7:30 am – 5:00 pm
Registration begins in Lobby - Ballroom Level, Main Concourse

Registration is open all-day

7:30 am – 8:30 am
Networking Breakfast - Salon C & D, Ballroom Level

ACCSES New Jersey & the STAR Conference will provide a HOT and SAVORY buffet breakfast with Eggs, Bacon, Sausage, Muffins, Fruit, etc.  A hearty breakfast will get you ready for an amazing day of Awards & Training Sessions all ending with a networking reception at days end.

8:30 am – 8:45 am
Welcome Remarks - Salon C & D, Ballroom Level

Mark Boyd – Chairperson of the Board & Mohsen Badran President & CEO of ACCSES New Jersey, Inc

8:45 am – 9:30 am
Keynote Speaker - Paul Aronsohn - State of New Jersey Ombudsman for Individuals with Intellectual or Developmental Disabilities and Their Families - Salon C & D, Ballroom Level

Public Advocate for People with Disabilities, Paul Aronsohn State of New Jersey Ombudsman for Individuals with Intellectual or Developmental Disabilities and Their Families, delivers a speech about the importance of employment opportunities for individuals with disabilities.

9:30 am – 9:45 am
Break - Visit the Exhibitors - Salon C & D, Ballroom Level

Use your exhibitor passport, in your conference tote, to qualify for the prize drawings that will take place on Thursday, October 10th at the Networking Reception.  Each Table will have a special stamp, get to know our great partners, and learn about the valuable product and services they provide in the State of New Jersey.

9:45 am – 11:00 am
ACCSES New Jersey General Membership Meeting - Salon A, Ballroom Level

General Membership Meeting for ACCSES NJ Membership Only

9:45 am – 11:00 am
Purchasing Law Review for Local Government - Piscataway Room, Ballroom Level

Presenter(s):

Joseph Valenti, Joseph Valenti LLC

Nicola Reid, Stafford Twp Purchasing Agent

Description:  An overview of the policy changes and new laws that apply to local public contracts law.  Mr. Valenti will speak on the changes to the law.  Ms. Reid will speak on the practical use of the law change on a day to day basis.

9:45 am – 11:00 am
Lessons from the Field: Gaining Preparation and Mitigation Wisdom through Disaster Response - Woodbridge Room, Ballroom Level

Presenters:

Joseph Falca, retired Supervisor of Records Management, NJ Division of Archives and Records Management

Robert Gallagher, Records Manager, Jersey City

Description: This session will cover real-life disaster response situations that will serve as a springboard to information on how to prevent or mitigate a disaster’s effects.  Mr. Falca and Mr. Gallagher have personally responded to a number of different types of disasters, including flooding, fire, and other catastrophic events.  They will talk about what they learned during the response about how to prepare and mitigate damage in future disasters.

11:00 am – 11:15 am
Break - Visit the Exhibitors - Salon C & D, Ballroom Level

Use your exhibitor passport, in your conference tote, to qualify for the prize drawings that will take place on Thursday, October 10th at the Networking Reception.  Each Table will have a special stamp, get to know our great partners, and learn about the valuable product and services they provide in the State of New Jersey.

11:15 am – 12:30 pm
Navigating the Federal Legislative Landscape - Salon A, Ballroom Level

Presenter: Kate McSweeny, ACCSES

ACCSES Vice President of Governmental Affairs, Kate McSweeny will provide a lively session of discussion and Q and A about pending legislation in the U.S. House and Senate that may prove important to people with disabilities and the organizations that serve them, and recent legislation, regulations, and executive orders that could have an impact on your organization.  She also will give an overview of what ACCSES anticipates the key issues to be for its members in the coming year.

11:15 am – 12:30 pm
Cooperative Alternative Purchasing Pathways Workshop - Piscataway Room, Ballroom Level

Presenters:

Alan Sydlo, Purchasing Specialist, NJ Division of Purchase and Property

Brian Gallagher, DeptCor

Description: A comprehensive summary of DPP’s Cooperative Purchasing Program and the introduction of NJSTART.  The presenters will review the steps DPP has taken to provide the State with more comprehensive purchasing solutions and will also address some of the benefits of the new NJSTART system.  Alternative purchasing avenues such as DeptCor and the State Use (ACCSES NJ) program will also be discussed.

