Some of Our Parts

If you watched the 2018 ABC TV series Employable Me as it followed people with neuro-diverse conditions such as autism and Tourette Syndrome looking for work, then you came across the Xceptional, an IT recruitment firm (that gave Tim a job).

Founded by Mike Tozer as a tech service in 2017, Xceptional quickly evolved into employing people on the spectrum as software testers and data analysts. It set itself an ambitious goal of helping 1000 people find work, having already put 30 candidates in specialised IT roles.

“Our growth to date speaks to the incredible opportunity in placing neurodiverse candidates in specialised roles and shattering any stigma around hiring these candidates,” he said.

“Those on the autism spectrum, for example, often have remarkable attention to detail and advanced problem-solving skills, making them ideal candidates for complex code testing tasks.” – Mike Tozer, Xceptional’s CEO

Read more on the Startup Daily online article.

Create Your Future – Showcasing People with Disability from a CALD Background

Create Your Future is a film project showcasing the successes and challenges experienced by people with disability from Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) backgrounds. These films aim to build aspiration for tertiary education and employment amongst those facing similar issues, and to create deeper and broader cultural understandings to encourage culturally safe, accessible and inclusive support services.

Original short films, made with and for people with disability from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, sharing personal stories from their own unique cultural perspective.

To view the films, and for more information, see the NDCO website.

Specialist Disability Accommodation National Seminar Series

Developing and Managing SDA

The National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) will soon be spending more than $22 Billion per annum on services for over 460,000 people with disability across Australia. The NDIS is creating huge opportunities (and challenges) for housing development.

This includes but extends beyond the development of an additional 14,000 places of the NDIS funded Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA).

Seminar attendees will be provided with information about the NDIS housing landscape, SDA and development pathways as well as key issues and trends from skilled practitioners.

Who should attend? ​

• Investors
• Investment advisors
• Developers
• Architects
• Building Surveyors
• Support Providers
• Builders
• Architects
• Law firms
• Support Coordinators
• Policymakers
• Owners and managers of existing housing for NDIS participants
• Self-managed superannuation fund owners

Early bird seminar price: $650 per person for the full-day seminar. The Melbourne date is 31 March 2020.

• ​Price after Early bird:  $750 per person for the full-day seminar
  Includes lunch, morning and afternoon tea. 
• Click here for more Specialist Disability Accommodation Seminar information.

MNHS Invites You to a Panel Event to Celebrate IDPWD

You Are Invited

• Venue: Meeting room G30, Ground floor, New Horizons Building (located at 20 Research Way, Clayton campus)
• For those attending in person, light refreshments will be served from 12:30 pm. Panel discussion will commence from 1.00 pm
• The panel discussion will start at 1:00 pm Melbourne time (10:00 am Kuala Lumpur time, Sunway campus)

2020 Department of Justice and Community Safety Disability Scholarships Program

Are you a person with a disability who is studying a justice related course such as Law, Criminology, Social Work, Psychology, Paralegal or other justice related course?

The Department of Justice and Community Safety (Victorian Government) is offering Scholarship opportunities for students with a disability in 2020.

*Click here for a flyer about this program.

Delivering Ambulance Victoria’s First Accessibility Action Plan

Following an extensive consultation involving over 300 patients, paramedics and community members with or representing those with disability, Ambulance Victoria is proud to launch its Accessibility Action Plan. The plan outlines how Ambulance Victoria will better meet the needs of people with disability, including their patients, staff and community. The plan focuses on four key areas:

1. Inclusion and participation
2. Information, services and facilities
3. Employment, training and volunteering
4. Fairness, respect and safety

The Plan is available in a number of accessible formats that have been tested for screen reader compatibility.

While Ambulance Victoria’s Accessibility Action Plan is now live, their work to deliver a better and more accessible service that supports everyone in their time of need continues.

Please see the Ambulance Victoria web page with more information about its Accessibility Action Plan.

Shining a light on autism

Shining a light on autism and life on the spectrum, My Friend Autism is a podcast breaking down barriers, stigma and misconceptions around Autism.

Host Orion Kelly is autistic and aims to have open conversations that inform, engage and ultimately make the world a better place for autistic people. Orion is currently studying law at Monash.

*On this episode Orion is joined by the Founder and Chief Enabling Officer of the I CAN Network, Chris Varney – https://player.whooshkaa.com/episode/488614

Website: www.orionkelly.com.au

Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/OrionKellyInc

Monash Students Encouraged to Apply

The Hallie Bagley Scholarship was created to help students lift a little bit of financial stress off of their shoulders while also helping to strengthen our communities. Students from all majors and areas of study are encouraged to apply.

To be eligible, each applicant will be asked to submit a short essay of no more than 500 words. The award for this scholarship is $1,000 and all applications must be submitted by November 1, 2020. At the conclusion of the application period, a committee will confer and select a winner, we will notify the winner by December 1, 2020.

