The 2012 USBLN® Annual Conference & Expo is the preeminent national business to business event that taps into the vast economic potential of the full inclusion of people with disabilities.

This conference brings corporate, government, disability-owned businesses and BLN affiliates together to create workplaces, marketplaces, and supply chains where people with disabilities are fully included as professionals, customers and entrepreneurs.

This year's event will deliver enhanced networking opportunities, offer exciting interactive sessions, and feature respected thought-leaders and industry luminaries.

Presentation: "The Aging Workforce: Challenges and Opportunities for Employers", by Susanne Bruyere and Judy Young

Panel Discussion of the Alliance Mentoring program that provides career mentoring opportunities for college students and graduates with disabilities through linkages to business professional. Mentee and Mentor perspectives were shared through a best practices and lessons learned approach.

The Citizen-Centered Leadership Development Community of Practice series is a unique combination of self-paced distance learning study, robust field work, interactive class assignments and live webcast instruction designed to advance theoretic and skill-based learning leading to quality outcomes in the lives of people with disabilities.

Testing New Activity

This informational seminar provides basic information pertaining to the TANF and SNAP programs using lecture, PowerPoint and opportunity for question and answer. Online polling will be used to test participant knowledge. A preparatory reading assignment will be provided and is required.

Recently, there has been a great deal of attention to the fact that the U.S. workplace now spans four generations. How can employers ensure that work is meaningful and adapted to the needs of workers across these four generations? For the most part, disability has not been part of the mainstream of this conversation. Yet, disability issues are central to understanding and responding to the multi-generation workforce in several ways: The meaning of “disability” has changed significantly over time; the legal and policy climate of disability in the workplace has evolved; different generations tend to experience different types of disabilities; and with the aging of our population, more people with disabilities will be in our workforce. In this session, we will co-explore the multi-generational workplace and examine how employers can ensure that everyone can fully contribute their talents.

This informational seminar provides basic information pertaining to federally-subsidized housing using lecture, PowerPoint and opportunity for question and answer. Online polling will be used to test participant knowledge. A preparatory reading assignment will be provided and is required.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau there about 21.8 million veterans in the U.S. with nearly 10 million in our workforce. Generally, veterans have employment and education levels similar to the overall population. Yet, younger male veterans (age 18 – 24) who served during recent engagements have an unemployment rate that is nearly double that of their non-veteran peers. Furthermore, the number of veterans with a service-connected disability has risen dramatically among Gulf War veterans. Although employers generally have positive attitudes toward employing veterans, they struggle with issues and misperceptions around employing veterans with disabilities.

In this session, we will review the statistics about returning veterans, including veterans with the signature disabilities of PTSD and TBI. Also, we will briefly review two studies suggesting some key employment-related issues and misperceptions about veterans with disabilities. Finally, we will discuss key steps employers can take to ensure veterans with disabilities are welcomed into the workforce.