11:15 am – 12:30 pm
ROBOTS4AUTISM - The Future of Education & Socialization for Learners with Autism - Brunswick C, Ballroom Level

Presented by Kevin Askew

Milo the robot is designed to be interesting and approachable for learners with ASD. He can walk, talk and even model human facial expressions. Milo never gets frustrated or tired. He consistently delivers lessons in a way that learners with ASD respond to. This recurring positive experience creates an environment in which learners can learn and thrive. Robots4Autism helps learners improve their social and behavioral skills and gain the confidence they need to succeed academically and socially.

Using the Robots4Autism program, individuals with ASD learn to:

• Tune in on emotions
• Express empathy
• Act more appropriately in social situations
• Self-motivate

11:15 am – 12:30 pm
Records Management Best Practices - Woodbridge Room, Ballroom Level

Presenters:

Joanne McKinley, ACCSES NJ Account Manager, formerly of the NJ Division of Archives and Records Management

Lenora Miko, Easterseals NJ, Operations Manager

Description:  The basis of good records management is in how records are handled to provide ease of access, protection while in use and ease of disposal when the life cycle has ended.  This session will give an overview of best practices in the organization and storage of records; document conversion, microfilm & microfiche, cloud records management vs on-premise systems, and disposal of records.  It will also explore what to look for in selecting a vendor  to help you with these tasks.

12:30 pm – 2:00 pm
Awards Luncheon - Salon C & D, Ballroom Level

Our annual awards luncheon celebrating the achievements of our Government Partners, Member Organizations and most importantly, the Individuals that make this program a success.

2:00 pm – 2:15 pm
Break - Visit the Exhibitors - Salon C & D, Ballroom Level

Use your exhibitor passport, in your conference tote, to qualify for the prize drawings that will take place on Thursday, October 10th at the Networking Reception.  Each Table will have a special stamp, get to know our great partners, and learn about the valuable product and services they provide in the State of New Jersey.

2:15 pm – 3:30 pm
NJ Legislative Update - Salon A, Ballroom Level

Presenters:  Scot McKay, Treasurer, MBI and Richard Wright, Partner, MBI

Program Description:

This session will cover legislative issues in New Jersey that affect people with disabilities at work and in their lives and the services that organizations provide to them.

2:15 pm – 3:30 pm
Open Public Records Act-Requests, Responses and Document Production - Woodbridge Room, Ballroom Level

Presenter:

Dawn R. SanFilippo, Esq.  OPRA and OMA Specialist

Description:  This seminar is designed to aide records custodians, in properly responding to requests to ensure that government transparency is maintained and record custodians are in compliance with OPRA.  This seminar will address the ethical balance of maintaining government transparency with the protection of individual privacy rights and attorney-client privilege.

2:15 pm – 3:30 pm
Topics in Green Purchasing - Piscataway Room, Ballroom Level

Presenters:

Fred Schimanski, CleanSmart

Gordon Ball, Retired,  NJ Division of Purchase & Property

Description:  This panel will cover a variety of topics in green purchasing including products and services. With growing frequency and urgency, local governments are realizing the need to meet stricter standards of environmental stewardship. Increasing costs of waste management, worker safety and public health concerns, and the emergence of acute and chronic environmental problems both locally and globally are just a few of the issues spurring on local communities to improve the environmental characteristics of their operations. Public demand for local administrations to adopt an overall “greener” approach is also increasing rapidly. In response, a growing number of local governments are now intent on avoiding the costs of environmental degradation, and are thereby committed to instituting more sustainable practices.

3:30 pm – 4:00 pm
Vendor Networking Reception - Salon C & D, Ballroom Level

LAST CHANCE!!!!! Use your exhibitor passport, in your conference tote, to qualify for the prize drawings that will take place on Thursday, October 10th at the Networking Reception.  Each Table will have a special stamp, get to know our great partners, and learn about the valuable product and services they provide in the State of New Jersey.

Doorprize Drawings (Must Be Present to Win) – Prizes to be announced at 5:15 p.m.

4:00 pm – 6:00 pm
Evening Reception - Salon C & D, Ballroom Level

Evening Networking Reception with Hot & Cold Hors D’oeuvres & Entertainment.

7:30 am – 8:30 am
Registration begins in Lobby - Ballroom Level, Main Concourse

Registration is open all-day

7:30 am – 8:30 am
Networking Breakfast - Salon A & B, Ballroom Level

ACCSES New Jersey & the STAR Conference will provide a HOT and SAVORY buffet breakfast with Eggs, Bacon, Sausage, Muffins, Fruit, etc.  A hearty breakfast will get you ready for an equally hearty day of Training Sessions.

