Institute on Disability/UCED

Each year NH-ME LEND trainees participate in leadership placements in partnership with community-based organizations whose missions are aligned with the mission of the LEND program. The purpose of the leadership placement is to provide trainees with opportunities to develop and apply leadership skills and to strengthen our network by supporting the work of our partner organizations in New Hampshire and Maine. 

On Saturday, April 13, 2019, members of the 2019 NH Leadership Series class, now 1000 strong, graduated and are off making the world a better place for people with disabilities and their families!

On Wednesday, April 10, 2019, the Institute on Disability, in partnership with the MUB and the NH Challenge, hosted a free screening of the award-winning documentary INTELLIGENT LIVES as a part of the Janet Krumm Disability & Media Lecture Series. The screening was joined by filmmaker Dan Habib who also hosted a discussion following the film. The event, which took place in the UNH MUB, was attended by approximately 150 students and community members.

On Wednesday, April 17, 2019, Dr. Tobey Partch-Davies received the 2019 Advocacy and Action Faculty Award from the University of New Hampshire’s Commission on Community, Equity, and Diversity.   The award is given to people who foster “understanding of the issues, building a community of inclusion, raising awareness through your insight and action, and increasing opportunity and access for people with disabilities.”

• The IOD’s Accessibility Action Group successfully advocated to include accessibility information in all Zoom meetings across the University of New Hampshire campus.
• Sarah Boege recently completed UNH’s inaugural Research Communications Academy. You can learn more here >
• Dr. Debra Brucker was recently promoted to Research Associate Professor. Learn more about her work >

• Dr. Debra Brucker co-authored two entries in the newly released Disability in American Life: An Encyclopedia of Concepts, Policies, and Controversies. One of her entries discusses poverty among Americans with disabilities and the other discusses social capital and disability.  The book includes a forward by Andy Imparato, Executive Director of the Association of University Centers on Disability and covers a wide range of topics.

On May 22, 2019, several of Jonathon Drake's colleagues and family members planted a tree in his memory at the Spaulding Youth Camp in Concord, NH. The plaque reads: "All youth can thrive."

Each year, the NH-ME LEND trainees are placed with a community partner to work on a leadership project designed to improve the system of care for individuals with disabilities and their families.  On Friday May 3, the 2019 LEND Cohort presented the outcomes of their work during the annual LEND Capstone Poster Session as part of the UNH Graduate Research Conference.  Topics addressed issues across the life span including early developmental screening and evaluations, preparation of teachers in rural areas to utilize principles of universal design for learning, supports for mental health prov

The NH-ME LEND trainees participated in the annual Disability Policy Seminar held in Washington, DC from April 7-10.  Under the guidance of LEND faculty Kay Johnson, Alan Cobo-Lewis, Patrick Shannon, Susan Russell, and Betsy Humphreys, the trainees worked on a policy analysis on the issue of seclusion and restraint practices in school settings.  The trainees prepared personal stories, a policy brief, and key talking points to educate each state’s congressional delegation on these issues.  Legislation on the use of seclusion and restraint in educational settings is expected to be introduced