Event Descriptions

Current Conferences, Audioconferences, Education and Training Programs (register)

Table of Contents

Current Events

Leadership
Business Practices

Archived Events

Leadership
Human Resources
Business Practices

As a former director of programs, including residential programs, former Executive Director of UCP of Central California and most recently, Interim Executive Director of the Independent Living Center of Kern County —Paula McElwee understands the challenges executives face when working with a board of directors.

Her more than twenty years as a CARF surveyor further enables her to see what is and is not working in the area of governance in organizations in North America. Join Paula as she shares promising practices in recruiting, training and assessing the outcomes of and performance for boards of directors.

Samples of governance documents will be provided so the audience has a clear picture as to the current state of the industry and can adapt those ideas that best fit each organization. This session is certain to provoke dialogue not only today but also in the future!

Paula McElwee is a graduate of the University of San Francisco’s Masters in Rehabilitation Administration program. She has worked in the field for more than 32 years, including 25 years with Developmental Services of Northwest Kansas. While there she directed programs for infants and toddlers; adult service in a variety of employment and residential settings, and case management services—all conducted in a large rural area at multiple locations.

Paula has been in California for seven years. She currently has her own consulting business and serves on the Board of Directors of the Center for Independent Living- Fresno.

The first survey in which she participated was in 1976, and she has been a surveyor since 1986.

Designed for current and emerging leaders looking to gain the “nuts and bolts” information they need to understand the world of finance and accounting, this interactive session will introduce participants to the language of accounting, explain how financial information is presented, help participants interpret and evaluate financial performance by use of ratio analysis and will assist their overall understanding of the key principles involved in the budgeting process.

A jam-packed session designed to give participants the financial and accounting background they need to succeed in an increasingly competitive environment where proper accounting and a clear understanding of finances is necessary!

“ANCOR members learn best from other ANCOR members. That’s why I’m so thrilled ANCOR is seeking the knowledge and expertise of those within our national network. Sharing such essential information will only help ANCOR grow in influence and stature.”

Barry W. Whitsell has over 24 years of experience in the world of finance. Mr. Whitsell has a BA degree from Northwestern College in Accounting and Economics and an MBA from the University of Colorado. He has held various positions during his career where he has refined his business experience, including positions in banking as Vice President of Commercial Lending and Cashier and in healthcare as a Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Whitsell currently is the President and CEO of Village Northwest Unlimited.

Customized Employment: Creating Communities of Economic Cooperation One-Person-at-a-Time

Playing by the traditional job development rules of Search-Apply-Interview resulted in a brutal unemployment rate of 75% for people with significant disabilities. Using interest-based negotiation tactics that create profit-making careers circumvents the labor market, builds common-ground between people with disabilities and employers, and frees rehabilitation professionals to become inventive social-capitalists. This session explores fundamental Customized Employment ingredients including:

Examples from across the country illustrate how using an inventive “One-Person-at-a-Time” economic development approach renders the “Labor Market” irrelevant

Cary Griffin is Senior Partner at Griffin-Hammis Associates. He is also Co-Technical Assistance Director of the U.S. Dept. of Labor’s National Self Employment Technical Assistance, Resources and Training project with Virginia Commonwealth University. Cary maintains a strong relationship with the Rural Institute at the University of Montana, where he served as Director of Adult Community Services & Supports.

Corey Smith is the Director of Employment Services for Via of the Lehigh Valley in Bethlehem Pennsylvania. At Via he is responsible for his third full workshop conversion while implementing customized employment and self-employment outcomes. Corey also works with Virginia Commonwealth University, and a number of other universities, families, and CRP’s, providing consultation and training, on customized employment and organizational transformation.

The lack of benchmarking data in the disabilities field is a cause for concern. Without such data, how does one show their organization is providing quality services and supports? In today’s increasingly competitive and scrutinized marketplace, benchmarking data may well serve as the definitive discriminator for quality in the disabilities industry.

One of ANCOR’s partner in the quest for Quality—CQL—has developed the Integrated Quality Management Systems to address the need to connect data sets which will inform and shape organizational direction.

