The Henry Visconti School, a New York State supported special education school that prides itself on treating its students with dignity and respect, was recently praised in the New York Times for allowing severely disabled students to succeed in school through the use of technology and on-site medical care. According to the school website, the… Read More »
Posts Categorized: Special Needs
Chalimony: When Divorce Meets Special Needs
As many parents of special needs kids know, raising a disabled child is much more expensive than raising typical children. I have previously discussed some of the extraordinary costs in my post on Divorce and Special Needs Children. Many states mandate that parents of a disabled child continue supporting these children, even after they are… Read More »
What's in a Name? Rosa's Law Passed
Federal statutes will no longer use the term “mental retardation” instead substituting the phrase “intellectual disability.” President Obama officially signed into law this October a bill that has spent months wending its way through Congress. Who is Rosa? Rosa is a now 9-year old Maryland girl with Down’s Syndrome. Her mother took issue with the… Read More »
Apple’s iPad Proving to be a Boon to Special Needs Families
Children with speech and communication problems are benefiting from apps designed for the iPad. “Before she got an iPad at age two, Caleigh Gray couldn’t respond to yes-or-no questions. Now Caleigh, who has been diagnosed with cerebral palsy, uses a $190 software application that speaks the words associated with pictures she touches on the “tablet”… Read More »
Monica & David: Must See TV For The Special Needs Community
In the meantime, I want the special needs community to know about the film ‘Monica and David’ that premieres tonight on HBO — a love story about two adults with Down Syndrome.
New Long Island Special Needs Radio Show
Monday Evenings at 6:30PM EST Special Needs Long Island is a weekly radio program dedicated to the special needs community on Long Island. It is a forum where the latest information involving special needs will be provided. Featured guests are from special needs organizations, professionals practicing in the field, families and individuals with special needs…. Read More »
Should We Celebrate Mental Illness Awareness Week?
The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) celebrates Mental Illness Awareness Week (MIAW) during the first week in October. In 1990, the U.S. Congress established MIAW in recognition of NAMI’s efforts to raise mental illness awareness. MIAW has become a NAMI tradition. According to NAMI, the week “presents an opportunity to all NAMI state organizations… Read More »
The Clean-Up: New York Power of Attorney Overhauled Again
As of September 12, 2010, New York’s Power of Attorney, having undergone a major revision just last year, has been amended to clear up the confusion and unintended consequences of last year’s major overhaul of the power of attorney form. All prior powers of attorney are still valid. One important change is that revocation of… Read More »
Jennifer Aniston, Politically Incorrect?
In the latest controversy this year over the use of the word retard or retarded, Jennifer Aniston used the word “retard” self-deprecatingly on Regis and Kelly Live while describing how she plays dress-up for a living. The Oxford English Dictionary defines a retard as a mentally disabled person. From Wikipedia: Mental retardation (MR) is a… Read More »
Temple Grandin–A Beautiful Mind
Temple Grandin, the child without a voice, has become the voice of reason for autism.