Employment First Summit

[Guest guest]

There is an exciting movement starting in Illinois!

As a result of the work of The Governor’s Task Force on Employment and

Economic Opportunity for Persons with Disabilities an Employment First

Summit is being planned for January 31st in Springfield. This INVITATION

ONLY summit is to:

ü Examine innovative policy strategies for successful employment of persons

with disabilities including the feasibility of Illinois joining the more

than 25 states who have become " Employment First " states upholding the

belief through policy and actions that employment must be the first priority

and preferred outcome for people with disabilities.

ü Attain consensus on recommendations to move Illinois forward in

employment policy for people with disabilities

The Task Force recognizes that the fiscal crisis in Illinois brings

opportunity to align programs with the goals of the Americans with

Disabilities Act (ADA), which call for “maximizing self-sufficiency” of

people with disabilities. This Summit will be the first of many steps that

people in Illinois will need to take to support state policy and legislation

to move this forward. Please know that you will all be notified of the

recommendations coming from this summit and how you can best be supportive

in the coming months!

There is a separate event sponsored by The Institute on Public Policy for

People with Disabilities called - Employment First: Strategies in 25 other

states. This educational opportunity is scheduled for January 26th in

Champaign and targets Service Providers, families and local stakeholders.

The purpose is to provide education on Employment First and what is

occurring nationally within this policy movement. Notably, this policy is

in answer to people with disabilities asking for Real Jobs and Real Pay.

Marsie

Marsie L. Frawley

Statewide Coordinator, Rural Illinois Customized Employment Sustainability

Project

RICES, an investment of the Illinois Council on Developmental Disabilities

-Hammis Associates, LLC

mfrawley@...

920 559 6364