring that persons with disabilities have access to community-based services that allow them to lead independent lives in the communities of their choosing. Under provisions of the Affordable Care Act, insurers will no longer be able to engage in the discriminatory practice of denying coverage based on pre-existing conditions, and Americans with disabilities will have greater control over their health care choices. And last year, I signed an Executive Order establishing the Federal Government as a model employer for individuals with disabilities, placing a special focus on recruitment and retention of public servants with disabilities across Federal agencies.

Through the ADA, America was the first country in the world to comprehensively declare equality for citizens with disabilities. To continue promoting these principles, we have joined in signing the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. At its core, this Convention promotes equality. It seeks to ensure that persons with disabilities enjoy the same rights and opportunities as all people, and are able to lead their lives as do other individuals.

Eventual ratification of this Convention would represent another important step in our forty-plus years of protecting disability rights. It would offer us a platform to encourage other countries to join and implement the Convention. Broad implementation would mean greater protections and benefits abroad for millions of Americans with disabilities, including our veterans, who travel, conduct business, study, reside, or retire overseas. In encouraging other countries to join and implement the Convention, we also could help level the playing field to the benefit of American companies, who already meet high standards under United States domestic law. Improved disabilities standards abroad would also afford American businesses increased opportunities to export innovative products and technologies, stimulating job creation at home.

Equal access, equal opportunity, and the freedom to make of our lives what we will are principles upon which our Nation was founded, and they continue to guide our efforts to perfect our Union. Together, we can ensure our country is not deprived of the full talents and contributions of the approximately 54 million Americans living with disabilities, and we will move forward with the work of providing pathways to opportunity to all of our people.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim Tuesday, July 26, 2011, the Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act. I encourage Americans across our Nation to celebrate the 21st anniversary of this civil rights law and the many contributions of individuals with disabilities.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-fifth day of July, in the year of our Lord two thousand eleven, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-sixth.

BARACK OBAMA

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The settlement agreement, which resolves an ADA complaint filed by an individual who is deaf, requires, among other things, that H&R Block furnish appropriate auxiliary aids and services, including sign language interpreter services, when necessary to afford a person who is deaf or hard of hearing equal access to the goods, services and accommodations made available to others.

“By signing this agreement, H&R Block has affirmed its commitment to providing effective communication with people who are deaf and hard of hearing not only at their tax preparation offices in San Antonio, where the complaint originated, but at their locations across the country,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. “The agreement will ensure that individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing have equal access to tax preparation services at more than 11,000 offices nationwide.”

The agreement requires that H&R Block:

* Provide auxiliary aids and services, including qualified sign language interpreters, to persons who are deaf or hard of hearing when necessary to ensure effective communication of its tax preparation services, programs and courses;

* Adopt and enforce a policy on effective communication with individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing for all H&R Block offices nationwide, post the policy on its websites and in its employee manuals, and distribute the policy to current and new employees and contractors;

* Establish and maintain a list of sign language interpreter providers;

* Post and maintain in a conspicuous location in all reception areas of H&R Block offices a notice stating that individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing have a right under the ADA to request a sign language or oral interpreter or other form of auxiliary aid or service if needed;

* Provide staff training on the ADA and H&R Block’s obligations to provide effective communication to individuals with disabilities;

* Monitor franchisees’ compliance with this requirement consistent with monitoring of compliance with the franchise agreements and other requirements of federal, state or local laws; and

* Pay $5,000 damages to the individual who filed an ADA complaint and a $20,000 civil penalty.

The ADA prohibits discrimination against customers with disabilities by businesses that serve the public. Among other things, the ADA requires tax preparation services, accountants, lawyers, doctors and other businesses to provide equal access to customers who are deaf or hard of hearing. When services such as tax preparation involve important, lengthy or complex oral communications with customers, businesses are generally required to provide qualified sign language interpreters and other auxiliary aids, free of charge, to individuals who are deaf, are hard of hearing or have speech disabilities. Other auxiliary aids may include the use of relay services for telephone communication, exchanging notes for brief and uncomplicated communications, providing assistive listening systems and receivers in classes for attendees who are hard of hearing, and providing captioned videos. The appropriate auxiliary aid to be provided depends on a variety of factors including the nature, length and importance of the communication; the communication skills and knowledge of the individual who is deaf or hard of hearing; and the individual’s stated need for a particular type of auxiliary aid.

