We held our 2022 Spring Family Forum virtually this year on Saturday, March 12.  We were very pleased to have in attendance The Honorable Shelley Mayer, New York State Senator, 37th District, and Tom Abinanti, New York State Assemblymember, 92nd District. They shared an overview of the 2022 New York State Budget and what effects its passing will have on the services available for people with developmental disabilities and their families.

Senator Mayer addressed the proposed cuts in early childhood education and answered questions from parents of our Children’s School for Early Development about the need for teacher salaries to be comparable with public school teachers. Assemblymember Abinanti voiced his alliance with families to ensure livable wages are made available to DSPs and expressed the need for new incentive programs addressing the recruitment and retention of these critical positions. Click here to read Assemblymember Abinanti’s letter to the NYS Assembly

Our friend and parent advocate, Margaret Vogt, was also a featured speaker at our Spring Family Forum. She encouraged families to join forces and advocate for quality services for their family members. She shared some easy tips on simple ways to share your voice effectively.  Executive Director and CEO Tibi Guzman updated families on the continued progress we are making at The Arc Westchester to ensure safety in our homes, day services, and workforce during the relaxing of some COVID mandates in our local communities.