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OCRA gets a great start H iring assistants for all 21 regional center clients’ rights advocates brings OCRA’s start-up phase to a close. The new assistants will be responsible for:
Most assistants have experience in social services; many are bilingual. Some assistants will also have training in specific areas of law. They will represent consumers at meetings that deal with those issues. The new CRA assistants are: Jacqueline Gallegos — Alta Regional Center Allisha Ross — Central Valley Regional Center Leyla Campos — East Los Angeles Regional Center Phyllis Preston — Far Northern Regional Center Dennis Green (temp) — Golden Gate Regional Center Meriah Harwood — Harbor Regional Center Ruby Vasquez — Inland Regional Center Valerie Geary — Kern Regional Center Blanca Espinosa — Lanterman Regional Center Barbara Everett — North Bay Regional Center Ada Quintero — North L.A. County Regional Center Crystal Padilla — Regional Center of the East Bay Maria Bryant — Regional Center of Orange County Anne Kuo — San Andreas Regional Center Katherine Jones — San Diego Regional Center Rita Snykers — San Gabriel/Pomona Regional Center Aleyda Toruno — South Central L.A. Regional Center LaVern Webb — Tri-Counties Regional Center Norma Lianci — Valley Mountain Regional Center Patricia Pratt — Westside Regional Center Assistants are highly qualified All of the assistants have superb qualifications. Many have years of experience working with people with disabilities and making referrals to appropriate resources. Most have been in social services or legal work. Several are law school graduates. Many are bilingual in English and Spanish or an Asian language. OCRA welcomes its new employees. With their help, we look forward to providing even better advocacy services to people with developmental disabilities. Associate advocate hired for Redwood Coast OCRA has also hired an associate advocate to serve Redwood Coast Regional Center (RCRC) consumers in Lake County. Doug Harris, a paralegal with many years’ experience in Social Security law, has accepted the position. Most recently, Harris was director of a private foster family agency for people with developmental disabilities. He will work out of RCRC’s Lakeport office. Harris’s duties will be similar to those of the two part-time advocates who work out of RCRC’s Ukiah and Eureka offices. CRAs are off and running On July 1, 1999, the Office of Clients’ Rights Advocacy (OCRA) began providing clients’ rights advocacy services for regional center consumers. The clients’ rights advocates (CRAs) provide information, technical assistance and direct representation for consumers, their families, and interested community members. SSI eligibility reinstated Keith Sakimura, North Los Angeles County Regional Center’s CRA, reestablished Mario’s * SSI (Supplemental Security Income) eligibility. An auto accident had left Mario in a coma with severe head trauma, organic brain disorder, and a psychiatric diagnosis. Though he had only two weeks from initial intake to hearing, Sakimura won. He argued that Mario met the SSI listings and did not have the functional capacity to work. Mario’s family was even more delighted when Sakimura also got 12 months of retroactive benefits for their son.Behavior linked to need for communication Anahid Hoonanian represented Steven, a young man who is deaf and uses some sign language to communicate. Steven’s mother did not feel that she could care for him at home when he got out of the hospital after yet another psychiatric commitment. Hoonanian gave Steven’s parents the information they needed, and explained sections of the Welfare and Institutions Code so they could advocate for their son with better results. IPP team agrees to fund behavior assessment and ongoing counseling. Hoonanian, who is the CRA at Harbor Regional Center, went to Steven’s Individual Program Plan (IPP) meeting. At that meeting, his IPP team decided to place him in a licensed home that specializes in behavior problems. The IPP team also agreed to fund behavior assessment and ongoing counseling. Steven now has a support person who uses sign language. Because of Hoonanian’s work for Steven, there is also a plan to develop a home for consumers who are deaf. Suspension was not proper Donnalee Huffman, the CRA at Kern Regional Center, represented a consumer with autism. David was suspended from school for kicking at another child. Although the school knew that David tends to kick at people who come close to him, staff left him alone with another child — with no aide and no supervision. David kicked at the other boy, who then hit him. Huffman notified the school district that they had not followed the laws that cover suspending a student with a developmental disability. The next business day, she attended a meeting where the district took statements from witnesses and from David. The district then lifted the suspension, agreed not to mention the incident in David’s school record, and changed the other boy’s placement. David’s family was very pleased with the outcome. Arts center is not accessible Elizabeth Thompson, a Redwood Coast Regional Center CRA, has a client with cerebral palsy who is a gifted artist and writer. For years, Marsha wanted to be part of workshops offered by the Ink People Center — a nonprofit arts association in Eureka. Unfortunately, the city-owned building that houses the center is not wheelchair accessible. While the center offers some programs in accessible buildings, most workshops are at the center. The center also houses a gallery and a library. Artist had to wait outside the inaccessible gallery while family and friends viewed her winning entry. When Marsha won a poster contest, she could not get to the reception honoring the winners. She had to wait outside in the dark and cold while her family and friends went into the gallery to see her winning entry. Thompson sent demand letters to the Ink People Center and the City of Eureka. She asked them to modify the building for wheelchair access. She also asked for accommodations to allow Marsha to take part in the center’s programs. Future workshops will be accessible The center’s director met with Thompson and Marsha to work out accommodations. The director assured Marsha that any workshops she wants to attend will be accessible. The center will also give her a list of all items in their library, with a short description of each. They will deliver any items she wants to borrow to her home. The Ink People Center also agreed to put notices in its newsletters telling readers that the center will make accommodations for people with disabilities. Center gets willing volunteer Marsha is not the only one to benefit. She has volunteered to be the Ink People Center’s event coordinator, and to help with fund raising. She will also sit on the steering committee. There, she will have a direct impact on the programs Ink People Center offers and on how those programs can better meet the needs of people with disabilities. CRA files federal complaint Because the City of Eureka never responded, Thompson filed a Title II complaint with the U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division, Disability Rights Section. It is currently pending. –––––––––––––––––––––––– *All consumer names in this article are fictitious.
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