8:30 am – 10:00 am
Advocacy at the Federal Level - Brunswick A & B, Ballroom Level

Presenter:  Kate McSweeny, ACCSES

Program Description:

This session, facilitated by Kate McSweeny, is designed to inform attendees of the most pressing national public policy issues facing CRPs, to educate attendees of current national advocacy efforts and to focus on what can be done at the CRP level to influence national public policy concerning people with disabilities and service providers.

8:30 am – 10:00 am
Green Cleaning, New Products, New Technology, Best Practices - Woodbridge Room, Ballroom Level

Presenters:

Jim Manton, Business Development Manager – ACCSES NJ

Fred Schimanski

This session will cover best practices and techniques using green cleaning products and equipment to maintain excellent quality levels for your customers while protecting our environment.

8:30 am – 10:00 am
PreETS—Pre-Employment Transition Services - Piscataway Room, Ballroom Level

Presenter: Angela Lucas, Employment Manager, JEVS/hireAbility

This session will cover PreETS: (Pre Employment Transition Services) best practices by highlighting success stories.  We will talk about the importance of teaching students self-advocacy; how we take a person-centered approach when identifying and referring students and families to external resources; and how we take a “no wrong door approach” and success stories attached with that sentiment. We will discuss the importance of benefits counseling and hireAbility’s commitment to providing this important service by adding CWICs on staff; the importance of having the right community setting for employment (integrated environment; and where the job seeker is actually comfortable working and has developed natural supports, etc.)  and cover discuss our approach to WBLEs.  We will also talk about our job readiness curriculum –how we strive to find careers and not jobs and about our performance measurement (KPIs), the importance of strong relationships with VR counselors and how that can lead to stronger results, and the challenges and limitations of Pre-ETS.  We will cover what an “Employment First” approach means to us regarding the implementation of Pre-ETS: the discovery process and how important it is to be person-centered and thorough and any lessons learned that would be valuable to share with other providers and audience members.

8:30 am – 10:00 am
Sales, Prospecting and Marketing - PART 1 - EDISON, Ballroom Level

Dr. Gina Marcello, a professional development coach with an extensive sales and marketing background, presents a modern look at sales and the essence of relationship building.  The all-day (Three Part) course covered the increasingly complex selling environment that has evolved through the advances of technology. A portion of the class revolves around the notion that successful sales professionals use relationship-oriented selling approaches to help their customers win. Today, gimmicks and tactics are obsolete: customers are just too savvy. Armed with pricing and information from your website, reviews from the Internet, and recommendations from an army of colleagues and friends, most customers will have completed 70% of the buying process without engaging with a salesperson.

PART 1

10:00 am – 10:15 am
Break - Visit the Exhibitors - Salon C & D & E, Ballroom Level

Grab a Hot Coffee, or a Water and visit our wonderfull partners one more time before the conference ends.

10:15 am – 11:45 am
Sales, Prospecting and Marketing - PART 2 - EDISON, Ballroom Level

Dr. Gina Marcello, a professional development coach with an extensive sales and marketing background, presents a modern look at sales and the essence of relationship building.  The all-day (Three Part) course covered the increasingly complex selling environment that has evolved through the advances of technology. A portion of the class revolves around the notion that successful sales professionals use relationship-oriented selling approaches to help their customers win. Today, gimmicks and tactics are obsolete: customers are just too savvy. Armed with pricing and information from your website, reviews from the Internet, and recommendations from an army of colleagues and friends, most customers will have completed 70% of the buying process without engaging with a sales person.

PART 2

10:15 am – 11:45 am
An Updated View of the Extended Employment (EE) “Hybrid Program” - Piscataway Room, Ballroom Level

The Hybrid Model allows extended employees to begin working in competitive-integrated employment while at the same time, benefiting from the supports of their EE program.

Participation in this program is strictly voluntary. It is driven by the belief in a transitional employment approach and the need for strong collaboration between the consumers, providers, DVRS counselors, employers, and other community partners.

This workshop will provide an overview of the Hybrid program, offer lessons learned and share success stories as told by providers and a local DVRS office.

