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Dennis James Stewart, Jr.

Farewell to the Dancing King from the CEO

I still remember the first time we met. You were a teenager, maybe 14 or so, and I was just getting started with my 20’s. You wore your signature flat bill hat, walked with your customary “old-man” slouch, and flashed that notorious smile. We were both so young then and just beginning our relationships with Arkansas Support Network (ASN). I was a new Direct Support Professional recently promoted to Home Supervisor, and you were a new “DCFS kid” (a kid who had been taken into custody by the State of Arkansas’ Division of Children and Family Services -DCFS- and placed with ASN as the result of a disability diagnosis and having no other appropriate place to go). You had that hardness in your face that most teenagers in DCFS custody come with. I learned early on to respect the knowledge and experiences that comes with that hardness and to not try to know it, understand it, or make it go away. It’s really not something you can know or understand if you haven’t lived it, and trying to make it go away for the comfort of the surrounding world only hardens the hardness more.

You made it very clear to all of us right from the start that you were a determined (read: stubborn) person who held strongly to your beliefs and was not afraid to tell anyone about them. You loved to talk and would talk for hours about the things you loved. Every person who knows you has stories to tell about this. But you also loved to think and would think for hours about new information and things that challenged what you thought you knew. One of the things I will miss most about you is a particular look you would get on your face when we were in the midst of a lengthy conversation/argument/debate and I would say something that you hadn’t previously considered or known. In response, you’d get quiet, and you would actively ponder the new information or perspective. You would be still and silent and give the process of considering something you’d never considered before adequate time and space. I’ve always been amazed by your willingness and commitment to do this, and I’m not sure I know anyone else who does it the way you always have.

Because you were always so committed to thinking, learning, and growing, the hardness on your face that came with you in those early days did not stay long. It was soon replaced by light, passion, and love. You took the traumas and pain that you carried and replaced them with commitment and devotion to the people and things you loved. You never went halfway on anything (except maybe a diet or budget or two early on), and somewhere along the way you fell in love with loving and giving to everyone around you. You certainly had every reason in the world to go many different directions, but I’m eternally grateful that you chose to be a person who invested in building his community and pouring everything he had into the people around him. You were a diligent and dutiful member of every team, employer, unit, organization, support system, family, or random group of folks you ever encountered, and every last one of us are better because of your devotion to us.

Dennis James Stewart, Jr. you are the embodiment of everything we believe at ASN. You illustrate perfectly that when we support people the right way, when we commit to them through the good and bad, treat them with respect, empower their expertise and abilities, and appreciate the unique gifts they bring to the table, they won’t only live wonderful and meaningful lives, they will make their communities and world better places to be. Thank you for teaching us what no textbook ever could and for doing it with such flair and so many sweet dance moves.

Rest in peace, power, and love, my friend. I will miss dancing with you for the rest of my life!

 

Love,
Syard

Essential

By March 11 of 2000, I had officially worked as a Direct Support Professional (DSP) at Arkansas Support Network (ASN) for 10 days. Ten days was long enough for me to know that this was important work — work that would change my life — work that could change the world. I wouldn’t have been able to tell you all of those things then. I was only 19 years old and hadn’t yet figured out how to conceptualize this work within a social justice framework or my place in it. I didn’t have the vocabulary or the critical analysis to fully understand the journey I was embarking on, but even in those first 10 days, I knew this work spoke to my soul, and I knew this work mattered, a lot. 

Exactly 20 years later, on March 11, 2020, Arkansas Governor, Asa Hutchinson, declared a state of emergency in response to the rapidly growing coronavirus pandemic, and the rest of the world began a similar reckoning concerning the Direct Support profession. As so many stunned people stopped in their tracks and attempted to adjust their worlds to working, learning, and living from home, the DSPs at ASN and the administrative personnel who support them, kept right on working. When a person with a disability who lives in their own home needs physical and/or emotional assistance to get out of bed, to eat, to care for their body/home/nutrition/finances, there is often little or no opportunity to Zoom those supports. ASN couldn’t and didn’t shut down. Our DSPs never stopped. 

On March 11 of 2020, hundreds of employees of Arkansas Support Network did what they do every day, all across the state: they went to work, and they have continued to do so every day since. Many of them have consistently worked double and triple shifts as an already under-staffed workforce has faced additional shortages due to quarantines and isolations. Some DSPs have quarantined in with individuals who were COVID positive for extended periods of time in order to reduce the risk of community spread while ensuring a sick person was appropriately supported and cared for. Because of this dedication and commitment to doing this critically important work, many people who had never given much thought to or about Direct Support Professionals have begun to recognize how valuable and important these essential workers are for all of us. 

