NSU Shepard Broad College of Law Holds Community Roundtable; Need Stressed for Voice for Adults with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

FT. LAUDERDALE/DAVIE, FLA. – Nova Southeastern University’s (NSU) Shepard Broad College of Law held its first

Shepard Broad College of Law AIDD Clinic roundtable

annual community roundtable “Fitting the Pieces Together for our Adults with Intellectual & Developmental Disabilities,” on Thursday 23^rd of March 2017.

Natalie Chin, Director of Brooklyn Law’s Disability and Civil Rights Clinic advised the audience of over 70 attendees, “We don’t dictate the agenda. The community dictates the agenda for us. It is our role to give the intellectually developmentally disabled community a voice.”

The Shepard Broad College of Law Intellectual & Developmental Disabilities (AIDD) Law Clinic, which coordinated the roundtable, was made possible by a generous donation from The Taft Foundation. Howard Rothman, Chairman of the Board of Directors and President of The Taft Foundation in opening remarks said “one of the things you need is a strong advocate.”

During a roundtable discussion, Jayme Cassidy, Director of the AIDD Law Clinic, encouraged the community partners attending to “brainstorm, so that we all can work together to assist this under represented community.”

“Individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities are a generally underserved population that have many legal issues that impede independence and infringe on their individual rights,” Cassidy said.

“This was an opportunity for renowned judges, legal professionals, advocates, and representatives for persons with special needs to come together to discuss best practices and assess community interests,” Cassidy said.

The Hon. Mark A. Speiser, Probate and Guardianship Judge for the 17th Judicial Circuit, offered a legal educational segment. He said “that many of the AIDD community members who become justice-involved are really a fragile population who are not really problematic and benefit significantly from the therapeutic court system.”

Shepard Broad College of Law Dean Jon M. Garon closed the roundtable by advising that, “Nova Southeastern University has all the components available to serve the AIDD community holistically.”

The AIDD Law Clinic was established in 2017 to address these needs providing legal representation and advocacy of those persons and their families. Legal issues addressed by the clinic, which also expands clinical education to participating NSU College of Law students, include Social Security income, Medicaid, Guardian Advocacy, Education, Housing and Discrimination.

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Shepard Broad College of Law: Nova Southeastern University’s College of Law offers a cutting edge, skills-centered academic program in three-year full-time and four-year part-time divisions. With its recently redeveloped clinical programs, every NSU Law student is guaranteed a live-client experience. In-house clinical studies are supplemented by full-time field placement opportunities practicing law in Florida, across the United States, or select locations throughout the globe. To solidify student success after graduation, NSU Law pioneered a curriculum on the business of lawyering through the Global Law Leadership Initiative. NSU Law students have a myriad of curricular opportunities, including a rich, diverse curriculum, concentrations in International Law or Health Law; dual degree programs abroad in Rome, Barcelona, or Prague; dual degree programs at many of NSU’s other 17 colleges; and much more.  For more information, please visit www.law.nova.edu.

About Nova Southeastern University (NSU): Located in beautiful Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Nova Southeastern University (NSU) is a dynamic research institution dedicated to providing high-quality educational programs at the undergraduate, graduate, and first-professional degree levels. A private, not-for-profit institution, NSU has campuses in Fort Lauderdale, Fort Myers, Jacksonville, Miami, Miramar, Orlando, Palm Beach, and Tampa, Florida, as well as San Juan, Puerto Rico, while maintaining a presence online globally. For more than 50 years, NSU has been awarding degrees in a wide range of fields, while fostering groundbreaking research and an impactful commitment to community. Classified as a research university with “high research activity” by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, NSU is 1 of only 50 universities nationwide to also be awarded Carnegie’s Community Engagement Classification, and is also the largest private, not-for-profit institution in the United States that meets the U.S. Department of Education’s criteria as a Hispanic-serving Institution. Please visit www.nova.edu for more information about NSU and realizingpotential.nova.edu for more information on the largest fundraising campaign in NSU history.

March 29, 2017

Contact:
Kevin Boyd
954-288-9509 | kevinboydpr@comcast.net