Dr. Vikram Patel is The Pershing Square Professor of Global Health and Wellcome Trust Principal Research Fellow at the Harvard Medical School. His work has focused on the burden of mental disorders, their association with social disadvantage, and the use of community resources for their prevention and treatment.

He holds Honorary Professorships at the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health, the Public Health Foundation of India, and the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (where he co-founded the Centre for Global Mental Health in 2008), and is a co-founder of Sangath, an Indian NGO which won the MacArthur Foundation’s International Prize for Creative and Effective Institutions in 2008 and the WHO Public Health Champion of India award in 2016. He is a co-founder of the Movement for Global Mental Health. He is a Fellow of the UK's Academy of Medical Sciences and has served on several WHO expert and Government of India committees, including the WHO High Level Independent Commission for Non-Communicable Diseases and Mental Health.

He has been awarded the Chalmers Medal (Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, UK), the Sarnat Medal (US National Academy of Medicine), an Honorary Doctorate from Georgetown University, the Pardes Humanitarian Prize (the Brain & Behaviour Research Foundation), an Honorary OBE from the UK Government and the John Dirk Canada Gairdner Award in Global Health in 2019. He was listed in TIME Magazine’s 100 most influential persons of the year in 2015

From Global Evidence to Local Action: Improving Access to Evidence Based Interventions for Autism

This keynote talk will describe a program of implementation science which demonstrates how innovations ranging from task-sharing to community health workers and the use of digital tools are being used to scale up the detection and care of autism in India.

Dr. Gillian Parekh is an Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Education at York. With a doctorate in Critical Disability Studies, Gillian has conducted extensive research with the Toronto District School Board in the areas of structural equity, special education, and academ ic streaming. In particular, her work explores how schools construct and respond to disability as well as how students are organized across programs and systems.

Tracing Trajectories and Exploring Practice in Special Education

In elementary school, many students are recommended placement in special education programs. As post-secondary education becomes increasingly critical to the labour market, this study examines the role special education placement may play in students’ access to post-secondary opportunities. A recent study, drawing on data from the Toronto District School Board, explores the educational trajectories of students placed in a part-time special education program as well as examines how disability is constructed in schools. In working with schools committed to more inclusive practice, the schooling experiences, pedagogical expertise and structural recommendations from students, educators and administrators will also be shared.

Dr. Zubairi is a Developmental Pediatrician at Ron Joyce Children’s Health Centre & Assistant Professor in the Department of Pediatrics at McMaster University. His primary area of clinical work is with children with autism and psychopharmacology. Dr. Zubairi completed his Master of Education at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education with a research focus on where culture matters in day to day clinical encounters and how simulations can promote critical reflective practice. Dr. Zubairi is a member of the McMaster Autism Research Team (MacART) and sits on the executive for the Section on Developmental Pediatrics at the Canadian Pediatric Society. He is also a board member with the SAAAC Autism Centre.

Autism - Focused Screening & Diagnostic Tools: How Do We Access Best Possible Information About Diverse Individuals and Families?

In this talk, Dr. Zubairi will provide an overview of commonly used screening and diagnostic tools to help identify autism spectrum disorder, and how they create opportunities or barriers in trying to best understand the strengths, challenges and functional abilities of individuals on the autism spectrum who represent diverse cultures, histories and experiences.

Dr. Catherine Yu is a family physician at Health Access Thorncliffe Park (HATP) and Michael Garron Hospital. She is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Family and Community Medicine at the University of Toronto. She is a passionate advocate for her patients. In her role as the medical director (physician engagement and health systems design) at HATP, she has been working diligently to establish strong, collaborative relationships between the health, social and educational agencies in Thorncliffe Park. Through these partnerships, a school-based clinic was established in the neighborhood in 2017, to help address access barriers to pediatrics and primary care, in a community with complex needs and challenges associated with the social determinants of health.

