The Arc of Texas

11/16/2025

Help Texans with disabilities access supports and services needed to live the life they deserve. Give today and Providence First will match your donation! That means your impact will be DOUBLED, and you'll help get us that much closer to meeting our end-of-year fundraising goal so that we can continue advocating for the rights of Texans with disabilities! We cannot do it without you--thank you! https://www.thearcoftexas.org/donate/

11/14/2025

We love to see our local Texas chapter leaders connecting at ! 📸 Pictured: Molly Saenz of The Arc of El Paso, Julia Chalker of The Arc of DFW Area, Janniece Sleigh of The Arc of Harris County, The Arc of Texas Board President-Elect Veronica Ayala, and The Arc of the United States CEO Katy Neas

Enjoying the The Arc National Convention with new friends from other Texas chapters. Learning new things and being inspired! We were excited to meet Katy Neas, CEO of The Arc of the United States.

11/13/2025

🎁 🎁 A CHANCE TO DOUBLE YOUR IMPACT! Texans with disabilities are facing major threats to supports and services they need to live--at the state and federal level--but we've got their backs! Stand with us. Make a donation today to our end-of-year fundraiser and your gift will be matched by our sponsor, Providence First! No matter the size, EVERY gift helps. Thank you! https://www.thearcoftexas.org/donate/



[Image ID: An animated image of purple, orange, yellow and white says, "Texans with disabilities are facing major threats to supports and services they need to live. We've got the back of Texans with disabilities! Stand with us. Donate now and your gift will be matched by our sponsor, Providence First! Double your impact!" The image includes black and white photos of disability rights advocates in various settings and The Arc of Texas logo.]

11/03/2025

Hey, DFW friends! Want an update on disability issues covered during the recent Texas legislative session? Don't miss Michael Clarke, Deputy Director of Public Policy & Advocacy for The Arc of Texas, this coming Saturday at The Arc of DFW Area's A Look Ahead Conference!

📢📢📢 ANNOUCNMENT📢📢📢

The full line up of the Saturday, November 8th A Look Ahead Conference is HERE!

⭐ Another Cliff! Medical Transition - A Two Part Series
Laura Buckner, M.Ed., Texas Center for Disability Studies - The University of Texas Austin

⭐ Guardianship & Alternatives: Respecting Rights & Supporting Choices
Jeff Miller, Disability Rights Texas

⭐Meaningful Activities = Quality Life: How Involvement in Recreation, Summer Camps, & Extracurricular Activities Can Lead to Better Adult Outcomes
Julia Chalker, The Arc of DFW Area, & A Summer Camp Panel Discussion

⭐Peace of Mind: Plan Today to Protect Your Child Tomorrow
Ivy Goldstein, Advocate & M.O.M., & Elizabeth Tucker, EveryChild Texas

⭐Preparing High School Students with Disabilities for College
Angela Barbour, PhD, Zarrow Institute & SPARK360

⭐Restoration of Rights for Adults Under Guardianship
Jeff Miller, Disability Rights Texas

⭐Tips, Tricks, & Tools for Teaching Self-Determination
Christy Jolliff, M.Ed., Zarrow Institute - TRAIN Scholar & Peighton Pratt, PhD, ECLIPSE Idaho

⭐Under the Dome: A Wrap Up of Disability Issues & the 89th Texas Legislative Session
Michael Clarke, The Arc of Texas

⭐ What Might Your Child’s Behavior Be Telling You?
Laura Buckner, M.Ed., Texas Center for Disability Studies - The University of Texas Austin

⭐Voting, Elections, & Getting Involved: A Conversation about Voting & Disability Rights
Jeff Miller, Disability Rights Texas

⭐Zarrow Institute on Transition & Self-Determination: Assessments, Curriculum,
Bell Ringers, & More
Christy Jolliff, M.Ed., Zarrow Institute - TRAIN Scholar & Peighton Pratt, PhD, ECLIPSE Idaho

A Look Ahead Conference
Saturday, November 8, 2025
9 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.
FUMC-Arlington
313 North Center Street
Arlington, Texas 76011

🟢 CONFERENCE FEE: $20 - a light breakfast & lunch included
🟢 REGISTRATION: https://www.alookaheadseries.com
🟢 Limited stipends available for individuals with disabilities and family members. Please complete the form at https://bit.ly/ALAStipendRequest to request a stipend.
🟢SPONSORSHIP & EXHIBITOR SPACE available. Please contact
michelle@thearcofdfw.org for additional information.
🟢 QUESTIONS? Email us at: alookahead@thearcofdfw.org

📢Due to TEA changes, CEUs are not currently being offered.