Auxiliary aids must also be provided for individuals who are blind or have low vision, such as materials in Braille, large print or accessible electronic formats such as email or HTML, qualified readers and assistance in filling out forms.

Those interested in finding out more about this agreement or businesses’ effective communication obligations under the ADA may call the Justice Department’s toll-free ADA Information Line at 800-514-0301 or 800-514-0383 (TDD), or access its ADA website at www.ada.gov > . ADA complaints may be filed by email to ada.complaint@usdoj.gov .

The White House * 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW * Washington DC 20500 * 202-456-1111

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Hidden Cameras Reveal Bystanders’ Reactions When Discrimination Is Staged

Two young women walk into a coffee shop to apply for a job in the kitchen when something strange happens: the manager seems oddly reluctant to let them fill out an application. Then, in full view of customers, out it comes: the real reason the manager isn’t interested in hiring them? They are deaf.

It’s a shocking violation of the law, or it would be if this weren’t an episode of “What Would You Do?” The manager and the deaf job applicants are actors. Of course the customers don’t know that. How will they respond to a display of the kind of discrimination this country outlawed two decades ago?

This special WWYD was developed with the help of students and administrators at the Rochester Institute of Technology’s National Technical Institute for the Deaf, in Rochester, N.Y. It is the world’s first and largest technical college for deaf and hard-of-hearing students.

In an interview at the college, student Brenna DeBartolo said, “I have a lot of respect for people who aren’t deaf, for people who are hearing. At the same time, it would be nice for them to think about, ‘What is it like to be a deaf person?’ I mean, how would they like to go into a place and want to apply for a job and then be discriminated against just because of who you are?”

Although they’re still in college, many NTID students already have an idea of the difficulties they may face in the workplace. Maya Ariel told WWYD that when she applied for part-time jobs in the past, “one or two places never called me back.”

“From what I found out, they didn’t call me back because I was deaf,” she said, speaking thorough a sign language interpreter.

Hannah Worek’s parents are deaf. “My dad right now, he doesn’t have a job,” Worek said. “He got laid off. He’s been looking for jobs and it’s hard because you have to get an interpreter every time you do an interview.”

The new president of NTID, Gerry Buckley, explains how employers are supposed to treat a deaf or hard-of-hearing job applicant (or any disabled applicant, for that matter).

“What should happen is that that deaf or hard-of-hearing person has an equal opportunity to apply for the job, just like any person. The supervisor or the employer … interviews them with the same kind of questions and scrutiny that they interview anyone,” he said.

The employer should “really look very specifically at their skills, related to being able to perform the work functions,” Buckley said. “Questions related to accommodations or costs associated with accommodations should be set aside (to) focus on whether the person has the skills to do the job.”

NTID is proud of its nearly 90 percent job placement record for graduates. It’s hard enough finding and keeping a job in today’s economy, but for those with a disability it is especially difficult. In January, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission announced that allegations of workplace discrimination hit an all-time high in 2010. The biggest increase came in claims from workers who say they were discriminated against because of a disability.

It’s a problem many thought had become history more than 20 years ago when President George H. Bush signed the Americans with Disabilities Act into law in 1990. The ADA says if a worker with a disability is qualified to perform the essential functions or duties of a job, even if they require reasonable accommodation, they are protected from job discrimination.

Discrimination against the disabled is usually hidden. It may happen behind closed office doors, or even in the mind of the employer who doesn’t want to follow the law. But two decades after the passage of the ADA, we wondered how regular people would respond if they could see the law flouted right in front of them. So with the owner’s permission, we outfitted SmartWorld Coffee in Morristown, N.J. with hidden cameras and waited for the morning rush.

As the WWYD scenario got underway, NTID students Hannah Worek and Maya Ariel played our job applicants. Another WWYD actor played the discriminating manager of a coffee shop in need of a kitchen worker. When the women walked into the shop and asked for an application, the manager blatantly announced he wasn’t hiring any deaf people.

