{"id":6724,"date":"2025-02-22T10:34:26","date_gmt":"2025-02-22T15:34:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/?p=6724"},"modified":"2025-02-28T10:39:11","modified_gmt":"2025-02-28T15:39:11","slug":"labor-history-march-is-developmental-disabilities-awareness-month","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/issue\/volume-43-no-2\/labor-history-march-is-developmental-disabilities-awareness-month\/","title":{"rendered":"LABOR HISTORY: March is Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure id=\"attachment_6726\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-6726\" style=\"width: 1200px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-6726\" src=\"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/02\/OPWDD-Web.jpg\" alt=\"OPWDD PEF member Thomas Galla shares the Look Beyond project with 2023 State Fair attendees through a sticky note activity.\" width=\"1200\" height=\"540\" srcset=\"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/02\/OPWDD-Web.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/02\/OPWDD-Web-300x135.jpg 300w, https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/02\/OPWDD-Web-1024x461.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/02\/OPWDD-Web-768x346.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-6726\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">OPWDD PEF member Thomas Galla shares the Look Beyond project with 2023 State Fair attendees through a sticky note activity.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><em>March 5, 2025 &#8212;<\/em> <span data-contrast=\"auto\">Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month is a month-long observance that brings attention to the unique experiences of individuals with developmental disabilities. It\u2019s a time to celebrate their achievements, advocate for their rights, and promote understanding and inclusivity within society.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Thousands of PEF members work around New York State at the Office for People with Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD), delivering critical care and services to people with developmental disabilities.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month was established by U.S. President Ronald Reagan in 1987.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u201cAmericans are becoming increasingly aware that such disabilities need not keep individuals from realizing their full potential in school, at work or at home, as members of their families and of their communities,\u201d he stated in his proclamation on Feb. 26, 1987. \u201cI urge all Americans to join me in according to our fellow citizens with such disabilities both encouragement and the opportunities they need to lead productive lives and to achieve their full potential.\u201d<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Reducing stigma<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">In 2023, New York\u2019s OPWDD launched its \u201cLook Beyond My Developmental Disability\u201d campaign to combat the stigma that people with developmental disabilities face in their daily lives.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u201cThe \u201cLook Beyond\u201d anti-stigma public awareness campaign uses public and online forums, social and mass media, and radio and print advertising to educate the public about developmental disabilities and highlight the positive contributions of people with developmental disabilities to their state and their communities,\u201d according to a press release announcing the launch.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u201cMany people with developmental disabilities still experience pre-conceived stereotyping and discrimination in various aspects of life, including access to housing, employment, and medical care, which can lead to poor physical and mental health outcomes as well as social exclusion and isolation,\u201d it said.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Learn more about OPWDD\u2019s Look Beyond campaign <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/opwdd.ny.gov\/lookbeyond\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">here<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"auto\">.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">***<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335551550&quot;:2,&quot;335551620&quot;:2}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i><span data-contrast=\"auto\">If you are a PEF member working at OPWDD, and you want to share a story about the work you do with the developmentally disabled population, please reach out to Editor Kate Stickles at <a href=\"mailto:Communicator@pef.org\">Communicator@pef.org<\/a>.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>March 5, 2025 &#8212; Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month is a month-long observance that brings attention to the unique experiences of individuals with developmental disabilities. It\u2019s a time to celebrate their&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"division":[],"allowed_regions":[],"allowed_divisions":[],"class_list":["post-6724","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","issue-volume-43-no-2"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.6 (Yoast SEO v27.9) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>LABOR HISTORY: March is Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month - PEF Communicator<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/issue\/volume-43-no-2\/labor-history-march-is-developmental-disabilities-awareness-month\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"LABOR HISTORY: March is Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"March 5, 2025 &#8212; Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month is a month-long observance that brings attention to the unique experiences of individuals with developmental disabilities. It\u2019s a time to celebrate their...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/issue\/volume-43-no-2\/labor-history-march-is-developmental-disabilities-awareness-month\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"PEF Communicator\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-02-22T15:34:26+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-02-28T15:39:11+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/02\/OPWDD-Web.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"540\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"ksheehan\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"ksheehan\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/communicator.pef.org\\\/issue\\\/volume-43-no-2\\\/labor-history-march-is-developmental-disabilities-awareness-month\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/communicator.pef.org\\\/issue\\\/volume-43-no-2\\\/labor-history-march-is-developmental-disabilities-awareness-month\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"ksheehan\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/communicator.pef.org\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/b56382350a9a958e03dcd60443bfbf7e\"},\"headline\":\"LABOR HISTORY: March is Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-02-22T15:34:26+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-02-28T15:39:11+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/communicator.pef.org\\\/issue\\\/volume-43-no-2\\\/labor-history-march-is-developmental-disabilities-awareness-month\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":359,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/communicator.pef.org\\\/issue\\\/volume-43-no-2\\\/labor-history-march-is-developmental-disabilities-awareness-month\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/communicator.pef.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2025\\\/02\\\/OPWDD-Web.jpg\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/communicator.pef.org\\\/issue\\\/volume-43-no-2\\\/labor-history-march-is-developmental-disabilities-awareness-month\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/communicator.pef.org\\\/issue\\\/volume-43-no-2\\\/labor-history-march-is-developmental-disabilities-awareness-month\\\/\",\"name\":\"LABOR HISTORY: March is Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month - PEF Communicator\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/communicator.pef.org\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/communicator.pef.org\\\/issue\\\/volume-43-no-2\\\/labor-history-march-is-developmental-disabilities-awareness-month\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/communicator.pef.org\\\/issue\\\/volume-43-no-2\\\/labor-history-march-is-developmental-disabilities-awareness-month\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/communicator.pef.