Participate in this interactive session as Amanda discusses how CQL’s Personal Outcomes Measures and measures of Basic Assurances, Shared Values, Responsive Services, and Community Life form the circle of quality that leads to organizational systems that facilitate person-centered services and supports.

Amanda Cade is the Vice President of Strategic Customer Relations for The Council on Quality and Leadership (CQL). Ms Cade holds a Master’s degree in Clinical Psychology from The Illinois State University. Ms. Cade is responsible for CQL’s customer out reach program.

Ms Cade has worked for CQL on a part or full time basis for over ten years. In addition she has performed a variety of direct service and administrative roles in the field of intellectual disabilities. Ms. Cade has presented at numerous conferences on such subjects as social capital, effective organizational management, and dual diagnoses and treatment in people with intellectual disabilities.

#1 Strategic Positioning and Planning for Quality Services
Pamela Hayes, Valley Light Industries and CARF Surveyor

Strategic positioning is not your old strategic plan. It is a methodology that guides an organization to continuously examine and segment its customer base, actively market to listen to their needs and expectations, and respond to its customers’ needs with refined services and enhanced organizational designs.

Participant in this interactive training where CARF surveyor Pamela Hayes will assist providers in:

• Identifying the differences between strategic positioning based on marketing design and “selling” and strategic planning
• Identifying their customers and creating a vision, mission and values statement based on their customer base
• Developing tactics to involve all stakeholders and create “teams” to implement their strategic plan

About Our Presenter:
Pamela Hayes has spent over two decades in the industry. Having worked in various positions throughout provider organizations, she is well adept at the challenges and opportunities facing providers. Her unique insights and real-world examples will highlight some of the most innovative practices from the field. You won’t want to miss out on this opportunity!

#2 Social Role Valorization: A Framework for Understanding the Role of Social Devaluation for Individuals with Disabilities
Elizabeth Neuville, Keystone Institute
Like many providers, Keystone Human Services was established with the belief that all people could live successful lives in the community and that many people were unnecessarily vulnerable to being excluded from those communities.

One of the key concepts which forms the foundation not only of what Keystone but many other providers do is the idea of social role valorization.

Social Role Valorization provides an overarching framework for understanding the phenomenon of social devaluation and the life experiences of people who have been marginalized and oppressed, and gives us powerful strategies to make life better for vulnerable people. The vast community system developed over the past 30 years to support people with developmental disabilities and mental illness in the community is deeply rooted in Social Role Valorization (SRV); philosophically, ideologically, and structurally.

About Our Presenter:
Elizabeth Neuville is the Executive Director of The Keystone Institute, an organization located in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and a part of Keystone Human Services. The Keystone Institute specializes in providing educational experiences for people interested in making life fuller and richer for some of our most vulnerable citizens. She has over 22 years experience as a human service worker, administrator, agency director, evaluator, and personal advocate. She has extensive experience designing and developing supports for very vulnerable people, and has developed regionally recognized leadership teams, meaningful quality measurements, and extraordinary employee development programs.

#3 Using Emotional Intelligence to Enhance Your Organization
Cindy Haworth, Worth Consulting and Human Service Connections

What makes great organizations great? A large factor is their level of Emotional Intelligence.

How does your organization use Emotional Intelligence to communicate -- with peers, employees, people with disabilities and their families, the organization as a whole?

Creating an organization where employees are committed and follow through on what needs to be done, where turnover is low and morale is high, doesn’t have to be a fantasy. The benefits of being able to communicate and coach with a mindful, consistent message are integral to turning this fantasy into reality.

Statistics show that just under half the workforce is not truly engaged in their job. Not addressing this factor has obvious negative implications for the quality of our services and the lives of the people we support. There is now solid research showing emotionally intelligent leaders as being more apt to have employees who like their jobs, who provide better customer service, who tend not to turn over and are engaged in their job. What industry should be more concerned about these factors than providers?

Join Cindy Haworth, a frequent speaker, consultant, and valued member of ANCOR as she provides an overview of new research regarding the importance and effectiveness of Emotional Intelligence in the workplace.

Topics to be addressed include:
• What is emotional intelligence?
• Why is it important, especially in our field?
• What are the four pieces of emotional intelligence?
• How this can positively impact relationships with peers, employees, people with disabilities and families?
• Practical ways you can develop these areas in yourself, your employees and your organization.

