Contributed by PWSA | USA's Family Support Team The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has shown an increase in Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) infections in multiple areas of the US https://www.cdc.gov/rsv/index.html. RSV infection can cause a variety of respiratory illnesses in infants and young children. It most commonly causes a cold-like illness but...
Sent on behalf of Kasey Bedard, PhD, BCBA-D Do you have experience toilet training your child with PWS? We need your help! We are recruiting for a survey study investigating the stressors and challenges of toilet training children with PWS. If you are at least 18 years of age, a caregiver of a child with...
Does your child living with PWS skin-pick? Sent on behalf of Kasey Bedard, PhD, BCBA-D Join a study evaluating the impact of a behavior-analytic caregiver training program on skin-picking in children with Prader-Willi Syndrome. Participation is fully remote. Training will take place across eight weeks, for 1-2 hour per week. All sessions will be recorded....
Could your loved one living with PWS benefit from more movement in their life? PWS parent and Pilates Teacher, Joakim Valsinger is offering FREE Pilates sessions for families living in Nevada, more specifically the Henderson/Las Vegas area, on Monday, October 17, 2022. Joakim says he has used his skills as a Pilates Teacher to help...
World Narcolepsy Day is recognized each year on September 22nd. Narcolepsy is a chronic neurological condition that impairs the brain’s ability to regulate the sleep-wake cycle. It affects about one in 2,000 people. Continued research suggests that children and adults with PWS experience sleep disorders including chronic insomnia and narcolepsy with cataplexy to a greater...
PWSA | USA is honored to be recognized as a charity beneficiary of The Giving Pump! For those in our community who live in the Yonkers area of New York, we encourage you to fill up your tank at the Shell Gas station located at 1 Enterprise Blvd., Yonkers, NY. Through October 31st, a portion...
To learn more about sleep issues in individuals living with PWS, PWSA | USA created a six-month program entitled Sleep Issues in Prader-Willi Syndrome: A Deep Dive for Parents & Practitioners, which included monthly focus group discussions led by a trained facilitator. The program will conclude with a full day PWSA | USA Virtual Sleep...
The Reconciliation for Prescription Drug Pricing Legislation could make it even more expensive for pharmaceutical companies to develop therapies for rare diseases! The reconciliation for prescription drug pricing legislation is putting cures at risk for patients and their families. The measure was proposed in an effort to lower out of pocket costs for millions of...
PWSA | USA is happy to share the most recent news from Soleno Therapeutics regarding DCCR: This morning, Soleno shared that through continued dialogue with the FDA, the FDA acknowledged the data from a proposed randomized withdrawal phase of Study C602 would have the potential to address its concerns regarding the adequacy of the overall...
Mainstay Life Services is a provider in Pittsburg, PA that supports individuals with Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS). Currently, Mainstay Life Services has eight group homes and will be opening another home in the near future. All of the homes are licensed under 6400 regulations through the state of PA. According to Jen Dayton, Associate Director of...
Join PWSA | USA for our July Advocacy in Action webinar: Effective Communication with Elected Officials and Stakeholders - A Virtual Roundtable and Panel Discussion When: July 25, 2022 at 2:00PM EST Register in advance here: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_W4pZ9Q34R3GoO9HdBpmMbg PWSA | USA is excited to bring you this Virtual Roundtable and Panel Discussion on Effective Communication with...
There are many ways to raise awareness for a cause you're passionate about but personal stories typically create the biggest buzz and generate the most attention. It's often difficult to find a starting point - how do I get my story out and who do I send it to? We're here to help! Ahead of...
Summer vacation has begun for many students throughout the country. Parents and caregivers are challenged with taking advantage of warmer weather and more daylight while still maintaining the level of structure and routine their loved one with Prader-Willi syndrome needs. For some people, coming up with fun activities is a stressor. PWSA | USA has...
Representing PWSA | USA and their loved ones with Prader-Willi syndrome, our Community Engagement Specialist, Dorothea Lantz, and one of our amazing advocates from Virginia, Charles Conway, together with their families in tow, joined Patients Rising Now and more than 60 caregivers and patients with chronic and life-threatening illnesses from across the nation this past...
