Spotlight on Families
The National Consortium on Deaf-Blindness (NCDB) is a federally funded project that provides technical assistance to families and agencies serving children and young adults who are deaf-blind (ages birth to 21 years). NCDB has designed a set of family and consumer focused TA activities to enhance family and youth empowerment through increased advocacy skills and knowledge of evidence-based practices and available services.
Family Specialists
Definition of Family Support Specialist: an individual who has considerable involvement in the planning, implementation, and evaluation of the state deaf-blind project's technical assistance, training, and support to families of children who are deaf-blind in their state. Most of these individuals are family members who can identify with the concerns and needs of other families.
For nine years, in collaboration with the Hilton/Perkins Program, support has been provided to the deaf-blind projects' family specialists through a multi-year training program. The primary goal of each workshop has been to build the knowledge and skills of family specialists to meet the needs of families of children who are deaf-blind. NCDB will continue to provide training for the family specialists through a workshop offered every other year. Ongoing support is also provided through Internet-based trainings and a LISTSERV.
Previous training topics:
- Promoting Family Empowerment through Advocacy
- Grief & Loss: Walking with Families through Difficult Times
- Assessments and Educational Programming
- Family Empowerment through Family Support
- Social/Sexual Development and Relationships
- Understanding the Family Support Role
- Technical Assistance Strategies for Families
For more information on the Family Support Specialist Training Series contact Paddi Davies Phone: 503-838-8778.
Read about Training Family Support Specialists
Collaboration with NFADB
National Family Association for Deaf-Blind (NFADB) is a non-profit, national family organization established in 1994. The philosophy of the Association is that "Individuals who are deaf-blind are valued members of society and are entitled to the same opportunities and choices as other members of the community. The organization is run by an Executive Committee and 10 Regional Directors.
NCDB maintains a strong collaborative partnership with NFADB. This collaboration focuses on increasing the number of parents who are both knowledgeable of effective practices in deaf-blindness and possess the necessary advocacy skills to obtain appropriate services. Specific activities with NFADB include:
- NFADB representation at national activities, such as NCDB's topical workshop and OSEP's Project Directors' Conference, to increase visibility of parents of children who are deaf-blind at the national level
- NCDB representation on NFADB's advisory committee to bring a national perspective to the family group
- Provision of technical assistance on leadership and organizational skills for NFADB Board Members and state affiliate leaders
- Regular contact between NCDB and the NFADB Executive Committee and Board Members
Family Leadership Training
NCDB will provide a family leadership training program in one to two states each year beginning in October 2007. The participants will be family members who would like to develop leadership and advocacy skills in order to support other families in their state who have children who are deaf-blind. The design and content of the program will be developed in partnership with participating state deaf-blind projects, in order to meet the needs and culture of the state.
Underserved Families
Develop technical assistance and training strategies to serve families from underserved populations. Underserved populations include, but are not limited to, families from varying cultural, linguistic, ethnic, socio-economic and geographic groups. Each underserved group has its own unique characteristics that require individualized strategies for effective TA delivery. NCDB works collaboratively with other organizations serving families to identify underserved populations and develop technical assistance strategies to effectively meet the needs of these families.
Teen Leadership
Develop advocacy and leadership skills in young adults. In collaboration with the American Association for Deaf-Blind (AADB), NCDB provides a teen program at the biennial AADB Convention. Participants have the opportunity to meet and participate in learning opportunities with hundreds of adults who are deaf-blind. The AADB Teen Program will occur in 2008 and 2010.
Provide young adults with deaf-blindness opportunities to explore career options and increase self-determination skills. NCDB partners with state deaf-blind projects, vocational rehabilitation agencies and Helen Keller National Center to offer an annual two-day workshop for 12 to 15 teenagers who are deaf-blind. These partners share the responsibility to provide ongoing training and support to the teen and his or her family following the workshop. This workshop is currently offered in Florida and Georgia and NCDB will replicate this model in other areas of the country.