“I’m not going to hire a deaf person. I’m just letting you know. So we’ll save you some time. … I mean you’re deaf, it’s going to be really hard for you to work here,” he said.

Many customers looking on told us afterwards they were shocked. Some said they planned to raise the issue later with the store owner. As the scene repeated again and again throughout the day, some customers stared, rolled their eyes, or grimaced, but few openly objected to the outright discrimination they witnessed.

One striking exception was customer Gerald Tourgee. When he saw what was happening, he turned to the manager and said, “Excuse me, are you aware of the Equal Employment Opportunity laws? You just made a blanket statement about not hiring a deaf person. You’ve made it very clear you’re not hiring a deaf person. … If she takes the job and she’s not able to fulfill the duties, that’s a different situation. But not to hire her because she’s deaf, that’s absolutely discriminatory!”

After a long day of too many customers looking the other way, the outburst was welcomed by our actors. But other responses were less kind-hearted and some might shock you. Watch Friday night to see the surprising reactions of some people who are supposed to be employment experts: human resource workers and job recruiters.

For More Information

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission enforces federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. Click here to find more details about the Americans with Disabilities Act from the EEOC.

Video: (In case you miss on television)

http://www.hulu.com/watch/213121/what-would-you-do-deaf-to-job-discrimination

Article:

http://abcnews.go.com/WhatWouldYouDo/witnessed-discrimination-deaf-job-applicants/story?id=12822039

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For more information visit this link:
http://www.disability.gov/transportation/laws_%26_regulations.

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Unless otherwise indicated, all the data are from the Americans with

Disabilities: 2005report at http://www.census.gov/prod/2008pubs/p70-117.pdf.

Population Distribution

54 million

Number of people who have a disability. They represent 19 percent of the civilian non-institutionalized population.

By age –

– 5 percent of children 5 to 17 have disabilities.

– 10 percent of people 18 to 64 have disabilities.

– 38 percent of adults 65 and older have disabilities.

Source: 2008 American Community Survey <http://factfinder.census.gov>

12.4%

Percentage of females with a disability, compared with 11.7 percent of males.

Source: 2008 American Community Survey <http://factfinder.census.gov>

Using or Needing Assistance

11 million

Number of disabled people 6 and older who need personal assistance with everyday activities. These activities include such tasks as getting around inside the home, taking a bath or shower, preparing meals and performing light housework.

3.3 million

Number of people 15 and older who use a wheelchair. Another 10 million use a walking aid, such as a cane, crutches or walker.

Specific Disabilities

1.8 million

Number of people 15 and older who report being unable to see printed words.

1 million

Number of people 15 and older who reported being unable to hear conversations.

2.5 million

Number of people 15 and older who have difficulty having their speech understood. Of this number, 431,000 were unable to have their speech understood.

16.1 million

Number of people with limitations in cognitive functioning or who have a mental or emotional illness that interferes with daily activities, including those with Alzheimer’s disease and mental retardation. This group comprises 7 percent of the population 15 and older. This included 8 million with one or more problems that interfere with daily activities, such as frequently being depressed or anxious, trouble getting along with others, trouble concentrating and trouble coping with stress.

On the Job

13.3 million

Number of 16- to 64-year-olds who reported difficulty finding a job or remaining employed because of a health condition.

46%

Percentage of people 21 to 64 having some type of disability who were employed. The employment rate ranged from 75 percent of those with a nonsevere disability to 31 percent with a severe disability. For those without a disability, the employment rate is 84 percent for the same period.

59%

Percent of people 21 to 64 with difficulty hearing that were employed. The corresponding percentage for those with difficulty seeing was 41 percent.

48%

Percentage of people 21 to 64 with a nonsevere disability who work full time. This compares with 63 percent without a disability and 16 percent with a severe disability.

6%

Percentage of disabled workers 16 and older who used public transportation to commute to work. In addition, 69 percent of people with a disability drove alone, 13 percent carpooled, 4 percent walked and 3 percent used a taxicab, motorcycle, bicycle or other means.

Source: 2008 American Community Survey <http://factfinder.census.gov>

21%

Percentage of disabled workers 16 and older who worked in the educational services and health care and social assistance industries.

