APRIL 
Motivating Factors for Youth 
Tuesday, September 1, 2020 
2 p.m. Eastern Time 
Remote CART Captioning

>> SIERRA: Hey, everybody.  Thanks for jumping on.  We're going to get started in 5‑6 minutes.  This is the Youth Coordinators Connect.  If you want to play with your mute, unmute, your video camera, now is the perfect time with nobody else on really. 

>> SIERRA: All right.  I see some people joining on.  You are here for the Youth Coordinators Connect, hopefully.  If not, you should hang on because we're kind of fun.  We will get started in 3‑4 minutes.  If you would like to play with your microphone, turn it on and off, you're more than welcome to do that.  If you would like to play around with your background, whatever looks good for you, try out your video camera, too.  Thanks for joining us. 
>> SIERRA: Okay, everybody, we have about two minutes until we get started.  Thank you for jumping on.  Hopefully you're here for the Youth Coordinators Connect.  We'll get started in just a bit. 

>> SIERRA: We're going to give it about one more minute and then we will go ahead and get started. 

>> SIERRA: Okay, we're going to go ahead and get started.  Good afternoon, good morning for some.  It's good to have you here.  This is the Youth Coordinators Connect.  I'm Sierra Royster, with APRIL, which is the Association of Programs for Rural Living.  And this project is with the CIL‑NET, which is the independent living research organization, ILRU, APRIL, and then Utah State University Center for Persons with Disabilities.  This is technically the last one of our last ones of the year.  But we're going to squeeze one more in.  But today , if you would like to say hello, put your name in the chat and where you're from.  I know you all like to light up the chat.  But if you would like to find the chat, most of us are Zoom pros by now, but we would like to make sure everybody is on the same page, the menu bar, if you scroll to the top or the bottom, depending on which device you're on will pop up, and then there will be a word bubble that pops up and says "chat."  And also on that same menu bar is where you can find your mute and your video.  So, if you'd like to join us by webcam, you can do that, as well.  And then we also are offering closed captioning today.  So, that is in that same menu bar.  Sometimes you have to press the ... for the drop down options.  And that would be the CC box.  So, that's where you can find your closed captioning.  I don't have anybody by the phone, so I'll just skip those details.  So, in saying that, hello everybody.  So, we are going to of course talk about what we always talk about youth and what it looks like in our programs.  But I also know that the conversation will turn into what does it look like during COVID times.  We are talking about motivating youth.  So, what motivating factors are you using to get youth engaged in your programs?  The youth that don't want to be there, that are forced to be there, that can't stand the camera, but are stuck behind the computer and having to join your program, maybe there's a parent forcing them and you're part of going into the schools and teaching.  All of those things, how are you keeping them engaged?  And what are you doing to make sure your group is inclusive?  Sometimes we forget that just them even being able to physically or visually or auditorily or whatever that looks like for them be able to join based on an accommodation is a motivating factor. 
And then what are your tricks of the trade?  We want to share all of those things today.  So, without further ado, I think that's the quickest I've ever gone through all that stuff, but I covered everything, though.  If you're not chatting, just make sure you turn your microphone off if you're not talking.  But I do want you to talk, so then do unmute yourself and join in.  I guess tell us some of the ways you are engaging young people?  What are you doing to motivate young people?  And anybody can jump in. 
>> Hello to you all.  This is Patrick.
>> SIERRA: Hey Patrick.
>> One of the things right now we're doing to motivate our young adults to participate in our programs.  Just last Friday we had one of our game days.
And this Friday we're including giving out prizes now.  So, we always have our first, second, and third‑place winner prizes.  That's what we do to get them going and to participate.  However, to get them to join us, it's been really hard now, because now school has started for some of them, and some of them they're already doing internships.  So, sometimes attendance can still be pretty low. 
>> SIERRA: Awesome.  Did I hear prizes?  That rang a bell in my ear.  I always like a prize. 
>> Yeah, prizes. 
>> SIERRA: So, prizes cost money.  Or you've got somebody to give you something.  What prizes are you giving away and how are y'all able to get those?
>> So, we have a budget.
And the prizes we look for are on Amazon.  The first place winning prize is always a popcorn machine.
And the second and third place winners is usually a computer accessory.  And right now the third place winning prize that we're going to be giving out this week is a mini vacuum cleaner for their desk. 
>> SIERRA: All right.  So, you aren't doing the dollar store gig.  Y'all are legit.
>> No.  If you would like to join us somedays, just let us know.  We can just let you in that way you can see how we're doing it.
>> SIERRA: I might if I can win a popcorn machine.  (Chuckling) That's awesome.  And you said your grant allows you to do that? 
>> Excuse me, what was your last question?
>> SIERRA: You said your grant allows you to do that?  The one that funds the group?
>> No, it's not our grant.  Well, I'm not sure, but it's an $80 budget.  I know that's what we're given.
>> SIERRA: Perfect.  As long as you got that to cover it.  That's awesome.
>> Yeah.
>> SIERRA: All right, who can compete with giving away popcorn machines?
>> This is Stephanie Hickey with the YES program at the Center for Accessible Living in Louisville, Kentucky.  I don't know if we can compete, but we try to alternate meeting topics with something fun and something serious.  Last week we had a music night.  Play the songs that motivate you and get you moving and tell you why.  And this week we're going to have a pets and pajamas party.  We try to do fun stuff and then sneak some IL stuff in there.
