In the Community

• On August 1, Mallory Finn, Esq. and Alyssa Navarrete Thorn, Esq., staff attorneys for Project HEAL (HEALTH, Education, Advocacy, and Law), presented a Project HEAL overview to the Maryland Legal Aid Bureau’s Barriers to Employment Task Force.
• On August 1, Mirian Ofonedu, PhD, LCSW-C, MCDD director of training, co-facilitated a session, “Being the Best Advocate for your Child(ren): Promoting Their Health and Wellbeing at Home, School and Community,” a parent and caregiver workshop at the Enoch Pratt Free Library in Baltimore, Maryland.
• On August 8, Dr. Ofonedu chaired a program, “Peer Mentoring for International Students,” at the American Psychological Association (APA) Annual Convention in Chicago, Illinois. The program helps to increase participants’ interest in psychological research, training and collaboration across borders.
• On August 10, Dr. Ofonedu chaired a symposium titled “Disability Walk a Mile Experience: Families with Children and Young Adults with Intellectual and/or Developmental Disabilities (I/DD) Search for Meaning” at the APA Annual Convention in Chicago. The program provided participants with a symbolic experience of what it means for families to search for meaning after their child’s diagnosis and deal with the reality of raising children and/or young adults with I/DD.
• On August 13, van Stone delivered a presentation on transition planning for students with disabilities at the third annual Autism Conference, co-sponsored by Atlantic General Hospital and Kennedy Krieger Institute, in Berlin, Maryland.
• On September 1, van Stone received an appointment as associate in the department of mental health at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
• On September 8, Project HEAL celebrated its 14th anniversary as Maryland’s only medical-legal partnership, providing special education and advocacy services to the community. 
• On September 10, Thorn was selected to chair the governmental affairs and public policy committee during The Arc Baltimore’s board of directors’ retreat.
• On September 13, van Stone participated in The Fall Fête 3, a fashion show and fundraising event benefitting Kennedy Krieger.
• On September 14, Thorn staffed a resource table on behalf of MCDD at the Baltimore City Public Schools’ Special Education Resource Fair at the UMBC Columbus Center, in Baltimore, Maryland.
• On September 16, Dr. Ofonedu served as faculty discussant on a paper titled “Autistic Traits and Suicidal Thoughts, Plans and Self-Harm in Late Adolescence: Population-Based Cohort Study by Culpin et al.,” presented by her mentee, Xueqi Qu, MBBS, a Master of Health Science graduate student in epidemiology and scholar at the Wendy Klag Center (WKC) for Autism & Developmental Disabilities at the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health.
• On September 18, MCDD sponsored Disability Rights Maryland’s “Breaking Barriers Awards” gala at the American Visionary Arts Museum.  
• On September 18, Dr. Ofonedu gave a presentation, “Suicidality and People with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities,” at the Governor’s Commission on Suicide Prevention Summit in Baltimore, Maryland.
• On September 19, Finn and Maryland Department of Disabilities Deputy Secretary Christian Miele, a member of MCDD’s Community Advisory Council, were recognized as a part of The Daily Record’s VIP List at Gertrude’s Chesapeake Kitchen in Baltimore, Maryland. Award recipients are selected by a panel of judges based on recipients’ professional accomplishments and commitment to their communities.
• On September 21, Finn presented an overview of special education to the Kent County Special Education Citizen’s Advisory Committee at the Queen Anne’s County Library.
• On September 23, van Stone delivered a guest lecture on restraint and seclusion for students receiving a minor in disability studies at the University of Delaware.
• On September 26, Finn and Thorn presented an overview of special education law at a workshop hosted by Baltimore City Public Schools at the Eubie Blake Museum in Baltimore, Maryland.
• On October 2, van Stone delivered a guest lecture on interagency collaboration for graduate students at Towson University.
• On October 2, Dr. Ofonedu chaired a panel session titled “Different Cultural Perspectives Around Suicide and Its Prevention” with Gazi Azad, PhD; Olufunke Pickering, MD, MBA, FAAP; and Qu at Maryland’s 31st​ Annual Suicide Prevention Conference​​ in Baltimore, Maryland.
• On October 3, Dr. Ofonedu facilitated a session, “Sexual Health, Dating and Relationships,” at the Seeking Employment, Equality and Community (SEEC) for People with Developmental Disabilities 2019 retreat.
• On October 10, Dr. Ofonedu delivered a guest lecture on working with children and adolescents who present with conduct disorders to doctoral students at the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health.
• On October 11 and 12, van Stone chaired the Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates (COPAA) Board of Directors’ retreat in Chicago, Illinois.
• On October 12, staff members from MCDD, People On the Go Maryland, Project SEARCH and Kennedy Krieger’s Human Resources Department presented at The Arc of the United States’ national conference in Washington, D.C.
• On October 18, MCDD was a sponsor of The Arc Baltimore’s annual event, “Art in the Round,” at the Grand Lodge in Hunt Valley, Maryland. The fundraiser supports more than 60 artists with developmental disabilities.
• On October 21, Finn and Thorn presented to the Howard County Autism Society on bullying, harassment and intimidation of students with disabilities in Columbia, Maryland.
• On October 24 and 25, Finn presented overviews of special education law at Kennedy Krieger’s Center for Autism and Related Disorders (CARD) conference at the Sheraton Baltimore North Hotel.
• On October 25, MCDD and Kennedy Krieger’s Center for Child and Family Traumatic Stress co-sponsored a special lecture titled “Immigration in 2019: Important Things for Healthcare Professionals and Educators to Know,” by Professor Elizabeth Keyes from the University of Baltimore School of Law.
• On October 29, Tylea Powell staffed an exhibitor table at the Annual Baltimore County Child and Adolescent Behavioral Health Resource Fair, an interagency event organized by the Baltimore County Department of Health Bureau of Behavioral Health.
• On November 6, Dr. Ofonedu led a parent workshop, “Being the Best Advocate for your Child,” at St. Mary of the Mills School in Prince George’s County, Maryland.
• On November 7, Finn presented a Project HEAL overview to the CARD parent support group.