UCP Central PA

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UCP Central PA 2005-2006 Board of
Directors Marion C. Alexander Janak Amin Joanne
Book, Esquire Frank Clark, Esquire Sandra
Drummond Ben Francavilla Todd Getgen,
Esquire John Hickey, Esquire Karen Horan Dwayne
Keller Gerard C. Kramer, Esquire Gregg
Mace Richard Michaelian Christopher Rockey Karen
Roland Jackie Singel George T. Sweeney Tonia
Leitzel Ulsh Paul Wagner David Weakland William
Wilkison Life Board Members Lawrence B. Abrams
III, Esquire Doris Brunner George E. Ferrey, Jr.
Glenn Hoffman William J. Kaldes Shaun OToole,
Esquire Susannah J. Rothman Todd Vander Woude
UCP Central PA- Schmidt, Ronca, Kramer,
PC 2005-2006 Attitude Essay Contest For more
information contact Shawn Kaup Community
Relations Coordinator skaup_at_ucpcentralpa.org or
717-975-0611 x 233
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UCP Central PA
The mission of United Cerebral Palsy of Central
Pennsylvania, Inc. (UCP) is to assist infants,
children, youth, and adults, with disabilities,
and their families, achieve their goals of
development, growth, independence, and full
citizenship. We encourage and strengthen skills
and capabilities for each individual so they may
become as independent as possible. UCP is one
of the most comprehensive agencies in the United
Cerebral Palsy network. For more than 52 years,
we have been a leader in assisting people with
disabilities. UCP provides services and programs
for more than 2100 children and adults, with
disabilities, and their families. Services are
provided in 11 Central Pennsylvania counties. UCP
operates from 15 facilities the Capital Area
Children's Center, eleven adult day programs, and
three group residences. At UCP Central PA, more
than 92 cents of every dollar raised goes
directly to programs and services.
UCP Central PA 925 Linda Lane Camp Hill, PA
17011 [phone] or Toll Free 1-800-998-4UCP
www.ucpcentralpa.org
UCP Central PA provides services to diverse
groups of people not just those with cerebral
palsy. Over 94 of our program participants have
developmental and acquired disabilities other
than cerebral palsy. UCP Services are needed now
more than ever due to the increased number of
children diagnosed with autism, and premature and
low birth weight babies, who have a greater
probability of developmental disabilities.
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History of the Contest
Just before Christmas, 1993, a young girl in Ft.
Wayne, Indiana wrote a letter to Santa Claus
asking for one day at school during which the
other children would not make fun of her because
of her disability. Amy Hagadorn has cerebral
palsy, walks with a limp and sometimes uses a
wheelchair. The local newspaper published her
letter, the national media picked up on the
story, and letters from every corner of the world
began pouring into the Hagadorn household. Ft.
Wayne even had an Amy Hagadorn day, complete
with a parade and Amy riding on a float. Two
years later, the ATTITUDES Essay Contest was
initiated through the joint efforts of United
Cerebral Palsy Association of Greater Indiana and
the Indiana Governors Planning Council for
Peoples with Disabilities. In March 1996, 38
children in Marion County responded to an
invitation to participate in the contest four
children were awarded cash prizes all essayists
received ATTITUDES buttons and certificates of
participation. Including the 1999 contest, more
than 1300 essays have been submitted from 81
schools throughout Indiana, thanks to the
encouragement of 143 teachers of grades 3 through
8. Three first place and second place winners
have been honored each year at a luncheon and the
essays of more than 100 children have been
published in four booklets. In 1998, Amys story
was included in the Chicken Soup for Kids Souls
book. The ATTITUDES essays were hand-written
and typed on computers some included computer
art or hand-written illustrations. Some children
with disabilities wrote of their own experiences
typically developing children interviewed people
with disabilities others wrote of their
observations still others wrote fictional
accounts or poetry. The children wrote about
disabled veterans, grandmothers with Alzheimers,
celebrities with spinal cord injury and polio,
and local heroes with cerebral palsy. They wrote
about school friends with mental retardation,
diabetes, learning disabilities and they wrote
about relatives with hearing or visual
disabilities and those with multiple sclerosis or
arthritis. The essays included expressions of
pity and awe many children admonished
non-disabled adults not to be inconsiderate nor
too helpful to people with disabilities. Each
essay illustrated amazing wisdom and the basic
kindness of each author. Each writer clearly
thought about the challenges experienced every
day by people with disabilities and about the
barriers created by people with bad attitudes
(those with and without disabilities). Some
essays created new ways of thinking or talking
about people with disabilities some criticized
the stereotypes that have historically limited
people with disabilities. Many essayists were
knowledgeable about laws relating to education,
employment and access for people with
disabilities. The authors, we hope, represent a
generation of Americans who will understand and
value the ABILITIES of all people. They
recognize that a disability becomes a handicap
only when structural or attitudinal barriers made
it soand theyre determined to help break down
those attitudinal barriers.
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Attitudes Essay Contest
Get an Attitude! Since 1999, UCP Central PAs
annual essay contest for school students from
grades 3 through 12 encourages young people to
write about persons with a disability that they
have met, read about, or saw in a movie, and how
their opinion of persons with a disability has
changed for the better. Each year, hundreds of
young people participate from school districts
throughout Central PA. Essays are anonymously
judged by teachers and other parents, with cash
awards, buttons and certificates of appreciation
given as top awards in three categories.
How to get started

