Human Development Institute

Self-Care for Caregivers: Rooted & Rising Virtual Learning Opportunity
2026-05-21 18:00 - 19:00 (America/New_York) | Zoom Online
Bridging gaps in mental healthcare for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities in Kentucky’s Appalachian Region.You are invited to learn more about mental health and overcoming challenges faced by people with developmental disabilities.Incentives available for individuals residing in some counties. Learn more by visiting the Rooted & Rising webpage.

Self-Care for Caregivers: Rooted & Rising In-Person Learning Opportunity
2026-05-20 13:00 - 14:00 | Laurel County Health Department, 525 Whitley Street, London, Kentucky, 40741

Why Competitive Integrated Employment Matters to Business: The Bottom Line_Training Innovation Project_Learn at Lunch
2026-05-19 12:00 - 13:00 | Zoom Online
Presenter: Merry-Reid Sheffer, Director of Employment Services at Mattingly Edge

Attendees will gain practical strategies to promote employment opportunities by learning:

Why “separate” employment harms both people with disabilities and employers

How Competitive Integrated Employment (CIE) expands the workforce and fills labor gaps

What CIE is and how it creates stronger, more collaborative workplaces

The Training Innovation Project, in partnership with the Kentucky Employment First Council, presents Learn at Lunch. These sessions are designed for rehabilitation professionals and employers to connect, learn, and share ideas in a relaxed space with others in the field.

Autonomy & Choice: Rooted & Rising Virtual Learning Opportunity
2026-05-14 18:00 - 19:00 | Zoom Online

Autonomy & Choice: Rooted & Rising In-Person Learning Opportunity
2026-05-13 13:00 - 14:00 | Laurel County Health Department, 525 Whitley Street, London, Kentucky, 40741

Pediatric DME for Free_HDI Center for Assistive Technology Services (CATS)
2026-05-05 09:00 - 16:30 | HDI CATS, 2358 Nicholasville Rd, Suite 180, Lexington, KY
This in-person event will highlight the pediatric DME available at HDI CATS. Items will be available for free and will include: wheelchairs, car seats, strollers, bath chairs, gait trainers and more!

Employment and Mental Health: Rooted & Rising Virtual Learning Opportunity
2026-04-30 18:00 - 19:00 | Zoom Online

Kentucky Disability Benefits 101 Webinar: Supported Employment Training Project (SETP)
2026-04-30 15:15 - 15:45
About This Webinar:

Join us for a 5th Thursday coffee/tea break and learn how to use the Kentucky Disability Benefits 101 website to show the positive financial impact of employment while still maintaining a person’s eligibility for Medicaid or Medicare.

Q&A will follow from 3:45 – 4:15 pm ET / 2:45 – 3:15 pm CT

Facilitators:

Carolyn Wheeler, M.S., CPWIC

Supported Employment Training ProjectHuman Development Institute/University of Kentucky

Jeff White, MBA, CPWIC

Quality Assurance Coordinator for Employment ServicesDivision of Developmental & Intellectual Disabilities

Employment: Rooted & Rising In-Person Learning Opportunity
2026-04-29 13:00 - 14:00 | Laurel County Health Department, 525 Whitley Street, London, Kentucky, 40741

Communities of Practice: Training Innovation Project
2026-04-28 12:00 - 12:30 | Zoom Online
Communities of Practice (COP) are groups of people who come together because

they care about improving employment opportunities for people with disabilities.

Members share ideas, solve problems, build skills, and create practical tools that

support competitive integrated employment.

The COP is meant to grow naturally over time and will eventually be led by its

members, giving participants the chance to shape discussions and activities around

what matters most to them and their work.

ADA and Voting Rights: 4th Thursday ADA Talks 2026
2026-04-23 10:00 - 11:00
Monthly webinars on topics about the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), disability rights, and access that run for 1 hour on the 4th Thursday from January to October 2026 (10 webinars). Hosted By: University of Kentucky Human Development Institute (HDI), Southeast ADA Center, Burton Blatt Institute (BBI) at Syracuse University.

Work, Waivers, and STABLE Kentucky Webinar: Supported Employment Training Project (SETP)
2026-04-22 09:30 - 10:30
Learn how having a job can still work with Medicaid waiver eligibility if you know the facts and not the fiction.

Facilitator:Carolyn Wheeler, M.S., CPWICSupported Employment Training ProjectHuman Development Institute/University of Kentucky

Continuing Education Credit:Continuing Education is offered (1 hour) for Supported Employment professionals.

Who Should Attend?Case Managers in waiver programs, state guardians, and employment service providers are welcome to attend.

Enabling Employment Opportunity with Immersive Technology: Learn at Lunch
2026-04-21 12:00 - 13:00
Presenter: Matthew Chaussee, CEO, CareerViewXR

Attendees will gain practical strategies to promote employment opportunities by:

Exploring the use of immersive technologies

Increasing awareness of assistive technology solutions

Understanding how these tools can be effectively applied in business and workplace settings

The Training Innovation Project, in partnership with the Kentucky Employment First Council, presents Learn at Lunch. These sessions are designed for rehabilitation professionals and employers to connect, learn, and share ideas in a relaxed space with others in the field.