Source: 2008 American Community Survey <http://factfinder.census.gov>

Income and Poverty $2,250 Median monthly earnings for people 21 to 64 with a nonsevere disability.

This compares with $2,539 for those with no disability and $1,458 for those with a severe disability.

$2,252

Median monthly earnings for people 21 to 64 with difficulty hearing. The corresponding figure for those with difficulty seeing was $1,932.

12%

The poverty rate for people 25 to 64 with a nonsevere disability. This compares with 27 percent for those with a severe disability and 9 percent of those without a disability.

Serving Our Nation

$36.3 billion

Amount of compensation veterans received for service-connected disabilities in fiscal year 2008.

Source: Statistical Abstract of the United States: 2010, Table 511 < http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/>

Accommodations

98% Percent of transit buses that were lift- or ramp-equipped, as of 2007. This represents an increase from 62 percent in 1995.

Source: Statistical Abstract of the United States: 2010, Table 1079  < http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/>

Education

28% Percentage of people 25 and older with a disability who had less than a high school graduate education. This compares with 12 percent for those with no disability.

Source: 2008 American Community Survey <http://factfinder.census.gov>

13%

Percentage of people 25 and older with a disability who had a bachelor’s degree or higher. This compares with 31 percent for those with no disability.

Source: 2008 American Community Survey <http://factfinder.census.gov>

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Going To College
http://www.going-to-college.org/
This new website contains information about living college life with a disability. It is designed for high school students. The site provides video clips, activities, and resources that can help them get a head start in planning for college. Video interviews with college students with disabilities offer a way to hear firsthand from students with disabilities who have been successful. Modules include activities that will help students explore more about themselves, learn what to expect from college, and equip them with important considerations and tasks to complete when planning for college.

Resource Guide on Higher Education for People with Disabilities
http://www.txddc.state.tx.us/resources/publications/collegehtml.asp

Key Laws link to Disability Laws – General
http://governor.state.tx.us/disabilities/resources/higher_education/

The Next Step Higher Ed Video
http://www.txddc.state.tx.us/resources/publications/NextStepVideo.asp

TEA Special Education Division
512-463-9414
http://www.tea.state.tx.us/special.ed/

Secondary Transition guidance:
http://ritter.tea.state.tx.us/special.ed/guidance/transition.html

College – Financial Aid
Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board
Contact info:  512-427-6100
Texas Financial Aid Center:  888-311-8881texasprojectfirst.org/AgePostGraduation.html
Websites: http://www.hhloans.com/cfbin/tofa.cfm?Kind=E
(Exemptions)  http://www.collegefortexans.com/cfbin/tofa.cfm?Kind=E
(Deaf/Blind Waiver and others) http://www.collegefortexans.com/cfbin/tofa.cfm?Kind=W

A Resource Guide for Special Education Students on Transition Services:
http://www.transitionintexas.org/transitionintexas/site/default.asp

AHEAD in Texas   (Association of Higher Education and Disability)
http://www.texasahead.org/work_force/education.html

Project FIRST (Family, Information, Resources, Support and Training)
http://texasprojectfirst.org/AgePostGraduation.html

Advocacy, Inc.
(800) 252-9108
http://www.advocacyinc.org/

The ARC of Texas
800-252-9729
http://www.thearcoftexas.org/

Partners Resource Network
http://partnerstx.org
800-866-4726
Partners@PartnersTx.org

Job Accommodation Network
Office of Disability Employment Policy
http://www.jan.wvu.edu/

U.S. Department of Education
Office of Special Education Programs (IDEA)
http://idea.ed.gov/explore/home

Office for Civil Rights
http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/index.html

Customer Service Team
550 12 Street, SW
Washington, D.C.  20202-1100
800-421-3481
877-521-2172 (TDD)
202-245-6840 (fax)
OCR@ed.gov

Office for Civil Rights
U.S. Department of Education
1999 Bryan Street, Suite 2600
Dallas, TX  75201
972-437-5923
214-880-2456 (TDD)
214-880-3082 (fax)
OCR_Dallas@ed.gov

Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic
http://www.rfbd.org
866-732-3585
*recorded textbooks

Vcampus, The e-Learning Solution Provider!
http://www.vcampus.com/webuol/index.cfm
800-915-9298
1850 Centennial Park Drive, Ste.200
Reston, VA  20191
*Provides online courses through several accredited colleges and universities that allow for starting a degree from scratch or finishing up a degree.

