Arkansas Waiver Association- AWA

AWA's president, Syard Evans, highlights ongoing DSP workforce challenges in today's paper:

OPINION | SYARD EVANS: Crucial crossroad | Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette In December 2021, then-Gov. Asa Hutchinson announced a promising initiative with a commitment of $37.6 million to eliminate the waiting list for Medicaid waiver services for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities in Arkansas. This move was celebrated as a significant step forwa...

We had the BEST time at the 2023 AWA Conference: Building Better Opportunities last month. Thank you to everyone who participated in and contributed to making it a great event. Check out the Session Materials section at https://www.arkansaswaiver.org/conference for presentations and resources from some of the amazing presenters who shared their experience, information, expertise, and passion with us., and DON'T FORGET to complete your conference evaluation if you haven't already.

Conference & Events | Arkansas Waiver Association (AWA) AWA Conference and Event Information

📢📢📢 It's FINALLY conference week, and we can't wait to see you all in Hot Springs on Wednesday. Get ready for an amazing opportunity to learn and connect. You start mapping out your conference game plan with the updated conference agenda posted here: https://www.arkansaswaiver.org/agenda

See you soon!!!

2023 Agenda | Mysite

We are TWO weeks away from the start of the 2023 AWA Conference: Building Better Opportunities. We can't wait to see you. Check out the latest updates to the conference agenda: https://www.arkansaswaiver.org/agenda. You don't want to miss this!!!

2023 Agenda | Mysite

Nick Filarelli began his career as a Direct Support Professional. Today he is a Program Director and an enabling technology champion at Core Services of Northeast Tennessee. Nick joins us this year to share ideas on how to stop focusing on providing good services and start focusing on how to support people to live great lives. You don't want to miss it.

To learn more about Nick and his session, visit https://www.arkansaswaiver.org/nf.

Rebecca Zimmermann is the Community Engagement Director at Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families and will join us to share strategies we all can use to "Advocate for Change".

Learn more about Rebecca at https://www.arkansaswaiver.org/rz

John Raffaele has spent more than 35 years teaching direct support professionals and the people they support. He's the Director of Educational Services for the National Alliance for Direct Support Professionals and is coming to Arkansas to share practical strategies for addressing the current state of the DSP workforce.

Learn more about John at https://www.arkansaswaiver.org/jr.

John Dickerson had a long and storied career with The Arc of Indiana working for more than 40 years to advocate for change, but that wasn't enough for John. After retiring from The Arc, John founded Red Road Ventures and created Quillo, a unique communication platform aimed at retention of Direct Support Professionals based on micro learning and positive psychology. John comes to Arkansas to share the message: "Building a Better Tomorrow Starts Today".

Learn more about John at: https://www.arkansaswaiver.org/jd.

Jenny Wilson will be joining us to share her experiences as a sibling of a person with a disability and as the Assistant Director of the LifeCourse Nexus Training and Technical Assistance Center. She'll deliver a keynote presentation entitle "Framing a Good Life" and follow that up with a breakout session: "Using Charting the LifeCourse to Support Good Lives". If you want to know how to better plan for and support people to live good lives, don't miss Jenny's visit.

You can learn more about Jenny and her upcoming sessions at: https://www.arkansaswaiver.org/jw

Dr. Mike Strouse and the GoodLife research team have worked for over three decades on the development and use of innovative solutions for helping community service providers effectively manage direct labor cost, while providing best practice support for a variety of dependent populations. Dr. Strouse will join us to share what he and his team have learned along the way in "Solutions to Stabilize Your Workforce".

Learn more about Dr. Strouse at https://www.arkansaswaiver.org/ms.

We are less than a month away from the 2023 AWA Conference: Building Better Opportunities. We are so excited!

Today, we'd like to highlight a few more of the amazing folks who will be traveling to Arkansas to share their knowledge, experiences, and expertise with us. Take some time to check them out, and get registered today if you haven't already: https://www.arkansaswaiver.org/conference

**Discounted hotel rates expire at the END OF THIS WEEK!

Conference & Events | Arkansas Waiver Association (AWA) AWA Conference and Event Information

The 2023 AWA Conference: Building Better Opportunities is almost here! We are so excited to be back together and learning new and innovative ways to support each other and enhance the quality of home and community-based services.

This year, in addition to bringing in innovative leaders from all across the country and Canada, we're also thrilled to offer a Technical Assistance opportunity for individuals, support teams, families, providers, care coordinators, etc. to receive consultation from content expert on specific questions and individual needs regarding important areas of home and community-based supports, including Supported Decision Making, Person-Centered Planning Strategies, and Benefits Counseling. Don't miss an opportunity to leave the conference with specific ideas to address the support system that you are a part of.

Take a moment to check out our UPDATED agenda with descriptions of the conference sessions:
https://www.arkansaswaiver.org/agenda

Register now at: https://www.uacurrents.org/RegistrationSystem/Register?m=2t1

***Discounted hotel rates end on July 26th. To make your reservation with the discounted rate, visit https://www.arkansaswaiver.org/conference and scroll down to hotel accommodations.

Learn about more of the amazing speakers coming to this year's AWA Conference at:
https://www.arkansaswaiver.org/23speakers

2023 Agenda | Mysite

We are 1 month away from the 2023 AWA Conference: Building Better Opportunities!!! We can't wait to see you soon.

There are great things in store at this year's conference. Check out the conference agenda here: https://www.arkansaswaiver.org/agenda

You don't want to miss it!

Discounted hotel rates are ending soon, so book your room today.