Please find more details below:

Eligibility:

You are eligible to apply for the Hallie Gay Walden Bagley Scholarship if you fall into one of the following categories:

1. You are a high school senior that has already been accepted into a US college or university.
2. You are a current college or university student – including Monash University students.

How Can You Apply?

Please use the following link to apply:
http://halliegaywaldenbagleyscholarship.com/

JOIN THE TEAM! – Job Opportunities with I CAN Network

I CAN Network are very proud to be Australia’s largest Autistic-led organisation and currently provide paid employment opportunities to more than 30 Autistic young adults and adults across Australia.

They are particularly keen to attract and develop Autistics as mentors to meet the rapidly growing demand for our group mentoring via online and face-to-face programs, as the Autistic-lived experience is a cornerstone of our work.

I CAN also welcomes outstanding team members who, although not Autistic themselves, are passionate about supporting Autistic young people and view them through a strengths-based lens.

Mentoring Positions Available

Four Current Internships Available through Connect50

Connect50 (https://connect50.org.au/) is part of the Victorian Government’s economic participation plan for people with disability 2018-2020 and will be supporting 75 internship opportunities in regional Victorian organisations across Ballarat, Bendigo, Geelong, and the Latrobe Valley, and 10 internships in Victorian Disability Advocacy Organisations from now until February 2021. Internships will generally occur during the Winter and Summer semester breaks, but may also be announced at other times during the year.

There are 4 current opportunities advertised for the Summer 2019 / 2020 cohort on the Students page of the Connect50 website (https://connect50.org.au/students/) and they’re expecting another Legal Intern opportunity at Coulter Roache (Geelong) any day now.

Currently advertised opportunities include:

• Harwood Andrews (Geelong) – Legal Intern
• TAFE Gippsland (Morwell / Traralgon) – Report Writer Disability Action Plan Intern
• GForce Employment Solutions (Geelong) – Project Assistant Intern
• VALID (Victorian Advocacy League for Individuals with Disability) (Melbourne – Richmond) – Project Officer Intern

The internship roles run for 152 hours over the Summer semester break (Dec – Feb, actual dates TBC) and are open to students in their penultimate or final year of University, or studying a Cert IV or above at TAFE, who identify as having disability.

The formal closing date for the opportunity is Friday November 15^th, however applications will be left open until there are suitable candidates confirmed.

Students are asked to apply as soon as able so that interviews can be conducted and students can be offered pre-program support.

Students can also join the mailing list, to hear about opportunities as they are announced, via the Students page of the site or via this link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/73579LR

Current Internship Details

Internship No. 1

The first internship is a Legal Intern role at Harwood Andrews (Geelong), this role is open to Law students in their penultimate or final year of study.

This internship will provide some insight as to what it is like working in a law firm.  The successful candidate will get a practical hands on experience, working in a couple of different practice areas.

Harwood Andrews has advised that they are also open to placing the intern in a practice area that is of interest to them (if possible).

Internship No. 2

The second is for a Project Assistant Intern at GForce (Geelong). This intern will provide assistance and support in the delivery of a targeted project that will promote the benefits of employing persons with disability.

The opportunity is open to University students studying any degree – Business, HR, or Marketing desirable but not required – and TAFE students studying Cert IV and above.

Internship No. 3

The third internship is for a Disability Action Plan Report Writer role at TAFE Gippsland (based in Morwell / Traralgon) that is open to both eligible University and TAFE students studying any course.

The successful candidate will contribute to TAFE Gippsland’s commitment to provide an accessible educational environment by: Seeking feedback from relevant stakeholders as to the initiatives and actions required to create an accessible educational environment; and by assisting with the drafting and development of a Disability Action plan in line with policy requirements with stated actions, agreed time-frames and measurable outcomes.

Internship No. 4

The final and fourth internship opportunity is for a Project Officer Intern at VALID (Richmond / Melbourne).

VALID has received funding to run a project that focuses on identifying the barriers to effective disability support that people with intellectual disability face when they are involved in the criminal justice system. The Justice For All project has a number of key components, including the development of a Peer Action Group (PAG). The PAG will be comprised of people with intellectual disability who have lived experience of the criminal justice system, and will meet monthly to identify a range of systemic issues they would like to work on.

The successful candidate will support the work of the Advocacy Coordinator to develop and recruit participants to the Peer Action Group. This opportunity is open to University students in their penultimate or final year of study, ideally studying Social Work, Criminology, Community Development, or Law.

For more information contact:

• Emma Henningsen, Project Manager, Australian Network on Disability
• Level 1, Suite 1.08, 2 Queen Street, Melbourne, 3000
• T (03) 9629 2871 | W www.and.org.au  | E emma.henningsen@and.org.au