The steadfastness, dedication, skill, and determination of our DSPs has helped the world begin an important conversation about the ways we’ve structured our collective priorities and the changes we must make moving forward. The pandemic has spotlighted the faults in our current system and offered opportunities to envision better ways. 

We have an opportunity in this crisis to evolve the disability and human services systems into more just and equitable vehicles focused on intersectionality, whole-person services, and community-building supports. We’ve been through too much this year, and we have too much to go through in the coming days, to not take advantage of this opportunity. 

Author and poet, Arundhati Roy, wrote in March of this year: 

” Historically, pandemics have forced humans to break with the past and imagine their world anew. This one is no different. It is a portal, a gateway between one world and the next. We can choose to walk through it, dragging the carcasses of our prejudice and hatred, our avarice, our data banks and dead ideas, our dead rivers and smoky skies behind us. Or we can walk through lightly, with little luggage, ready to imagine another world. And ready to fight for it.” 

I believe Roy, and 2020 has confirmed her. We have an opportunity in this crisis to evolve the disability and human services systems into more just and equitable vehicles focused on intersectionality, whole-person services, and community-building supports. We’ve been through too much this year, and we have too much to go through in the coming days, to not take advantage of this opportunity. 

At ASN, we have always imagined a new world, one that centers and empowers the people we support to be truly included and valued for their contributions. Today, we are finding more and more people interested in imagining with us. We are committed to community building and collective action that centers and uplifts marginalized people and communities. We believe it is possible, and there is room here for everyone, including you. 

I invite you to join us.

Your contributions, whatever they may be, are beneficial to this work. If you are fortunate enough to have extra financial resources that you will carry into 2021, monetary donations are vital to help us meet the financial demands of the pandemic. Since March, we’ve spent between $85,000-$135,000 each month on employee overtime alone. These costs are essential in keeping the individuals we support, our workforce, and our communities as safe as possible, but they are well over and above the PASSE reimbursement rates we receive for services.

Every donation is important, and no gift is too small. You can click on the donate button on our website or Facebook page to give now. If you are not able to contribute financially but want to support this essential work, there are so many ways you can participate in our efforts. Now more than ever, ASN can use your time, talents, networks, creativity, and advocacy. You can email nsnell@supports.org or message us on Facebook to discuss how you can contribute.

Thank you for the role you play in ASN’s essential work and for joining us in meeting this moment and seizing this opportunity to build better communities and a better world. 

Happy New Year, 

Syard Evans, Ph.D.

Direct Support Professionals, THANK YOU.

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This week is Direct Support Professional Recognition Week!

Direct Support Professionals are the backbone and foundation of our mission. It is their work that creates inclusive spaces in our communities for people with disabilities. It is also through Direct Support Professionals that communities learn how to sustainably maintain those inclusive spaces while working to create more.

Direct Support Professionals, we greatly appreciate you.

THANK YOU.

“It is our belief that everyone has the right to live..”

“We recognize and support every person’s right to be included in the life of the community.

It is our belief that every person has the right to live in a loving home and in a caring community as an active and accepted member.“

Mission Statement of Arkansas Support Network

It is our belief that every person has the right to live…

Ensuring that every person has a right to live requires that we recognize systemic injustices that obstruct this right.  We recognize that there are systemic injustices that oppress Black Americans and that those injustices are often fatal. At ASN, we know that it’s not enough to just believe. We know that we must work to live out our beliefs  

Today and every day forward, we mourn the death of George Floyd.  We mourn for Tony McDade.  We mourn for Breonna Taylor.  We mourn for Ahmaud Arbery.  We mourn for all Black lives lost to white supremacy and police violence.    

In honor of their lives and the fight for justice, we recognize that fulfilling our mission must include the following commitments:

·  We commit to the work of dismantling systemic injustices of racism and ableism experienced by Black folks with disabilities in Arkansas.  

·  We commit to cultivating safe spaces for Black Direct Support Professionals to seek support from ASN leadership teams regarding their unique concerns and/or fears related to encounters with law enforcement in the work that they do.   

·  We commit to following the guidance and leadership of people of color with disabilities to raise consciousness about the intersections of racism and ableism. 

·  We commit to continuous learning about the necessity of dismantling systems of oppression.

Silence on these matters is a violent privilege that we firmly reject.  At ASN, we believe that Black lives, not only matter, but should thrive and be lived out fully without interruption by racism, white supremacy, and hate.

