On September 16, we kicked off PATF's new webinar series, Money Talks, with our first session, "Speak Up and Be Counted!" We were pleased to host 105 people from across Pennsylvania and as far away as Ohio, Maryland, and Wisconsin.

Speakers Katie Yost from The Arc of Pennsylvania and Kelly Darr from Disability Rights Pennsylvania covered the latest information on how to be counted in the census and how to cast your vote this fall, including key deadlines and what to do if you encounter barriers.

They also answered audience questions such as, "If my disability has changed how my signature looks will that prevent my vote from being counted?" Darr informed us that there is a new policy from the Pennsylvania Department of State to prevent votes from being voided because signatures don't match.

We are grateful to our partners for helping with the planning of this series and for continuing to help spread the word about it. We would also like to thank Pennsylvania's Office of Vocational Rehabilitation for their sponsorship which is helping to make this series fully accessible.

We are excited to announce our new partnership with Univest! They join our two other partner banks, Malvern Bank and Bryn Mawr Trust. On Friday we submitted our first application to the Univest team for financing for hearing aids. Partnerships like these allow us to extend larger loans through our Low-Interest Loan program. We look forward to the opportunities we will be able to create for our borrowers through this partnership!

Emily Taylor joins PATF as our Development Manager. She will work with community partners, stakeholders, donors, and funders to increase PATF’s reach and impact on the people we serve. She hopes to bring people together to create more opportunities for individuals with disabilities and older Pennsylvanians.

As you and your child settle into the new routine this fall, whether your child is attending school virtually, in-person but physically distanced, or some combination of the two, you may find that your child needs new or different assistive technology (AT) for support. When this AT is necessary to enable your child to access a free, appropriate, public education (FAPE), it is the responsibility of your Individualized Education Program (IEP) or 504 team to include the AT in your child’s plan, and it is the responsibility of your local educational agency (LEA) to provide that technology (read about how LEAs fund AT).

Getting your school-age child the AT they need through an IEP or 504 plan can be a challenging process in the best of times, but with the entire education system in upheaval due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the process may be even more complicated now.

To help you understand your child’s rights and advocate for your child effectively, we’ve rounded up a few resources.

Whether you need help funding assistive technology for telehealth, remote learning and education, or other needs related to our new reality... or perhaps you already have a PATF loan but you need help because of unexpected financial hardship related to the coronavirus... we are here for you.

Learn more about what we do, and contact us if there is anything we can do to help.