Video Text Alternative: Military Children, Health, and Research: Interview with Ms. Jessie MacKinnon, The HSC Foundation

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Family Issues of Military Connected Children with Special Needs

Extended Interview with Jessie MacKinnon, Chief Operating Officer, National Youth Transitions Center

April 14-15 | Natcher Conference Center, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland
Ms. Jessie MacKinnon: My name is Jessie MacKinnon.
Camera view of Ms. Jessie MacKinnon. Ms. MacKinnon: I’m the Vice President for Programs and Partnerships for the HSC Foundation, and I also serve as the Chief Operating Officer of the National Youth Transitions Center, which is owned by the HSC Foundation.
(Edit/camera cut) Ms. MacKinnon on camera. Ms. MacKinnon: Since 2006, the HSC Foundation has focused almost exclusively on youth transitions, and by that I mean young people with disabilities from about middle school to late twenties who are going through the transition from adolescence to adulthood and everything that’s involved with youth transitions. So to that end, HSC Foundation has created the National Youth Transition Center, which is an entire building that’s focused on youth transitions, and at the heart of the Center is a collaborative of over 40 organizations, all of who share the mission of helping youth in transition. And while what we do is different, and how we do is different, the why we do it is the same. It’s because we believe the future needs everyone, that this country cannot ignore the skills and talents of one in five Americans, so we work together to ensure that they’re included in the community, because we believe everyone can make a contribution.
(Edit/camera cut) Ms. MacKinnon on camera. Ms. MacKinnon: This conference is very important because, frankly, the statistics around youth with disabilities are dismal. Youth with disabilities are twice as likely to drop out of high school than their non-disabled peers. They’re three times more likely to live in poverty as adults, and they’re four times more likely to interact with the juvenile justice system or the adult court. Those statistics can be changed, and it’s conferences like this that are identifying gaps in research, and programs, and outreach that can bring better outcomes for our young people.
(Edit/camera cut) Ms. MacKinnon on camera. Ms. MacKinnon: I’d like to tell you a story about Hoby, who’s now a young man. But Hoby was born blind. And in high school, he was very interested in the sciences, but his teacher told him, “Hoby, you can’t be a chemist, you can’t go into science, because you’re blind,” and Hoby told her, “No one can see an atom.” That was very meaningful to her, and she started encouraging Hoby to go into the sciences.  Hoby’s now a grad student at the University of California, Davis, and he started his own non-profit, and that non-profit runs a science camp for kids who are blind and have visual disabilities throughout California. And I know Hoby because the HSC Foundation runs a program called the Advocates in Disability Awards, and it’s to recognize and reward young people who advocate for all people with disabilities, and Hoby was our 2013 recipient.
(Edit/camera cut) Ms. MacKinnon on camera. Ms. MacKinnon: I think all of us, including parents, need to have high expectations for young people with disabilities. I think we have to ask them about what they want for their future. We have to listen to them and tell them, “Yes, they can,” not, “No, they can’t.” And I think we have to resist the impulse to overprotect them. We have to let them go, we have to let them find their own path to adulthood and independence.
(Edit/camera cut) Ms. MacKinnon on camera. Ms. MacKinnon: The National Youth Transition Center has a website, thenytc.org, and on it is a link to the Heath [Resource] Center, which has a wealth of information on transition, particularly around post-secondary education.
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Family Issues of Military Connected Children with Special Needs

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April 14-15 | Natcher Conference Center, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland
 
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