• Call UCPs Community Relations Department at
  717-975-0611.
• Distribute participation packs to students.
• Generate excitement
• Collect essays and mail them to UCP.
• Plan an assembly to congratulate the winners!
  Its that easy!!

Program Facts

• The program runs September through April.
• There are four age groups 3rd 4th grade,
  5th 6th grade, 7th
• 8th grade, and 9th through 12th grade.
• More than 350 packets are mailed to schools
  in Central PA.
• Average participation is 400 students.
• In five years, more than 2,400 essays have
  been submitted.
• All participants receive a button and a
  certificate of
• participation.
• More than 1,000 in awards are given to 1st,
  2nd, and 3rd place
• winners in each category.

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Contest Rules Guidelines
WHO MAY ENTER Any Central Pennsylvania school
student in grades 3 through 12 may enter the
contest. DIVISIONS (A) Grades 3 and 4 (B) Grades
5 and 6 (C) Grades 7 and 8 (D) Grades 9 through
12 CONTEST RULES 1. Each student may submit
only one entry. 2. All entries should be typed or
legibly printed on 8-1/2 by 11 white paper. 3.
Entries should not exceed 500 words (count every
word except the title). 4. Entries must include a
completed entry form, (copies are acceptable). 5.
All work must be original. (Parents, its ok to
check for spelling and grammar but not
content!) 6. Entries must be submitted to UCP
Central PA no later than January 31, 2006. 7. No
entries will be returned, so be sure to keep a
copy for yourself. ESSAY CONTEST 1. Interview a
child or adult with a disability and describe
his/her experiences with the
attitudes of others, OR 2. Read a book about
people with disabilities and describe the impact
of attitude on their lives, OR 3. Write
about your own observations or feelings about
attitudes toward people with
disabilities. JUDGING PROCESS 1. All essays
will be judged on the basis of creativity,
originality, quality of writing, and
understanding of the issue. 2. A panel of
professional judges will select the winners in
each division. 3. Winners will be announced and
prizes handed out at your schools year-end
awards assembly in the spring. Mail essays
with entry form attached to Attitudes Essay
Contest c/o UCP Central PA 44 S. 38th Street Camp
Hill, PA 17011
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Person First Language Examples to use and share
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Attitudes Essay Contest Entry Form 2005-2006
CONTEST DIVISION (check one) ?Grades 3-4
?Grades 5-6 ?Grades 7-8 ?Grades 9 -
12 NAME _______________________________________
______________________________ ADDRESS
__________________________________________________
________________ CITY __________________________
__________________ ZIP CODE _______________ TE
LEPHONE (___) _________________ EMAIL
_________________________________ I certify
that this is my original work (signature)
___________________________________ SCHOOL
__________________________________________________
_________________ TEACHER _____________________
_____________________________________________ SI
GNATURE OF PARENT OR TEACHER ____________________
___________________ (THIS SIGNATURE INDICATES
THAT THE SIGNEE HAS READ THE ENTRY AND VERIFIES
THAT IT IS AN ORIGINAL WORK THAT HAS NOT BEEN
PLAGIARIZED.) Mail to ATTITUDE
Essay contest c/o UCP Central PA 44 S.
38th Street Camp Hill, PA 17011 Essays must
be submitted to UCP Central PA no later than
January 31, 2006 If you have any questions
regarding the contest please contact Shawn Kaup,
Community Relations Coordinator at
skaup_at_ucpcentralpa.org or 717-975-0611.