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Promoting Diversity in the UCEDD Network

Royal WalkerInstitute for Disability Studies, University of Southern Mississippi

Barbara WheelerUSC UCEDD

Cultural Competence Cultural competence requires that organizations:

have a defined set of values and principles, and demonstrate behaviors, attitudes, policies and structures that enable them to work effectively cross-culturally.

have the capacity to (1) value diversity, (2) conduct self-assessment, (3) manage the dynamics of difference, (4) acquire and institutionalize cultural knowledge and (5) adapt to diversity and the cultural contexts of the communities they serve.

incorporate the above in all aspects of policy making, administration, practice, service delivery and involve systematically consumers, key stakeholders and communities.

Cultural competence is a developmental process that evolves over an extended period. Both individuals and organizations are at various levels of awareness, knowledge and skills along the cultural competence continuum. (adapted from Cross et al., 1989

Cultural DiversityDifferences in race, ethnicity, language,

nationality, religion, etc. among various groups within a community.

A community is said to be culturally diverse if its residents include members of different groups.

Racial/cultural/linguistic Disparities

Refers to differences in outcomes due to:RaceCultureLanguage

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A quick overview of the evidence

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Evidence of Health Disparities: Racial and ethnic minorities are MORE likely to

Die from breast cancer, despite similar mammography screening rates

Die from HIV/AIDS Receive less desirable procedures, ie., lower limb

amputations for diabetes Be diagnosed with severe MH disorders, i.e.,

schizophrenia LESS likely to

Receive routine medical procedures Undergo bypass surgery Receive kidney dialysis or transplants Receive current Rx drugs for the same condition

IOM, 2002; Kendall & Hatton, 2002

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Educational Disparities: Brown v Board of Education, 1954

• Separate is not equal

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Evidence of Disparities in Education: Latinos

While Latinos are not over-represented in special education in general, English-Language Learners (ELL) are seriously over-represented in two categories of special education: (1) mental retardation and (2) speech (LAS), especially at the secondary level.

The problem worsens over time with over-representation of ELL students in special education emerging by grade five and increasingly visible by grade twelve

Artiles, Rueda, Salazar, & Higareda, in press

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Aren’t R/C/L Disparities about being poor?

Even with documented economic gains for members of both majority and minority groups in the past 20 years, health disparities between races persist when SES is controlled for.

Institute of Medicine, 2002; Kendall & Jones, 2002

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Improving Cultural Responsiveness of the System and Promoting Equity

The Role and Contribution of UCEDDs

Legend:

40-50%30-39%

51% or more

MissionN NirsW Website

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Legend:

States with 30% or more Minority Populations

California

New MexicoArizona

Hawaii

Texas

New York

Mississippi

Georgia

Maryland

Massachusetts

New Jersey

Louisiana

Illinois

Florida

South Carolina

Nevada

Colorado

North Carolina

Virginia

40-50%30-39%

51% or more

UCEDD Projects: Training 8 UCEDDs have a cultural diversity coordinator Targeting under-represented minorities into

careers in MCH (Alabama St, and Civitan) Cultural diversity training for EC professionals

serving Latino families (Arkansas) Multi-cultural education (monograph) (Rose

Kennedy Center) Cross-cultural competence training for MH

professionals (USC) Navajo Nation Comprehensive System for

Personnel Development (New Mexico) LEND programs with Cultural Competence

information

UCEDD Projects: Research M-C perspectives on self-determination (Hawaii,

USC, Kansas) Barriers to health services for people IDD from

immigrant communities (Minnesota ICI) NIH Partners in Research—Barriers to

participation in bio-medical autism Research for Latino families (USC)

Needs assessment of barriers to quality care for Southeast Asians (UC Davis)

Needs of families with internationally adopted young children from China (Connecticut UCEDD)

UCEDD Projects: Community Services and TA Developing culturally appropriate vocation rehab.

programs (NAU) Growing in Beauty partnership—IDEA services to

Navajo communities (NAU) Building capacity of minority CBOs (USC) Health Services project—Southeast Asian

immigrants (UC Davis) Project Bloom—developing CC services (JFK

Partners, Colorado) Colorado Family Support 360 (JFK Partners) Juniper Gardens Childrens Project (education,

primary healthcare, counseling, arts) (Kansas)

UCEDD Projects: Community Services and TA (con’t) Primeros Pasos—EC intervention in Latino

Community (Johns Hopkins) American Indian Disability TA Special Resource

Center (Montana) Indian Childrens Program Specialty Resources

(New Mexico) Cheyenne River Reservation/Pine Ridge

Reservation Dev. Clinics (South Dakota) Project Early Reading Intervention and Project

World vocabulary development (Texas A&M) Indian Childrens Program diagnostic and clinical

services (Utah State)

UCEDD Projects: Community Outreach and Education Culture competence training for State Employees

(Illinois IDHD) Training for child care providers on serving culturally

diverse children and families (Arkansas Partners for Inclusive Communities)

Youth Development Training: Diversity and Assets (Georgia UCEDD)

Transition training for American Indian educators and Administrators (Minnesota ICI)

Training, Resources and Information for the Advancement of Degrees for youth from underserved areas (U. of Southern Mississippi)

Camino Seguro West—bilingual online information and services database (Bolling Center, Tennessee)

Hispanic Disability Outreach program (Vanderbilt, Tennessee)

Website in Spanish (Puerto Rico)

UCEDD Projects: Systems Change

National Center on Cultural Competence (Georgetown)

NJ Statewide Network on Cultural Competence (Boggs Center)

Improving cultural responsiveness in the disability field

Where do we go from here?

Parallel Movements: Finding the common ground

Minority/

Civil Rights

Movement

Disability

Movement

Minority/Civil Rights Movement

Disability Movement