The DISABILITY RIGHTS CENTER (DRC) is a private non-profit agency with offices in Little Rock, Arkansas. Since 1977 the Governor of Arkansas has designated DRC the independent rights protection and advocacy system for persons with disabilities in Arkansas. DRC operates under authority outlined in Federal law and is funded primarily by the Federal government.

- Alerts & Updates -

Jan 2009 Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat         1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 List entire month Jan 12, 2009 • Regular Session of the 87th Arkansas General Assembly convenes Jan 13, 2009 • Increasing Your Child’s Motivation to Learn and Improving Your Child’s School Organization Jan 15, 2009 • System of Care Commission New! CADC ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS FOR REGULAR LIHEAP JAN. 5, HOLDING LIHEAP DAY IN PULASKI COUNTY JAN. 8 - 9 • New! Department of Education Issues Final Regulations Amending the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). • New! The Department of Labor published final regulations on November 17, 2008, making significant changes to the rules implementing Title I of the Family and Medical Leave Act. The 201-page rule, which goes into effect January 16, 2009, implements leave provisions created by the National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2008. The regulations implement two new leave entitlements referred to as "qualifying exigency leave" and "military caregiver leave." There are also significant changes to the definition of "serious health condition," an amendment to conform to the decision in Ragsdale v. Wolverine World Wide Inc., 535 U.S. 81 (U.S. 2002), a clarification of the medical certification procedure, and other changes. To read the DOL final rule click here. • New! Arkansas Attorney General Dustin McDaniel issued Opinion No. 2008-165, December 17, 2008. Representative Johnson requested an opinion from the Attorney General on how a "special-needs trust" established by a third-party, with the third-party's assets, impacts the beneficiary's eligibility for Medicaid. To read the full opinion click here. • New! The Arkansas Governor's Developmental Disability Council is accepting applications for its yearly Family Leadership Program series of seminars in 2009. For more information visit this page. • New! The Medicare website has a new online tool for finding and comparing nursing homes. You can try it by going to http://www.medicare.gov/NHCompare/home.asp • The Arkansas delegation to the Electoral College met in the Old Supreme Court Chamber at the State Capitol Monday, December 15 and cast their votes for the presidential and vice presidential candidates. A recording of this historic process is available at http://ideas.aetn.org/web/electoral • The state Senior Health Insurance Information Program is sponsoring public sessions on Medicare Part D open enrollment assistance around the state. • Remember:  Disaster recovery information is made available on the Client Assistance Program page as it becomes available. • The Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008 Unbolts Doors for Students with Intellectual Disabilities. •

PROTECTION AND ADVOCACY SYSTEMS (P&As) like DRC are established in every state and U.S. territory. We carry out activities under several federal programs to provide a range of services to advocate for and protect the rights of persons with disabilities throughout the state. To learn more about the Protection & Advocacy/Client Assistance Program system, and to locate a P&A/CAP office in any state then visit the National Disability Rights Network website.

Our Priority issue areas focus on subjects of importance to Arkansans, including:

• Housing and Homeless Issues
• Juvenile Justice (A New Vision for Youth)
• Abuse and Neglect
• Education
• Voting Access
• ADA Access
• Public Policy

Our Federal Programs offer a wide range of advocacy opportunities, including:

• PADD - Developmental Disabilities
• PAIMI - Mental Illness
• PAIR - Individual Rights
• CAP - Client Assistance
  (includes Arkansas Disaster Recovery)
• PAAT - Assistive Technology
• PABSS - Social Security
• PATBI - Traumatic Brain Injury
• HAVA - Help America Vote Act

DRC Services Available

DRC makes a wide range of advocacy-related services available to our clients at no charge.

DRC Grievance Procedure

If you have a grievance with the services you receive from Disability Rights Center you have the right to resolve your complaint utilizing the grievance procedure.

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30 Years of Advocacy - 1977 to 2007 Highlights

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Did You Know?

The number of individuals with disabilities not residing in an institution who are below the poverty line improved very slightly between 2006 and 2007, while the employment rate of individuals with disabilities declined slightly between these years according to statistics compiled by Cornell University released November 2008.  Based on the annual U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey, which asks respondents to self-report on disability, Cornell reports:

• 14.9% of individuals age 5 and up have a disability nationwide representing approximately 41.3 million people.  This is essentially the same as in 2006.
• 36.9% of individuals with disabilities ages 21 to 64 were employed in 2007 while the percentage of individuals without disabilities employed was 79.7%.  This represents a 0.8% decrease in the employment rate for individuals with disabilities from 2006, while the employment rate for individuals without a reported disability remained unchanged.
• 24.7% of individuals with disabilities ages 21 to 64 were at or below the poverty line in 2007, compared with 9% for individuals without a reported disability.  This represents a 0.6% statistical improvement in the poverty rate for individuals with disabilities as compared to 2006.

The 2007 Disability Status Report for the nation contains many more statistics, or go to the Cornell University Disability Statistics Website for detailed disability reports for 2007 for each State, as well as D.C. and Puerto Rico.

A Note About "PDF" Files

Many of the documents available on our website are in Portable Document Format ("pdf") which uses the freely available Adobe Acrobat Reader software to view. If you need it, you can download Acrobat reader from the Adobe website.