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2025\\\/02\\\/OPWDD-Web.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-02-22T15:34:26+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-02-28T15:39:11+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/communicator.pef.org\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/b56382350a9a958e03dcd60443bfbf7e\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/communicator.pef.org\\\/issue\\\/volume-43-no-2\\\/labor-history-march-is-developmental-disabilities-awareness-month\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/communicator.pef.org\\\/issue\\\/volume-43-no-2\\\/labor-history-march-is-developmental-disabilities-awareness-month\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/communicator.pef.org\\\/issue\\\/volume-43-no-2\\\/labor-history-march-is-developmental-disabilities-awareness-month\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/communicator.pef.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2025\\\/02\\\/OPWDD-Web.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/communicator.pef.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2025\\\/02\\\/OPWDD-Web.jpg\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":540,\"caption\":\"OPWDD PEF member Thomas Galla shares the Look Beyond project with 2023 State Fair attendees through a sticky note activity.\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/communicator.pef.org\\\/issue\\\/volume-43-no-2\\\/labor-history-march-is-developmental-disabilities-awareness-month\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Volume 43. No. 2\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/communicator.pef.org\\\/issue\\\/volume-43-no-2\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"LABOR HISTORY: March is Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/communicator.pef.org\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/communicator.pef.org\\\/\",\"name\":\"PEF Communicator\",\"description\":\"NYS PEF Communicator\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/communicator.pef.org\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/communicator.pef.org\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/b56382350a9a958e03dcd60443bfbf7e\",\"name\":\"ksheehan\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/communicator.pef.org\\\/issue\\\/author\\\/ksheehan\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"LABOR HISTORY: March is Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month - PEF Communicator","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/issue\/volume-43-no-2\/labor-history-march-is-developmental-disabilities-awareness-month\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"LABOR HISTORY: March is Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month","og_description":"March 5, 2025 &#8212; Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month is a month-long observance that brings attention to the unique experiences of individuals with developmental disabilities. It\u2019s a time to celebrate their...","og_url":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/issue\/volume-43-no-2\/labor-history-march-is-developmental-disabilities-awareness-month\/","og_site_name":"PEF Communicator","article_published_time":"2025-02-22T15:34:26+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-02-28T15:39:11+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1200,"height":540,"url":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/02\/OPWDD-Web.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"ksheehan","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"ksheehan","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/issue\/volume-43-no-2\/labor-history-march-is-developmental-disabilities-awareness-month\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/issue\/volume-43-no-2\/labor-history-march-is-developmental-disabilities-awareness-month\/"},"author":{"name":"ksheehan","@id":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/#\/schema\/person\/b56382350a9a958e03dcd60443bfbf7e"},"headline":"LABOR HISTORY: March is Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month","datePublished":"2025-02-22T15:34:26+00:00","dateModified":"2025-02-28T15:39:11+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/issue\/volume-43-no-2\/labor-history-march-is-developmental-disabilities-awareness-month\/"},"wordCount":359,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/issue\/volume-43-no-2\/labor-history-march-is-developmental-disabilities-awareness-month\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/02\/OPWDD-Web.jpg","inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/issue\/volume-43-no-2\/labor-history-march-is-developmental-disabilities-awareness-month\/","url":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/issue\/volume-43-no-2\/labor-history-march-is-developmental-disabilities-awareness-month\/","name":"LABOR HISTORY: March is Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month - PEF Communicator","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/issue\/volume-43-no-2\/labor-history-march-is-developmental-disabilities-awareness-month\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/issue\/volume-43-no-2\/labor-history-march-is-developmental-disabilities-awareness-month\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/02\/OPWDD-Web.jpg","datePublished":"2025-02-22T15:34:26+00:00","dateModified":"2025-02-28T15:39:11+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/#\/schema\/person\/b56382350a9a958e03dcd60443bfbf7e"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/issue\/volume-43-no-2\/labor-history-march-is-developmental-disabilities-awareness-month\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/issue\/volume-43-no-2\/labor-history-march-is-developmental-disabilities-awareness-month\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/issue\/volume-43-no-2\/labor-history-march-is-developmental-disabilities-awareness-month\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/02\/OPWDD-Web.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/02\/OPWDD-Web.jpg","width":1200,"height":540,"caption":"OPWDD PEF member Thomas Galla shares the Look Beyond project with 2023 State Fair attendees through a sticky note activity."},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/issue\/volume-43-no-2\/labor-history-march-is-developmental-disabilities-awareness-month\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Volume 43. No. 2","item":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/issue\/volume-43-no-2\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"LABOR HISTORY: March is Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/#website","url":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/","name":"PEF Communicator","description":"NYS PEF Communicator","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/#\/schema\/person\/b56382350a9a958e03dcd60443bfbf7e","name":"ksheehan","url":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/issue\/author\/ksheehan\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/noduslink\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6724","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/noduslink\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/noduslink\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/noduslink\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/noduslink\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6724"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/noduslink\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6724\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6728,"href":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/noduslink\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6724\/revisions\/6728"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/noduslink\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6724"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/noduslink\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6724"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/noduslink\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6724"},{"taxonomy":"division","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/noduslink\/wp\/v2\/division?post=6724"},{"taxonomy":"allowed_regions","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/noduslink\/wp\/v2\/allowed_regions?post=6724"},{"taxonomy":"allowed_divisions","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/noduslink\/wp\/v2\/allowed_divisions?post=6724"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}