About Our Presenter:
Cindy Haworth developed an early connection with persons with developmental disabilities after having a family member with a disability. She has gone on to accumulate nearly 20 years of administrative experience in residential and day programs supporting adults with disabilities.

Ms. Haworth has established her own consulting business, WORTH Consulting & Training, where she works with disability organizations throughout the country to enhance their effectiveness and further their missions. She has also established a recruiting agency to assist disability organizations in finding and retaining leaders, Human Service Connections. She has adjunct faculty status at the University of Illinois Chicago and Lewis University where she teaches graduate courses in organizational leadership and disability studies.

#4 Translating Values Into Action
Derrick Dufresne, The Institute on Public Policy

Change requires thinking differently in order to act differently. We must move from admiring the problem to changing our philosophy.
But how? Organizational transformation is hard work, and takes time. There are practical, logical, and needed approaches that foster success. There are also pitfalls, barriers, and challenges that must be addressed.
This presentation will bridge the gap between philosophy and action. In this ‘nuts and bolts’ session on organizational transformation, you will learn how to:

Learn how to achieve person and organizational transformation by hearing examples from the field in this interactive session designed to give providers the essential “how to” information as they transition from facility-based to person-centered supports.

About Our Presenter:
Derrick Dufresne has worked in the disabilities field for over 30 years. He has been a practitioner as well as a consultant to provider organizations, states, and other interested stakeholders nationwide. He currently serves as the President of the Institute on Public Policy as well as one of the principals in Community Resource Alliance (CRA).

#9 Open Book Management: Six Ownership Strategies to Implement in Your Organization

One of the most common frustrations of management in today’s disability organizations is the perceived lack of “ownership” and commitment to Generation X and Y employees to becoming the next generation of leaders. While generational differences exist, they are not the keys to implementing an ownership culture. Join Tom Schramski as he discusses six ownership creating strategies in the context of open book methods.

This session will focus on the use of open book principles as a means to unleash the aspirations and skills of the next wave of leadership in provider organizations. Specific strategies for integrating open book approaches based on case studies from service organizations will be presented. In addition, illustrations on how open book management can be used to successfully implement critical strategic initiatives will be highlighted.

Tom Schramski, PhD, is a consultant with Salience Consulting and Human Service Connections, a leadership development and recruiting firm. He was the CEO of CPES, a nationally recognized company that incorporated open book management while providing services to people with disabilities and their families.

Open book management was critical to the 400% growth of CPES from 1995 – 2000, while improving external ratings of consumer service quality. Tom’s clients include diverse organizations, including non-profits, from across the country.

#5 SPEAK: An Innovative Program to Address the Recruitment and Retention Challenges
Beth Ann Richardson, CMR Leadership Institute
Sandra Mlinarcik, Seven Counties Inc.

Nationally, an average turnover rate among DSPs of more than 70% annually threatens both the continuity and quality of critically needed direct care services. Join Sandra Mlinarcik, Ph.D. and Vice President for Supports, a DSP from the SPEAK program and others as they share details of this innovative program designed to provide DSPs with mentoring, training and discussion opportunities.

Hear how the program works, the proven results the investment in a qualified, trained workforce has had in the Louisville, KY area as well as why the SPEAK program was named the 2007 recipient of the Moving Mountains Award.

#11 TRUE Experience: A Model for Creating Empowered Teams

Creating engaged and enthusiastic teams of “take charge” support staff and managers is something all providers grapple with. Participate in this interactive session as John Raffaele of New Hope Community (NY) shares the innovative and intense 6-week program the training team of this small organization serving 200 individuals with disabilities in Sullivan County has developed.

Hear John’s entertaining and informative session outlining how New Hope Community has implemented a program focused on:

John Raffaele, LSMW, currently serves as the Director of Staff Training and Development at New Hope Community. He has been involved in the developmental disabilities for many years and has been a key contributor to many ANCOR initiatives. John has presented on the T.R.U.E. experience in various venues and continues to provide informative, insightful, and entertaining presentations on a variety of topics pertinent to the provider community.

