The motto “Nothing About Us Without Us” relies on the principles of participation, self determination, self. We bring these principles of full participation into practice on the HEATH website by providing a venue for student voices to be heard and affirm that persons with disabilities can help shape a better world for all. Included in this page are the personal stories of students with disabilities. If you are a college, university, or a career-technical school student with a disability, The HEATH Resource Center takes this opportunity to welcome and encourage you to submit an original article to our editors for publication in our new “Student Voices” section of The HEATH Resource Center Publications and Newsletter. For more information visit: http://www.heath.gwu.edu/node/261 [1]
Read the stories and learn about the experiences of others with disabilities in postsecondary education by clicking on "Read more" located in the lower right hand corner.

College Life and AAC: Just Do It! [2]
In this webcast, Beth Anne describes her experiences as a student at California University of Pennsylvania. Beth Anne has worked hard and developed an outstanding support team in order to pursue her dream of a college education. The webcast also includes commentary from faculty who have taught Beth Anne, as well as the insights of family members, academic advisors, and staff from the Office for Students with Disabilities at "Cal U". http://tinyurl.com/5l5bcm

New England ADA Center Releases New Videos-Students with disabilities share strategies

New England ADA Center and No Limits Media release fresh and informative videos this spring. In the videos, students with disabilities share strategies to successfully stay in school, graduate and get jobs. Students reveal their struggles with self-reporting their disability, and negotiating accommodations in school and at work. These videos can be used as part of trainings (each video is 7-9 minutes) and shared with students and other professionals.Visit www.NewEnglandADA.org [3] to view videos. DVD’s are also available upon request at ADAinfo@NewEnglandADA.org

The Next Step [4] is a 19-minute video that presents personal stories of young people with disabilities who enrolled in colleges, universities or technical schools. Note: You will need the QuickTime Player to view this video. (150MB QuickTime Movie)

Videos are in streaming format and should start playing as soon as you press the Play button on the QuickTime Player.
http://tinyurl.com/2vn4bw [5]


Respecting the Young Adult Patient [6]
Young Adult Committee for Medical Home, tips for doctors when transitioning youth. Video is captioned. The Center for Persons with Disabilities is a unit within the College of Education and Human Services at Utah State University The CPD is a University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities Education, Research, and Service within the national network of the Association of University Centers on Disabilities.


Wordgathering: A Journal of Disability Poetry [7]
Wordgathering [8] is an online journal of disability poetry produced by members of the Inglis House Poetry Workshop. The workshop is a collaborative of writers with disabilities who reside at Inglis House in Philadelphia, Pa. Wordgathering is a quarterly publication. If you are interested in being notified when the next issue comes out or would like to send them your comments, please write to them at comments@wordgathering.com. Click here for Submission Guidelines [9]. Read more at: http://www.wordgathering.com/index.html [10]

Nicholas Wiggins: 2007 Anne Ford Scholarship Award Honorable Mention [11]

Nicholas Wiggins knows first-hand the difficulties of growing up with a learning disability. Nicholas was diagnosed in the fifth grade as having a non-verbal learning disability and slow processing speed. He is now dedicated to his school work and his extracurricular activities, graduating high school with a 3.5 GPA. A member of the National Honor Society and the baseball, ice hockey, and soccer teams, Nicholas has received many athletic awards including the Greater Boston League All Star Award and the Citizen Athlete Award. At the time of his application, Nicholas planned to attend Hamilton College, a place where he could “design his college experience to enhance his strengths and shore up his weaknesses,” and “play the sport he loves for a coach who cares first and foremost about the academic achievement of his players.”
http://www.ncld.org/content/view/1344/456074 [12]

Special Announcement:
Press Release: November 2007
The National Youth Leadership Network (NYLN) is looking for new leaders! And we want you to apply to serve on our Governing Board! NYLN is a non-profit organization run by young people with disabilities. We empower all young people to reach their maximum potential.

Applicants to the Governing Board must:

o Be between 15 and 28 years old;
o Have a disability;
o Have leadership and advocacy skills.

“We are excited to open the door to new leaders,” said Betsy Valnes, NYLN executive director. “Young people have a lot to offer. We look forward to setting goals that make them fully empowered.”

The Governing Board Application can be found at http://www.nyln.org/ [13]

Send completed applications to:
National Youth Leadership Network
Attn: Betsy Valnes
221 S. Central Ave.
Pierre, SD 57501

For more information, call 1-866-480-6565 or e-mail bvalnes@tie.net.
Betsy Valnes
Executive Director

National Youth Leadership Network
221 S. Central Ave.
Pierre, SD 57501
1-866-480-6565, ext. 2
(605) 224-5336, ext. 225
bvalnes@tie.net

Internet Onramp to Student Voices

• UC Berkeley's website on the Disability Rights and Independent Living Movement.
  Discover our rich collection of primary sources exploring the social and political history of the disability movement from the 1960s to the present. http://bancroft.berkeley.edu/collections/drilm/index.html [14]




• Advice for High School Students by LeDerick R. Horne.
  High school can be a very scary time for young people with a disability. Believe me, I know. I was classified in the third grade and was placed in special education right up until I received my high school diploma. By my junior year I was so sick of school that I spent more time looking at the exit doors than the blackboards. Read more: http://www.tcnj.edu/~technj/2007/advice.htm [15]
  
  

• Graduates with Disabilities Speak Out: / Michigan Engineer / 2003 Spring-Summer.
  At 46, Gary Talbot has combined his engineering skills and his insight into disabilities to work as a manager of mobility engineering for General Motors, creating and refining adaptive equipment for drivers and passengers with disabilities. degree. Steve Laux saw his life change in an instant when, in the summer before starting his senior year at the College of Engineering, a diving accident left him a quadriplegic and a fulltime wheelchair user. But that didn’t mean he let others decide what he should or shouldn’t do. Read more: http://tinyurl.com/ytyaza [16]