“Thank You” Is Not Enough

In March, just before the explosion of virus-related confusion and chaos, I celebrated my 20th anniversary at Arkansas Support Network. I was 19 years old when I started working at ASN as a part-time direct support professional. Outside of my parents, my sister, and a few close childhood friends, my relationship with ASN is longer than any other relationship in my life, and it is, without a doubt, the most influential relationship I’ve ever had. I have grown and developed in ways I could have never imagined in 20 years, much because of ASN. There is no doubt, I am who I am today because of the past 20 years with this organization.

At ASN, I have learned to see the world through a lens of justice and to value the humanity in every person I meet. I’ve learned to believe and trust in the power of community and to recognize the strength in connection and kinship. I’ve come to understand that we are all far greater and more valuable than our worst characteristics and biggest mistakes. I have learned that a person has no rights if they do not have the right to fail or be wrong, and I’ve learned that none of us are free unless all of us are free, all because of my relationship with ASN. 

I’ve had the privilege to share space and time with some of the most genuine and authentic human beings on the planet, and I am a better person because of my relationship with ASN. 

And I am not alone. 

Thousands of people throughout the state of Arkansas have been impacted by the work and philosophy of Arkansas Support Network since the organization was founded in 1988. ASN was born, as Family Support Network at the time, as the result of a group of mothers who refused to accept the traditional education and disability service system as support options for their children. Driven by love for their kids, that group of moms literally changed the world for so many people. They envisioned new ways of supporting people with disabilities and, in doing so, they solidified opportunities for people to be supported and empowered to live real lives in their communities, not just to be “taken care of”. Those women established an organization that has spent 32 years building community for people with disabilities and their families, challenging the assumptions that some people are less valuable than others, and fighting to create a more inclusive world.

Kerry George was one of the founding mothers of Arkansas Support Network and a long-term board member and leader of the organization. She was an educator and a visionary, and she made an important difference in the lives of more people than we could ever count. Kerry spent her life teaching, valuing people, and seeing the possibilities others did not see. Her love for her daughter drove Kerry to explore better ways to support people and, in doing so, created opportunities for so many people to live meaningful lives. Kerry George empowered people to make decisions and to make contributions. She valued people and helped so many find their voice and their power. Kerry assisted in authoring the values and philosophy that have guided ASN for three decades and will continue to guide the organization for decades to come. Because of her contributions, people who would have otherwise lived their lives in institutions and facilities own their own homes, are productive members of the workforces, and have families of their own.         

On Sunday, April 19th, 2020, Kerry George passed away. The life she lived was a gift to so many of us, and the differences she made are immeasurable. The entire Arkansas Support Network family mourns the loss of a founding mother, and we are eternally grateful for the contributions she made. 

“Thank you” will never be enough to express the gratitude we have for the differences Kerry made, but if your life has been impacted by her vision, compassion, and work, we encourage you to share your gratitude with her family. You can comment here or leave a message on the Tribute Wall at  https://www.mooresfuneralchapel.com/obituaries/Kerry-George/.

CEO Syard Evans presenting the Keith Vire Throwing Starfish Award to founding mothers, Lynn Donald Carver and Kerry George at the ASN Honors Luncheon in 2018

Thank you, Kerry George, for changing the world for us. Rest in Love!

–Syard Evans, 

CEO

COVID-19: Resources & Suggestions

Over the past several days, our ASN team has worked diligently to research and pull together information that may be useful to the individuals and families we support as well as direct support professionals.

Click the resource links listed below to learn more information about COVID-19. We will continue to update this post as we learn of new resources.

CORONAVIRUS SOCIAL STORY

Center for Disease Control Recommendations

A Message Regarding COVID-19 from the CEO of Arkansas Support Network

Throughout our communities, we are all significantly impacted by the very real threat of coronavirus. Many organizations, services, and businesses have announced closures and cancelations in an effort to reduce the spread of the virus. At Arkansas Support Network, the complexity of the work we do and the nature of the needs of the individuals we support make closure and cancelation decisions more complicated. A number of the individuals we support fall into high-risk categories, and many individuals require direct support in their homes and communities to maintain their health and safety. Suspending operations is not an option for us. Instead, we’re working diligently with our leadership team, human resources department, nursing staff, management teams, direct support professionals, individuals receiving services, and agency stakeholders to ensure we are implementing all possible safety precautions while providing each individual receiving services at ASN with the appropriate supports to meet their needs during this uncertain, and often confusing, time.  