National Dissemination Center for Children with Disabilities
http://www.nichcy.org
P.O. Box 1492
Washington, DC 20013-1492
800-695-0285 (Voice/TT)
202-884-8200 (Voice/TT)
*NICHCY Briefing Paper is intended to serve as a guide to help parents and educators know what ADD is, what to look for, and what to do. NICHCY is one of four clearinghouses established by Congress to provide specialized information on disabilities

The Higher Education Act
http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ope/library.html

Parent Tips For Transition Planning
http://www.pacer.org/publications/pdfs/ALL14.pdf
Information on transition planning (TP) which helps to prepare young people for their futures. TP is required in the Individualized Education Program (IEP) for students with a disability by age 16. Provides tips on how to prepare a student for transitioning from school to further education, employment and independent living. This link opens a PDF document.

The Governor’s Committee on People with Disabilities

The Governor’s Committee on People with Disabilities is within the office of the Governor. The Committee’s mission is to further opportunities for persons with disabilities to enjoy full and equal access to lives of independence, productivity, and self-determination. The Committee is composed of 12 members appointed by the governor, and of nonvoting ex officio members. The appointed members are appointed for staggered terms of two years. At least seven of the appointed members must be persons with disabilities. The Committee serves as a central source of information and education on the abilities, rights, problems, and needs of persons with disabilities. The staff of the Governor’s Committee supports and manages the work of the Committee. The Committee’s enabling statute is in the Human Resources Code, Chapter 115.

Texas Governor’s Committee on People with Disabilities
P.O. Box 12428  Austin, TX 78711
512-463-5739 (voice),
512-463-5746 (TTY)
Dial 711 or your relay provider of choice
This document is available in alternate formats on request.
http://governor.state.tx.us/disabilities/
November 30, 2009

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THe Northeast Texas Public Health District in cooperation with the Department of State Health Services have translated 18 Emergency Preparedness Topics into Videos with ASL translators, downloadable braille and large print documents, and pdf file downloadable documents.

Please visit http://www.accessibleemergencyinfo.com for more information and become better prepared for emergencies in your area.  Surveys are requested to verify how well the information is serving your population, please take a moment to complette the survey before and after viewing the video information.

CONTACT PERSON NAME: Stephanie Walker
CONTACT EMAIL ADDRESS: accessibleemergencyinfo@gmail.com
CONTACT TELEPHONE #: (903) 729-7780

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The National Federation of the Blind will announce today that Syracuse University and the University of Wisconsin at Madison are holding off on expansions of Kindle offerings for students until the reading device is more accessible to the visually impaired, the Associated Press announced. “These universities are saying, ‘Our policy is nondiscrimination, so we’re not going to adopt a technology we know for sure discriminates against blind students,’ ” said a spokesman for the federation. While devices like Kindle have the potential to be valuable tools for the blind, the federation has said that the set-up currently used by Kindle effectively blocks access. A spokesman for Amazon, which produces Kindle, told the wire service that the company was working on improvements. The federation in June sued Arizona State University, saying that its distribution of Kindles to students discriminated against blind people.

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By Michelle Diament

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• Transition 101: High School to Adulthood (slideshare.net)

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By Raymond Castile
Tuesday, October 27, 2009 3:13 AM CDT

Julie Zatorski did not believe a learning disability could just disappear.

So she was baffled when a middle school removed her daughter, Melissa Zatorski, from a special education program last year and placed her in a regular seventh-grade classroom.

“They threw her in the shark tank,” said Zatorski, 51. “Her grades plummeted and her self-esteem went down.”

Melissa, 13, had an individualized education program (IEP) that called for basic math courses. The school took Melissa off her IEP after its own testing showed she no longer had learning disabilities, said Zatorski, of St. Peters.