Munira Khilji

Her training as a healthcare professional, experiences as a parent of two and insight as a Thorncliffe Park resident deeply inform the initiatives Munira Khilji supports. A strong advocate for better supports and services for families of children with autism, Munira has worked with the Thorncliffe Collaborative to partner with the Geneva Centre for Autism, a relationship that has allowed for engagement of parents in training opportunities that are accessible and culturally sensitive. Currently, Munira coordinates a school-based paediatric clinic for Health Access Thorncliffe Park that focuses on challenges with learning, growth, behaviour and development. Her role allows for cross collaboration & consolidation of partnerships among the sectors of health, education and social services to provide meaningful care to families with multiple challenges requiring extensive navigation across systems.

Safeera Mulla

Leading the Thorncliffe Collaborative for Muslim Families for the past five years, Safeera Mulla has been advocating for culturally responsive care in the neighbourhood of Thorncliffe Park especially for families of children with autism. Working closely with agencies such as Geneva Centre for Autism, Children's Aid Society, CMHA and most recently, Health Access Thorncliffe Park, her role as a community liaison has been instrumental in building bridges of understanding between service providers and community. Her work has played a significant role in building effective pathways to service provision for the community from locally accessible services to tertiary care. In addition to this role, Safeera is currently also the case manager for SAAAC Autism Centre’s Mobile Developmental Outreach Clinic.

Improving Access to Interdisciplinary Paediatric and Primary Care Services Through Multisectoral Partnerships and Collaboration: The Thorncliffe Park Neighborhood Experience

Thorncliffe Park is an east Toronto neighborhood known for its diverse immigrant and newcomer population, a high birth rate and proportion of children and youth under 14 years of age, with significant health care needs

Through multisectoral partnership and collaboration, a school-based clinic was established in Thorncliffe Park Public School, to address the various barriers to accessing care in this neighborhood. This presentation will highlight some of the strategies used to deliver coordinated accessible care to families. This includes establishing strong collaborative relationships within an integrated model of care that includes the sectors of health, education, community & social services.

A family doctor by profession, Dr. Sivapalan believes in the potential for change to the current diagnostic landscape for children with Autism. After six years of a busy and fruitful family practice, Dr. Sivapalan left his practice to help facilitate this change. With an interest in child development, Dr. Sivapalan has worked collaboratively with multiple stakeholders to design the M-DOC, a unique developmental screening initiative whose goal was to increase access to diagnosis and intervention support for newcomer communities. In addition, Dr. Sivapalan helped develop the CARES initiative, which employed a task-shifting model to provide mental health support for caregivers and siblings of children with autism. As a social doer, Dr. Sivapalan has initiated and managed various social impact projects both at the local and global level. Most recently, Dr. Sivapalan became the chief operating officer for “The Dunya Project”, a Canadian agri-tech start-up that is building a connected, climate-controlled modular hydroponic habitat to alleviate the devastating gap in access to affordable foods irrespective of climate conditions.

Access for All: The Mobile Developmental Outreach Clinic

Dr. Sivapalan will provide an overview of the development and impact of the Mobile Developmental Outreach Clinic (M-DOC). The M-DOC initiative provided community-based point of care autism screening to low-income, racially diverse urban populations. The project provided an access point for families that may otherwise have had difficulties getting on a path to diagnosis and intervention. Dr. Sivapalan will examine how the M-DOC pathway ensured that children from culturally and linguistically diverse families accessed early developmental screening and interventions, and how such initiatives may be the future for autism screening in underserved communities.

Diana George is an educator and Special Needs specialist with over a decade of experience working with youth from both at-risk and Indigenous communities. Diana has taught in numerous classrooms from Northwestern Ontario to the Northwest Territories in which she has shared her love of literacy and community-based education. She is certified in Universal Design Learning, SCERTS Model, the Empower Reading Program and is also pursuing her Masters of Education in Inclusive Education. In her current role as a Program Support Teacher in Fort Simpson, NT Diana provides direct collaborative support to classroom teachers as they develop and use instructional strategies for inclusive schooling.

Inclusive Education within Indigenous Communities

This session will explore the experiences of an educator in northern Indigenous communities; where limited access to resources and opportunities for growth occur simultaneously. Inclusion, in Indigenous education, can be a web of closed doors and open windows into how you choose to grow as an educator and caregiver. It has been a decade of privilege to be a part of the culture-based education that is cultivated within Indigenous nations, and as any teacher, we learn more than we teach. Together, we will look at what inclusion looks like in culture and community-based environments; how we can create access points for our complex needs students and explore teaching practices that can support an inclusive classroom.