>> SIERRA: And I assume you're doing that over Zoom or a virtual platform right now.
>> Yes, everything is through Zoom. 
>> SIERRA: Awesome.  I like the music that motivates you and then the pets.  Everybody is a sucker for a pet. 
>> Yeah.  (Chuckling)
>> SIERRA: Awesome.  Those are really good.  What else is everybody doing?  Thank you for sharing that, Stephanie? 
>> Hey, guys.  This is Donna also with the YES program in Louisville.  I want to piggyback on Stephanie there.  We are doing the pets in PJs and we're also going to have the cutest critter couple.  There's going to be an award given for the person and the critter who our judges elect as the cutest couple.  I think that will be a fun touch that we're adding to that. 
>> SIERRA: Awesome.  Competition.  I like it.  I do have a question, when you say you're sneaking IL into some of them, can you tell us what that looks like?  I can see what it looks like in a physical space, but it can be tricky in a virtual setting. 
>> Talking about the music and motivation, how that makes you think about your dreams and goal setting.  And we actually have a goal‑setting meeting where you're like okay, you're going to be on my team and we're going to check in and see if we're living up to that goal.  We each set a goal for our next meeting and we're going to check in on each other and see if that gets done. 
>> SIERRA: That's nice.  Awesome. 
>> And even with like our pet events, Sierra, a lot of things that people don't think about with those pets is all the responsibility that comes with them.  Even though this will be fun, we're going to be talking about the responsibility of pet ownership.  As Stephanie said, we always try to incorporate some of those important IL skills or just things that you need to know in order to have those goals and set those goals.  We encourage being very realistic.  So, even though this is going to be really fun with our pets and our photos and the opportunities, we're also going to talk about the responsibility that comes with that.  So, we just kind of try to throw things in.  Does that make sense? 
>> SIERRA: Yeah.  Yeah.  That makes complete sense.  Those are good ideas.  I like how you've incorporated some of the IL snuck into the fun. 
>> Well, there's always an opportunity to sneak it in.  And it doesn't have to be inherently boring.  You can actually talk about IL stuff without even realizing you are.  Like, guys, this is goal setting, guys, this is being responsible. 
>> SIERRA: That's great.  Those are awesome.  Thank you for sharing that. 
>> This is Troy Hall from ABLE in South Carolina.  We are doing that we haven't done before.  We are still fine tuning it.
But we are presenting our virtual services to school, we are offering a raffle for just a $100 VISA gift card.  Break everything across six weeks, so it will be one per six weeks.  And then we're also trying to get off the ground a new sort of incentive measure where the transition specialist who worked with youth and facilitate those individual classes can nominate a student they work with who embodies self‑advocacy.  And then each YTS, each person will talk about the person they nominated and then we'll select an additional winner from that pool to get a $100 VISA gift card.
And this is tentative.  It hasn't really been nailed down, but these are the plans we're trying to shoot for in the fall. 
>> SIERRA: All right.  Cool.  So, I've been out of CIL work for a little too long.  You guys are legit giving away good stuff.  (Chuckling) I like it. 
>> This is Sandy Popp from Options.  I just have a question for everybody.  You guys are doing some good programs.  Did you have youth already involved so you had a database of e‑mails you could send out or whatever to get this going?  For us, we've been doing self‑advocacy for five years, but we rarely have teens reaching out for other things as much as we try.  We have a lot of programs in our area of Wisconsin that can address so many things, but we're really trying to tackle the youth that aren't coming to us with disabilities.  And I'm wondering how you guys do outreach period, just to even bring people in to start something?  So, like we're looking at starting a gaming, but we also need to have youth to join that gaming stuff when we're getting ready to have it.  Launch it. 
>> This is Emily.  I'm from Society's Assets in Racine.  We have a youth gaming program that we've already been doing, but the reason we have those kids is because we were in the schools through DBR.  So, I mean if you are in contact, I'm not sure how your funding or your relationship with DVR is, but that's how we've gotten our kids was through that.  We've made Facebook posts and boosted ads for something like that.  It's only like $20.  It's not that expensive.  It's money in general, it's never the goal.  But we kind of have got luck through the DVR getting involved with them.  But I think that's the only reason we have it, to be honest.  I don't understand other people's marketing, so, I'm looking forward to hearing that, too, but that's kind of how we do it.
>> This is Heather with Options.  We actually just finished up doing a boost promotion on Facebook through our group.  And it was $25 for five days.  And we were able to reach 2,000 people.  Now, we're still waiting for calls and whatnot to start in.  But just to kind of give you guys an idea of what that can do for you.  Organically, the Facebook information that I got when I posted, without the boost, we were only going to reach about 350.  So, it does pay to do that if you are able to. 
>> SIERRA: Thank you for sharing that.  How else are you connecting with or getting your youth?  ABLE, I know y'all had some stuff already up and going for this hit, right?  And that's how you all are working with now?  Is that still the case? 
>> Yeah.  So, we have stayed in touch with all the teachers that we had in schools.  And so we're slowly kind of rebuilding that for the fall, how we would typically be heading back in the classroom for pre‑ETS stuff. 
We're trying to do virtual, as well.  And add this layer of raffle on.  As we saw in the summer, some of our youth, and obviously the elearning that happened in the spring and early summer is not what's hopefully now in schools. 

