Appointments Announced to Task Force that Will Consider the Future of California's Developmental Centers

The California Disability Community Action Network (CDCAN) is reporting today that California Health and Human Services Secretary Diana S. Dooley has announced the members appointed to a newly established task force on the future of the State-owned and -operated developmental centers. Kathleen Miller, President of PHA, is included in the list of appointees.

Dooley, in making the announcement said in a statement that “It is essential to listen honestly and fairly to all the different points of view about how best to provide quality care for the people we serve at the developmental centers.”

Formally known as the “Future of the State Developmental Centers Task Force” it is to include people with developmental disabilities who receive services, advocates, regional centers, community-based service providers, organized labor, families of developmental center residents, members of the Legislature and the Department of Developmental Services staff.

The establishment of a task force was first announced by Dooley on May 22nd. You can read more about that announcement here on this blog at California Health and Human Services to Establish Task Force for State Developmental Centers.

TASK FORCE MEMBERS

In her announcement today, Secretary Dooley appointed the people listed below to serve on the Task Force. In addition, the Assembly Speaker and the Senate President Pro Tem will each designate one member to represent the Legislature.

• MARK BARR, MS, has been a special education teacher for the Department of Developmental Services for over 23 years and is an elected labor representative for Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 1000. He and his wife are parents of a child with special needs whom they recently lost.
• CATHERINE BLAKEMORE, JD, is the Executive Director of Disability Rights California (DRC).  DRC provides a broad range of advocacy services state-wide to Californians with disabilities. She has worked in the disability advocacy field for more than 30 years.
• RONALD COHEN, PhD, is the Chief Executive Officer of United Cerebral Palsy of Los Angeles, Ventura, and Santa Barbara Counties since 1987. Cohen is an expert on developing housing for special needs populations and has testified before the California State Legislature and the United States Congress on alternatives to institutional living.
• THERESA “TERRY” DEBELL, RN, is the President of CASHPCR (formerly called California Association of State Hospital Parent Councils for the Retarded), representing families from Fairview and Porterville Developmental Centers. She is the Chair of the Governor`s Advisory Board at Lanterman Developmental Center where her brother Patrick lived for many years.
• TERRI DELGADILLO, MSW, is the Director of the California Department of Developmental Services, the lead agency through which the State of California provides services and support to children and adults with developmental disabilities.
• DAVID DE LA RIVA, JD, is the Senior Legal Counsel, California Statewide Law Enforcement Association (CSLEA).  David joined CSLEA in 2005 as Legal Counsel where he oversees the day to day operations of the CSLEA satellite office in Huntington Beach and represents the Department of Developmental Services’ peace officers.
• CARLOS FLORES is the Executive Director (ED) of the San Diego Regional Center. He has 38 years of experience in the field of developmental disabilities. Carlos was the Branch Manager for the Prevention and Children’s Services Branch of the Department of Developmental Services. He also has been the ED of the Redwood Coast Regional Center and ED of the Developmental Disabilities Area Board 10 in Los Angeles County.
• DANA HOOPER, MBA, is the Executive Director of Life Services Alternatives, Inc. (LSA). Dana is a technology industry veteran with extensive sales and marketing experience. He was previously a vice president of U.S. operations for a German software developer and on the leadership team at Speech Machines, Lernout and Hauspie and Centigram.
• CONNIE LAPIN is a co-chair of the Government Relations Committee for the Autism Society of Los Angeles. She is a speech pathologist, lecturer and consumer advocate for children and adults with Autism Spectrum Disorders and other developmental disabilities. Her son, Shawn, has autism.
• KEVIN MACDONALD, MBA, has been the CEO of The Arc of Los Angeles and Orange Counties for the past 20 years. The Arc provides work and day services. Kevin established The Arc’s Center for Human Rights. He did his Masters Internship at Fairview Developmental Center in Orange County.
• CHRISTINE MAUL, PhD, CCC-SLP, is a speech language pathologist and assistant professor in the Department of Communicative Disorders and Deaf Studies at California State University, Fresno.  She is a parent of a resident at Porterville Developmental Center.
• KATHLEEN MILLER, LCSW, is President of the Parents Hospital Association for Sonoma Developmental Center (SDC), an organization that represents the families and friends of the SDC residents. Kathleen previously worked as a clinical social worker at SDC. Her son Dan is a resident at SDC.
• MARTY OMOTO is an advocate and founder of the California Disability Community Action Network (CDCAN).  He publishes a newsletter about the state budget and legislation with a following of over 65,000 people across the state. He had an older sister with developmental disabilities.
• RAY ROCHA is the President of the board of People First of California.  He was previously vice president of People First of California and president of People First of Bakersfield. Ray works for Kern Regional Center where he helps other individuals with disabilities to access services.
• ROBERT RIDDICK, LCSW, is Executive Director of the Fresno-based Central Valley Regional Center covering Tulare, Kings, Fresno, Madera, Mariposa and Merced counties, including the Porterville Developmental Center in Tulare County.
• WILL SANFORD is the Executive Director of Futures Explored, Inc., a community-based organization that provides support to over 500 individuals with developmental and other disabilities each year.
• SAVAING SOK is a member of People First of California- Region 4 for Sonoma, Solano and Napa Counties. He is a 21-year-old resident of Sonoma Developmental Center and a member of the center’s Human Rights Committee.
• KECIA WELLER is a member of the California State Council on Developmental Disabilities. Weller was formerly a teacher’s assistant at the University of California, Los Angeles Extension Pathway Program, and has been a county supervisor appointee on the Los Angeles County Commission on Disabilities since 2002.
• BRAD WHITEHEAD is a California-licensed Psychiatric Technician at Lanterman Developmental Center in Pomona where he has provided a broad range of medical and therapeutic services to center residents. Brad also serves as Lanterman Chapter president for the California Association of Psychiatric Technicians.

FIRST TASK FORCE MEETING SET FOR JUNE 17th

Secretary Dooley, who heads the state agency that oversees the various health and human services departments including the Department of Health Care Services, Department of Social Services and Department of Developmental Services, will convene the first meeting of the Task Force on Monday, June 17,  from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., in Sacramento at the California Department of Rehabilitation, 721 Capitol Mall, Room 242.

The Task Force will complete its work by mid-November and the meetings will be open to the public.

WHAT THE TASK FORCE WILL DO

Secretary Dooley said in her announcement that the Task Force will develop a plan to “assure quality, effective and efficient delivery of integrated services to meet the special needs of current residents” living in the developmental centers.

Dooley also said the Task Force will consider “the fiscal implications of developmental center operations, including the maintenance of the aging infrastructure, staffing, and resource constraints; the availability of alternative and community resources; a timeline for future closures; and any statutory and regulatory changes that may be needed to ensure the best care possible for this special population.”

“I know that the challenges and decisions facing us will be significant and I have confidence that the Task Force will offer substantive recommendations regarding residents’ services and the fiscal implications of operating developmental centers,” Dooley noted.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE TASK FORCE

Anyone with questions or concerns should contact Jim Suennen, Associate Secretary at California Health and Human Services Agency, at (916) 651-8056 or email jsuennen@chhs.ca.gov.

For updated information, including meeting agendas, about the Task Force, see the California Health and Human Services Agency page at: www.chhs.ca.gov/Pages/DCsTaskForce.aspx