Louis Busch, BST, ABS (H.C.), M.Ed., BCBA is a Board Certified Behaviour Analyst with the Complex Care and Recovery program at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health. As part of the Forensic Specialization Dual Diagnosis Service, Louis works with an interprofessional team to support recovery, mitigate risk and facilitate safe and successful community reintegration for individuals with neurodevelopmental disorders who have come into contact with the law. Louis is a part-time professor with George Brown College’s Behavioural Science Technology program, past-president of the Ontario Association for Behaviour Analysis, and current coordinator of the Ontario Behaviour Analytic Community of Practice. Louis has a Master’s degree in Education with a specialization in Adult Education Work and Learning from the Werklund School of Education at the University of Calgary. Louis’ clinical and research interests include the assessment and treatment of severe challenging behaviour, staff training interventions for direct care professionals, delay discounting in mental health populations, and innovate approaches for promoting professional development and interprofessional care of healthcare providers.

Improving Access to Evidence-Based Treatment in Autism Spectrum Disorders

Autism Spectrum Disorder is a complex neurological issue impacting over 500,000 Canadians. For many years, provincial policymakers have struggled with the concept of behavioural health treatment “dosage” for children and youth with autism. In fact, the majority of the criticisms of autism policy in Ontario during the last 15 years have been levied at policy that attempts to prescribe individual treatment levels via benchmarks, standardized tests, algorithms, or arbitrary group criteria like age, income, or geographical location. Although a challenge within a social service portfolio, data-informed personalized medicine is common within programs funded by health. This talk will discuss historical challenges and possible solutions to accessing evidence-based treatment in Canada.

Nazilla Khanlou, RN, PhD, is the Women's Health Research Chair in Mental Health in the Faculty of Health at York University and an Associate Professor in its School of Nursing. Professor Khanlou's clinical background is in psychiatric nursing. Her overall program of research is situated in the interdisciplinary field of community-based mental health promotion in general, and mental health promotion among youth and women in multicultural and immigrant-receiving settings in particular. She has received grants from peer-reviewed federal and provincial research funding agencies. Dr. Khanlou was the 2011-2013 Co-Director of the Ontario Multicultural Health Applied Research Network (OMHARN). She is the founder of the International Network on Youth Integration (INYI), an international network for knowledge exchange and collaboration on youth. She has published articles, books, and reports on immigrant youth and women, and mental health. She is involved in knowledge translation to the public through media.

Immigrant and Racialized Families of Children and Youth With Developmental Disabilities

Dr. Nancy Freeman has dedicated her career to working with children and youth on the autism spectrum, beginning as a university student 37 years ago. For over 20 years, Dr. Freeman has worked at Surrey Place, first as a psychologist providing diagnostic services, and then clinically supervising Intensive Behavioural Intervention. For the past 15 years Dr. Freeman has been Clinical Director of Toronto Autism Services (formerly TPAS).

Dr. Freeman is an Adjunct Professor in Graduate Psychology at York University, a sustaining member and past Board member of the Ontario Association for Behaviour Analysis (ONTABA). Dr. Freeman has been a member and has chaired Provincial Expert Panels on behavioural treatment for children with autism, published and presented widely at conferences in areas that effect children on the autism spectrum and their families, including Intensive Behavioural Intervention, communication, best practice in assessment and diagnosis, and parenting stress and coping.

Evidence Based Early Behavioural Intervention – Access Counts!

Fifty years of research has demonstrated the effectiveness of behavioural intervention for increasing important skills and decreasing behaviours which interfere with learning or significantly interfere with quality of life (e.g., self-injury, aggression) for children with autism and their families. Early intensive behavioural intervention (IBI) is considered the “best practice” intervention for young children with autism, with remarkable effectiveness in a significant minority of children, and improvements in many others. Improving access to behavioural treatment and making culturally appropriate and sensitive adaptations is an essential priority for service providers.