But it's a lot easier when the youth are in the classroom and you don't have to worry about, you know, what that looks like to get them in the space because you're coming into the space.  But that's not the case virtually.  So, we're hoping raffle will incentivize them to come and show up virtually.  And then also hopefully expectations from their elearning, what truancy looks like in schools, and attendance expectations is really clear from their teachers and that virtual aspect of learning.  It's so much easier when you can go in where youth are already there and having fun and insert yourself that way.  It relieves that pressure of trying to recruit youth.

>> SIERRA: Anybody else?  Have y'all be able to recruit like new people attending any of your groups or anything like that?  And if so, how have you been able to do that? 

>> Yeah.  Actually one of the ways we have been doing it is also through our marketing outreach.  Promoting on fliers as well as attending community outreach meetings now through Zoom.  And also, before the pandemic, we also used to hold sometimes community events.  Like we had dance parties at a venue in Winwood.  People would see it on the website and we would have the fliers in different places.  A lot of people wanted to come to it and see what it is all about.  And when they see it's a place to help people with disabilities become more independent, they like the whole concept of the whole integration thing.  Not all of them have become our consumers, but some of them come in and join in our activities.  We allow them to do that, because sometimes just by joining in on our activities, before they become a consumer, that I can make a decision I want to be a consumer of CIL here in Miami.  We have this one young lady who attended, I'm not doing to say she is already a consumer of ours, but I wouldn't be surprised if she decided to do that.  We have been recruiting new people now. 
>> SIERRA: Awesome.
>> This is Sandy again.  Really good ideas, really good ideas.  We do a lot with CCOTs, which is our Community Comprehensive Outreach Teams or something.  And they're made up of DVR, special education teachers, some of the management care organizations, things like that. 
That we connect with.  But geesh, even some of the stuff that you guys are putting on Facebook and stuff, those could be things that we could do outreach a little bit better with also.  So, I really appreciate all your ideas.  The other thing is do you guys get a lot of people?  So, on like dance nights or things?  Do you get a lot of karaoke?  I see some in the chat.
And then the other question is do you do these weekends?  Or do you do these weekday or both? 