#7 Micro-Enterprise: A Step-by-Step Guide for Helping Start Businesses for People with Developmental Disabilities
Dale Dutton, D3 Associates
Sherry Beamer, Sherry Beamer and Associates

Entrepreneurship is booming across America with an estimated 20 million Americans owning their own small business. The small business ownership rate is growing at over 20% annually. Recent census data shows that micro-enterprise (businesses employing 1 to 5 workers) generated 43% of all the new jobs in the United States and in the past decade. Small business ownership offers a promising career and income-generation option to individuals with significant disabilities. Is your organization ready to become part of this growing trend in the developmental disabilities field? If so, then this session is for you!

Dale Dutton and Sherry Beamer will provide an overview of the steps involved in helping an individual with a developmental disability accomplish his/her particular employment goal. Targeted discussion on such specifics as developing a person-centered business plan, conducting a business feasibility study, and providing ongoing operations and supports for individual success will be addressed. After this session, you will have the practical knowledge you need to begin helping individuals with disabilities identify and implement specific employment objectives today!

#8 Arizona Rate Setting: A Model to Emulate
Ric Zaharia, State of Arizona
Peter Burns, Peter Burns and Associates

Medicaid reimbursement rates are of growing concern to human service providers. Understanding how individual states, such as Arizona, have grappled with this issue and what the outcomes have been for both providers and individuals with developmental disabilities is helpful information for states looking at their own rate setting methodology and asking, “Where do we go from here?”
In this session, Ric Zaharia and Peter Burns will discuss how the Arizona reimbursement rates were calculated, what questions arose during the process, as well as provide insight into what the future may hold for both Arizona and other states.

There are many tools that support an organization's mission and vision, but few are as misunderstood and misused as technology. It's easy to see technology as a service complication and unnecessary financial burden, but planning for technology allows an organization to incorporate appropriate technology without financial hardship. Technology that is planned in advance can be seamlessly integrated into service delivery for improved efficiency and effectiveness. If you're interested in finding out just how you can create a technology plan, implement and refine a successful technology plan then join us for a conference webinar conducted by Ted Groves, a service provider and CARF surveyor with years of experience in technology planning and consulting.

#13: Personal Outcomes Measures Data TM: National and International Trends to Follow

Want to know about the latest trends in the quality of person-directed services and supports? Want to know what benchmarking data is available in this area? If so, participate in this interactive webinar where Amanda Cade shares the benchmarking data CQL has established through its database of more than 5,000 interviews. Not only will you stay abreast of the latest thinking, you’ll also have an opportunity to hear examples of how agencies have utilized this data to implement change within their organizations.

#14 The Laurie Mitchell Employment Center: An Innovative Model for Employing and Training Individuals with Disabilities

Finding meaningful employment for individuals with disabilities is a challenge. Providers know this. Families know this. Consumers know this. See how one organization—ServiceSource, Inc. of Virginia, implemented the innovative Laurie Mitchell Employment Center and the positive effects this has had on the individuals, employers, and families involved.

Recognized by many as an innovative model within the disabilities field, The Laurie Mitchell Employment Center is a consumer run and governed drop – in employment and training center that offers job training and development assistance to people with disabilities, particularly mental health consumers. It was developed in 1995 with the Northern Virginia Mental Health Consumers group in response to an identified need for non-traditional employment development strategies that would reach mental health consumers. The project has expanded and now operates as an incorporated 501 (c) 3 organization in two hosted locations. It recently hired its first staff Executive Director and is supported by multiple public and private funding sources. This program will be presented by Bruce Patterson, Sr. Vice-President, ServiceSource.

Hear how individuals bonded together to create meaningful employment opportunities for individuals with disabilities in this interactive session!

Bruce Patterson has been involved in the development of employment and rehabilitation programs since 1984. He holds a M.Ed in Counseling and Development from George Mason University and has held numerous operational and rehabilitation positions within ServiceSource, a Community Rehabilitation Provider serving in excess of 10,000 persons annually. As Senior Vice President, Metro Region Bruce manages the organization’s rehabilitation and employment programs. Bruce has been extensively involved in the development of new initiatives such as the Laurie Mitchell Center, technology workforce development, and skills training.