Some of Our Parts

From ‘Mentee’ to ‘Mentor’

Over the last month, we ran our 5th I CAN Camp, which was run almost entirely by mentors who were once camp participants. Thanks to the generosity of our supporters, we have been able to train new mentors, and continue to empower young people on the Autism Spectrum.

In this months Grapevine, we discuss last months camp, Damien’s ‘Tough Mudder’ AWEgust challenge, interview Chloe Stuart (mentor), and learn about the benefits of exercise.

Read the Grapevine here.

Happy long weekend everyone!

• On Ouch Blog, Rebecca Atkinson asks is it time to stop using the word ‘disability’?
• ‘Trevor Thomas, 46, had his life abruptly interrupted when he lost his sight 10 years ago through a rare eye condition’. Lee Kumutat discusses Trevor’s experiences hiking after losing his sight.
• Six young Australians tell their personal stories of managing mental illness as part of the ABC’s annual Heywire competition.
• Brett Williamson writes, Muscular Dystrophy SA uses art therapy to brush underlying issues with creative counselling
• Australian surfer Mark ‘Mono’ Stewart has won a gold medal at the first world adaptive surfing championships at La Jolla in California.
• Emma Wynne writes, next year a modified production of The Lion King will roar into Perth, tailored specifically for the needs of children with autism.

Feedback is an essential component of a quality management cycle and Monash Disability Services greatly appreciate our students taking the time to complete this survey.

Your feedback will help to improve Disability Services understanding of the experience and requirements of students who register and help us to improve our services.

The survey will be open until November 1, 2015.

If you are interested in gaining paid work experience and the opportunity to challenge your skills and abilities, apply for Stepping Into Summer 2015/16 now!

We have extended the deadline for the following Stepping Into internship opportunities to 5 October 2015.

Canberra

• Safe Work Australia: Candidates with an interest in policy development in the area of work health and safety and workers’ compensation. There are no specific degree requirements.
• Department of Agriculture: there are four opportunities open to students in IT, Business, Education, Project Management and related disciplines.
• Department of Communications: there are three opportunities open to students in IT, Business and Marketing/Communications.
• Australian Public Service Commission: there is one opportunity open to Humanities students.
• Austrade: there is one opportunity open to Commerce and Finance students.

Sydney

• Westpac Group: there is one opportunity for an IT or related student interested in app development.

Melbourne/Dandenong

• City of Greater Dandenong: there is one opportunity for students in IT and Business.

Brisbane

• Queensland Treasury Corp: There are two opportunities open to students in Economics, Accounting, Commerce, Business and Law.

New Opportunities – Applications Close 25 October 2015

• Telstra: opportunities available to IT, Business, Accounting, Law and Commerce students. MORE TO COME SOON!
• Australian Super: opportunities are open to Business Information Systems, IT and Statistics students.

Click the links to view the job descriptions and apply. If you have any further queries, please contact Stephanie Littlewood on 02 8270 9240, or email Stephanie.littlewood@and.org.au.

Happy Friday everyone!

• Victorian writers with disability will be supported to develop their skills and writing careers in the third annual Write-ability Fellowships
• Diversifying both audiences and the artist base can be helped by an effective disability action plan.
• Rachel Browne writes, free program, Stepping Stones Triple P, gives children with disabilities a better chance of success at school.
• The Museum of Australian Democracy at Eureka (M.A.D.E) online exhibition tells story of disability rights movement.
• Jane Lee writes, people with disabilities risk losing their ‘voice’ with loss of dedicated portfolio under Malcolm Turnbull’s new ministry.

In 2016, Vision Australia will award Further Education Bursaries to a select number of students who are blind or have low vision.

The Bursaries provide adaptive technology to help ensure that these students can fully participate and succeed in their chosen studies.

Please encourage all who are interested to visit the Vision Australia website and contact Belinda Wilson, Vocational Consultant, as soon as possible- there are only six weeks left to apply, as no submissions will be accepted after October 30^th, 2015.

AWEgust for AWEtism: The Results!

Thank you to everyone who participated in AWEgust! We’re going to keep running, but we have already managed to raise $31,000+!

You can read more about our AWEgust results here.

A Year 8’s Perspective

“[We have had] enough of being misunderstood, misjudged and labelled as bad. We should have schools teach their students about autism.”

Read more here.

In this month’s Grapevine, you can also read an interview with I CAN mentor Caitlin Downie-Kempson, and an insight on social change!

Read the full Grapevine here.

Stepping Into…^TM is a paid internship program specifically designed for students with a disability who want paid, hands-on work experience that is degree-relevant.

All opportunities available over Summer 2015/16 are currently advertised on the website. To keep up-to-date with what’s on offer, follow them on Facebook.

You must be in your penultimate or final year of a Bachelor or Postgraduate degree to participate in Stepping Into, and must be registered with Disability Services at your university, or provide relevant medical documentation with the application. For full details on eligibility requirements, please click here.

Placements will commence from November 2015 to January 2016, allowing you to complete the internship during the summer university break. Placements are for a minimum 152 hours (unless otherwise specified in the job description). These hours can be worked either full time or part time depending on your requirements.

For any queries regarding Stepping Into program or the PACE Mentoring program, please contact:

Steph Littlewood

Program Coordinator

Stephanie.littlewood@and.org.au

02 8270 9240

Applications for Vision Australia’s 2016 Graduate Program are open now!

The Career Start Graduate Program offers a 12 month opportunity to graduates who are blind or have low vision to gain valuable work experience in either a Business role or Service Delivery role.

What can graduates expect?

• Make a difference You’ll be completing real work and contributing to the delivery of services to clients who are blind or have low vision
• Gain valuable training and work experience You’ll receive business area-specific training and encouragement to continually improve your skills
• Networking and support opportunities You’ll be assigned a mentor to support you and will build networks and relationships with colleagues and managers across Vision Australia
• A great start to any career You’ll be working at one of Australia’s leading charities and at the end of twelve months, will either be offered an ongoing role within Vision Australia or assisted with employment at another organisation

Who’s eligible?

To be eligible to apply for our 2016 Career Start Graduate Program, applicants must:

• either be blind or have low vision;
• have completed a tertiary qualification within the past two years in an area where your capabilities and future employment prospects (within Vision Australia or elsewhere) will be enhanced by employment at Vision Australia for 12 months;
• be living in Australia and have permanent residence status;

Please visit the website to find out more – http://www.visionaustralia.org/about-us/careers-at-vision-australia/career-start-graduate-program

Applications close on Friday 25^th of September 2015.