Melanie Penner, MD MSc FRCP(C) is a developmental paediatrician at Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital and a clinician investigator at the autism research centre in the Bloorview Research Institute. She is the Bloorview Children’s Hospital Foundation Chair in Developmental Paediatrics. She completed her Bachelor’s in Health Sciences at McMaster University, her medical degree at Queen’s University, her paediatrics residency and developmental paediatrics subspecialty residency at the University of Toronto, and her Master’s in Health Services Research at the Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation at the University of Toronto.

Dr. Penner works as a developmental paediatrician performing developmental assessments, diagnosing autism spectrum disorder, and managing psychopharmacological treatment in children with complex behavioural challenges. Her research interests are in expanding and enhancing the care provided to children with autism spectrum disorder and their families in the community.

All Teach All Learn – Expanding Capacity for ASD Diagnosis and Management

In this talk, Dr. Penner will describe the Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes (ECHO) model and how it has been applied in community care for autism to date. Dr. Penner is the co-lead of Project ECHO Ontario Autism and will present results from the first year of this program. She will also detail her existing research on capacity for ASD diagnosis, including her research on the question of who can diagnose autism.

Kiruthiha Vimalakanthan, MA, is a PhD candidate in clinical psychology at the University of Waterloo. Driven by her passion to improve access to mental health supports in diverse communities, Kiruthiha has consulted on various projects at the South Asian Autism Awareness Centre (SAAAC). Kiruthiha’s primary role at SAAAC is the development and supervision of the CARES initiative, which employs a task-shifting peer-based model to provide mental health support for caregivers of children with autism.

Caring for the Caregivers: The CARES Initiative

Parents of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) consistently report experiencing high levels of psychological distress. This talk provides an overview of the development and initial impact of the CARES initiative, a psychosocial intervention that equips parents with a repertoire of skills that they can use to safeguard their own mental health. Using a peer-based model, this program’s overarching goal is to provide a culturally responsive platform that can not only support skills-based learning but also foster open conversations about mental health and the shared experience of caring for a child with ASD. More broadly, this talk will discuss how low-resource initiatives such as this one have the potential to empower a community to care for their own.

Dr. Jonathan Weiss, PhD, is an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychology at York University (Toronto, Canada) and a Clinical Psychologist. He completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health and University of Toronto, Dept. of Psychiatry, and held the Canadian Chair in Autism Spectrum Disorders Treatment and Care Research. He currently holds a York Research Chair in Autism and Neurodevelopmental Disability Mental Health. His research focuses on mental health in people with autism or intellectual disabilities, and their families, across the lifespan. He conducts studies into how people with developmental disabilities access mental health care, and is interested in their service needs, use, and experiences of crisis and wellness. He collaborates with community organizations, including the South Asian Autism Awareness Centre, to build the evidence-base for psychosocial supports that improve mental health, and received the SAAAC Excellence in Research Award in 2018 for his work.

Supporting Mental Health in People with Autism and their Families

People with autism often struggle with managing anxiety, anger, or depression. Family members also often experience tremendous stress and anxiety. Increasingly, cognitive behaviour therapy and mindfulness-based therapies are being used to help address these difficulties. These treatments are best provided within a context of promoting thriving and positive growth, within a responsive system of care. The current talk reviews the state of the evidence in understanding mental health problems, useful ways of conceptualizing mental health, and highlights evidence-based interventions that support the mental health of people on the spectrum and of their family members.

