DBTAC: SOUTHEAST ADA CENTER
A Project of the Burton Blatt Institute at Syracuse University
The DBTAC: Southeast ADA Center (Southeast DBTAC) and our State and Local Affiliate Network have, slowly but surely, been making a difference in people’s lives over the past 20 years. We have worked in our communities to promote voluntary compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act. Many “big things” have occurred through the years with the ADA that have received a lot of media attention, including the passage of the ADA Amendments Act.
However, it is those hundreds of little steps toward achieving access and nondiscrimination on the basis of disability that we think are the “truly big” story. All across America individuals, with and without disabilities, have been making differences in people’s lives. It is these foot/wheelchair/scooter soldiers who are the real heroes in our fight for equal access, equal opportunity and equal participation in our communities.
Congratulations to our colleagues, friends and associates who make up the powerful Southeast DBTAC ADA Network and who have improved the lives of people with disabilities by promoting voluntary compliance.
Florida - Blindness No Barrier for Rays Radio Broadcaster Oliu
Kentucky - News Service is a Lifeline to the Blind
Mississippi - The Backstory Behind the Consent Decree
North Carolina - Working Together to Create Employment Opportunities in North Carolina
Tennessee - Nashville International Airport Opens Pet Relief Area
Southeast DBTAC - People with Disabilities in the Workplace
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Enrique Oliu rocks in his chair in the Tampa Bay Rays broadcast booth, his head cocked in the air, not pointed toward the diamond below. He describes what he just heard, not what he just saw.
Oliu has been blind since his birth in Nicaragua and can only make out bright lights, yet he has a feel for the game that makes him effective. His wife, Debra Perry, sits to his right and will lean in and whisper a statistic between pitches or at-bats, but the rest is up to Oliu.
For more on this story…
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/baseball/al/rays/2009-06-15-enrique-oliu-rays-broadcaster_N.htm
In Kentucky, anyone who is visually impaired or has other disabilities that block access to newspapers and magazines, can call Newsline, a service of the National Federation of the Blind that offers free access to newspapers and periodicals 24 hours a day. Pamela Roark-Glisson and her husband John Glisson, who are both visually impaired, heard about Newsline in 1994 and began working to bring it to Kentucky. They were so dedicated to the mission, they became the volunteer state staff for Newsline.
Source:
Kentucky.com: Lexington Herald- Leader (September 27, 2009)
Columnist: Merlene Davis
News service is a lifeline to the blind
www.kentucky.com/latest_news/story/953267.html
The Department of Justice recently obtained a comprehensive settlement agreement with the city of Jackson, MS, to improve access to public transportation for individuals with disabilities [see 2010 Southeast Regional News]. Here is the “backstory” behind the Consent Decree.
In late 2006, Living Independence For Everyone (LIFE) of Mississippi began receiving numerous complaints from consumers about JATRAN and Handilift, stating that they were able to get service only rarely or not at all. In February 2007, LIFE hosted a forum of disability advocates and JATRAN employees to discuss concerns and hear their response. Although the Transit Authority met with advocates, they continued to maintain that change could not happen without more funding. Despite advocates filing numerous complaints with JATRAN and the Federal Transit Authority, there had been no improvement in bus service. So on September 23, 2008 a lawsuit was filed by approximately 11 individual advocates and two organizational advocates. In July 2009, the Department of Justice intervened in this ongoing class action suit alledging that the city had violated Title II of the ADA, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, and their implementing regulations by failing to provide a level of public transportation services to users with disabilities that is comparable to those provided to individuals without disabilities. This suit was resolved by the Consent Decree issued in March 2010.
The Henderson Self Advocates in Henderson, North Carolina, identified the need for increased employment opportunities for persons with developmental disabilities in their community. In order to address this need, they developed a three-part project that focused on the employment status of members of their group. The members of the Henderson Self Advocates are persons with dual diagnoses of cognitive and emotional disabilities. The group places an emphasis on personal advocacy and empowerment.
For more on this story….
http://www.sedbtac.org/ada/ada_in_action/ada_in_actionTemplate.php?ref=28&ptitle=284
Nashville International Airport (BNA) recently opened a pet relief area for its customers’ service animals. This area is located on the north side of the third level, which is the ticketing level, of the terminal. Please note that service animals anywhere on airport property, including the pet relief area, should be leashed at all times.
For more on this story…
http://www.sedbtac.org/ada/ada_in_action/ada_in_actionTemplate.php?ref=28&ptitle=315
Facts and figures about employees with disabilities — tell only one part of the story. Every month an employee profile provides a real-life outlook on employees with disabilities in the workplace — their reliability, their skills, and the low-cost of reasonable accommodations.
Featured stories to date: Cheri H., Eric D., Rene C.,Christinne R. and Frances B.
For more on these stories…
http://www.sedbtac.org/ada/ada_in_action/empprofiles.php