Lindsay Baker, 31, who is living with Prader-Willi syndrome, made a splash at the 2022 Special Olympic Games in Orlando, FL by competing in and medaling in not one, but TWO swimming events! PWSA | USA had the opportunity to speak with Lindsay's mom, Delores, who shared her daughter's incredible journey from birth and her...
As the weather warms up and we see a few extra hours of daylight, spending time with your family, having fun, and de-stressing is a must do. Whether you are hiking near a waterfall, camping in your backyard, riding bikes through your neighborhood, or running through the sprinkler, doing it together as a family will...
"I would like to send a huge thank you to everyone at the Family Support team. The last couple of years have been extremely stressful. My child is really struggling with behavior issues and stealing food. We've had deputies at our house a half dozen times, we've had to call and she has called them...
PWSA | USA is excited to share the findings from a grant funding opportunity, awarded to and studied by Kasey Bedard, Ph.D., BCBA-D, IBA. This grant assisted Kasey with her work on PWS Smart-Start, a behavior-analytic caregiver training program. Kasey gives a brief overview of her results below. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Contributed by Kasey Bedard The purpose...
Yesterday afternoon, PWSA | USA learned in a conversation with LEVO Therapeutics that the company has made the decision to close their Phase III Carbetocin study. LEVO shared they are in the process of potentially being acquired. If this happens, the new company will ultimately make the decision about how and when the next study...
The centerpiece of PWSA | USA's 2022 Advocacy initiative is our first ever D.C. Fly-In. This exciting, in-person event will take place September 19 - 21, 2022 in Washington, D.C. and provide an opportunity for our state activists to expand their efforts and engage their individual members of Congress. Our platform will be to encourage...
Due to technical issues, we were forced to reschedule our May Advocacy in Action webinar featuring Rachel Derby with Patients Rising for June 8, 2022 at 8:00 p.m. EST. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused, but we’re looking forward to seeing all of you who can attend!
Contributed by PWSA | USA Family Support Director Stacy Ward Would you be where you are today, without the teachers in your life who encouraged, inspired and believed in you? I know I would not be. I considered being a teacher – who does not love the idea of getting out of work by three...
The Giving Challenge starts TODAY (April 26, 2022) at 12:00 p.m. EST, and we need YOU to help us make the most of this incredible matching gift opportunity! Thanks to The Patterson Foundation, every gift made from noon today until noon tomorrow (April 27, 2022) will be DOUBLED up to $100. That means your gift...
Contributed by Stacy Ward, MS Director of Family Support and Lynn Garrick, RN, BSN Medical/Research Coordinator Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS) is a rare neurodevelopmental genetic disorder that affects multiple systems in the body. There are many symptoms of PWS, including hyperphagia, behavioral challenges, hypotonia, incomplete sexual development, cognitive deficits, metabolic dysregulation, and several more. Hyperphagia is...
Jennifer Bolander has been serving as a Special Education Specialist for PWSA (USA) since October of 2015. She is a graduate of John Carroll University and lives in Ohio with her husband Brad and daughters Kate (17), and Sophia (13) who was born with PWS.
Over the years, as a special-needs parent navigating the Special Education system for Sophie, Jennifer became interested in learning as much as possible about that process. She began by attending PWSA (USA)’s first Wyatt Special Education Advocacy Training in March of 2013, and went on to complete a rigorous 9-month Special Education Advocacy Training course with the Council of Parent Advocates and Attorneys in May of 2015. This included successfully completing an advocacy internship with PWSA (USA). Jennifer is referred school cases by PWSA (USA)’s Family Support Counselors, and then works closely with parents and schools to review education records, assess the child’s situation at school, provide further information about how the syndrome affects the school experience, and, as needed, create improved IEPs and behavioral plans. Jennifer was excited to take on this role of helping parents in the PWS community to work collaboratively with school professionals and parents to create positive, effective learning environments for children with PWS across the country. Jennifer is a graduate of the WSEAT program.
Perry A. Zirkel has written more than 1,500 publications on various aspects of school law, with an emphasis on legal issues in special education. He writes a regular column for NAESP’s Principal magazine and NASP’s Communiqué newsletter, and he did so previously for Phi Delta Kappan and Teaching Exceptional Children.
