In celebration of the International Day of Persons with Disability which is marked on December 3 annually, the College of Rehabilitation Sciences, together with the National Council for Disability Affairs, Council for the Welfare of Children, NORFIL Foundation and Save the Children, organized the 2nd Conference on the State of Children with Disability in the Philippines that was held on December 3, 2018 at Novotel Hotel.
This conference aimed to establish an annual venue for collaboration of advocates, to secure commitment of relevant national government agencies and non-government organizations and to set an engaging environment for disability-inclusive policy advocacy. Its theme was “Empowering persons with disabilities and ensuring inclusiveness and equality.”
These aims were realized in the conference through discussions of evidence-based practices in local school and urban community settings and presentation of national-level efforts of networks contributing to the promotion of disability-inclusive services for children, aligned with the National Strategic Plan on Children with Disabilities.
In the conference, UST CRS Dean Assoc. Prof. Anne Marie Aseron pledged her support as representative of the local academe’s commitment to work for the vision for Children with Disabilities in our country.
UST CRS faculty member Asst. Prof. Karen Sagun-Ongtangco presented a consolidation of research studies on disability-inclusive programs conducted by the College and joined the panel of resource speakers to talk about transitioning from segregation to inclusion in school settings.
Ongtangco also presented five posters together with students under the Occupational Therapy program to disseminate findings of the research studies conducted on disability-inclusive education. To further encourage utility of the research findings, copies of research studies were given to the local agencies who attended the event.
In 1992, the United Nations proclaimed December 3 of each year as the day to observe the International Day of Persons with Disabilities.
