Accessible Recreation: Making Center Recreational Activities Inclusive

1. Accessible Recreation:Making Center Recreational Activities Inclusive Nikki Jackson Regional Disability Coordinator

2. Objectives This webinar will: • Show center staff how to promote inclusion in recreational activities by: • Ensuring physical access • Ensuring programmatic access • Addressing attitudinal barriers • Using effective communication • Fostering partnerships • Committing to change and taking action • Provide resources to promote inclusive recreation

3. Overview • Recreation and leisure activities are an important dimension of the quality of life for all students, including those with disabilities. Through recreation we have fun, facilitate social interactions, and develop skills • Students with disabilities often find themselves with limited opportunities to engage in recreational activities and they are often given low priority with support and assistance

4. Accessibility Accessibility refers to: • A barrier free environment allowing students with disabilities to participate in all areas of community life • Enabling people with disabilities to participate on an equal basis with others in recreational, leisure and sporting activities on your center

5. Inclusion • Inclusion is not just physical access to a facility, it is the integration of all students, regardless of ability or functional ability in leisure and recreation activities • Centers should: • Strive to expand the possibilities of inclusion for students with disabilities • Promote and sustain participation by students with disabilities in recreational activities

6. STEP 1: Promoting Inclusion Physical Access

7. Step 1: Promoting Inclusion Physical Access • You should also review your center’s accessibility plan to: • Assist your center in identifying accessibility problems and solutions in existing facilities • Make a plan to make an existing facility more usable for your students with disabilities • If there is no accessibility plan in place, review the American’s with Disabilities Act (ADA) Checklist for Readily Achievable Barrier Removal

8. Step 1: Promoting Inclusion Physical Access • When offering recreational activity: • Be attentive to the physical access of the activity • Are there any obstructions in the walkway? • Examine the physical environment where the activity will take place • Are floor surfaces stable, firm and slip resistant? • Are there benches in the locker rooms?

9. Step 1: Promoting Inclusion Physical Access • There are some basic things that can be done to allow full participation of students with disabilities: • Position tables in activity rooms to allow adequate movement space for students who use wheelchairs, crutches or walkers • Remove doormats that may cause tripping or inhibit wheelchair movement • Reduce the tension on doors to make them easier to open

10. STEP 2: Promoting Inclusion Programmatic Access

11. Step 2: Promoting InclusionProgrammatic Access • Programmatic changes may be necessary to accommodate the specific skills and capabilities of students with disabilities • Adaptations needed by students with disabilities will vary from student to student • This means changing or modifying the way a program or activity is conducted • Modifying the equipment used • Modifying the program/activity • Modifying the method a student engages in the task

12. Step 2: Promoting InclusionProgrammatic Access • Modifying Equipment • Finding, creating or adding assistive devices allowing a student to accomplish a skill, or compensate for lack of a specific ability • A student with decreased fine motor control in their hands may have difficulty holding a tennis racket. A possible solution could be using an ace bandage to attach the racket to the students hand • A student with limited dexterity in one hand may benefit from the use of an electric reel-in-device that is controlled by one hand • A student with a prosthesis benefits by substituting a standard volleyball with a balloon or beach ball

13. Step 2: Promoting InclusionProgrammatic Access • Modifying Equipment • Other adaptive equipment is also available and is sometimes accessible through loan from your State Assistive Technology Program or from special recreation providers • Adaptive equipment can also be purchased from commercial vendors

14. Step 2: Promoting InclusionProgrammatic Access • Modifying the Program/Activity • Changes to rules that allow modification for the skills that are lacking: • size of field/court • duration of game • net height • scoring methods • Eliminating the need for challenging skills • An example is allowing a student in a wheelchair two bounces in tennis before hitting the ball

15. Step 2: Promoting InclusionProgrammatic Access • Modifying the Method • Changing how an activity is done can lead to increased participation. • Using a buddy or peer to perform the task that cannot be done independently • Having someone run the bases for a student with a mobility limitation during a softball game

16. Step 2: Promoting InclusionProgrammatic Access • Adaptations needed by students with disabilities to complete certain activity skills independently will vary from student to student • Partial participation (in tasks, skills, or steps) may be an option • Partial participation is a reasonable accommodation that allows for maximum independent participant performance

17. Step 2: Promoting InclusionProgrammatic Access • Most importantly, let your student guide you! Programmatic adaptations are only successful if they are agreeable to and meet the needs of the student • The reasonable accommodations committee (RAC) is a great place to discuss accommodations and adaptations

18. STEP 3: Promoting Inclusion Attitudinal Barriers

19. Step 3: Promoting InclusionAttitudinal Barriers • Staff and student attitudes about disability make a huge difference in creating an inclusive center • There is a difference between being physically integrated and being socially integrated • When promoting an inclusive center environment attention must be paid to: • Staff and administration • Student participants with disabilities • Student participants without disabilities