>> This is Donna with the Center for Accessibility in Louisville again.  We've done some on the week and some on the weekend.  I know last October we had a skating rink to donate the skating rink to us for that evening.  That was a weeknight, but it was pretty heavily attended.  And it was also during Halloween time.
And traditionally our topic is Hallow‑fears, which is talking about what are your fears as a person with a disability, and it's also a costume contest.  And we were fortunate last year we had a skating rink to give us the whole skating rink for the evening. 
>> SIERRA: I see that Paige has also dropped in the chat, yes connecting with other non‑profits and groups and after‑school programs are always excited to refer when we mention we will refer to them.  Patrick said yeah.  And I know a lot of youth centers have talked about that you collaborate with other non‑profits, especially right now because people may not be joining.  So, if you can jump in to another non‑profit that may have a group and kind of collaborate, then, you know, eventually some of those youth will want to attend your stuff, too.  That's a great way. 
>> And Sandy, this is Mike Beers from Summit in Montana.  And you hear about it a lot from the people who have spoken up.  Creating groups based on interest and not label.  So, rather than I think a dinosaur of the past that I don't want to see resurrected would be programs that are existing somewhere else but hey, here's gaming for people with disabilities.  Here's gaming or a dance party for people disabilities.  You create a group based on interest and people will show up.  And then a lot of people are doing the work.  You know, if it's simply, Patrick said it, if it's simply your outlet and this is a safe place you feel you can do that activity and you never do anything else with the center, we've served a need.  If later we find out after you're comfortable where something changes in your life that there's a center service that you can benefit from, or you do feel like you want to disclose a little bit more, you know, then it's kind of the center's job and the individual to help make those connections at that point. 

I think the other thing that I see a lot more of is youth programs in particular figuring out what doesn't exist in the community as far as need or interest.  So, the center becomes that place that creates something that other people want to be a part of.  And that really goes a long way to hitting those groups that we've never been able to connect with.  So, I know a lot of stuff in the schools, like I've had this debate for years.  I remember talking to Sierra about this years ago is how do you reach those students that aren't in that classroom that you're going into that are taking another class somewhere else that period?  Who may not have as many special ed classes and are more 504 or mainstream.  And I think part of that equation is figuring out what they're interested in and, you know, making that attractive as part of a center service.  We do, especially during COVID, we've found we've connected with a lot of people that we were seeing regularly before this, but also some new people offering some role‑playing like Dungeons and Dragons type things over Zoom, which translate really well. 
As well as some of the Facebook stuff.  COVID Chaos was our wrestling pay per view.  So, we all make a wrestling character, which is an interest that a lot of people have, and they don't talk about it, which is a totally separate issue.  (Chuckling) I'm super into it now.  And we had it before.  And we would make the characters and develop them, which I've talked about on other calls.  But now that we can't meet in person, we make promo videos and call each other out and say hey, I'm talking to you, so and so.  I'm the Hangry Hobbit would be my character.  But there are all kinds of soft skills in the context of that we have been able the find that we can reach from comradery, to the ability to supportively give somebody shit, which is a skill we don't commonly talk about.  What is the difference between me challenging you a little bit and teasing than me attacking you personally?  And that's a lot of what those programs are? 

Yeah, get creative.  I love some of the ideas from around the country were awesome. 
>> I have a question.  This is Victoria from Disability Partners in Asheville.  For those of you doing the Zoom calls, what time do you find you get the most participation?  Because a lot of students right now are doing virtual learning.  So, they're sitting in front of a computer on Zoom with their teacher and whatnot for 6‑7 hours a day.  And then you have this other Zoom call?  What time are you guys finding is like most, that you get the most engagement? 
>> I would say from 3:30‑5:30.  That's usually when we have our movie nights. 
>> This is Heather from Options in Illinois.  Anything from like 4:30 to 7:30 in the evening is best. 
>> This is Emily from Society's Assets in Racine, again.  We do something called Gameable.  We only play Uno.  They have other options, but we only play Uno.  When we have our Uno game night, it's usually 6‑7:30.  We do it after hours, but that's during non‑COVID times.  So, we've been doing it now on Fridays at I think it's like 3:30 to 5:00 maybe?  But we've only done it once.  We haven't had great attendance.  It is very hard to find a time that people aren't sitting on their computers all day and then want to join you after.  That's a huge struggle, I think. 
>> Thank you. 
>> SIERRA: So, I do have a question when I'm talking about that, though.  For those of you, let me first of all capture.  There was some good stuff in the chat.  Donna was saying they have bring a friend night.  So a drawing for all attendees and friends.  And sometimes that, going to something new.  But if you know somebody is going to be there, the same thing whether it's virtual or in person, having all my friends jumping on and I'm going to jump on, at least we'll know each other if it's a new thing.  And then again a drawing.  I like that.  Patrick talked about a skin care workshop.  I thought you were doing Dr. Pimple Popper. 
>> It was actually like, to put it this way, a little bit of a role reversal.  In the sense that usually it was a young lady, but this time I did it as a guide because most of the youth that we had, they were mostly guys, so I volunteered to put on the Korean face mask.  Also for the ladies.  Guys can do it, as well.  The ones that we're wearing for everyday use now causes pimples right here.  We showed them that the bacteria that we breathe comes out of our mouth and goes back into our skin and causes pimples.  So we tell them that it's important to take care of your skin, as well, during COVID‑19.

