KCDC Disability News Message

Here is today's Kansas Commission on Disability Concerns (KCDC) Disability News message.? I hope you have a wonderful day.?

Martha K. Gabehart | Executive Director
Kansas Commission on Disability Concerns (KCDC)
Kansas Governor Laura Kelly
900 SW Jackson, Suite 100 | Topeka, Kansas 66612
(785) 296-6525 (direct) | (785) 260-4027 (cell)

The OneCare Kansas Newsletter has been posted on the Kansas Department of Health and Environment website.?

The Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services (KDADS) Home and Community Based Services (HCBS) office distributed the updated language for the Technology/Assisted (TA) Waiver.? It is attached below.? EVV used in the file stands for Electronic Visit Verification. Please feel free to share.?

This message is from the Sheila Simmons with the Assistive Technology for Kansans (ATK) Project.

Hello everyone, we are reaching out let everyone know about a change in the program. ATK management was notified by Topeka Independent Living Resource Center?s (TILRC) management in early October that the agency was withdrawing from participation in Assistive Technology for Kansans as the operator of the Northeast Assistive Technology (AT) Access Site. It came as a bit of a surprise. Additionally, the withdrawal was effective immediately, so we have been working diligently to pick up assistive technology devices and refurbished durable medical equipment (DME) belonging to ATK as well as trying to assist consumers who abruptly lost their services. We have lost a subcontractor in the past, but there was a transition period for both consumers and the AT Site staff. We are helping former staff with their immediate needs since loss of their positions, notifying agency partners such as Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) and Medicaid, and spreading the word among consumer advocacy organizations. We are actively spreading the word to agencies and organizations who might be interested in becoming a part of ATK or know an entity that might.

Attached is a copy of the ATK Northeast AT Site Request for Proposals (RFP). It?s posted on the website homepage, https://atk.ku.edu/ and on the AT Site page, https://atk.ku.edu/regional-offices too. Please share it with anyone who might help us promote it and with any entity you think might be interested.

If any of you have ties to organization or agency electronic newsletters or websites, we would appreciate you spreading the word that way. Here?s a sample posting.

The Assistive Technology for Kansans (ATK) management team is seeking an agency or organization to subcontract operation of the Northeast AT Access Site. The selected entity would serve the counties of: Brown, Doniphan, Jackson, Atchison, Shawnee, Jefferson, Leavenworth, Wyandotte, Douglas, Johnson, Osage, Franklin and Miami. The successful applicant would receive annual subcontracts and business service agreements to conduct services in that region.

The ATK Northeast AT Site RFP provides additional information and instructions on how to apply (attached below).

If you have questions, please email [email protected] or call ATK Program Coordinators: Sheila Simmons, 620.423.9284 or Abby Browning, 785.393.8379.

Feel free to share any thoughts or questions you have. We could use the help! Thank you! Sheila

Sheila Simmons
Pronouns: she/her/hers
ATK Program Coordinator
KS iCan Connect Coordinator

Assistive Technology for Kansans
KU Life Span Institute at Parsons
2601 Gabriel
Parsons, KS 67357

[email protected]
620-421-8367 (Office)
620.421.0954 (FAX)

The U.S. Department of Labor announced it will hold a series of stakeholder engagement sessions to hear from members of the public, in particular workers with disabilities, about their experiences with the Section 14(c) program. The next session will take place virtually on Wednesday, November 15, 2023, from 5:30 ? 7:00 PM ET.

Last week, ODEP and its State Exchange on Employment & Disability (SEED) participated in Women in Government?s National Leadership & Innovation Conference in San Antonio, TX. During a panel discussion with state legislators, ODEP Chief of Staff Anupa Iyer Geevarghese highlighted the U.S. Department of Labor?s Mental Health at Work Initiative and reviewed the work of SEED?s Mental Health Matters National Task Force. In addition, SEED shared disability-inclusive workforce policies and best practices during a series of one-on-one conversations with state legislators from across the country and led a ?bill share? session where additional workforce policy examples were featured.?

The ODEP-funded Job Accommodation Network (JAN) is celebrating 40 years of providing free, expert and confidential guidance on workplace accommodations to employers and individuals. JAN?s website also provides a library of resources and trainings for job accommodations and solutions that help everyone understand the value and talents that workers with disabilities add to the workforce.

ODEP released a training video titled, ?Mental Health and the Federal Workplace: What Can I Do?? that explores ways federal employees at all levels can help promote a mental health-friendly workplace, for themselves and their colleagues. Agencies can use the video and the accompanying guide (attached below) to raise awareness about this important topic and facilitate discussions about workplace well-being. The video was produced in collaboration with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and Office of Personnel Management, as well as the U.S. Department of Education and Access Board.

ODEP added a new topic link to its subscription feature that individuals and organizations can use to sign up to learn about ODEP funding opportunity announcements (FOAs) once they are announced.


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