Geetha Moorthy is the Founder and Executive Director of the SAAAC Autism Centre. From classical arts, to business and entrepreneurship, and community development, Geetha Moorthy’s passion and commitment has touched countless lives for more than 30 years. An accountant by training, Geetha immigrated to Canada from Sri Lanka in 1983. Like many immigrants, she struggled to settle in Canada before eventually finding her footing in business where she has held senior roles in controllership and operations. In addition to her promising career, Geetha also founded the Narthanalaya Centre for South Asian Dances in 1985. A trained dancer in the Indian classical dance genres of Bharathanatyam and Kuchipudi, Geetha has taught hundreds of students in and around the Greater Toronto Area. It was at Narthanalaya that Geetha first came across some students who were diagnosed with autism. Touched by these students’ commitment to dance, Geetha increasingly became aware of the impact of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in newcomer communities. In 2008, Geetha founded the SAAAC Autism Centre in direct response to the growing need for awareness and support for South Asian families impacted by ASD and related developmental disorders. The Centre began with two families, a handful of volunteers, and minimal resources. In subsequent years, the Centre expanded its scope and services to support other newcomer communities living with ASD because these families lacked access to vital ASD services and information due to language barriers, low incomes, and lack of networks. In addition to her responsibilities as Executive Director, Geetha still leads the dance program at the SAAAC Autism Centre.

Tanu Bajaj

Tanu Bajaj, OT Reg. (Ont.) is an occupational therapist at SAAAC Autism Centre. She completed her Master of Science in Occupational Therapy at Glasgow Caledonian University, United Kingdom. She is registered with the College of Occupational Therapists of Ontario (COTO) and a member of Canadian Association of Occupational Therapists (CAOT). Tanu holds a Master’s degree in Child Development as well giving her knowledge of developmental psychology and interdependence of all aspects of development i.e. physical, cognitive, emotional and social. Tanu has additional training in Sensory Processing Disorder, Handwriting without Tears, Therapeutic Listening (Quickshifts), Neuro-Developmental Treatment and DIRFloortime. Her clinical experience involves working with children and adolescents with learning disabilities, developmental delays, sensory processing challenges, Autism Spectrum Disorder, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Generalized and Social Anxiety Disorder. Tanu has experience in assessment and treatment of children with fine motor and gross motor delays, sensory, social and emotional challenges in schools and community settings.

The Art and Science of Dance: Therapeutic use of dance to enhance physical, social and emotional well-being in Autism Spectrum Disorder

Dance combines body and mind to provide social, emotional, physical and cognitive benefits. Dance can be used as a powerful tool to facilitate a positive change in all aspects of our lives. This session will highlight how the art of dance laid the foundation of SAAAC Autism Centre and its ongoing positive impact on clients and their well-being.

Brad Saunders was appointed to the position of Chief Executive Officer on November 16, 2015, and was Community Living Toronto’s Regional Executive Director of the Etobicoke and North York regions for the past 4 years. Prior to joining Community Living Toronto, Brad was Executive Director of the Bob Rumball Associations for the Deaf, and was a Program Supervisor with the Ontario Ministry of Children & Youth Services and Community & Social Services. Brad is currently serving as the Chair of the Urgent Response Committee, MCSS/DSTO and is on the Board of Halton Children’s Aid Society and JOIN-Ontario Job Opportunity Information Network.

James Janeiro

James Janeiro joined Community Living Toronto as Director of Community Engagement and Policy in September 2018. Prior to joining CLTO, James served Premier Kathleen Wynne as her social policy advisor for four years. He advised two previous Ministers of Community and Social Services, and has been active in politics for over 15 years. James is also involved in a variety of community organizations, including the University of Toronto Soldiers’ Tower War Memorial and the Basic Income Canada Network.

Building for the Future: Housing Opportunities at Lawson

Access to housing has become a critical issue across Canada. People with disabilities in Toronto experience this issue every day, as high rents and a tight market push the cost of housing further and further beyond ODSP cheques and other assistance. Community Living Toronto is capitalizing on a cherished asset to make a lasting contribution to the housing crisis in our city. In this session, Brad Saunders (Chief Executive Officer) and James Janeiro (Director of Community Engagement and Policy) will share the opportunity presented at the Lawson site in Scarborough, where hundreds of new affordable housing units will be built. Many of these new units will be targeted to people with disabilities and their communities. Come learn about the project, the process, and how your organization can be part of this city-building opportunity.