ASN will not cease operations of any direct service. However, some services will be changed or modified based on individual needs, stakeholder decisions, or partner organizations’ operations. Communication about any such changes will be made directly to individuals affected by such changes. Our directors, managers, HR personnel, nurses, and CEO are all available to answer any specific questions individuals receiving services, family members, employees, or other stakeholders may have about services, needs, safety precautions, or other concerns. If you have questions, contact the ASN members of your support team directly or contact our CEO, Syard Evans, at sevans@supports.org or 479-927-4100.

We also ask that as you engage in the work of protecting yourself and your loved ones from the spread of coronavirus, please consider that for many individuals we support and many more individuals across the country, stockpiling resources is not possible and “social distancing” practices perpetuate existing experiences of isolation, loneliness, and mental health distress. Be safe, use precaution, and remember that, while all of us are affected by coronavirus concerns, there are members of our community who will experience more significant consequences than others. If you would like to learn about ways you can help your neighbors at ASN, contact Nakisha Snell at nsnell@supports.org or 479-927-4100.    

Syard Evans, Ph.D.,

Chief Executive Officer

Juaneva Forbush: the First DSP-1 Direct Support Professional in Arkansas

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Juaneva Forbush is one of 20 ASN Direct Support Professionals who recently applied for and was accepted to ASN’s pilot training program, the ASN DSP Academy. As a member of the academy, she was given access to the full curriculum of Open Future Learning, access to the NADSP E-badge Academy, and additional ASN-based support, as needed. Juaneva completed all requirements and received the National Alliance of Direct Support Professionals’ certification for DSP-1 on February 24, 2020, making her the first DSP-1 certified through NADSP’s E-badge Academy in Arkansas. Juaneva, who has worked as a DSP at ASN for almost 10 years, received a completion bonus and an hourly raise for completing her DSP-1 certification, and everyone at ASN is extremely proud of her and her accomplishment. 

Below, Juaneva shares her experiences pursuing DSP-1 certification through Arkansas Support Network.

Direct support professional. What does that mean to you? To me, the term professional implies that there is a definite skill set and concrete standards that pertain to the position. I am happy to see ASN partnering with NADSP (National Alliance for Direct Support Professionals) to promote a higher level of skill and training for direct support professionals. Setting the bar higher for support staff should improve the quality of services that we provide.

I recently had the opportunity to participate in this partnership by pursuing certification as a DSP 1 through the NADSP ebadge program. This involved 50 hours of additional training and at least 13 essay submissions. The entire process was pretty straightforward. I feel like the entire experience provided valuable knowledge, insight,and perspective that I, as well as everyone providing direct support, can utilize in working with individuals who have disabilities.

ASN Direct Support Professional Academy training 2020
Participants are completing an ongoing training program to receive DSP-1 Level credentials. They also have an opportunity to meet monthly with the ADA Learning group and learn how to demonstrate skills as defined by the National Alliance for Direct Support Professionals – NADSP.

With the availability of audio learning modules on the training website, it was pretty easy to complete the required training fairly quickly as these modules can be done while doing other tasks at the same time. The trainings were easy to follow and a real step up from the trainings that we had when I first started working at ASN.

The ebadge program essay submission process was clearly explained on the website. The only thing that I noticed that was a little awkward is that once you have submitted an essay, to check the status of your submission you have to go through multiple steps/multiple web pages to get that information.

For me personally, the hardest part of the entire process was waiting on my
submissions to be reviewed and approved or denied. It was also a bit intimidating not knowing exactly how in depth to write for each submission,not knowing for sure how strenuous the criteria really are. I had to resubmit a few because I hadn’t gone into enough detail. Some of my submissions took nearly a week to be reviewed. Others were reviewed in less than 24 hours. How long a submission awaited review did not seem to
have anything to do with whether it would be approved either. I actually submitted more than the required 13 because I thought that some of my submissions were probably going to get denied since they had been awaiting review for so long compared to some of the others.

For my fellow support staff who are pursuing this certification, I would suggest that when writing essays you explain the prompts with the presumption that you are addressing someone completely unfamiliar with what we do. Make sure to relate each submission to the code of ethics and emphasize the importance of letting the person/people you support make choices for themselves and the ways that you do so in your own work. Read carefully the comments/feedback if you have a submission
rejected as it will tell you why it was denied.

” Both the training and the ebadge program place an emphasis on providing person centered support services. This means allowing the people we support to decide how they want to live and what they want to do. This is how I have always felt that things should be! ”

JUANEVA FORBUSH

To me this represents both personal growth and development of my skills and growth and development for the future of the entire field of direct support! I look forward to seeing this type of service model become even more of the standard for how we work with the individuals we support!

