CPD in the Media

In a small room at Utah State University’s Center for Persons with Disabilities on Thursday, Will Zetterquist, 2, giggles and squeals as he plays with globs of Play-Doh. Sue Olsen, director of the CPD’s Exemplary Services Division, hands Will a rolling pin. Then his mother, Marisa, rolls a small Play-Doh ball into a “snake” to show him. The exercise is designed to expose Will — who has a speech delay, and whose older brother is on the autism spectrum — to lots of sensory input that will hopefully help him with social interactions and conversations.

Commerce has moved online. Now, the disability lawsuits are following. Advocates for disabled Americans have declared that companies have a legal obligation to make their websites as accessible as their stores, and they\'ve filed suits across the country to force them to install the digital version of wheelchair ramps and self-opening doors.

President Barack Obama has appointed Utahn Sachin Pavithran, who is blind, to a federal board that writes the technical standards for policies about access for the disabled to buildings, transit vehicles, telecommunications equipment and information technology.

TEDx,a global set of conferences, is designed to give communities, organizations and individuals the opportunity to stimulate dialogue through TED-like experiences at the local level. Christopher Gauthier's presentation includes an exhibition of the project, "Evidence and Artifacts: Facing Autism", and an impassioned explanation of it’s conception, objectives, and future goals.

The Latino/Latina Voices Project collected the voices of 45 Cache Valley Latino community members. This year, they’re following up on the first part of the project by talking exclusively to Hispanic youth. Eduardo Ortiz, senior research associate in the research and evaluation office in the USU Center for Persons with Disabilities, is helping in conducting the oral history interviews.

The American Association for Education and Rehabilitation of the Blind and Visually Impaired recognized Elizabeth Dennison for written work that has significantly impacted her field, presenting her with the bi-annual Warren Bledsoe Award for curricula that have trained professionals in 44 states and six countries.

After expressing his desire to rebuild trust between parents, educators and lawmakers, Martell Menlove was named superintendent of public instruction by the State School Board.