What We Do
Training
At SANYS, we provide presentations and trainings to self-advocates, family members, support staff, and the community at large.
Right 2 Ride
Right 2 Ride is a video based, peer-to-peer training about Taking Public Transit, Transportation Advocacy, and the Americans with Disabilities Act as it relates to transportation.
Learn on Your Own
Learn On Your Own: Take the class with video and Q & A, Watch the video (in English, Spanish, or ASL), and get handouts from the classes
For Groups and Classes
For Groups and Classes: Request a Training from us or Download the Curriculum & use our materials to teach your group
Connect
Join the Right 2 Ride support group or Facebook group to connect with other advocates.
Decision-Making Storytelling Project
In partnership with the Harvard Project on Disability, SANYS completed a video exploring the important issue of day-to-day decision making in the lives of people with developmental disabilities.
The video was designed to get self-advocates thinking about and discussing how they make decisions and what type of support they may, or may not need, to make decisions that lead to the outcomes they want in their own life. We are currently facilitating discussion forums using this video as a tool across NYS.
The Decision-Making Storytelling Project video can be viewed here.
SANYS U: The School of Grassroots Advocacy
SANYS U is a multi-session leadership course teaching people with developmental disabilities and their supports all about self-advocacy. We cover topics including the history of the self-advocacy movement, rights and responsibilities, self-advocacy skills, self-advocacy groups, and leadership skills. Presented by your local SANYS regional office staff, SANYS U follows an engaging curriculum that is designed to give people with disabilities and direct support staff a more thorough understanding of self-advocacy through interactive and dynamic discussions and activities. Our ultimate goal is to develop future leaders of the self-advocacy movement.
The Course
SANYS U includes 6 learning modules plus a graduation ceremony which includes leadership project presentations developed by the students. The 6 modules are:
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- Module 1: Self-Advocacy & Your Rights
- Module 2: History of the Self-Advocacy Movement
- Module 3: Becoming a Strong Self-Advocate, Pt 1
- Module 4: Becoming a Strong Self-Advocate, Pt 2
- Module 5: Self-Advocacy Groups
- Module 6: Leadership & the World Around You
- Final meeting: Games, Leadership Projects & Graduation
The students must commit to attend at least 5 of the 6 modules and complete a group or individual leadership project to receive a certificate. Scheduling of the classes can be made flexible to meet each groups particular needs. For more information, please contact your SANYS regional office.
While the SANYS U course offerings are free to students, we ask that supporting agencies provide in-kind production of materials or make a donation to SANYS for the assembly of the course and student materials.
DonateWe Have Choices
We Have Choices is a documentary exploring the full lives people with developmental disabilities experience when they are supported to live in a place they have chosen to call home, in the community of their choice, with supports they, their family, and their friends have helped create. This is a film about history, self-advocacy, family, community relationships, love, respect, challenges and opportunities.
The film focuses on people who are living in their own apartments and homes, for the most part without 24-hour support. But it is important that you know that people can live with choice and individualized services no matter how much support they need, as many do now in New York.
From the Board
The Board of the Self-Advocacy Association of New York State, Inc. (SANYS) is very proud of our “We have Choices video”. We made this video in partnership with OPWDD and many other people and organizations, including DDPC, the Developmental Disabilities Planning Council, which, along with OPWDD supported our efforts at developing some of the original ideas about choice that we call Wheel Power. There is a short section on the DVD extras that talks about Wheel Power and choices.
We want to thank our good friend Jerry Smith, from the University of Minnesota, the filmmaker, who helped us tell the story of choices on this great video.
Other Training Opportunities
- All About Groups
- Introductions to Self-Advocacy
- Advisor Training
- Creating Self Advocacy Group By Laws
- Cultural Competency/Sensitivity
- TechKnowledgeMe – using video conferencing
In addition to these training opportunities at SANYS, we have a large network of talented self-advocates who can speak on common and emerging issues. Please contact us to enquire.