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Employment for Latinos with disabilities focus of July conference
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Apr. 20, 2004 -- The third national conference on "Bridges to Employment for Latinos with Disabilities" is July 14-16 in Chicago' -- conference organizers call it a "national forum about issues concerning disabled Latinos and employment." For more information or to register, go to http://www.proyectovision.net/english/bridges/index.html
Conference sponsors include the World Institute on Disability, through Proyecto Visi—n, its National Technical Assistance Center for Latinos with Disabilities, and the Chicago-based Committee for the Integration of Latinos with Disabilities. Proyecto Visi—n is funded by the Department of Education's Rehabilitation Services Administration and based in Oakland. To visit the project's website in Spanish, go to http://www.proyectovision.net/index_spa.html the English-language version is at http://www.proyectovision.net/ The Proyecto Visi—n Listserv , which you can sign up for on the site, offers discussions of topics concerning Latinos with disabilities and their families, with emphasis on employment and training opportunities.
Proyecto Visi—n also involves Access Living in the Metropolitan Chicago area and the Harlem Independent Living Center. The Central Coast Center for Independent Living, based in Salinas, California, is also part of Proyecto Visi—n; it specializes in services to disabled agricultural and migrant worker. Rehabilitation International provides technical assistance.
The July conference offers "two days of workshops, panels and roundtable discussions conducted by employment specialists and representatives of Latino, disability and government organizations/agencies," say sponsors. "Conference sessions will focus on job training opportunities and job openings in the Chicago and Midwest regions; resume writing; interview preparation; networking; financial support for higher education; individual development accounts; benefits; transitions from benefits to employment; current legislative acts; government programs available to disabled Latinos, and more." Sessions will be available "in English or Spanish, reflecting demand," say organizers.