Past president of the Education Law Association and co-chair of the Pennsylvania special education appeals panel from 1990 to 2007, he is the author of the CEC monograph The Legal Meaning of Specific Learning Disability; the more recently published books, A Digest of Supreme Court Decisions Affecting Education and Student Teaching and the Law; and the two-volume reference Section 504, the ADA and theSchools, now in its fourth edition. In 2012, he received Research into Practice Award from the American Educational Research Association (AERA) and the Excellence in Research Award from AERA’s Division A (Administration, Organization & Leadership). In 2013, he received the University Council for Educational Administration’s Edwin Bridges award for significant contributions to the preparation and development of school leaders. In 2016, he received the Education Law Association’s Steven S. Goldberg Award for Distinguished Scholarship in Education Law, and in 2017 he received the Council for Exceptional Children’s Special Education Research Award. Note:Perry’s website is perryzirkel.com
Evan has worked with the Prader-Willi Syndrome Association (USA) since 2007 primarily as a Crisis Intervention and Family Support Counselor. Evans works with parents and schools to foster strong collaborative relationships and appropriate educational environments for students with PWS.
Dr. Amy McTighe is the PWS Program Manager and Inpatient Teacher at the Center for Prader-Willi Syndrome at the Children’s Institute of Pittsburgh. She graduated from Duquesne University receiving her Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Education with a focus on elementary education, special education, and language arts.
She obtained her PhD from Capella University in Education focusing her research on Prader-Willi Syndrome. Dr. McTighe is also a graduate of the William & Mary Law School’s Institute for Special Education Advocacy. Dr. McTighe is currently the chair of the Special Education Advisory Board for the Prader-Willi Syndrome Association-(USA). Amy is the Chair of PWSA (USA)’s Special Education Advisory Board.
Staci Zimmerman works for Prader-Willi Syndrome Association of Colorado as an Individualized Education Program (IEP) consultant. Staci collaborates with the PWS multi-disciplinary clinic at the Children’s Hospital in Denver supporting families and school districts around the United States with their child’s Individual Educational Plan.
Staci Zimmerman has lived in Denver, CO for the past 17 years. She lives with her husband and 5 year old daughter. Staci attended The University of Kansas, with a B.A in sociology and an M.ed in Special Education, with an emphasis in Autism Spectrum Disorder. Staci enjoys teaching fitness classes, and keeping a healthy, active lifestyle in Colorado.
Founded in 2001, SDLC is a non-profit legal services organization dedicated to protecting and advancing the legal rights of people with disabilities throughout the South. It partners with the Southern Poverty Law Center, Protection and Advocacy (P&A) programs, Legal Services Corporations (LSC) and disability organizations on major, systemic disability rights issues involving the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and the federal Medicaid Act. Recently in November 2014, Jim retired.
Before founding SDLC, Jim was the Executive Director of Advocacy, Inc., the Texas Protection and Advocacy program from 1989-2001. During that period, he managed the growth of the program from 34 staff to a staff of 94 and from a centralized operation with one office to a regionalized operation with eleven offices spread across Texas.
From 1981-1989, Jim worked for the Advocacy Center for the Elderly and Disabled (Louisiana’s Protection and Advocacy program) as its Legal Director. From 1979 to 1981 Jim worked as a staff attorney for the Louisiana Center for the Public Interest.
Jim graduated from Tulane University School of Law in 1977, and has a BA in Accounting & Economics from the University of Puget Sound.
Jim is the author of publications and training materials on the IDEA, the ADA, and Section 504, including: Keeping Students with Disabilities in School: Legal Strategies and Effective Educational Practices for Preventing the Suspension of Students with Disabilities – A Resource Manual (2014); Stopping the Schoolhouse to Jailhouse Pipeline by Enforcing Federal Special Education Laws (2006), co–authored with Rhonda Brownstein from the Southern Poverty Law Center.
Jim has served as lead or co-counsel in several major IDEA actions in Texas, Louisiana, and Mississippi on behalf of thousands of students with disabilities, including Angel G. v. Texas Education Agency; Luke S. v. Louisiana Department of Education and Mattie T. v. Mississippi Department of Education. The past decade, he also filed and favorably settled five systemic administrative complaints in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Florida. These systemic complaints were filed under IDEA’s state complaint procedures.
Jim has also made over two hundred presentations at statewide, regional and national conferences on IDEA, Section 504, and ADA issues. The past four years he has also served as one of the faculty members at William and Mary Law School’s week long Institute on Special Education Advocacy.