>> I wasn't going to say anything, but yeah, Patrick, you're glowing.  You look great.
>> I was thinking that you could do that face mask and then join Michael's group for the wrestling.
>> Yeah, wrestling/skin care crossover.  Yes, let's do that. 
>> All right!  (Chuckling).
>> One thing, and this is very dependent on your area and comfort level.  But in Missoula, earlier in June, we looked at maybe opening to the public again for small groups and face masks and things like that.  Our numbers went back up.  We said we don't feel comfortable doing that.  But we do have people who have reached out either who don't have access to the technology or who just need a little bit more, they're kind of on the brink.  A lot of it is more support group driven, not in the sense of hey, let's talk about our disability, which is always on the table if we want to talk about it, but how are you doing with all of this and how are you coipg is also an opportunity for us to help them figure out safe behaviors and model those.  So, we also do an audio book club, which is a brilliant idea that one of our students came up with.  Somebody who doesn't read very fast.  I've always thought well those are for other people.  But the students, we all listen to the same audio book.  We space out chairs ten feet apart and bring hand sanitizer and require face masks for everybody.  Even though outside the health department says you don't need them with groups under ten, but we again for people passing by and the students themselves. We want to keep it to a small group that really needs it and we had a lot of talks prior to that with our staff and our board.  Depending on your area, it's an option. 
>> SIERRA: Has anyone else been able to do anything in person?  I know some centers have already opened back up.  Have any of y'all found that?  I know a couple months ago we talked about it and I think there was like one center. 
>> We're in South Carolina.  Some of our schools are heading in one or two days a week.  Some of them have started.  They should all start after Labor Day.  We are planning on depending on their relationships we've had with schools heading into schools.  But like right now it's been project searches like really small groups where there are maybe five students in a room that we're going and seeing, so not like those really big things.  But making sure we have like clear face masks and that things are accessible, thinking through like getting rid of any materials that we would re‑use or getting like a box to be able to sanitize any like small things that you can't wipe off or things like that is how we've had to think through what that looks like in a school.  But I would imagine doing things outside might be easier in terms of like groups that aren't specific to school times and meetings at school. 
>> SIERRA: What you're doing online, how are you making those things accessible?  It may just be like a clear face mask, but it may also be how you're using your words during this time and the language that we're using, too.  What all is everybody doing with that? 

>> Getting different learning styles has always been really important in the curriculum we've taken into the schools.  It's full of activities and different ways to engage for students who don't like to sit and read out of a book, which is harder in Zoom formats.  You can show videos, but it's hard to get up and do the normal activities that we would do.  So, we've really tried to play around with the screen, your little box.  So, everybody sits in front of it and they have their own little Jeopardy square.  But you can get up and move.  Encouraging people to get up and move around while they're on Zoom.  It helps with the Zoom fatigue.  So, encouraging people and modeling get up and move your body a little bit has been a little thing, but we've seen some good results.

>> One thing we've done in Milwaukee, even schools who have opened, they're not allowing any outside visitors to come into the schools.  So, one thing we've been doing is talking to a lot of the teachers and seeing what kind of platforms they're using with the students to engage with them.  So, they use something like the Google add‑ons, because a lot of the students in our area are using Google Classroom.  We're trying to learn from them what platforms they're using to get the students that they're familiar with, so we can incorporate that with their activities and make it the most accessible so they already know how to use it, they know how to work the system, so we can just come in there, do our activities with them, and make it a lot easier than trying to have them learn something completely new.  That's what we've been doing with all of our schools.
>> SIERRA: Sorry, can you say that name one more time?  I heard Google, but there was something that you said before Google. 
>> It's called Pair Deck.  It's just a Google add‑on. 
>> SIERRA: Thank you.  I heard somebody else.  Somebody else chatting or getting ready to?  Okay.  And I think that's what a lot of people are finding.  And even something that we saw if you attended NCIL, the sign language interpreters on the screen.  Sometimes those are not really thought about, or people don't know those are an option.  Even having somebody dedicated that's maybe another youth, but audio describing what people are doing, whether you're dropping that into the chat, or you're maybe messaging just the one person that needs the audio description.  I've seen some of that, as well.  But I think allowing that movement.  I've heard a lot of schools more so than centers, but make sure you're sitting in your upright spinal straight position at all times facing the camera and that makes me want to just hunch over even more.  So, I can't, I don't know how the expectation is for that.  But I like the moving around piece.  And even like Stephanie and Donna, you all were talking about your group of the music piece, just having music breaks.  We did that with our YLF this year.  Just do whatever you want during your music break and jam out. 

