Housing Workshops

Additional workshops to come

Supported Living

This workshop will define what  supported living is as well as the requirements of the service. This workshop will be followed by a panel on Independent and Supported Living.

  • Miranda Johnson, Government Operations Consultant II, Programs and Services Unit
    Miranda Johnson has been employed with the Agency for Persons with Disabilities for over 6 years. Since being employed with APD she served in several roles within the Agency in which she coordinated Residential  and ICF/DD Placement. Miranda has worked extensively in monitoring the licensing of APD licensed group homes and most recently she serves as the State office Housing and Supported Living liaison providing technical assistance on Housing and Supported Living issues. Miranda has worked in the field of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities for over 16 years and holds a Bachelor’s degree in Health Care Management and a Master’s Degree in Business Administration. Miranda believes that she is working within her purpose, which is to advocate and serve people with Intellectual and Developmental disabilities. 

Group Homes

This workshop will discuss small and large group homes (small group homes are 1-6 bed homes where as large group homes are 7-15 bed homes) as well as  services that can be provided in a group home setting. 

  • Miranda Johnson, Government Operations Consultant II, Programs and Services Unit
    Miranda Johnson has been employed with the Agency for Persons with Disabilities for over 6 years. Since being employed with APD she served in several roles within the Agency in which she coordinated Residential  and ICF/DD Placement. Miranda has worked extensively in monitoring the licensing of APD licensed group homes and most recently she serves as the State office Housing and Supported Living liaison providing technical assistance on Housing and Supported Living issues. Miranda has worked in the field of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities for over 16 years and holds a Bachelor’s degree in Health Care Management and a Master’s Degree in Business Administration. Miranda believes that she is working within her purpose, which is to advocate and serve people with Intellectual and Developmental disabilities. 

Three Stages of Housing Success, Robin’s Story

Becoming an assertive and responsible adult takes planning and setting goals for all your children’s futures, including your child with a developmental disability. Robin has been diagnosed with behavior, speech, visual an intellectual disabilities, finally Autism. Every child is different and there are many options. Parents must have the vision at two years old, not twenty-two years old, regardless how impossible it feels at the time. It is NEVER too late…and they are NEVER ready! Just do it!  Ann will discuss the stages, 1) Decide and Prepare for Supported Living, 2) Secure Housing – finding a place to live, 3) Maintaining Success – Staying in the home.

  • Ann and Robin Millan, Ann is a Parent/Author, Robin is an adult with autism living and working in her community
    Ann Millan is an author, advocate, wife and mother of three children, the third child, Robin, has autism. Ann has been a developmental disability advocate for over forty-five years, working with parents and professionals at the federal, state, and local levels. Taking her advocacy a step further, Ann has written a book, Autism-Believe in the Future, from Infancy to Independence. Ann feels it is important to share with families HOW her family became the driving force for her Robin’s independence. Ann’s goal is to help everyone realize the potential for all individuals with a developmental disability by sharing Robin’s story. 
    Robin Millan is an adult with autism. She has been employed for twenty-three years at Publix Supermarket. Thirteen years ago she purchased and moved into her own condo. Robin’s support system, through the Home and Community Based Services waiver (HCBS), is critical to her success. For stability and consistency, Robin still receives Speech Therapy for communication skills. Robin went off her Social Security Disability Income (SSDI) last year because she wanted to work more hours. She has friends, is an avid CrossFiter, and loves her life. 

Using Assistive Technology to Live more Independently

This session will provide an overview of assistive technology and how it can play a supporting role in independent living. Applications will demonstrate to show how technology can help a person overcome a disability, add relief for caregivers, and reduce the risk of home injuries. An example someone who may be incontinent at night, living in a home care setting, may find a member of staff physically checkig their bed periodically through the night. An enuresis alarm will do the job more reliably, only triggering an alarm when there is a problem, with less disruption of sleep and reducing the potential for abuse. Special emphasis will be placed on technology that can be purchased at Home Depot, Lowes, Target, Wal-Mart, Best Buy, and Bed Bath and Beyond.

  • Michael Daniels, MS ATP Executive Director
    Michael received his BA in Special Education and Early Childhood Education and his MS in Assistive Technology from University of Kentucky (UK). Michael has been working in the assistive technology field for over 20 years with a focus on computer access and seating and mobility. He served as program director at FAAST for four years and was instrumental in the development of the statewide device loan program and the addition of two Regional Demonstration Centers.  Michael has collaborated with Dr. Tony Gentry from Virginia Commonwealth University to establish a training series for assistive technology for individuals with traumatic brain injuries.