20. Step 3: Promoting InclusionAttitudinal Barriers • Attitudes of Staff • Staff training is critical. Remind staff that kindness and support is all that may be needed to create a positive, inclusive center for your students with disabilities • Address verbal and non-verbal behaviors • Have staff complete self-assessment tools to help them understand and deal with any biases, concerns, or fears

21. Step 3: Promoting InclusionAttitudinal Barriers • Attitudes of Students with Disabilities • They will not be welcomed at recreational activities/events • Accommodations will be unavailable or will be inadequate • Participating in activities may seem overwhelming and/or frightening • Make sure students know they are welcomed and included in all recreational activities • Posters of people with disabilities displayed around center especially in the recreation building

22. Step 3: Promoting InclusionAttitudinal Barriers • Attitudes of Students without Disabilities • Lack of understanding or consideration about limitations • Inferior attitudes • Ridicule or teasing • Not using person-first language • Thinking a disability is an inability to participate

23. Step 3: Promoting InclusionAttitudinal Barriers • Some ways to cultivate more positive attitudes include: • Pairing students with and without disabilities in the performance of recreation activities • Simulations or role playing activities • Cooperative games and initiative problems • Involving the group in making adaptations to games/activities to make them more inclusive • Education and awareness programs such as videos, speakers, panels, or group discussions

24. STEP 4: Promoting Inclusion Effective Communication

25. Step 4: Promoting InclusionEffective Communication • As you work toward achieving inclusion it is important to consider communication. • What is being communicated? How is it being communicated?

26. Step 4: Promoting InclusionEffective Communication • Printed Materials • Include photographs of people with disabilities participating on an equal basis with participants without disabilities • Include Disability Coordinator contact information and that accommodations for participation are available for the activity/program • Use symbols of accessibility

27. Step 4: Promoting Inclusion Effective Communication • Face-to-face interaction tips: • Pay attention to what is being communicated • Establish eye contact and speak to the student directly • Allow adequate time for student to formulate and communicate his/her thoughts • Expose staff and familiarize them to techniques that students with disabilities may use to communicate

28. STEP 5: Promoting Inclusion Partnerships

29. Step 5: Promoting InclusionPartnerships • Partnerships benefits: • Fund/loan modified equipment • Staff and student training • Conduct/access accessible recreation activities on or off center

30. Step 5: Promoting InclusionPartnerships • Form partnerships with: • Community organizations and area universities • Centers for Independent Living (CILs) • State Assistive Technology Programs • Special Olympics • Health promotion/fitness groups • Advocacy groups

31. STEP 6: Promoting Inclusion Committing to Change and Taking Action

32. Step 6: Promoting Inclusion Committing to Change and Taking Action • A different perspective • Center staff must make a commitment to inclusion by thinking differently about students with disabilities and how they engage in center activities and programs • How can my center make our recreational programs and services available to everyone?

33. Step 6: Promoting Inclusion Committing to Change and Taking Action With the right supports available, your students with disabilities can choose to participate in a full range of recreational activities and programs based on their personal interests and desires

34. Resources • ADA Checklist for Readily Achievable Barrier http://www.adachecklist.org/checklist.html • Center Accessibility Tool is available on the Job Corps Disability Website under Frequently Requested Documents • ADA Accessibility Guidelines for Recreation Facilities http://www.access-board.gov/recreation/final.htm

35. Resources • National Center on Health, Physical Activity, and Disability (NCPAD) http://www.ncpad.org/ • The focus is to collaborate with the nation’s leading health advocacy and disability organizations in linking them to the hundreds of program initiatives ongoing across the nation, and using this framework to build inclusion and integrationinto these existing programs. • State directory of organizations

36. Resources • National Center on Health, Physical Activity, and Disability (NCPAD) http://www.ncpad.org/ • State directory of organizations • Tulsa JCC • The Center for Individuals with Physical Challenges • Ability Resources, Inc. • B.L.Hooks JCC • The Arc of the Mid South

37. Resources

38. Resources • Sport Abilities (SA) http://sportabilities.com • Provides recreational, advocacy, support and sporting activities resources • Offer calendars and different activities for every state

39. Resources • Sport Abilities (SA) http://sportabilities.com • Provide recreational, advocacy, support and sporting activities resources. • Offer calendars and different activities for every state.

40. Resources

41. Resources • Adventures Without Limits (AWL) http://www.awloutdoors.com/ • Special Olympics http://www.specialolympics.org/

42. Resources • Job Accommodation Network (JAN) http://askjan.org/topics/recsports.htm

43. Resources Regional Disability Coordinators • Boston and Dallas Regions - Laura Kuhn laura.kuhn@humanitas.com • Atlanta and Philadelphia Regions - Nikki Jackson nikki.jackson@humantias.com • Chicago and San Francisco Regions - Kim Jones kim.jones@humanitas.com