Patricia O’Connor is an educator with 37 years experience. She founded Integrated Autism Consulting to address the burgeoning needs of individuals with ASD. During the past 25 years, she has conducted ASD specific workshops for families and professionals, written and taught two ASD specific university courses, consulted to an international agency to develop curriculum specifically for young adults with ASD, assisted businesses in integrating employees, acted as an expert witness in a successful constitutional law challenge, as well as coaching clients and their families. Since 2010 she has created innovative programs for young adults and their parents including Transition to Life, Imagine a Life and Prepare for Life. Her passion for the ASD population and belief in her role as a change agent for individuals and their families motivates her to assist, support and guide them to success and fulfillment in their lives.

Transition to Life

Transition from secondary school to life is one of the most stressful times in the lives of every young adult, but for those with Autism Spectrum Disorders and their parents, the event is overwhelming and anxiety provoking. This session will address issues and discuss strategies to support the young adults and their parents/caregivers during this tumultuous stage of life.

Anita Szigeti has practised law in Ontario for 25 years. Her firm, Anita Szigeti Advocates, specializes in serving clients embroiled in forensic or civil mental health systems. Anita is a recognized expert on the law of mental disorder in both justice streams.

Anita is committed to educating all justice system participants. She is co-author of two books: “A Guide to Consent and Capacity Law in Ontario” and the Halsbury’s on Mental Health Law. She regularly educates Judges and tribunal adjudicators, defence lawyers, Crown attorneys, Coroners, psychiatrists and other physicians, social workers and case managers, clients and their families. She teaches Trial Advocacy at the University of Toronto, Faculty of Law and trains forensic psychiatric residents through the Faculty of Medicine.

Previously the founding Chair of the Mental Health Legal Committee, Legal Aid's Advisory on Mental Health, and the Court of Appeal’s Amicus Curiae Program for mental disorder appeals, Anita continues to lead. She is the founding President of the Law and Mental Disorder Association (LAMDA,) a Toronto Director of the Criminal Lawyers’ Association (CLA) and Chair of its Mental Disorder Portfolio.

Anita has been counsel on dozens of high profile Inquests including police shooting deaths of those in crisis and institutional deaths in psychiatric facilities or corrections. She has appeared on hundreds of appeals, at every level of Court including several in the Supreme Court of Canada.

Happiest in the Courtroom, she is found there almost every day. She is perhaps most proud of having mentored two generations of lawyers, so far.

Talitha Dykstra, M.ADS, BCBA is a Behavior Therapist with extensive experience working with adults with developmental disabilities and helping them succeed in a community setting. Talitha has worked in the adult developmental service sector for 10 + years. She is currently working with the medium secure forensic team at CAMH, where she has been instrumental in building a culture of measurement based care. In addition, Talitha continues to work with individuals within the community to build life skills and increase their independence.

Data Driven Care – How to get the most out of your support dollars!

Data! – it isn’t just for analysts and phone plans! The use of data to inform treatment and care decisions can help in making timely and effective decisions about support. In this presentation we’ll look at how data is being used on a forensic inpatient unit as well as in the community. We will discuss how data can inform care and how it can be utilized to leverage the funding supports individuals in the community are allocated.

Kelly Casey is an Independent Facilitator who has been engaged over the past five years by families and agencies to assist individuals in the development of Person Directed Plans and their Network of Support

Kelly specializes in the area of developing housing supports and creative housing models. Most recently, Kelly was successful in the development, application and implementation of 8 Individualized Housing models funded through the Ministry of Community and Social Services.

Prior to independent facilitation, her work in developmental services over the last 30 years has ranged from direct support to community development. Kelly has a strong belief that being provided choice and opportunities that are community-based are the basic ingredients to building an enviable life. She also believes this cannot happen without collaboration, partnership and relationships among individuals, the private sector and public agencies. "We are all responsible for building the community we want to live in!”

