2008-09-05 Committee on People with Disabilities Minutes_PRattach

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reviewed with parents, and implementation went smoothly. A child with Down syndrome actively participated without a personal assistant in a program with over 140 children. It was a good match of ability, awesome staff, and program style. Another child with multiple disabilities thrived with friends and siblings in a small scale rural Summer Fun Program. More children with asthma were documented this year and special caution was taken due to intense vog and sulfur emissions, especially in Puna. Puna Summer Fun programs have the highest incidence of children with disabilities and behavior challenges. This could be due to many different factors and may not be disability issues. Many families are “at risk”: Addiction, abuse, poor parenting, grandparents raising children, and children in constantly changing foster homes affect behavior. Many disabilities are not disclosed initially, but are disclosed when extreme behavior warrants calls to parents. I highly recommend extra staff here to lower the ratio to 1:15 instead of 1:20. An adoptive mom was having her 9 year old child evaluated professionally for the first time. With her permission, my observations of her child in summer fun were shared with a case manager and therapist demonstrating the depth interagency support and inclusive services can reach. Other Recreation Division reports: Inclusive Judo class has 4 children with disabilities successfully participating in a regular program. Staff questions arose regarding service animals in training and a patron’s letter from her therapist saying she required a therapy animal. I reminded staff these are animals are not considered service animals and are not covered by the ADA. It’s the person that has rights not the animal. I submitted proposals for open house recreation orientations in each district and submitted ADA budget suggestions for modifications, equipment, and training materials.