Presenters include: Program Planning Development Specialists- Deborah Vaughn, Vito Palo, Kathleen Kindya, Jennifer Sosdorf, Sue Polansky

CRP Specialist- Jon Briggs

Moderator: CRP Chief- Karen Carroll

10:15 am – 11:45 am
Starting, Building and Maintaining a Janitorial - Woodbridge Room, Ballroom Level

Presenters: Floyd Nesse and John Ganley ACCSES NJ

Thinking of starting a janitorial business? CRP’s have good reason to eye the low-tech, easy-to-enter cleaning industry. Low start-up costs, combined with the essential need for cleaners, are the two major incentives for getting into the business. Start small with a simple one-person business and grow increasingly sophisticated to have dozens of employees and offer a wide variety of services.

Is it that easy? There are several key considerations to keep in mind.

What equipment do you need? What are the consumable supplies and their cost? How about finding workers? Can anyone learn to clean? Not to mention, all the work is offsite…

Balancing offsite shift work can be tricky. If you’ve just completed a night shift, who will take a customer’s 9 a.m.? To build a solid foundation, you’ll need to invest time getting trained in the most efficient equipment, chemical applications, marketing yourself, the sales process and finding trustworthy workers to do the job.

10:15 am – 11:45 am
SourceAmerica Environmental Changes

Presenter:    Debbie Ignatz, Source America, Sr Mgr, State Relations

SourceAmerica has a new CEO and a new organizational structure poised to improve relationships with NPAs, the government customer and the Commission while growing employment opportunities for individuals with disabilities. This session will explore these exciting changes and what they mean for the AbilityOne Program and beyondPresenters:    Debbie Ignatz, Source America

Brunswick A & B, Ballroom Level

11:45 am – 2:00 pm
STAR CONFERENCE LUNCH - Salon A & B, Ballroom Level

Regular Lunch Session for our Star Conference Attendees.

11:45 am – 2:00 pm
Centennial Luncheon - Salon C & D & E, Ballroom Level

Celebrating 100 Years of Vocational Rehabilitation Services in New Jersey:

Recognizing a Century of Service to the Community

Host:      The NJ State Rehabilitation Council

Keynote Speaker: Stephen A Wooderson – Chief Executive Officer, CSAVR, Council of State Administrators of Vocational Rehabilitation

This is a truly historic event, as the New Jersey Division of Vocational Rehabilitation Services (DVRS) is the oldest Vocational Rehabilitation system in the country. The DVRS has an enviable record of overseeing and managing state programs that provide jobs and other services to people with disabilities.  Its mission is to enable eligible individuals with disabilities to achieve an employment outcome consistent with their strengths, priorities, needs, abilities, and capabilities.

To honor the agency’s 100 years of service, we invite everyone serving the disability community to attend the luncheon, along with government representatives, recipients of DVRS services, and affiliates and friends of this outstanding entity.

2:00 pm – 2:15 pm
Break - Visit the Exhibitors

Visit the Exhibitors

Salon C & D & E, Ballroom Level

10:15 am – 11:45 am
ACCSES Clean / ACCSES Secure Marketing & Sales Roll-out - Brunswick A & B, Ballroom Level

Presented by: David Schoch VP of Business Development & Salvatore Coppola, VP of Information Technology/Marketing

ACCSES CLEAN & ACCSES SECURE Services and Advertising Launch, come hear about our new website, initiatives and advertising strategies for our business verticles.

2:15 pm – 3:45 pm
Maintaining the Balance: Ethical Principles to Practice

Presenter:      Wesley Anderson, Director of Training and Consultation Services, The Arc of New Jersey

Program Description: How do you balance professional-client relationships, confidentiality, personal boundaries? Very often, we find ourselves in difficult positions where doing the “right” thing exists in a gray area. In this workshop, we will look at the CRCC code of ethics and use it to discuss how to navigate some of the common gray areas practitioners encounter.

Piscataway, Ballroom Level

2:15 pm – 3:45 pm
Topic: Leveraging Microsoft Cloud for Enhanced Productivity and Modern Case Management System. - Brunswick C, Ballroom Level

Presented by Joe Rafanelli, Tahir Masood & John Kullmann
Description: Times today requires organizations to have modern Software solutions so they can be productive & agile. This course will provide you with in-depth insight via a case study on how the latest of the Microsoft Cloud technologies can deliver results for Non-Government Organizations. The course will also take you through a look at free or nearly free tech items that your organization can leverage to streamline processes.

3:45 pm –
Conference Closes - Thank you for attending the 2019 STAR Conference and we look forward to seeing you next year!