|
|
|
2008 National AgrAbility Workshop
Download PowerPoint Viewer |
Promoting Success in Agriculture for People with Disabilities and Their Families
State Project Feature: Northern New England AgrAbility ProjectDuring the 1960’s the Vermont Rural and Farm Family Vocational Rehabilitation Program was the first and only formal program serving farm families affected by disabilities in the United States. The program has been funded by the Vermont Division of Vocational Rehabilitation for over thirty eight years. Daryl Lowry, the director of this project from 1972 - 1993, conducted presentations around the U.S. sharing the successes of supporting farmers with disabilities. In its 38 years of existence, the Vermont Rural and Farm Family Vocational Rehabilitation Program has served over 8,000 farmers with disabilities. The program provides multiple services including: financial assistance towards farms, home site modifications, farm site assessments, health restoration, education and training, and cost share for farm labor while recovering from disabling conditions. In 1991, Vermont received an AgrAbility grant that provided funding to expand its capabilities and improve existing services while establishing a partnership between the Easter Seal Society of New Hampshire and the Vermont Rural and Farm Family Vocational Rehabilitation Program. While the initial grant lasted only four years, services to agricultural producers continued without AgrAbility funds until 2003 when once again the University of Vermont, Extension was awarded an AgrAbility grant. The Northern New England AgrAbility Project provides services to farm families throughout Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine. The University of Vermont, Extension is partnering with ATECH Services, a private non-profit disability organization whose focus is on the application of assistive technology to increase independence at home, school, work and play. ATECH provides mobile outreach assistive technology services and has been in existence since 1994. Each year ATECH assists over 4,000 individuals throughout New Hampshire. The mobile outreach unit provides on site assistive technology evaluation and exploration services. Small assistive technology equipment is loaned to agricultural producers for a trial period in order to determine the most appropriate and effective solutions. The University of Vermont, Extension staff who work on the AgrAbility project include Brett Chornyak, principle investigator, and Bill Snow, outreach specialist. Project staff at ATECH Services includes Therese Willkomm, Ph.D., ATP, rehabilitation technology consultant; Susan Shaw, occupational therapist and rural rehabilitation specialist; and Jane Bell, coordinator of AgrAbility Services in Maine.
Northern New England StaffBrett Chornyak is the principle investigator and co-project director with the Northern New England AgrAbility Project. Brett received a master’s degree in Rehabilitation Services at Florida State University and has been the coordinator of the Vermont Rural and Farm Family Vocational Rehabilitation Program at the University of Vermont, Extension since 1996. He has been with the AgrAbility project for 9 years. Bill Snow, the AgrAbility outreach specialist, worked at the University of Vermont, Extension for 34 years in a variety of positions including dairy herd management specialist, regional specialist, county agent and 4-H agent. Bill has been with the Northern New England AgrAbility Project for 1.5 years working in Vermont.
Therese Willkomm is executive director of ATECH Services, an assistant professor in the Occupational Therapy Department at the University of New Hampshire, co-director of the New Hampshire Technology Partnership Project and the Northern New England AgrAbility Project as well as an assistive technology specialist with the National AgrAbility Project. She holds a Ph.D. in Rehabilitation Technology from the University of Pittsburgh and has over 22 years experience in providing/managing assistive technology services. Sue Shaw serves as the rural rehabilitation specialist for the Northern New England AgrAbility Project and is an occupational therapist with ATECH. The majority of her work experience has been in an acute rehabilitation setting focusing on neurological impairments, neuromuscular diseases and orthopedic related injuries. Sue has been with the Northern New England AgrAbility Project for nearly a year. Jane Bell is the rural rehabilitation specialist for the Northern New England AgrAbility Project in Maine. She is an elected member of the Farm Services Committee and an information specialist for the Autism Society of Maine.
Mark your Calendars! 2005 National Training Workshop 2005 in Burlington, Vermont This year, the National AgrAbility Project, in partnership with the Northern New England AgrAbility Project, is hosting the annual educational and training workshop at the Wyndham Burlington on November 7-10, 2005. Please visit the National AgrAbility Project website for updates and more information about the National Training Workshop 2005.
|
||||||||||||
| © 2000-2008, agrabilityproject.org and the University of Wisconsin Regents. USDA Grant 2000-41590-0932 and 2004-41590-01880 |