Overview of Housing: An Honest Discussion

This session will focus on how families can begin planning for the future and engage others to support them in the development of individualized residential housing options for their loved ones. The following areas will be discussed:

• Housing and Transformation of Services: The New Reality
• Steps to Plan for your future:
  • Knowledge: Creative Housing examples from York Region
  • Get Connected: Planners and DSO Housing Coordinators
  • Visioning: Focus on the Strengths/Interests
  • Belonging: The value of Networks of Support/Friendship (Circles)
  • Partnerships: Formal and Informal
  • Max imizing your resources: Estate Planning, sharing supports, maximizing existing resources, etc.
  • Sustainability: Networks and/or Microboards

Brendon Pooran is a founding Partner at PooranLaw Professional Corporation where he practices in the areas of disability law, estate planning and corporate law for not-for-profit and charitable organizations. He enjoys working with people and families on their future planning initiatives which includes will and trust planning, powers of attorney, microboards and innovative housing options. In addition to practicing law, Brendon teaches Critical Disability Law at York University, is the Past-President of Community Living York South and is a founding director of both PLAN Toronto (now Partners for Planning) and Microboards Ontario. He is also a Senior Lawyer Member on the Ontario Consent and Capacity Board.

Microboards: Securing Your Family Member’s Future

Microboards TM are formed when a group of trusted family members and friends join together with a person to create a non-profit corporation. Brendon will provide information about the benefits of incorporating a Microboard TM into a family’s future plan. He will speak about the core values underlying Microboards TM as well as the steps involved in creating and operating these innovative entities.

Cheryl Wiles Pooran is an experienced human rights, labour and employment lawyer whose practice is dedicated to serving people with disabilities and social purpose organizations across Canada. Cheryl combines her focus and experience in this sector with her Bay Street labour law background to provide innovative, practical and cost-effective legal services to her clients.

As leader of PooranLaw’s labour and employment team, Cheryl provides a broad range of human rights, labour and employment services to not-for-profit employers and families. In addition, Cheryl brings her passion for equality, inclusion and accessibility to the classroom as a Human Rights and Health Law lecturer at York University.

Prior to joining PooranLaw, Cheryl practised labour and employment law with a large international law firm and a boutique labour firm in Toronto. Cheryl was also privileged to serve as a Case Worker with Parkdale Community Legal Services (a legal aid clinic in Toronto), to intern with the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Human Rights and Terrorism in Geneva, Switzerland and with the Human Resources Administration of New York, New York.

Direct Funding and Employment Law - Information Session for Families Engaging Workers

Direct funding, such as Passport or SSAH, is great for flexibility and freedom of choice but it also comes with responsibility. Private workers can have employment related rights or can file claims if they are injured on the job.

It’s important for families receiving direct funding to understand the options and obligations that come with direct funding. This is especially important now because there has been a lot of change when it comes to employment standards legislation over the last year which has led to confusion for families and private workers alike. This information and training session for people and families engaging private workers. This sessions will review:

• Recent developments affecting direct funding and private support workers;
• How you determine what obligations you have to your private worker;
• What steps you can take to protect your loved one with a disability and your family, and ensure positive relationships with your private workers; and
• Free resources to help you manage your worker relationship and ensure compliance with the law.

Joanna Samuels, B.Ed. (A E), M.Ed. CMF, RRP, CTDP, is the Employment Resource Supervisor at Reena. She has over a decade of frontline experience as a job developer, job coach and pre-employment facilitator in the supported employment sector. In addition, Joanna’s expertise is helping persons with various disabilities and multi-barriers with reaching their employment, career and educational goals. She also specializes in helping employers with diversity recruitment and with building an inclusive workforce as well as staff training.

Joanna is a certified Personality Dimensions Facilitator as well as certified Life Skills Coach. She is a featured employment advice columnist and blogger with www.reena.org, www.ami.ca’s Kelly & Company, and www.newcanadians.tv. Further, Joanna has recently published “Letters to the Job Coach: Practical, No-Nonsense Advice from a Frontliner Who "Gets It” on www.amazon.ca; and is featured in journals and industry magazines including Abilities, Autism Matters and Rehab Matters. Joanna is a frequent guest speaker and workshop facilitator on topics related to employment and careers.

Inclusion in the Labour Market: Supported Employment with Persons with Development Disabilities at Reena and in the Community

The interactive presentation will help attendees understand the concepts of supported employment services and navigating the system with the goal of increasing awareness of the employability of individuals with developmental disabilities. The talk will also provide strategies in helping organizations prepare, obtain, and maintain employment for clients in a the competitive local labour market.