Written by: Juaneva Forbush

Are you interested in learning more about how to ensure person-centered, community based support for people with disabilities? We’d love for you to join us as we have community dialogues about the direct support profession throughout the year in preparation for the next Arkansas legislative session. 

Join our DSP Advocacy Campaign!

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2019 at ASN: A year to be proud of

You’ve probably heard by now that it is Holiday Season in the world of nonprofits, also known as End-of-Year. There’s a strong likelihood that you’ve received 20 or more emails, postcards, social media posts, and/or phone calls to tell you how important your support is this time of year. And it’s true, your support is extremely important this time of year.

It’s extremely important every other day of the year, too.

The barrage of end-of-year emails, posts, and requests can be overwhelming, and frustrating even, but one of my favorite things about the onslaught of outreach we are currently experiencing is that it gives us an opportunity to look back on the past year, learn from our mistakes, and celebrate when we got it right.

As I look back on 2019 at Arkansas Support Network, I’m proud of the things we’ve accomplished this year. We’ve directly supported over 500 individuals across the entire State of Arkansas through Supported Living, Personal Care, Center for Enrichment, Vocational Services, Family Support Services, and Autism Services. We’ve supported, advocated for, educated, and/or collaborated with over 2,400 individuals and families in total through all of the agency’s programs and services. For almost 32 years now, we’ve held firm to the belief of our founding mothers that all people can live in the community and that all people deserve to live a meaningful life. I’m proud to say we didn’t let up on that commitment in 2019.

The highlights I’m proudest of this year are not necessarily “services” in the traditional sense. They aren’t services that can be billed to Medicaid, anyway. They are the spaces we held for people to exist when the rest of the world wasn’t willing to make that space.

One example of those highlights is the success of our friend Natalia whose resilience and bravery has taught us way more than we’ve given to her. Natalia is a transwoman who’s overcome so many obstacles in order to live her truth and find peace in her daily life. Recently, after a long and difficult process that included extra challenges because she is a person with a disability, Natalia was successful in getting her name legally changed. We can’t take credit for Natalia’s accomplishments, but we are thrilled we get to go along for the ride with her and so many other people we support who push back every day on the barriers that world puts in place for them.

The services we provide at ASN are dynamic. We work hard to meet people where they are at and support them how they need.

It’s important to us that we aren’t trying to stuff people in the traditional “boxes” of services. Instead, we try to understand the hopes, dreams, and desires of the people we support in order to build services that meet those needs.

We don’t always get it right, but we’ll continue to try to honor and respect the people we support and the contributions they make to the world every day.

If that’s work that is meaningful to you, please consider supporting ASN in your end-of-year giving and throughout the year to come. We can’t do this work without the support of our community.

Happy Holidays!

Syard Evans

Election Day with Dallas & Jim

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At Arkansas Support Network, the relationships formed between our staff and those we support are invaluable.  On November 3rd, Dallas voted for the first time with his support staff, Jim.  Jim was so happy for Dallas and his new milestone that he wanted to share the experience with everyone.

(left to right) Jim and Dallas

Jim: Dallas went to a self advocacy meeting over at the main building back in October.  One of the things they talked about there was voting and they passed out voting registration forms.  Dallas took a form home.  We went over it together, filled it out, and mailed it in.   A few weeks later, he received his voter ID card.  I went to a voter ID website and pulled up Dallas’s voter information.  It told us where he was registered to vote. I was also able to pull up a sample ballot.  I printed out the sample ballot along with some candidate and ballot information.  Dallas and I went to the library where I gave Dallas that information. I read it to him.  He told me who he wanted to vote for and filled out his sample ballot.  Then, we used that sample ballot when we went down to the election.  When we got to the electronic booth on Voting Day, it looked pretty much the same as the sample ballot we filled out beforehand. 

How was Voting Day? 
Jim: It was good! We went down to the courthouse, got in line.  There was about a 15 to 20 minute wait in line but it went by pretty quickly.  He was pretty excited when he got done.  There was a line of people out the door.  On the way out the door, he was shaking hands and pointed at his ‘I Voted’ sticker while giving out high fives.  He was really excited about it.

Do you feel like Dallas will want to vote again?
Jim: Yes.  He was so excited.  He will definitely want to vote again.  

As his support, how did you feel when Dallas voted?
Jim: I was excited for him! When he was going out shaking hands and giving high fives, I thought,

“Anybody who decides that they don’t want to go out and vote for whatever reason needs to see how excited he was and maybe that would change their attitude about voting”.

Dallas: Jim, he is the best friend I have and a good man. 

 

 

To learn more information about programs offered at ASN, visit our home page at www.supports.org.

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