321 Coffee's Grand Opening - Saturday, August 20th!!! It’s happening! 321 Coffee is officially ready to welcome the best baristas to downtown Raleigh! Join the celebration of their new storefront at Bloc[83] in downtown Raleigh.

• 615 Hillsborough Street, Raleigh NC 27603
• Ribbon cutting ceremony at 9:30 am

Founded in 2017 with a folding table and a home coffee brewer, 321 Coffee is opening its second permanent location. 321 Coffee is a coffee shop and roaster built on inclusion and currently employs over 30 adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). They roast the coffee, take the orders, and make the lattes. 321 Coffee is demonstrating the value of an inclusive business model. 

The Family-Friendly GLOBAL Adult Guideline provides the same important information covered in the Full GLOBAL Guideline in a family-friendly format with helpful pull-out quotes, definitions of medical terms, large photos and font, and is color coded by medical topic. NCDSA will have printed copies in September but you can Download your free copy today!

Buddy Walk Sponsorship Challenge

Attention all Buddy Walk fundraisers! Recruit and get a commitment for a Buddy Walk Sponsor and the sponsorship amount will be added to your Buddy Walk Team fundraising goal and applied to your team incentives.

Deadline to submit sponsorship commitments is September 13th. Recruit  sponsors and see your team fundraising goal grow.

Welcome to the World Little Ones

Whether you want to be ready for Down Syndrome Awareness Month in October, World Down Syndrome Day in March, or just want to spread awareness of Down syndrome - NCDSA has a t-shirt for everyone. Order your t-shirts today - deadline August 31st

Learning Program

The Learning Program is a parent-focused educational intervention program that is grounded on evidence-based approaches to teaching children and youth with Down syndrome. Monthly parent sessions are 90 minutes and include a teaching portion and questions and answers. Workshops cover academic topics and instructional strategies, resources, and activities to help you work with your child.

NCDSA is proud to offer this program to our families for free while other organizations charge families $250 to participate. See below for information for 2022-2023.

Monthly Speaker Spotlight

This presentation will cover issues related to toileting including the challenges involved in toilet training children with special needs and useful and practical strategies to teach this important skill.

Objectives:

1. Understand the challenges involved in toilet training individuals with special needs

2. Discuss key components of a successful toileting program

3. Review materials and resources for families

Terry Katz is a licensed psychologist and Senior Instructor with Distinction who has been privileged to work with children with developmental disabilities and their families for over 30 years. She co-founded a sleep behavior clinic in 2009 and a toileting clinic in 2011 for children with special needs at Children’s Hospital Colorado. She has worked in both clinics since they were first established. Dr. Katz has helped develop a number of educational materials for caregivers. These include sleep and toileting toolkits for Autism Speaks and a book on sleep, Solving Sleep Problems in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Guide for Frazzled Families. She also wrote a chapter on sleep in the book When Down Syndrome and Autism Intersect: A Guide for Parents and Professionals (edited by M Froehlke and R.S. Zaborek.) She just recently published a book on toileting: Potty Time for Kids with Down Syndrome: Lose the Diapers, Not Your Patience.

What parents are saying:

The learning program has helped me figure out learning strategies that work better for my child, that he is more receptive to and I have suggested those strategies to his teachers for implementing in the classroom.

Continuing to know that my child is capable regardless of her disability and the importance of teaching her in a way that ensures her success for better educational outcomes is key in advocating for my child in her IEP.

The sessions were great. As they were virtual, very convenient.

Registration deadline is August 31st

LAND, Meet the Need NC, Family Support Network of North Carolina, and the North Carolina Council on Developmental Disabilities want to meet and hear from individuals with I/DD, their families, and caregivers to learn about unmet services and support needs. The group is hosting two hybrid events that will bring together community partners, agency leaders, and policymakers to hear your story, share resources, and provide education on how you can advocate, educate, and inform key decision-makers on the importance of listening to the voices of those with I/DD lived experience.

Katie Frank, PhD, OTR/L - Occupational Therapist at the Adult Down Syndrome Center in Park Ridge, Illinois introduces the concept of using first/then boards and writes: We like to use visual supports to set or manage expectations. One type of visual support that can be helpful is a first/then board. When using a visual support, there can be words, pictures, or a combination of words and pictures. We can also forego the visual all together and still use the first/then concept. For instance, you can just say “first X and then Y.” You can also use physical objects to demonstrate the concept. For instance, “first snack (and show actual snack) and then brush teeth (and show toothbrush).”

The National Down Syndrome Society (NDSS) along with Down Syndrome Education International (DSEI) have published Down Syndrome: Guidelines for Inclusive Education. The guidelines address the education settings that support students with Down syndrome, covering the period from early intervention and primary education through secondary and through higher education, with the primary focus being K-12 students.

Download the free guidelines.

The Down Syndrome Infant Brain Imaging Study is a groundbreaking five-year, $11.5 million NIH-funded study that will investigate very early brain development in infants with Down syndrome. By understanding brain development in babies with Down syndrome, researchers may develop therapies to improve outcomes for individuals with the genetic syndrome. Travel expenses are fully covered for all families in addition to the study compensation itself ($300/visit). 

North Carolina families and caregivers are worried about finding formula for their babies. Formula supply is an evolving situation. Many families are having trouble finding their usual formula, and some have needed to visit multiple stores. NCDHHS is closely monitoring supply, working with the federal government, manufacturers, and retailers to get more formula on North Carolina shelves. NCDHHS's goal is to ensure safe and nutritious options for North Carolina families, and the NCDHHS team has been actively working on several fronts.

8/18 - Community Playdate 10:00 am (Raleigh)

8/18 - Improvaneer Workshop 7:00 pm (Virtual)

8/18 - Moms' Night Out 7:00 pm (North Raleigh)

8/23 - Dads' Night Out 7:00 pm (Chapel Hill)

8/24 - Homeschool Meetup 12:30 pm (NCDSA Training Center & Virtual)

8/25 - Community Playdate 10:00 am (Knightdale)

8/25 - T-21 Club Bingo 7:00 pm (Virtual)

8/27 - Social Saturday 9:00 am (Ages 0-6)

8/27 - Social Saturday 10:30 am (Ages 7-15)

8/28 - Sibshops 3:00 pm

9/1 - Improvaneer Workshop 7:00 pm (Virtual)

9/2 - T-21 Club Social 7:00 pm

9/6 - Open Play 10:00am

9/6 - Moms' Night Out 7:00 pm (Chapel Hill)

9/7 - Homeschool Meetup 12:30 pm

9/8 - T-21 Club Bingo 7:00 pm (Virtual)

9/13 - Coffee Connection 10:00 am

9/14 - Teen and Young Adult Parent Support Group (Virtual)

9/15 - Lafayette Village Wine Walk 6:00 pm (Raleigh)

9/15 - Improvaneer Workshop 7:00 pm (Virtual)

9/15 - Noche de Mamas 8:00 pm (en Espanol) (Virtual)

9/17 - Greenville Family Picnic 11:00 am ( NCDSA Greenville office)

9/20 - Open Play 10:00 am

9/20 - Moms' Night Out 7:00 pm (JoCo)

9/21 - Homeschool Meetup 12:30 pm

9/21 - NCDSA Virtual Speaker Series (Virtual)

9/22 - T-21 Club Bingo 7:00 pm (Virtual)

9/24 - Hispanic Social 

9/24 - Social Saturday 9:00 am (Ages 0-6)

9/24 - Social Saturday 10:30 am (Ages 7-15)

9/25 - Sibshops 3:00 pm

9/29 - Improvaneer Workshop 7:00 pm (Virtual)