Relationships & Community: Rooted & Rising Virtual Learning Opportunity
2026-04-16 18:00 - 19:00 | Zoom Online

Demystifying Autism Diagnosis: HDI Seminar Series
2026-04-15 13:00 - 15:00
This presentation will focus on providing clarity around the autism screening and diagnostic processes for providers, family members, and adults seeking autism diagnosis. Panelists will discuss the differences between screening and diagnosis, routes for obtaining an official diagnosis, and the roles of different providers in the interdisciplinary assessment process.

Presenters: Dr. Myra Beth Bundy, PhD, BCBA, Dr. Marisa Toomey, MD, FAAP, and Dr. Scott Tomchek, PhD, OTR/L

Relationships & Community: Rooted & Rising In-Person Learning Opportunity
2026-04-15 13:00 - 14:00 | Laurel County Health Department, 525 Whitley Street, London, Kentucky, 40741

Communication Classroom and AAC: TAALC Tuesday Topics
2026-04-14 16:00 - 17:00 | zoom online

Noticing and Communicating Body Signals: Spring 26 ECHO in AAC
2026-04-13 16:00 - 17:00
Live Interdisciplinary webinar series to address needs in supporting AAC Users.

How a Paycheck Can Work With a Government Check: Supported Employment Training Project
2026-04-08 12:30 - 13:00
Zoom presentation by the Supported Employment Training Project (SETP) at the University of Kentucky Human Development Institute. In just 30 minutes, you’ll learn how to use the Kentucky Disability Benefits 101 website to see how having a job in high school can mean more money now—and more money after graduation.

Facilitators:

Carolyn Wheeler, M.S., CPWIC

Supported Employment Training Project Human Development Institute/University of Kentucky

Jeff White, MBA, CPWIC

Quality Assurance Coordinator for Employment Services Division of Developmental & Intellectual Disabilities

Movement, Nutrition & Sleep: Rooted & Rising Virtual Learning Opportunity
2026-04-02 18:00 - 19:00 | Zoom Online

Movement, Nutrition & Sleep: Rooted & Rising In-Person Learning Opportunity
2026-04-01 13:00 - 14:00 | Laurel County Health Department, 525 Whitley Street, London, Kentucky, 40741

Autism Informed Employer Conversation: Kentucky Employment First Council and Innovative Supports of Autistic Workers (ISAW)
2026-03-26 13:00 - 14:00
This event is held by the Kentucky Employment First Council and Innovative Supports for Autistic Workers (ISAW.) The quarterly conversations build upon the short videos shared monthly to learn more and engage in discussion with other employers and employment support providers on topics around increasing employment opportunities among Autistic Kentuckians.

ADA Title I-Employment Protections: 4th Thursday ADA Talks 2026
2026-03-26 10:00 - 11:00

Assistive Technology (AT) and Alternative Augmentative Communication (AAC): Lunch & Learn
2026-03-24 12:30 - 13:30
Christina Espinosa, the Director of the HDI Center for Assistive Technology (HDI CATS) will share information about Assistive Technology and resources available through the Kentucky Assistive Technology Services Network (https://www.katsnet.org/).

Christina will also share information about Housing Futures, a project funded by the Commonwealth Council on Developmental Disabilities, to identify ways we can modify the home environment, implement environmental controls, and advocate for better housing solutions.

Housing Futures

Jacqui Farmer Kearns has worked at HDI for 34 years. During that time, she has worked to advance several education projects, assisted with the creation of Kentucky’s alternate assessment program, and helped educate about Alternative Augmented Communication (https://www.assistiveware.com/learn-aac/what-is-aac).

Jacqui has also pursued work on a national level focused on the inclusion of people with disabilities and has collaborated with the Institute for Community Integration at the University of Minnesota and the Ohio Center for the Deafblind Coalition. Jacqui will provide information and resources about Alternative Augmented Communication.

Trauma Informed Care-AAC Users: Spring 26 ECHO in AAC
2026-03-23 16:00 - 17:00

Sensory Systems
2026-03-21 10:00 - 12:00 | UK Extension Office, 1140 Harry Sykes Way, Lexington, Kentucky, 40504
A FREE interactive sensory lesson for local families of children with disabilities! Explore the sensory stations led by students of occupational therapy and social work, Ava Meyer and Olivia Stanley! Hosted by UK HDI, KY LEND and the UK Cooperative Extension Services.

Trauma & Mental Health: Rooted & Rising Virtual Learning Opportunity
2026-03-19 18:00 - 19:00 | Zoom Online

Trauma & Mental Health: Rooted & Rising In-Person Learning Opportunity
2026-03-18 13:00 - 14:00 | Laurel County Health Department, 525 Whitley Street, London, Kentucky, 40741

Communication IEP Goals : TAALC Tuesday Topics
2026-03-17 16:00 - 17:00 | zoom online

Role-Playing Games: How Fantasy Can Build Reality for Neurodivergent Communities: MERGE Webinar Series
2026-03-17 14:00 - 15:00
In this webinar panel, RPG developers, game masters, and players with various relationships to neurodivergence discuss the world of RPGs and explore the real-life benefits of this style of gaming for people with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. Join MERGE to learn how RPGs have the power to shape culture collectively as well as build relationships, skills, and more fulfilling lives individually.