And then Options asked are people finding that schools are not really wanting to work with you as they are trying to figure out what they are doing for the school year?  So, we heard Milwaukee is not coming into the schools, but anybody else? 

>> We are going into schools just virtually in Milwaukee.

>> SIERRA: Yes.  Thank you for clarifying that.  Yes, that's what I meant. 

>> This is Heather with Options.  Just to clarify that question, we are not allowed to go into the schools physically.  I think maybe that's an Illinois blanket rule.  But as I'm trying to reach out to teachers, even teachers that I've had good relationships with prior to this, they're either not allowed to actually try to set up anything with outside resources, or they're just super overwhelmed with trying to get things situated, you know, because a lot of the schools at least in my area, they started out as in‑person learning and then they went to hybrid.  And now they're remote only.  So, I just was curious if anybody is experiencing the same thing in what they have done to help with that. 
>> SIERRA: Go ahead.
>> We've had some difficulties with teachers.  We've had teachers reach out to us, but trying to get into some certain school districts has been difficult.  But when we reach out to them, we just let them know that we've had everything set up in their platform, which is Google, and all we have to do is share a folder with them.  They don't have to do anything else.  They wouldn't have to do anything else.  We just structure it out to them that they don't have to do anything on the virtual side of it.  So, just to make it so they don't have to be like oh, do I have to set up a whole classroom for you?  Do I have to do this?  I'm already worried about my structure.  So, if you can just plan it out for them and have that kind of conversation, that's worked out for us. 
>> Okay. 
>> SIERRA: I don't see him on today, but there was another person sometime ago that was sharing that they actually got it to where they can be an elective.  So, some of their students take IL.  And like you would take art or music.  And so they're able to do that virtually when they do their specials or electives or whatever they're calling it in their schools.  So, I know that another one did that.  And then our message in the chat, we have some school divisions that are returning our calls and some that are not.  We are trying to start with being involved and I'm going to go with special education advisory council, just by guess, while we are still building our youth programs.  Cool.  I almost have my special education acronym degree, almost. 

Oh, yeah Brooke, you put some high schools have life skills classes and electives and IL would be a great partner.  Yeah, this would be a great time if your school districts have requirements for different independent living classes, it limits you to usually the students with the disabilities.  But maybe they can expand that. 
>> SIERRA: All right.  I wanted to ask really quickly, just the last thing I was wanting to hear from everybody.  So, we have a lot of people who don't want to be present.  You may have parents or if you're working with schools sometimes and the student doesn't want to be there, how are you engaging those people that aren't sure they want to be there?  What are you doing for those individuals?  And having them care about what's going on? 

>> To be clear, are you asking if we are like for instance, if we're in a classroom and maybe there is a student who doesn't really seem to be interested in whatever the specific topic we brought that day was, how do we pull them in?

>> SIERRA: Yes, I'm asking preCOVID and then also during COVID.  (Chuckling) Either one.  What does that look like?  Because I just, I think we have those students that come to our groups or anything like that, that a parent may have said yeah, they need this, but they tonight want to be there.
And a teacher for the school system in person, but now especially if you're going into schools and doing a virtual classroom or any of these kinds of things and their parents are like you need to get on there.  How are y'all dealing with that?  Is that even happening, I guess, too? 

>> Well, I'll say when we were going into classrooms and some when we were doing virtual services, that's just the really amazing people that we work with.  All the youth transition specialists are kind of able to spin that and spontaneously have that conversation sort of one on one, even if it is within a classroom, because other students are probably in that same boat where they need to understand how it's specifically relevant to them, because even though we talk about a lot of really broad IL concepts or transition concepts, students aren't going to have any buy‑in, unless they see how it exactly relates to something that they want to do preferably in the near future.  So, a lot of times that's just a specific conversation that you can have with the student in that moment. 
>> SIERRA: Awesome.  Thank you.  And I see in the chat, too, easier said than done.  But finding ways to make the topic of the class relevant to their goals and future planning.  Examples of that is advocacy can help you get support in college.  And then Paige was talking about they streamed Crip Camp this year, and the parent was in the background.  Hopefully the parent learns more than the youth.  I like it. 