2023 Agenda | Mysite

Learn about more of the amazing speakers coming to this year's AWA Conference at:

https://www.arkansaswaiver.org/23speakers

Bethany Toledo knows the value of a well-developed, well-supported direct support workforce and will be joining us for the 2023 AWA conference to share her experience and successes. Learn more about Bethany and her upcoming presentation at the link below:

https://www.arkansaswaiver.org/bt

Andrea Palmer will be joining us for the 2023 AWA Conference all the way from Canada, and we're excited about the great things she has to share. Learn more about Andrea and her upcoming presentation at the link below:

https://www.arkansaswaiver.org/ap

AWA is excited to welcome Doug Golub to the 2023 AWA Conference. Click the link below to learn about Doug and the information he will be sharing at the conference:

https://www.arkansaswaiver.org/dg

Have you registered for the 2023 AWA conference yet?

Are you waiting to find out who will be presenting before you register? Well, if so, stay tuned to this page. We'll be introducing presenters, topics, and conference activities throughout the week.

Conference & Events | Arkansas Waiver Association (AWA) AWA Conference and Event Information

Registration for the 2023 AWA Conference: Building Better Opportunities is OPEN.

Visit https://www.arkansaswaiver.org/conference for registration, sponsor/vendor, and hotel information.

AWA is excited to see you again this summer at the Hot Springs Convention Center for the 2023 AWA Conference: Building Better Opportunities. Mark your calendar for August 16-18, and check back here for registration link that will be posted soon.

It’s not too late to register to vote! Register by tomorrow, October 11. Make sure you’re registered so you can make yourself heard this election!

Find out your registration status here: https://bit.ly/3Eod1Mx

⚠️ 𝐀𝐓𝐓𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐏𝐀𝐒𝐒𝐄 𝐌𝐄𝐌𝐁𝐄𝐑𝐒 ⚠️ Get ready for open enrollment time! PASSE Open Enrollment is October 1-31. You can choose to stay in your current PASSE or switch to a new PASSE. Changes become effective January 1, 2023. For more information, visit: ar.gov/passe

Take a few minutes to remind your elected officials that Waiver services are underfunded in Arkansas today, as they prepare to make another round of tax cuts for the wealthiest Arkansans.

We should be investing in our children, not in cuts  The General Assembly is meeting today, and we need your help! Call your state senator & representative and tell them to vote NO on SB 1 and HB 1002. 1 in 5 Arkansas kids live in poverty—a crisis that our state government should...

Dear AWA Membership:

Are you a disability professional who works in, oversees, or does advocacy related to the daily living or residential services used by people with intellectual disability?

If so, we invite you to take part in a 30-60 minute anonymous online survey regarding your opinions related to the sexual relationships of women with intellectual disability and associated services. Your perspective will help inform how women’s sexual rights and opportunities can be supported and enhanced in practice. You can access the survey here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/DisabilityProfessional

You will receive an $8 Amazon e-gift card for your participation.

We welcome and appreciate you forwarding this email to your colleagues and those who work at your agency, as applicable (but just ask that the invitation isn’t posted publicly, so we ensure we only hear from disability professionals). We also share our appreciation to those of you who have taken the survey to-date!

Thank you for everything you do to support people with ID!

--

Hannah Ginn, MSW
PhD Candidate
Graduate Assistant
University at Buffalo School of Social Work
she/her/hers



This study has been approved by the University at Buffalo Institutional Review Board (IRB). Please reply to this email ([email protected]) for more information about this study or for questions about your eligibility.

AWA received an update from DDS on the status of the CES Waiver Amendment application. Below is information included in the update:

* The CES Waiver Amendment along with all public comments made on the amendment have been submitted to CMS, and CMS has told the state to expect a determination regarding approval by August 1, 2022.

* A copy of the submitted amendment and comments can be accessed at this link: https://acrobat.adobe.com/link/track?uri=urn:aaid:scds:US:22c3fe2c-fd1d-3a45-955e-32162d0a9b38

* Page 15 of 189 of the amendment includes the Public Comments and Responses.

* The CES Waiver has NOT been submitted for Arkansas General Assembly review at this time. DDS wants to ensure that they send forward a waiver for legislative review that is closer to final approval from CMS.

* The changes to services included in this amendment are outlined in the presentation slides included in the original post shared here

We will continue to keep you updated with information we receive regarding the CES Waiver Amendment.

AWA's president, Dr. Syard Evans, will be presenting at the annual CQL conference in October.

Another round of eye-opening breakouts to share with you!

https://www.c-q-l.org/resources/articles/cql-releases-breakout-sessions-for-the-2022-cql-conference/

Centering The Humans In Human Services
Syard Evans - Arkansas Support Network

Reducing And Eliminating Rights Restrictions And Advocating Guardianship Changes
Heidi Paulson, Heidi Lien & Allison Skari - Life Skills and Transition Center

Addressing A Systemic Workforce Crisis: Best Practices In Employee Retention
Jolene Thibedeau Boyd & Barbara Kleist - Institute on Community Integration

Data Literacy And The Importance Of Data-Driven Service Provision
Jason Laws - Therap Services

Healing From Trauma Through The Positive Identity Support Approach
Karyn Harvey - Park Ave Group

Seeing The Light At The End Of Your PCE Tunnel
Grant Fogel & Carrie Balster - CHI Friendship

Supporting Relationships In The 21st Century
Karyn Harvey & Kevin Drumheller - Richcroft, Inc.
Vik Aurora - Focus EduSolutions