Housing Models: A Range of Possibilities and Opportunities

Where we choose to live is often shaped by the options we have available.  Or — too often — the lack of options.  Ensuring one’s choice of a suitable home means providing an array of residential opportunities in the communities in which we live.  This workshop describes several housing models for adults with developmental disabilities, ranging from housing set-asides in apartment complexes, to cohousing developments, to mixed-use developments for transitional living.  Examples across the country are profiled, describing the ways in which these places were conceived, developed, and designed/renovated.

  • Sherry Arenthzen, Shimberg Professor of Housing Studies
    Sherry Ahrentzen, PhD, is Shimberg Professor of Housing Studies at the University of Florida.  Her research and service efforts in housing have championed the needs of underserved and marginalized populations who are often absent in design and planning processes. With Kim Steele, she recently co-authored At Home with Autism: Designing for the Spectrum, a book that introduces readers to conditions and aspirations of adults on the spectrum and demands a new approach to how we provide, locate, design and develop homes for them. The Institute of Human Centered Design calls the book a “tour-de-force with a thoroughgoing analysis of research and precedent, practical design guidelines, encyclopedic references, and an informed rationale for the importance of flexibility and variety.”

Planning for Independent Living

Supporting persons with ASD to experience dignity of risk expands their interests and skills and affords them the same learning opportunities others have benefited from.  This session will provide an overview of ASD and how we can provide the supports necessary in supporting dignity of risk for people with disabilities.
  • Denise Barnes, Consultant
    Denise Barnes has a Master’s Degree in Rehabilitation and Community Inclusion from Wayne State University and a Bachelors in Behavioral Science from Northern Michigan University.  She has over 20 years of experience in the fields of developmental disabilities, mental illness and workforce development.  She aided in the deinstitutionalization of adults with developmental disabilities in Michigan.  She has performed Support Coordinators duties and was previously a licensed Social Worker.  She has provided volunteer services with agencies in domestic violence, Landmark Education, College Prep 101 and other affiliations. She is currently an ordained Deaconess. 

Independent Living Services from Florida’s Division of Blind Services

 The Florida Division of Blind Services helps blind and visually impaired individuals achieve their goals and live their lives with as much independence and self-direction as possible. Independent Living Services are provided to enable individuals who are blind or severely visually impaired to live more independently in their homes and communities with a maximum degree of self-direction. Successful outcomes enable individuals to live more independently in their community and/or transition to the working world. The Rehabilitation Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired is a place where people who are blind can reside temporarily while they learn to lead productive, self-sufficient lives.  The Rehabilitation Center program incorporates instruction in a variety of independence skills, as well as case management, including home management, cooking, cleaning, personal care, labeling, orientation and mobility, Braille, access computer technology, adaptive equipment and devices, college prep, job readiness, home repairs, adaptation to blindness and many other skills that contribute to independence and the confidence to seek the highest level of employment possible. These are just a few of the services offered by the Division of Blind Services; we offer much from Blind Babies and Young Adult Transition based programming to Employer Services and vending programs for the Blind and Visually Impaired.

  • Brian MichaelsStatewide Transition Program Consultant
  • Brian Michaels has 20+ years of experience in the field of Rehabilitation and Education; from working with children to adults. He has been involved on multiple levels in preparing individuals to be successful on their own in today’s society. He has worked with children while employed at Devereaux foundation for Children, to the Center for Drug Free Living with at-risk youth offenders. He has extensive instructional experience with the Kennedy Space Center Education Department and with the Lighthouse Central Florida. 
    A graduate of the University of Central Florida (BA – Psychology) in 1995; he started his career in Rehabilitation with a cooperative internship at the Devereax Foundation and later with the Center for Drug Free Living. He returned to school for a Master’s in Education from Elmira College in Elmira, New York which led to his instructional career and curriculum developer at the Kennedy Space Center Education Department, and then to the Lighthouse Central Florida (at community partner of the Division of Blind Services.)At the Lighthouse Central Florida he found his calling in assisting those who are blind and/or visually impaired return to be an active and independent member of society. He focused on improving his skills and expertise by returning to school for a double Master’s program in Blind Rehabilitation at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. While completing the program Brian started work for the Division of Blind Services in 2010.
    Brian Michaels has been and continues to be an influential member in the Blind community, from a hands on, roll his sleeves up approach. He is a big picture thinker who can focus on the details to make the process work. Brian is involved in many committees and quality assurance programs within the division, which has led to his opportunity to serve on the CareerSource Central Florida Board of Directors.