>> This is Heather from Options.  Whenever I was physically going into the classrooms pre‑pandemic, one of the things I would do, and I had 15 and 14‑year‑olds, so they're younger, not thinking about college quite yet.  But I tried to switch up some stuff.  And they knew that every time I came to the classroom, I was probably either going to bring something for them that I would let them have in the middle to the class or whatnot, or tell them a story.  Or just something fun.  An example would be I actually had a complete knee replacement last school year.  And when I came back, I told them we're going to talk about the topic and then who wants to see the X‑ray pictures of my leg.  They were all boys.  So definitely they wanted to see that.  And it was actually pretty cool because they listen and then they'd see the picture, and then I'd ask them okay well, what did we talk about before I showed you my X‑ray pictures.  They actually told me.  I think it got them more on their toes, so to speak, and got them to engage a little bit.  And I've done that with some other games or incentives.  One morning I brought in donuts.  And I said we're going to talk about half the lessons and then we're going to take a break and those are donuts and those are for you and we can have them. 
>> I saw a lot of people listening.  Do we get to see the X‑ray? 
>> Oh, no.  (Chuckling) I could if you give me a minute. 
>> Okay. 
>> I want to see it.
>> That's great.  That's an incentive.  That's a big piece that I've found, too.  And this goes against any social work instincts or classes you've taught.  You got to share a little bit of yourself.  And it's up to you, a dialogue with yourself and how long you've been practicing, how much you're going to share, and what you're not going to.  But sharing a little bit of yourself opens you up and says, you know, this is a tenant.  We go straight into the class whether it's Zoom or not, and say we're never going to ask you to do something that we're not willing to do alongside you, or watch you do it before we ask you to do something.  That goes along.  I think also, we're not teachers.  We're not the school system, we're not their parents.  But being very up front with them and saying I'm going to talk to you about everything, I'm not just going to tell you things.  I'm going to talk to you.  Personally, growing up, I was told everything in relation to my disability and what I needed.  I was told I had to ride that bus.  I was told I had to go to that classroom.  I was told I needed that accommodation.  It wasn't until very later in life when I initiated it after I went to YLF that anybody ever really talked to me about those things and said why.  Why do I need this?  What benefit is this to me?  Are there other way to do things?  And, you know, I'm not trying to cast shade on teachers and parents, because they're busy, too.  A lot of times they don't have time to have that conversation.  But they know the student needs it.  You're going to get something out of it.  But if we all remember being teenagers, that's the exact opposite way.  To tell them without talking about it with them.  Another strategy that's really, I found useful, and I picked up from other people, is, you know, it is the elephant in the room we talk about a lot when we get in these groups.  We don't want to identify with each other especially when we're young.  If you do run into that when you're in a classroom or Zoom, well, I don't have a disability, I don't want to be here.  Fine.  Don't say you're wrong.  But start asking for that person to help you.  Can you help me set up for this activity?  Can you help me hand things out?  So and so needs somebody to write as they dictate.  Can you help me with that?  Because again, the narrative is always you need, you need, you need.  This can help you, this can help you, this can help you.  You know, I think it's an old Ed Roberts VHS.  But he talks about the idea that as soon as somebody said you have the ability to help someone, it completely changed the way he felt, because he didn't see himself that way. 

It takes time.  But yeah, have them start helping you out.  And they have to be in the class regardless for attendance.  Something is going to seep in, even if it's just that feeling that they're helping somebody.  And if you get them next year, maybe they're a little more open.  Or if they hear about a group that they're interested in outside of label, maybe they're more likely to say okay, I don't think I have a disability, but that skincare group sounds really cool.  So, yeah, you just got to meet them where they're at. 
A social work friend of mine taught me years ago. 
>> I agree.  It's Shannon from LIFE CIL in Bloomington, Illinois.  I really try to draw it back.  We get in with the kids for pre‑ETS, the pre‑employment training services program.  I try to bring it back, okay you're bored right now.  Okay, what are we going to do about that?  Wouldn't it suck if this is your job?  If you went to work every day and it's boring.  That's why we're here.  Or I'm going to give you some attitude now, what are you going to do if you're my boss.  Trying to turn the tables to see what management has to deal with or a teacher may have to deal with if there is disruptive behavior.  How do they reengage with me even to get me back into the conversation.  Like, what if I just started ignoring you?  Which is kind of funny, because some of them are just like what?  This is not the kind of attention I expected.  Again, I do do the alternative school, which is typically a lot of behavior and kind of emotional disorder stuff, which sometimes those kind of tactics can work really well, and sometimes they fall flat.  But you don't know with the specific class.  And I agree, somebody else was mentioning her mental health group stuff in the Zoom chat, just letting them be heard.  Because I'll just be like I'm so tired of being on Zoom and then just like stop talking and they all chime in and talk about it.  Or who is tired of being in their house and the flood gates open and everybody seems in a better mood after five minutes of that. 
>> SIERRA: Yeah.  And if you've missed it, there is an amazing mental health conversation happening in the chat right now.  So, thanks Sydney for opening up that one.  Because that is huge.  Mels is running a mental health group with their center.  And I didn't see if it was just for youth.  I saw that it was for people.  That's all I saw.  But it's different mental health and self‑care strategies.  Mental health Mondays is when they host it and last night was the self‑compassion.  So, that's awesome.  Because I think Shannon, just like you were saying, just letting them have time to connect and talk sometimes is a whole different type of Zoom than the school classroom that they were in all day.  And then Michael was saying take time to let them share their feelings and validate them to get a lot of buy‑in.  Yeah.  Oh, yeah.
And then giving responsibility to people.  So, Mike, I think you talked a little bit about having them involved and giving them certain responsibilities, but even I've seen on Zoom where you're like hey, I need to count how many people come in and who comes in.  Could you like write people's names down?  Or can you count and tell me how many people come on?  Or I need to make sure I say hello and I always forget to type that into the chat.  Could you be responsible for typing that into the chat for me?  Thinking about the different responsibility that may need to be there for Zoom.  Even if it's something that you really don't need, but it can give them value in the participation piece and know that that's something that they can do every time.  Some people really enjoy having that piece of like ownership of their responsibility.  Did you have something?  It looks like you were trying to say something, Mike.  (Chuckling)

