Our National Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month (NDDAM) series from self-advocate Kim Hudson continues with her reflections on an inclusive high school setting and finding the social and personal resources for success. “Glory Days” was a popular Bruce Springsteen song while I was in high school. Fortunately, unlike the characters in the song I never felt as if my life peaked in high school. I spent my high school years with my friends…

March is National Developmental Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month!  To celebrate, we’ll be spending NDDAM, as we like to call it, sharing stories from individuals in our programs, our staff, and members of our community who want to tell their stories, pose questions, or spark discussion.  This week we’re focusing on education, and we’re pleased to share this piece from Paul Nankivell, a UCPLA-affiliated author who recently published h…

March is National Developmental Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month!  To celebrate, we’ll be spending NDDAM, as we like to call it, sharing stories from individuals in our programs, our staff, and members of our community who want to tell their stories, pose questions, or spark discussion.  This week we’re focusing on education, and our first story comes from self-advocate Kim Hudson, who writes about being the first student with a phys…

Self-advocate and guest blogger Kim Hudson is back with us to share her experience at – and her favorite finds from – the LA Abilities Expo! I attended the Abilities Expo on Friday, February 22, 2019 at the Los Angeles Convention Center. Each year there are hundreds of exhibitors and thousands of people attending this three-day event.  As always, the exhibit hall was full of booths which included: several wheelchair manufacturers, wheelchair a…

  There’s an old adage in the advocacy community that states “if you’re not at the table you’re on the menu.” It’s critically important in this age of stagnant disability services rates and increases in state and federal unfunded mandates that all advocates speak out loudly and clearly that our elected officials in Sacramento and Washington, D.C. must prioritize people with disabilities.   In this blog series, I will be sharing some of the most …

During 2019, UCPLA will be featuring a series of guest blogs from program participants, Board members, supporters, and others who want to share their viewpoints and experiences.  Self-advocate Kim Hudson, who holds a Master’s in Social Work and is active at advocacy meetings and workshops at UCPLA’s Washington Place Adult Day and Behavioral Services, has returned to share her impressions of the recent premiere of “Mind Over Matter”, a document…

During 2019, UCPLA will be featuring a series of guest blogs from program participants, Board members, supporters, and others who want to share their viewpoints and experiences.  First up, we are excited to share this entry from self-advocate Kim Hudson, who holds a Master’s in Social Work and is active at advocacy meetings and workshops at UCPLA’s Washington Place Adult Day and Behavioral Services. By: Kim Hudson, MSW I have Cerebral Palsy an…

Dear Fellow Members of the UCPLA Family, As the Chair of our Board, I find myself in a uniquely bittersweet position at the opening of this new year. As most of you know by now, this month we will bid farewell to our President and Chief Executive Officer Ronald S. Cohen, who has led this organization with skill and finesse for nearly 40 years. During Ron’s more than 30 years as President and CEO, he has grown UCPLA from an organization with a …

A Note from Paul Miller, UCPLA’s Board Chair, on Our 75th Anniversary This year, UCPLA celebrates 75 years of building the UCPLA family.  As Chair of UCPLA’s Board of Directors, I am grateful for everything this anniversary signifies – for me, for my family, and for the people UCPLA serves.  In my case, these three categories overlap: my big sister Karen has been a resident at UCPLA since she was a teenager.  When Karen and my parents made the…

This year, UCPLA turns 75. Seven and a half decades ago, dedicated families seeking community-based services for their children with developmental disabilities came together to build something that would endure beyond them. They wanted a trusted place that would care for their children, and for the many generations to come, in a safe, nurturing, loving environment. They wanted to provide structure, support, and independence for their loved one…

In honor of National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM) in October, I recently sat down with Brandon Mendenhall, disability advocate, founder of the hard-rock band The Mendenhall Experiment, UCPLA’s Board of Governors member, and the recipient of our inaugural Trailblazer Award in 2015.  Brandon and I spoke about his passion for music, his quest to raise disability awareness, and the challenges and successes of his experiment to see…

Assemblymember Dante Acosta (District 38) recently visited UCPLA’s Chatsworth campus to see firsthand the way our programs impact the lives of individuals with developmental disabilities, as well as the vital role our staff plays in this programming.  UCPLA was especially gratified to host Assemblymember Acosta, as he was the first Assemblymember to support the vital Assembly Bill 279 (AB279) after its introduction into the California State As…