The Self-Advocacy Leadership Series (SALS)

Established groups such as day programs and classrooms complete the Self-Advocacy Leadership (SALS) course together, with support from staff members 1 day a week, over 8 weeks.

Location

online, in-person, or hybrid

SALS Overview & Objectives:

To improve soft skills in the following areas: communication, listening, teamwork, self-awareness, problem solving and negotiation.

The Self-Advocacy Leadership Series (SALS) is an eight-class series that focuses on the fundamentals of leadership.  

The SALS is designed for young adults with ID/DD between the ages 17-22, and is also available for older adult groups. 

Seven of the 8 classes are 1 hour long. The 8th class is graduation where students and teachers are encouraged to invite family and other faculty members to celebrate the hard work of each student as they present a final speech and receive a certificate of completion.

Classes are taught by a self-advocate peer trainer. 

At the completion of the program, students will be recognized at a virtual Graduation Ceremony. Family members are invited to the celebration. Students will receive a Certificate of Achievement from MASS.

Requirements

All participants will commit to attending all 8 classes. Participants are expected to arrive to each Zoom class on time.  It’s suggested that students sign into Zoom 5 minutes early.  Classes will start promptly at their scheduled time. If a student is having trouble entering the class on Zoom, they must contact the MASS training team. 

Students are expected to have their video on for each class.

Support staff are encouraged to attend and participate as needed.

Individuals will join peers independently in a virtual group setting to complete the Independent Self-Advocacy Leadership Series (I-SALS) course.

Location

online only

I-SALS Overview & Objectives:

To focus on the fundamentals of leadership and improve soft skills: communication, listening, teamwork, self-awareness, problem solving, and negotiation.

I-SALS is an eight-class series designed for young and older adults age 17+ with I/DD, including autism.

Classes are 1 hour long. The 8th and final class is a virtual graduation where participants are encouraged to invite friends and family to celebrate their hard work as they present a final speech and receive a certificate of completion.

Classes are taught by self-advocate peer trainers along with a MASS Coordinator. 

The class will be made up of at least 5, but no more than 10 individuals joining independently with others in a virtual Zoom training.

Requirements

All participants will commit to attending all 8 classes. 

Participants are expected to arrive at each Zoom class on time.  It’s suggested that students sign into Zoom 5 minutes early. 

Classes will start promptly at their scheduled time. If an individual is having trouble entering the class, they must contact the MASS training team.  

Students are expected to have their video on for each class.
If an individual has their own support staff working with them, support staff are encouraged to support the individual student in-person at the individual’s location as opposed to joining as a separate participate of the Zoom meeting.

Homework

Students are expected to complete a homework assignment before each class; totaling 8 homework assignments over the course of the training. You will be sent links to the homework assignments by your MASS training team.