April Villafaña Advocacy

10/04/2025

My family and I are our way! 🚘 San Diego Regional Center Annual Vendor & Family Resource Fair. 🎉
🕘 TODAY 9am-3:30pm
📍San Diego Convention Center

09/30/2025

Free Play with Purpose, led by Occupational Therapy Students from the University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences 😍

09/30/2025

National Down Syndrome Congress has a new Policy Brief on Assistive Technology Devises and Services 😄
5 Page Document: https://ndsccenter.org/file_download/inline/45454140-accf-421f-99f6-5863f5fb4308?fbclid=IwY2xjawM3EghleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFjUDhyU3FsMERYNVZaMXo3AR4_roWeMuNkKAyH37j7u_Ec2BQHgSy-r3vOKQyeB0FL7AtWACpHaww3YtDUSg_aem_WfeHLiXC6VGnUdKiytTyIg

08/24/2025

See you there! 🏀 💫 ✨

08/10/2025

So excited for the clubtwentyone webinar TOMORROW, Monday, August 11th!
The Alternative Pathway to a High School Diploma in California is for students with cognitive disabilities, including intellectual disability, Down syndrome, etc., whose IEP teams determine they qualify for California Alternate Assessments. This pathway helps students earn a state-recognized diploma through instruction aligned to core content connectors and alternate achievement standards. The intent is for students to be included and educated alongside their typically developing non-disabled peers to the greatest extent, in general education classes, co-taught classes, electives, and extracurricular school activities, while focusing on academic skills that prepare them for life skills and success after graduation.
ZOOM LINK:
HTTPS://US02WEB.ZOOM.US/J/7671312005?PWD=WU5PE0WSR6IM9OTRCFYGLN7XKXJJQE.1&OMN=81890889041
Meeting ID: 767 131 2005
Passcode: Club21

08/04/2025

A Due Process Hearing is currently live/open (out of state), and the family, who is represented by Dragan Law Firm, LLC has chosen to make the hearing public. By opening the proceedings, this family is helping to shed light on the experiences of children with disabilities and the systemic issues that often go unseen. Public access to special education hearings is a powerful tool for transparency and accountability.
See attached post below for link from Dragan Law Firm.

Thank you to everyone who supported this family. The hearing is concluded and a decision will post in September.

It will be a deep and painful dive into years of failure to teach a bright young child to read, write or spell. The family is opening the hearing to the public. Allowing the public into these hearings is an important way to shed light on what happens inside of schools to children with disabilities. Please consider supporting this family by joining the Webex live next week.

Go to Webex and enter meeting ID above if link does not work

08/01/2025

California Department of Developmental Services encourages you to explore this Standardized Respite Tool, and share your feedback with DDS by Thursday, August 28, 2025. Please email Respite@dds.ca.gov with any questions. 💌 Links to the Standardized Respire Tool, webinar recording, webinar slides and the online feedback form can be found at the website below 😄

A new tool is being developed to help regional centers determine respite hours. The goal of the Standardized Respite Tool is to: Create an easy-to-use form that provides some consistency across the state. Avoid big changes to the authorized respite hours that individuals and families currently have....

07/30/2025

April Villafaña Advocacy
Over 1,000 Facebook Followers! 🤩🥰
Apparently I'm a
Social Media Star 😂🥳

07/22/2025

Stephanie Swaggerty at Sunrise Services is the BEST... very professional, knowledgeable, and efficient in preparing necessary documents for my clients. Stephanie takes the time to answer their questions clearly and makes the limited conservatorship process feel less overwhelming. She has been helping my clients (who have a family member with a disability) since the end of 2023, and the feedback has been consistently positive. 100 STARS 🙂

Limited Conservatorships are a necessary step to protect our special needs family members.

As a paralegal with special needs siblings, I understand the need to protect their wellbeing. We can help during the transition into adulthood as we provide document preparation for limited conservatorships.

Sunrise Services is accepting new limited conservatorship clients - we offer free consultations at steph.sunriseservices@gmail.com

07/19/2025

Beautiful post from Inclusive Schooling!
Be sure to like/ follow them! 💝
Think exclusion helps with behavior?
The research—and the reality—say otherwise.
Here are 10 reasons inclusion is the behavior support:
• Exclusion is not a neutral act, it sends a message: You don’t belong.
• Students with challenging behavior need more inclusion.
• Behavior tends to worsen in segregated settings.
• Inclusion creates natural motivation for behavior change.
• Relationships are easier to build in inclusive settings.
• Being included doesn’t require “perfect behavior”—it teaches it.
• Exclusion removes opportunities for skill-building.
• Inclusive classrooms benefit from proactive, not reactive, behavior support.
• Belonging is a protective factor against behavioral escalation.
• The longer a student is excluded, the harder it is to return.
Training for School Districts! 🤩 https://www.inclusiveschooling.com/bh360

07/18/2025

FREE Zoom Special Education Fundamentals Course by The Law Office of Matthew Storey, APC... Wednesday, August 20th at 5:30pm REGISTER NOW! https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_WRJELbR9Qxu4CJhlAuomWQ?fbclid=IwY2xjawLnmuJleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFGemxFWUVVV2lXTU9xTXZCAR52TIJnC7r6gBwb4LhKXjIOocBa4-6sYM0ElePnlGr5p16bVvCXIxnThHrTbQ_aem_uFERJB9oLlaLFlAvCXWPmQ #/registration

🌟 Join us for a Special Education Fundamentals Course! 🌟

📅 Date: 8/20/2025
🕒 Time: 5:30 PM
💻 Via Zoom

This is a fantastic opportunity for parents and providers to dive deep into the IEP process and learn how to become a stronger advocate for their child. Don’t miss out on this empowering session! 💪✨

🔗 Save the date and share with others who might benefit!

Registration link in our Bio!

https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_WRJELbR9Qxu4CJhlAuomWQ