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Independent Living News & Policy from the National Council on Independent Living

CIL-NET Presents… A National Teleconference & Webinar: IL Partnership with Disability Advisory Councils, Boards, and Commissions

September 10, 2019; 3:00 – 4:30 p.m. Eastern

Presented by: Todd Holloway & Luke Byram

Register online or by using the printable registration form (PDF)

The Independent Living (IL) Movement is full of disability subject matter experts who make fantastic advisory council and commission members. Does your city or county have a disability or accessibility body to provide subject matter advice or direction? This webinar will cover positive outcomes and best practices as the result of being involved with your community at the advisory level.

Independent Living Philosophy is often overlooked by government and non-government organizations alike. Even disability related organizations miss opportunities to expand awareness regarding IL. Advisory opportunities are a great way to expand awareness about the IL Movement. As a volunteer and advocate, people who know IL can open doors to more accessibility and educate professionals and representatives about disability laws and rights. Creating an advisory group, council, commission, or simply joining an existing group is a powerful way to advocate for the rights of ALL people in the community.

Join us on September 10 to learn how you can join or start your own local disability advisory board! 

Registration Fee: $75.00. Fee is per site and does not apply per participant; registrants are encouraged to gather as many individuals as desired to participate.

Target Audience:

Executive Directors, program managers, staff, and any others interested in partnerships with advisory bodies

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this training, participants will have knowledge and resources that will enable them to:

  • Describe the types, classification, and definitions of advisory bodies.
  • Describe the benefits associated with using advisory boards.
  • Describe strategies to locate, recruit, and engage a diverse pool of candidates for the advisory body.
  • Identify tools and strategies for developing partnerships with advisory boards and committees that include goal development and strategic planning.

Meet Your Presenters 

Luke Byram serves on the Board of Directors of Center for Independence in Lakewood, Washington. He also serves as a member of the Tacoma Area Commission on Disabilities where he has been an active member on several projects the commission has undertaken. He also is a member of the National Council on Independent Living (NCIL). Luke has been involved with NCIL’s Youth Caucus and other committees and is co-chair for the KASA Board of Family Voices. Luke lives and attends college in Tacoma, Washington.

Todd Holloway has worked for the Center For Independence (CFI) in Lakewood, WA for fifteen years. In that time he has expanded CFI’s community relationships by working directly with peer organizations and ALL of the government and non-government organizations that intersect with Independent Living and our movement.

He is currently the chair of the NCIL Emergency Preparedness Subcommittee as well as the chair of the Tacoma Area Commission on Disability (TACoD) and the co-chair of the Pierce County Accessible Communities Advisory Council (PC-ACAC). Systemic change has become a huge focus for him and he joins many of our IL family in sharing lessons learned and best practices in an attempt to achieve true equality in all of our communities!

The IL-NET is a national training and technical assistance project for centers for independent living and statewide independent living councils. The IL-NET is operated by Independent Living Research Utilization (ILRU) in partnership with the National Council on Independent Living (NCIL), the Association of Programs for Rural Independent Living (APRIL), and Utah State University Center for Persons with Disabilities. 

The IL-NET is supported by grant numbers 90ILTA0001 and 90ISTA0001 from the U.S. Administration for Community Living, Department of Health and Human Services, Washington, D.C. 20201. Grantees undertaking projects under government sponsorship are encouraged to express freely their findings and conclusions. Points of view or opinions do not, therefore, necessarily represent official Administration for Community Living policy.

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