She contacted Family Advocacy and Community Training (FACT), a nonprofit organization that supports people with developmental disabilities and mental illness. FACT’s advocacy program educates parents about their public school rights under the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.

FACT had already helped Zatorski with her son, Daniel, who has autism.

“It’s very intimidating to be a parent by yourself in a room full of school administrators,” Zatorski said. “They are sitting around, spouting jargon. It is almost like you need an interpreter. But FACT case workers can speak their language.”

Lynn Foust, FACT advocacy supervisor, took Melissa’s case. Foust collected the girl’s school files, reviewed her records, and met with school officials.

“I know the federal regulations in my sleep.” Foust said. “I know the IEP process. If they start using acronyms, I can tell the parent what they mean, what they are proposing, what they are refusing. I also teach the parent advocacy skills, so eventually they can advocate on their own.”

An independent test revealed Melissa still had multiple learning disabilities, but the school refused to accept the results, Zatorski said. Foust helped convince the school to retest Melissa. The school’s second test confirmed the independent test results. The school restored Melissa’s IEP and put her back in special education classes.

“It makes a big difference,” Zatorski said. “Her self-esteem has gone up. She is doing better on her grades.”

Foust said she does not want to create an antagonistic relationship between parents and school officials.

“I need to strengthen the relationship between the school and the parent,” Foust said. “After the file is closed, that child still has to go to that school.”

Denise Gould, FACT executive director, said parents ultimately are their children’s best advocates. They just need help navigating the maze of school procedures and government regulations. FACT conducts workshops to teach parents about the special education process and trains them to communicate more effectively with educators, Gould said.

Audrey Yarbrough and Judy Young founded FACT in 1987. Yarbrough said she was frustrated with trying to obtain school services for her two sons with learning disabilities.

“I was hearing that my sons were not trying, not fitting in,” Yarbrough said. “I was told I was the only parent asking these kinds of questions at school.”

In 1984, Yarbrough started a support group for parents of children with learning disabilities.

“I thought starting a support group would verify whether I was crazy, or if other parents had the same issues,” she said.

In one year, the group grew from eight parents to more than 100. Two years later, the support group had evolved into FACT.

The organization employs 15 staff members. Three years ago, it moved into its current offices at 800 Friedens Road, suite 200, in St. Charles.

FACT also runs the Partnership with Families program in partnership with Crider Health Center. The program focuses on children in danger of being removed from their home and placed in foster care, residential homes or the juvenile justice system. FACT works to keep the families intact, sending “parent partners” to the families’ homes.

The FACT People First program teaches adults with developmental disabilities to impact their communities and push for change in state and federal laws.

“Everyone who works at FACT is the parent of a child with developmental disabilities or emotional disorders, so we have walked a mile in those shoes,” said Gould, 54.

Gould, of St. Peters, began her walk 25 years ago with the birth of her son, David Gould.

“We immediately knew something was wrong,” Denise Gould said. “He wouldn’t feed, wouldn’t suck. He would vomit 10 or 12 times a day. He spent his first 18 months in and out of the hospital.”

David’s symptoms puzzled doctors, who could offer no diagnosis besides “failure to thrive,” Gould said. It took four years for doctors to diagnose more specific conditions, including oral apraxia, an inability to coordinate oral muscle movements. David also had learning disabilities, Tourette syndrome and a seizure disorder. Functionally non-verbal, he communicated using sign language and computer devices.

“The doctor said we need to put him in an institution and get on with our lives,” Gould said. “We didn’t want to do that.”

Gould wanted David to attend public school with his neighborhood friends, children who understood him and looked out for him. But the school district wanted to place David in a special state school. Gould turned to FACT and Yarbrough for help.

“Audrey taught me strategies and how to use my voice in effective ways to communicate with schools,” Gould said. “She told me what David’s rights were and she went with me to the school. That made me feel empowered and supported. She was my guide.”

The school hired additional staff to work with David, keeping him in regular education classrooms. David graduated with the rest of his class in 2003. He now has a hotel job and lives on his own.

“He has a full life and many friends,” Gould said. “Now he can advocate for himself. That is the outcome of successful educators and advocacy.”

For more information, visit www.factmo.org or call 636-949-2425, ext. 256.

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