Disability and Policy Services
National Council on Disability
The National Leadership Conference
for Youth with Disabilities
CESSI planned and implemented
The National Leadership Conference for Youth with
Disabilities (NLCYD), held June 22-26, 1999. The conference,
which brought together 123 youth with disabilities
from around the country, was organized by its Youth
Leadership Council (YLC) “to promote leadership development,
employment, health and wellness awareness and the
attainment of independent living among young leaders
representing the diversity of race, ethnicity and
disability in this country, and to foster their integration
into all aspects of mainstream society at national,
state and local levels.”
The conference was co-sponsored by six federal agencies
and a private foundation. They included: the National
Council on Disability, the U.S. Department of Education,
the Social Security Administration, the U.S. Department
of Health and Human Services, the Presidential Task
Force on Employment of Adults with Disabilities, the
President’s Committee on Employment of People with
Disabilities, and the Mitsubishi Electric America
Foundation.
The conference had the following objectives:
- To further the development of leadership skills,
interests and activities among young leaders representing
the diversity of race, ethnicity and disability in
this country, and to foster their integration into
all public and private sector institutions at the
national, state and local levels.
- To promote hands-on leadership development by involving
young people in designing, planning and implementing
a conference that reflects their interests and values,
as well as engages their skills and abilities.
- To provide all attendees the opportunity to meet
with national disability leaders to learn about disability
history, culture, law and policy.
- To offer opportunities for leadership development
support through peer and adult mentoring programs
throughout the conference and beyond.
- To support community building and solidarity among
young leaders by providing opportunities for networking,
task sharing, and dialogue.
CESSI helped develop the
selection process to determine the qualifications of
the youth who could attend and sent letters to all attendees.
Staff developed a database tracking all NLCYD candidates
and their demographic information. CESSI
developed all conference materials including the agenda
and program, and planned the activities of the conference.
All participants received a tote bag containing conference
materials and gifts. CESSI
made all travel arrangements for speakers and participants.
Accommodations were made for participants requiring
special assistance such as, personal attendants, wheelchair
repair, and sign language interpreters.
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