>> I really liked the mention about the welcome.  It's such a simple thing.  We do it at our community center, as well as on Zoom now.  You know, somebody told us it's the non‑profit cheers.
Everybody gets the same greeting depending on their comfort level.  Once you're in, and you want to go off and do your thing, great.  Or if you want to jump right into socializing, if that's your thing.  But once you pop in, it's SIERRA!  But making sure you initiate first.  That's such a hard step, especially if you're painted as the teacher or the authority figure.  Which we're not.  But that's inherently the relationship if we're being asked especially to come into a classroom.  Yeah.  I dig the greeting.  And as a person, it makes me feel good if I walk into a place and I'm greeted right away as opposed to like having to find my way and be like is this the right desk or is this the board that tells me where things are.  Yeah.  It can troubleshoot a lot. 
>> SIERRA: If any of you have Moe's, it's like "Welcome to Moe's!" All right.  Our time has come to an end.  A couple of things it would be great if you could mark your calendar for.  We have a youth talk coming up.  Youth talk is different than this.  By means is you just register and it's open to more than just youth coordinators.  It's on racialized ableism.
And it is September 15th.  It's going to be a webinar platform.  We have an amazing speaker coming in, Christiana talking about why do people people, where did our social construct come from that we live in today, and understanding language, and how it changes over time, especially when we start talking about different cultures and ethnicities and races and racism, and how that interplays with disability in our community, as well. 

So, we're going to be holding that.  You do have to register if that.  That is on our website.  Again, it's under Youth Talks.  And then like I mentioned, we are going to have another Youth Coordinators Connect.  So, I wanted to have that.  Oh, it's September 15th 1‑2:30 Eastern.  So, whatever time that is for you.  And then we are going to add another Youth Coordinators Connect the last day of this month.  So, September 30th.  It's going to be on a Wednesday.
And that's going to be on the same subject, but we're going to be able to talk openly in this kind of format about that same racialized ableism.  So, we're hoping that you can join that first conversation and get some foundation and learning.  I learned a lot just setting up and having conversations with Christiana.  So, I'm excited for them to share all their knowledge with everybody.  And then Christiana is actually going to come back and join us for that Youth Coordinators Connect and help that conversation along and hopefully get some stuff going.  And then APRIL conference, if you haven't seen it, we are going virtual.  That is going to be October 12‑16th.  There is a youth conference happening this year and it's going to be instead of an all‑day event, if you've been before, it's going to be every day just one session in the afternoon.  But you join the whole conference.  But there's a youth‑specific conference happening at the end of the day.  So, everything is on our website.  Please go check it out.  You will have to register for the Racialized Ableism and the Youth Coordinators Connect next.  I'll send some stuff out.  And if you would, there is the evaluation for today.  Lots and lots of great ideas.  And again, when you're filling out that evaluation, it says like how was the speaker?  Y'all did great.  You all are the speakers.  Again, September 15th, I hope you're all able to join us then, and then September 30th, as well.  So everybody stay safe.  Wear your mask.  Keep creating wrestling names.  All right, bye, y'all.  And skin care lines.  I like that.