2022 NADSP Virtual Event

Sep 1, 2022 | Events, News

About The 2022 Virtual Event

From September 14th – 15th, NADSP and the Research and Training Center on Community Living from the Institute on Community Integration at the University of Minnesota, will host our third virtual event . This coincides with National Direct Support Professional (DSP) Recognition Week, which takes place from September 11th – 17th. This event is completely free to attendees.

It goes beyond just the recognition and appreciation for DSPs, by sharing specific actions and cutting-edge approaches to improve the human services field and elevate the status of DSPs. NADSP is celebrating National Direct Support Recognition Week with two days of virtual events celebrating excellence in the direct support workforce.

John F. Kennedy Jr. Award for Direct Support Workforce Advocacy & Leadership Presentation for Gary Blumenthal

  • Gary Blumenthal, Vice President, Governmental Relations/Advocacy, InVision Human Services
  • Patrick DeMico, Executive Director, The Provider Alliance
  • Jeanne M Farr, CEO, NADD
  • Amy Hewitt, PhD, FAAIDD, Director, Institute on Community Integration at University of Minnesota
  • Governor Laura Kelly, Kansas
  • Joseph Macbeth, President and CEO, National Alliance for Direct Support Professionals
  • Ruth E. Siegfried, Founder and President/CEO, InVision Human Services

The John F. Kennedy Jr. Award for Direct Support Workforce Advocacy & Leadership Presentation and Welcome will feature a message from the Governor of Kansas, Laura Kelly.  Following that message, the John F. Kennedy Jr. Award Workforce Advocacy & Leadership will be presented to Gary Blumenthal. This award recognizes an individual who has demonstrated a distinguished career of excellence and leadership in support of NADSP’s mission to enhance the quality of support provided to people with disabilities through the provision of products, services, and certifications which elevate the status of direct support workers, improve practice standards, promote systems reform and, most importantly, advance the knowledge, skills & values of our dedicated workforce.

Hingsburger Humanitarian Award Ceremony for Steve Eidelman

  • Caitlin Bailey, Co-Director, National Leadership Consortium on Developmental Disabilities
  • Steve Eidelman, National Leadership Consortium on Developmental Disabilities
  • Kristen Loomis, Co-Director, National Leadership Consortium on Developmental Disabilities
  • Joseph Macbeth, President and CEO, National Alliance for Direct Support Professionals

In Dave Hingsburger’s honor, the National Alliance for Direct Support Professionals created the Hingsburger Humanitarian Award in 2021. The recipients of this prestigious award will be those who are champions and allies with people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and has demonstrated excellence in their advocacy with people with disabilities and direct support professionals.  Dave was not only concerned about the well-being and quality of life for people with disabilities but was a fierce advocate for inclusion, fairness and equality. In that spirit, we will honor the legacy of work of Steve Eidelman as our 2022 Awardee.

Progress to Policy: The State of Direct Support Professional Workforce, What’s Next?

  • Dan Berland, Director of Federal Policy, NASDDDS (invited)
  • Lydia Dawson, Director of Policy, Regulatory & Legal Analysis, ANCOR
  • Nicole Jorwic, Chief of Advocacy and Campaigns, Caring Across Generations
  • Christopher Kush, MPP, CEO, Soapbox Consulting
  • Joseph Macbeth, President and CEO, National Alliance for Direct Support Professionals

Six months ago, NADSP hosted its first policy and hill visit day resulting in virtual meetings with over half of the United States Congress. This historic event was many attendees first time participating in this type of event but it will not be their last. After decades of inaction, high turnover rates and a lack of professional recognition, the direct support workforce has experienced new and unforeseen hardships caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. In a follow up panel discussion, expert policy partners will share information on the current state of the direct support workforce on the federal level. Discussion moderated by NADSP President and CEO Joe Macbeth.

Frontline Initiative – The Diverse Voices of DSPs

  • Julie Dahlof Kramme, MA, Co-Editor, Frontline Initiative, Institute on Community Integration at the University of Minnesota
  • Chet Tschetter, Co-Editor, Frontline Initiative, Institute on Community Integration at the University of Minnesota

Frontline Initiative’s most recent issue on The Diverse Voices of DSPs is packed with stories from people from across the country telling their truth about being part of the DSP workforce. Each person faces unique situations in their day-to-day work and lives, some of which are challenging. They also share their victories and joys. Join us as we talk to some of the authors about why Diversity, Equality and Inclusion are so important to them and the people they support.

NADSP Virtual Event: A Retrospective of Providing Direct Support During the COVID-19 Pandemic

  • John Raffaele, Director of Educational Services, National Alliance for Direct Support Professionals
  • Jerry Smith, Director of Marketing and Communications,  Institute on Community Integration at the University of Minnesota

Join Jerry Smith from the University of Minnesota’s Institute on Community Integration and John Raffaele from the National Alliance for Direct Support Professionals as they review the last two and a half years of living and working through a global pandemic. Using findings from four national DSP/COVID-19 surveys, focus groups, and interviews with DSPs and frontline supervisors, they will explore what direct support workers and the people they support experienced, and continue to experience, as we lived with COVID-19. They will discuss NADSP’s vaccine hesitancy campaign, strategies DSPs have used to keep themselves and the people they support safe and healthy, observations from the Frontline Initiative issue on DSPs responding to COVID-19, and what the future holds for the profession of direct support in a “post COVID” world.

Current Sponsors

The NADSP and the Research and Training Center on Community Living from the Institute on Community Integration at the University of Minnesota are grateful for the support from our community members. Thank you to our sponsors for showcasing their support and good will to DSPs.

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