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The National Clearinghouse on Disability and Exchange Makes Including People with Disabilities Easy

NCDE: An Excellent Resource for the NCIV Network

by Michele Scheib

Excitement and worry occupied Oleg Lepetiuk’s mind before traveling from Ukraine to the United States on the Community Connections Program in 2007. “How will I adapt to the new environment, new culture, and new people?” he thought. “What if I encounter a difficult situation?” His concerns quickly diminished, however, when he received reassurances to his questions and learned of the apt preparations by the staff arranging his program.

“I want to stress that despite my anxieties, I did not have any inconveniences related to being visually disabled,” says Mr. Lepetiuk, who is the head of Kharkiv Association of Visually Impaired Lawyers. “I was met in a very friendly and hospitable way; there were no barriers, and I felt very comfortable.”

Mr. Lepetiuk was the only person with a disability in his Ukrainian delegation, so the program hosts, such as the Columbus International Program, worked to include him seamlessly in all activities. For NCIV member organizations who do not have a wealth of experience planning disability-inclusive programs, the National Clearinghouse on Disability and Exchange (NCDE) can be of much assistance.

Since 1995, the NCDE, a project sponsored by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, U.S. Department of State and administered by Mobility International USA (MIUSA), has been working to increase the participation of people with all types of disabilities in international exchange opportunities to and from the United States.

To accomplish this goal the NCDE offers free services, which can be useful for NCIV members:

• A comprehensive website with tips on preparing in advance for disabled participants and arranging for disability-related accommodations (read an International Visitor article at here).

• A searchable database of national and international disability organizations to provide outreach for future visitors with disabilities or to locate services and professional networking opportunities (go here).

• One-on-one free technical assistance services for International Visitor staff and volunteers, overseas offices and International Visitors with disabilities to problem-solve individual cases.

• Publications, most of which are free of charge, including a guide to national and international disability laws, a manual onhow to include people with disabilities in international exchange, and a free on-line magazine of success stories of people with disabilities in international exchange.

The NCDE can connect NCIV members to the tools and resources they need to welcome visitors of all disabilities. For more information on these free services, visit the NCDE website at www.miusa.org/ncde or contact the National Clearinghouse on Disability and Exchange at clearinghouse@miusa.org.

Through NCIV members’ efforts to host visitors with disabilities, communities in the United States and abroad benefit fromincluding people with disabilities. Mary Ann Higgins, Board Secretary of the Akron International Friendship, remembers a moment at a BBQ when Mr. Lepetiuk’s guitar playing connected everyone. “I could see all the delegates really bonded when he played traditional Ukrainian songs; it didn’t matter that he had a disability and the other delegates did not,” she said. “All the host families enjoyed learning more about Ukrainian heritage through his music.”

For Mr. Lepetiuk, the overseas experience meant understanding freedom in a new way. “Despite being visually disabled, I felt thespace of large shops, the space of large libraries, and the wide streets. I was impressed with the quality and cleanness of the American roads, and the orderly culture of drivers. The feeling of freedom and unconstraint was everywhere,” he noted. “[Americans] pay close attention to easy access that could be seen everywhere we visited - public institutions, filling stations, restaurants, supermarkets – all these places were adjusted for people with disability.”

Mr. Lepetiuk did not take for granted the easier navigation, access and freedom of movement he experienced in the UnitedStates. He took this sense of freedom with him back to Ukraine to envision better disability access for all Ukrainians.

Michele Scheib is a project specialist at the National Clearinghouse on Disability and Exchange Mobility International USA, and is based in Eugene, Oregon.

PHOTO: Oleg Lepetiuk during his visit to Columbus, Ohio with an International Visitor Leadership Program delegation

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