Quarterly Newsletter
April 2007
In this issue:
Message from the Acting Executive Director.
Fundraising season underway.
Honorees announced for
Support the Center and watch the
David Haas joins our staff.
Litigation update.
Training opportunities.
Message from the Acting Executive Director
In March, I traveled to
On the policy side, our
Protection and Advocacy Network is working hard to reauthorize critical federal
disability laws that support Arizonans with disabilities.
“ Arizonans with developmental disabilities rely
heavily on the programs authorized by the Developmental Disabilities Assistance
and Bill of Rights Act. This law
supports the programs of, and collaboration between the ACDL, the Governor’s
Council on Developmental Disabilities, Northern Arizona University Institute
for Human Development and the new Sonoran University Center of Excellence in
Developmental Disabilities at the University of Arizona Department of Family
and Community Medicine. You can find out
more information about the Sonoran UCEDD at www.fcm.arizona.edu/outreach/ucedd/index.cfm.
“ Arizonans with mental illness rely on the critical
services we provide under the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services
Act. In fiscal year 2006, the ACDL served
277 individuals with serious mental illness.
Reauthorization of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Act
will ensure continued support of the legal and advocacy needs of children and
adults with serious mental illness in
“ Over 60% of the wounded soldiers returning from the
“ When a worker with disabilities takes an employment
discrimination case to court, 97 percent of the time, the court’s decision is
in favor of the employer – with a decision often coming before the person even
has a chance to show that the employer treated him/her unfairly. The Americans with Disabilities (ADA) was
passed with overwhelming bipartisan support in 1990; however, gaining
employment, being judged fairly and being treated fairly on the job has eluded
many people with disabilities. This
Congress is expected to introduce legislation to restore the coverage and protections
originally intended by Congress but now lost under the
The most significant
financial trend is that we can continue to expect level federal funding from
Congress. You may know that 80% of our
budget comes from federal funds. Level
federal funding is actually a decrease when you take into account the increased
costs to operate our agency.
Next year, we anticipate
needing an additional $50,000 just to keep up with inflation. This is why your support of the Center is so
critical. The Center must turn to you
and ask you to increase your support so that we can continue to offer quality
legal and advocacy services to children and adults with disabilities in
Fundraising Season Underway
Honorees announced for
Our Board of Directors is
pleased to announce the honorees for our
Our honorees include:
µ
The Self-Advocacy Coalition of
µ
Sally Case. Sally is an individual with a cognitive
disability who stood up to employment discrimination at the hands of her former
employer, Luby’s. Sally came to the
µ
Jami Snyder. Jami is a former staff member of the
Invitations to our
Sponsorships are available
at $135, $275, $500 and $1,000. To
sponsor our event, please contact me at pradecic@azdisabilitylaw.org or
by phone at (520) 327-9547, ext. 23.
If you are interested in
learning more about the self-advocacy movement in
Watch the
The Phoenix Mercury is back
in action for another exciting season of professional women’s basketball. If you plan to attend a Mercury game this
year, please pick Sunday, June 24th.
On that day, the Mercury will be offering a special ticket package just
for supporters of the Center. Each
ticket sold through this special package will include a $20 Dinesmart gift
card, preferred seating and recognition on the Mercury JumboTron. Plus, the Center will earn a percentage of
each ticket sold through this offer.
Enjoy the game and support the Center.
Click here for a seating chart
and ticket
order form.
Seats are available at all
ticket price levels. And just because
you are buying your tickets through this special offer, the Mercury will work
with you to pick the aisle and seat that’s right for you. Whether you want accessible seating, an aisle
or in the center of the action, call Jamille Hand at the Mercury (602)
379-7771, let her know that you are with the Arizona Center for Disability Law
and she will select the right spot for you to enjoy the game. All Mercury seats are lower level seating. Each seat is a great seat to watch all of the
action.
To help you find the right
seat on the
All $43 tickets are the blue
shaded seats.
All $32 tickets are the
yellow shaded seats.
All $23 tickets are the
orange shaded seats.
All $10 tickets are the
green shaded seats.
Staff and Board members from
the Center will be at the game to host the 50-50 raffle that afternoon and to
conduct outreach on all of our programs and services. Stop by the Center booth inside the U.S.
Airways Arena and say hello before taking your seat at the game.
The Center raised close to
$16,000 at our annual Tucson Spring Event.
Hosted by the law firm of Piccarreta & Davis, the Center honored
Leslie Cohen, Jim Click and Ron Barber for their lifelong dedication and
commitment to people with disabilities. We
raised a large sum of money from the community.
A significant contribution came from Jim Click who generously pledged
$10,000 for the ACDL at our event.
David Haas joins our staff.
I am happy to report that
David Haas has joined our Short Term Assistance Team and began work at the ACDL
on Tuesday, February 20. For the last 7 years, David was the ADA
Technical Assistant at the Arizona Office for Americans with
Disabilities. Prior to that, David served as an employment
specialist/information and referral advocate at the
The ACDL Short Term
Assistance Team refers to the group of highly trained ACDL staff who manage our
intake, information and referral, and short term assistance program.
Litigation update.
Padilla v. Rodgers Settles
The
Federal Employment Litigation Settled
The Center recently settled
a federal employment discrimination lawsuit we filed over one year ago against
a major employer in
Training Opportunities
Below is a sampling of the
training opportunities available from the ACDL.
To view all of our trainings, visit us at www.azdisabilitylaw.org/training.html. Please contact our office to reserve space in
any of the trainings.
An Overview of Discipline
under the IDEA “Improvement” Act of 2004.
Friday, April 13 from 9:00
am – 12:00 noon.
Contact: riacovelli@azdisabilitylaw.org
Overview of the Employment
Protections of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Thursday, April 19 from
12:00 noon – 1:30 pm.
Contact: cgoyette@azdisabilitylaw.org
Using Your Procedural
Safeguards to Solve Problems (Special Education).
Friday, April 27 from 9:00
am – 12:00 noon.
Contact: riacovelli@azdisabilitylaw.org
Overview of the Employment
Protections of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Thursday, April 12 from
12:00 noon – 1:30 pm.
Contact: cgoyette@azdisabilitylaw.org
How to Get the AHCCCS Health
Care Services You Need
Wednesday, April 25 from
5:30 pm – 7:00 pm.
Contact: mlauritzen@azdisabilitylaw.org
As always, I appreciate the
support you have provided to the Center.
Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or concerns
about the Center or our program activities.
You can reach me at (520) 327-9547, ext. 23 or by email at pradecic@azdisabilitylaw.org.
Thank you and I look forward
to bringing you more news and information on the Center in the near future.
Peri Jude Radecic
Acting Executive Director