Monthly Updates

July/August 2008 Contents:

1. New Employees Equal New Advocates for the NA
2. Calling All DSPs — Rally in Washington This September!
3. Did You Know?

New Employees Equal New Advocates for the NAC

Involvement in ANCOR’s National Advocacy Campaign (NAC) begins on day one at Danville Services of Nevada LLC. New employees are asked to sign on in support of the NAC during their employee orientation.

“We want them to understand that they are the best advocates for increasing wages,” said Rebecca Scott, human resources director for Danville Services’ Las Vegas operations. “We emphasize the importance of each individual to the larger campaign.” No employee has ever declined to sign on.

“I think it is important to let new employees know about the NAC,” said Scott. “It lets them know they need to be advocates for themselves and the people they serve. It also lets them understand that they are part of something that is going on nationwide.”

According to Jeff Britt, ANCOR’s NAC grassroots advisor, introducing employees to the NAC their first day on the job is an excellent way to increase the grassroots level of awareness about the campaign and the issue of increasing wages for direct support professionals (DSP). “The earlier you can draw people into activism the better. Disability issues have always relied on grassroots activism to make progress.”

Britt adds, “In fact, the movement of people from state-run institutions to community-based settings would not have taken place without the strength and influence of organized grassroots supporters over the past few decades.”

Danville Services of Nevada LLC is just one example of how agencies are getting involved in promoting the NAC. If you have an innovative or unique approach to getting your DSPs involved in the NAC, please let us know! E-mail your efforts to Jeff Britt at jbritt@mwcllc.com.

Calling All DSPs — Rally in Washington This September!

It goes without saying that direct support professionals (DSPs) are the foundation of the community-based supports system. It also goes without saying that low Medicaid reimbursement rates make it very difficult for private providers to maintain a full, high-quality direct support staff. This September, as part of the annual Governmental Activities Seminar, ANCOR is once again offering its members a unique opportunity to showcase their DSPs and raise awareness in Washington, D.C. about the challenges facing the direct support workforce via the DSPs to DC event!

The 2007 DSP to DC rally was a tremendous success, generating attention and considerable momentum in support of H.R. 1279. With your participation, we hope to build on that success this year!

ANCOR is working hard to give America’s direct support workforce a voice – and no one can communicate the challenges facing this essential workforce better than DSPs themselves. This event is critical to raising the visibility of the workforce crisis and workforce legislation on Capitol Hill. DSPs cannot afford to miss—providers cannot afford to leave their DSPs at home. DSPs are invited to attend this special event at no charge, as long as they are accompanied by a paid Governmental Activities Seminar registrant.

Please join us for ANCOR’s Governmental Activities Seminar, September 7-9, 2008, at the Washington Court Hotel. To register, go to http://www.ancor.org/cet/index.html.

Participants at the 2007 DSPs to DC event