A New Vision

Employment First: Full Throttle Ahead!

noreply@blogger.com (Don Lavin) — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 05:49:26 PST

To my readers, I launched this blog back in January of 2005 with a goal to contribute to a national dialogue promoting integrated employment in support of adults with disabilities. I called this...

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A Holiday Gift

noreply@blogger.com (Don Lavin) — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 07:21:32 PST

I hadn’t been at the Rise holiday party for 10 minutes when Pauline Niznik, one of our employment consultants, waved to get my attention. She motioned me in the direction of a table where she was...

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Let It Be

noreply@blogger.com (Don Lavin) — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 07:44:27 PST

Many of my regular readers know I made a professional conversion from a model of “rehabilitation” thinking and strategic practices to one of strengths-based practices many years ago. The reason is...

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What I've Learned About Organizational Change

noreply@blogger.com (Don Lavin) — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 07:37:36 PST

According to recent labor statistics produced by the Department of Labor for October, 2009, only 21.7% of Americans with disabilities are participating in the workforce in contrast to 70% of all...

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noreply@blogger.com (Don Lavin) — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 08:59:52 PDT

Why? It’s one of the most intriguing words in the English language. It forces a person to drill down deeper. It makes us work and think a little harder to discover, or perhaps to uncover, an...

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A Whack on the Side of the Head

noreply@blogger.com (Don Lavin) — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 05:55:33 PDT

To my readers, please take a careful look at the chart I’ve attached at the beginning of this article. I will wait for you at the next paragraph, OK? If you would like to enlarge the chart for ease...

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Wow! Thanks.

noreply@blogger.com (Don Lavin) — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 16:24:51 PDT

When I started A New Vision more than three years ago, I had a simple goal. I wanted to encourage, educate, and support various constituents. I wanted for people to consider the full range of...

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MNTAT: Tackling Minnesota's T&TA Needs

noreply@blogger.com (Don Lavin) — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 06:45:24 PDT

Back in November of 2007, the Minnesota Employment First Coalition convened the first of its annual summits with more than 120 invited stakeholders inside our state. The first summit was a new...

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Establishing a National Employment First Agenda

noreply@blogger.com (Don Lavin) — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 16:33:10 PDT

Recently, National APSE released a white paper promoting and supporting the Employment First movement in the United States. Entitled Establishing a National Employment First Agenda, the white paper...

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The Minnesota Employment Policy Initiative

noreply@blogger.com (Don Lavin) — Sun, 19 Jul 2009 14:34:09 PDT

What is your next bold move? This was one of the core questions posed to APSE members at a community organizing session held at the National APSE Conference in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on 7-2-09. The...

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Minnesota's Employment First Scorecard

noreply@blogger.com (Don Lavin) — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 07:43:01 PDT

On May 18, 2009, the Minnesota Employment First Coalition released its second summit report at the Minnesota APSE State Conference. This report entitled The Scorecard: A Progress Report Card on...

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Transforming Attitudes and Skills of Organizational Employees

noreply@blogger.com (Don Lavin) — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 06:31:45 PDT

Recently, I was asked to share my thoughts and experiences about the preparation of staff working within a community rehabilitation agency’s center-based production or non-work service programs...

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The Guiding Hand of a Mom

noreply@blogger.com (Don Lavin) — Thu, 14 May 2009 05:40:41 PDT

On April 19, 2009, my organization held its annual gathering called Celebrate Rise! This event gives Rise a wonderful opportunity to pause and celebrate notable achievements and accomplishments of...

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Living with a Disability in India

noreply@blogger.com (Don Lavin) — Fri, 15 May 2009 16:36:33 PDT

This past December 2008, my family took a trip of a lifetime to India to attend the wedding of my daughter Kelly to my new son-in-law Sahil Merchant. It was a special and memorable family vacation...

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Minnesota's Employment First Movement in Mental Health

noreply@blogger.com (Don Lavin) — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 16:56:17 PDT

Editorial Note: I recently wrote this newsletter article for Minnesota APSE-The Network on Employment. It will be featured soon in our State Chapter's quarterly newsletter issue. However, I thought I...

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Customized Employment: Redefining Employment Strengths

noreply@blogger.com (Don Lavin) — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 09:19:15 PDT

For the past three years, I have been writing here about the importance of integrated employment and using strengths-based strategies such as customized and supported employment to promote the...

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The One Thing You Need to Know

noreply@blogger.com (Don Lavin) — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 06:10:00 PST

The One Thing You Need to Know... About Great Managing, Great Leading, and Sustained Individual Success is the title of a book written by one of my favorite authors Marcus Buckingham. This book is an...

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Minnesota's Value Proposition

noreply@blogger.com (Don Lavin) — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 06:22:07 PST

During this past year, I was invited to participate in a State Leaders Innovation Institute (SLII). The purpose of the SLII is to improve employment opportunities and outcomes of Minnesotans with...

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Happy New Year, Happy New You!

noreply@blogger.com (Don Lavin) — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 06:03:12 PST

After finishing my run at the local YMCA, I walked over to the matted area to stretch. Stretching has become an important post-run activity for a guy who is getting as old as I am. I need to do this...

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Employment First: Enlarging the Circle of Partners

noreply@blogger.com (Don Lavin) — Sat, 13 Dec 2008 07:44:39 PST

While doing some Internet research recently, I came upon a poem written by American Poet, Edwin Markham. This poem is very short but packs a powerful message. It struck me how fitting this message is...

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Yes we can!

noreply@blogger.com (Don Lavin) — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 18:03:05 PST

Photo by Getty Images On November 4th 2008, Barack Obama made history by becoming the first African American to be elected President of the United States. I can still see the wild elation and pride...

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Minnesota's 2nd Annual Employment First Summit

noreply@blogger.com (Don Lavin) — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 06:24:55 PDT

On November 14th, 2008, Minnesota’s Employment First Coalition will host its 2nd Annual Employment First Summit in St. Paul, Minnesota. This event is by invitation only and will be a gathering of...

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Top 10 Reasons Why People with Disabilities Should Work

noreply@blogger.com (Don Lavin) — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 07:46:00 PDT

Poster by Michael O'Harro Recently, I accepted an invitation to speak at a Statewide video conference entitled: The Meaning and Value of Employment of People with Disabilities in Minnesota. This...

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Jeffrey Nurick has a job!

noreply@blogger.com (Don Lavin) — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 12:02:19 PDT

Last week, I downloaded my email and watched as the headers dropped one by one into queue. One message in particular caught my eye– “Jeffrey Nurick has a job!” I skipped all of my other unopened...

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Sound Bites from the 2008 National APSE Conference

noreply@blogger.com (Don Lavin) — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 23:21:29 PST

I attended the 19th Annual National APSE Conference held in Louisville, Kentucky on July 9-11 with this year’s annual theme being The Winner’s Circle: Everybody Works! Everybody Wins! I was pleased...

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