10/31/2025

Not every child says “trick or treat.” Some wear no costume, carry a blue pumpkin, need extra time at your door, or may seem older than most trick-or-treaters. Many people with disabilities experience Halloween differently, but everyone deserves the chance to enjoy the fun in their own way. The sweetest thing you can give tonight is patience, understanding, and inclusion. Be the neighbor who makes Halloween welcoming for everyone.

Happy Halloween! 🎃

10/30/2025

Millions of people with disabilities, like Sam, rely on food assistance to get by. But right now, that help is at risk. No one should have to choose between food, medicine, rent, or heat. Tell Congress to act now to prevent people from going hungry: https://bit.ly/4huQXn0

10/28/2025

REGISTER FOR NEXT WEEK'S LISTENING SESSIONS! Self advocates and families of Texans with IDD are invited to join The Arc of Texas on Zoom to share your experiences with and suggestions for the Health & Human Services Commission and/or the Texas Workforce Commission. Every 10 years, Texas’ Sunset Advisory Commission reviews state agencies to determine how they can better serve Texans. We’re gathering feedback for the committee – and we want to hear from you! Register below:

-- Register: Listening Session on Texas Workforce Commission (Tues 11/4, 12-1pm): https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/GgkfsYj1S2W0jldLXqZIXg #/registration

-- Register: Listening Session on Health & Human Services Commission (Wed 11/5, 12-1pm):
https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/kL2TKfRpRdur5xSvHIxRnQ #/registration

Learn about Texas' Sunset Review process: https://ow.ly/Mov550XgBOp


Texas Advocates

10/23/2025

🚨TAKE ACTION -- TAKE OUR SURVEY: Texas State agencies are reviewed just once every 10 years by the Sunset Advisory Commission, impacting quality of life for Texans with IDD for a decade! Take The Arc of Texas' Sunset Review Survey to share your experiences, concerns and suggestions for two agencies under review this cycle:
--The Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) oversees Medicaid, long-term services and supports, and Medicaid waiver programs that help Texans with IDD live in their communities.
--The Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) provides employment support, vocational rehabilitation, and workforce development services vital to people with disabilities seeking meaningful jobs.

Check out our blogpost to learn more about this process and how to make your voice is heard: https://ow.ly/Mov550XgBOp

Take our survey: https://ow.ly/REi150XgBOn

10/21/2025

Way to go, Shelbi! Shelbi serves on the board of The Arc of Texas and is a powerful advocate for disability rights. During (National Disability Employment Awareness Month), check out how she became a coordinator for Texas A&M Horticultural Options in Plant Sciences!

From Texas A&M: "Shelbi Davenport ’20 dreamed of attending Texas A&M University like her mother, but a high school counselor told her she could not handle college due to her disability. Growing up in a small town with limited resources, Davenport knew the odds were stacked against her, until a program in Texas A&M’s Center on Disability and Development (CDD) aided in her journey.

Davenport first heard about the Postsecondary Access and Training in Human Services (PATHS) program while attending a transition fair, which helps students plan for life after high school. PATHS is an initiative for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Davenport first dismissed the idea of joining the program but gave it another chance during her senior year of high school.

The experience taught her independence and self-advocacy skills her previous education had never addressed. “In high school, I would let people trample all over me,” Davenport said. “The program taught me not to do that because I have a voice myself, and so it taught me employment skills and more”." Continue reading: https://ow.ly/Ogat50XfjZ0

Texas A&M College of Education & Human Development

10/17/2025

🎥 Sabrina Gonzalez Saucedo, our Director of Public Policy & Advocacy, spoke with Dallas ABC news affiliate WFAA yesterday about the federal special education layoffs, explaining that this will further deplete oversight of critical education services for kids in Texas -- a state that "has a long and troubling record when it comes to compliance and implementation of federal education law."

10/16/2025

It's National Disability Employment Awareness Month! A perfect time to spotlight the Texas Beacons of Excellence Project, which provides Texans with disabilities a pathway from sub-minimum pay to competitive integrated employment. The program is a partnership between the University of North Texas’s WISE program and the Texas Workforce Commission’s Vocational Rehabilitation (TWC-VR) Services, funded through a five-year, $13.3 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education’s Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA).

The project works with students and youth transitioning out of high school, as well as adults currently earning subminimum wages, to provide guidance, training, and support to obtain competitive integrated employment. It involves people with disabilities, families, educators, school staff, VR professionals, and employers to create more opportunities for meaningful work across Texas. Learn more: https://ow.ly/Arr450XaGKa

University of North Texas
Texas Workforce Commission