West Virginia Advocates Staff to serve on National Disability Rights Network-Resource Advisory Committee.
West Virginia Advocates (WVA) is pleased to announce the appointment of Jodi Calissie, Data Report Specialist to the National Disability Rights Network (NDRN) Resource Advocacy Committee. Since 1977, West Virginia Advocates, (WVA). has been designated by the Governor as West Virginia’s part of the national, federally mandated Protection and Advocacy System for individuals with disabilities. The National Disability Rights Network (NDRN) provides training, technical assistance, legal support and legislative advocacy to state P&A’s. The NDRN is the membership organization for the Protection and Advocacy network, and collectively with state P&A’s is the largest provider of legally based advocacy services to people with disabilities in the United States. The membership of NDRN is a collaborative force for positive change in the national disability community.
Ms. Calissie, has has worked at WVA since 2002. As WVA’s Data Report Specialist, she is responsible for the oversight of WVA’s intake department, as well as the Disability Advocacy Database (DAD) and coordinating annual reporting to WVA’s Federal grantors. The purpose of the Resource Advisory Committee (RAC) is to advise NDRN’s Training and Advocacy Support Center in identifying training and technical assistance resources for the membership to enhance their ability to provide timely, accurate, responsive and effective resource advocacy services such as Information and Referral, Short Term Assistance and Technical Assistance. The RAC guides NDRN’s membership toward quality services, emphasizing the importance of customer satisfaction in efforts to assure that the services provided directly relate to what was requested and that services are delivered effectively. Ms. Calissie’s participation on the RAC is seen as a great resource to WVA in its efforts to continually improve and ensure quality services to our callers.
West Virginia Advocates, Inc. and the National Disability Rights Network both advocate equality of opportunity, choice, self determination and full participation for individuals with disabilities by guarding against abuse; advocating for basic rights; and ensuring accountability in health care, education, employment, housing, transportation, and within the juvenile and criminal justice systems. Together, the NDRN and its membership work to create a society in which individuals with disabilities are afforded equality of opportunity and are able to fully participate by exercising choice and self determination.
