About the Site - History/Background Information

1. About the site - >History/Background Information

History/Background Information

The development of this web site was made possible through the Muttart Foundation Fellowships program. The Muttart Fellowships program provides a sabbatical year to senior management of social-service charities. During the year away from our agencies, the selected individuals undertake special projects of their own design. These projects are meant to inform the broader charitable sector.

My proposal to the Muttart Foundation was to:

develop a catalogue or resource manual which described in detail tools, products, techniques and other resources that are currently being used successfully to assist individuals with developmental disabilities. The focus of these resources would be to assist individuals to gain a greater understanding of their rights, responsibilities, daily living and life skills; and thus become more a part of society.

As well, the information was to:

be directed towards service providers, direct support staff, program coordinators, etc. working directly with or assisting adults with severe to moderate developmental disabilities.
not focus on literacy as a study had recently been completed by the Saskatchewan Association of Rehabilitation Centres (SARC) in partnership with the National Literacy Secretariat.
A synopsis of Inclusive Literacy - Annotated Listing of Resources for Learners with Intellectual/Developmental Challenges and the companion resource SARC Supplementary Tutor Handbook - Supporting Literacy for People with Intellectual/Developmental Disabilities have been included in the Daily Life Activities section.
not focus on supported employment. An Alternatives to Employment subsection has been included. The information currently in this section and hopefully future contributions will focus on non-conventional/standardized forms of "work" which have been developed for persons with more severe disabilities.
provide the reader with a clear understanding of the tools, resources, etc.; recognize the time constraints of service providers; be easily incorporated into day to day activities; identify training requirements for implementation, etc.
A decision was made to change the format from that of a catalogue or resource manual to a web site. A web site was determined to be more far reaching, easier to keep current and update as needed, available to whomever, where ever, . . .
Acknowledging that computer/internet access is not available to all direct support staff, the individual write-ups can be printed off and placed in a binder, etc.
be obtained through a number of methods including: internet searches, requests for information made directly to individuals and organizations identified by provincial, national and professional associations as being leaders in these areas, and made at provincial and national conferences that occurred during the fellowship year, etc.

The information, ideas, tools, resources, included within are a culmination of my fellowship year and the project I undertook. Once I began to put my plan into action it became obvious that some things would be different than initially proposed. The focus areas were developed in response to identified needs/gaps and information shared.

This project is in no way complete or all inclusive. Every visit, every conversation, every book, every web site, . . . lead to more resources, ideas, . . . . that should have been or could have been included.

It is my hope that this become a working site and that service providers feel free to make comments/suggestions/critique the information; and contribute their ideas, suggestions, information about what they are doing that works, etc. to assist or enable adults with severe to moderate disabilities to live their lives to the fullest, to attain their most achievable level of independence, inclusion and self-determination.

I would like to acknowledge the assistance of the many service providers, program managers, professionals, educators, developers, distributors, . . . who took the time to talk to me either in person, by phone or by email; responded to a questionnaire (members of the Saskatchewan Association of Rehabilitation Centres), offered suggestions, ideas, acted as sounding boards. Your assistance was greatly appreciated.

Finally I would like to thank the Muttart Foundation Board of Directors for selecting me for the Fellowship program and enabling me to undertake this project. To Bob Wyatt, Executive Director of the Muttart Foundation and Cristine Poulsen the Executive Assistant, thank-you for support, direction and counsel.

Naomi Hjertaas
Muttart Fellow, 2000

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