CEU Information
October 5, 2026
12:00-3:00pm
3.0 CEUs for LCSW/LSW and LCPC/LPC
$30 for CEUs, $10 for no CEUs
While the field of social work has always been rooted in human rights, it has historically lacked a comprehensive recognition of disability as a complex identity influenced by overlapping social, political, and oppressive forces.
This continuing education course will provide a conceptual overview of ableism through an intersectional lens, exploring how it manifests on an individual and a systemic level. Participants will learn to identify the different types of ableism and their impact on the development of U.S. social policy and daily lives of the estimated 1 in 4 Americans with disabilities.
More notably, this presentation will equip participants with practical tips for responding to ableist microaggressions as well as strategies to advance the principles of disability justice in various areas of social work practice including curriculum and program design, policy development, and legislative advocacy. Several interactive activities will provide participants an opportunity to apply what they have learned in smaller and larger group settings.
With new skills to understand the disability experience beyond paternalism and stereotypes, participants will be empowered to imagine and build an actively anti-ableist future for social work clients, colleagues, and society at large.
Learning Objectives:
- Define and understand ableism through an intersectional lens
- Identify examples of ableist microaggressions and understand how they impact people with disabilities
- Apply strategies to interrupt and challenge microaggressions in real-life scenarios
- Recognize the ways in which ableism affects social policy in the United States, including the foundations of healthcare and benefits programs
- Explain major laws protecting disability rights and recent legislative efforts to build upon existing protections
- Develop strategies to address ableism and increase accessibility both in the delivery of social work services and in everyday life
- Explain the importance of cross-disability solidarity in creating inclusive spaces for people with both apparent and non-apparent
Registration Options:
If you do NOT need CEUs for LCSW/LSW or LCPC/LPC, register via the link below:
If you DO need CEUs for LCSW/LSW or LCPC/LPC, register via the link below:
Workshop Presenters
Kathleen Downes, LMSW, BCPA holds a master’s degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (2018) with a concentration in leadership and social change. Born with cerebral palsy and a rare spinal disorder called Tarlov cyst disease, she is a passionate advocate for the disabled community, especially those navigating Medicaid, Medicare, Social Security, and home care. While unable to work in a formal capacity due to her disability and fluctuating health, she remains involved with many causes, including Medicaid Matters New York, where she serves as a volunteer Steering Committee member and consumer representative. She has been a board-certified patient advocate since 2021. She volunteers as her health allows to create parent education materials for families of disabled youth at a non-profit dance program called Dancing Dreams. She serves on the St. Mary’s Patient and Family Advisory Council, representing families of medically complex children and adults with disabilities receiving in-home care. Kathleen is an avid reader, writer, and thinker who resides on Long Island with the help of her parents, her caregivers, and her bossy lap dog Dolly.
Molly M. McLay, LCSW is a licensed clinical social worker and therapist who has worked as a mental health educator, researcher, and advocate from her current home base of Champaign-Urbana, Illinois, for the last 15+ years. Her areas of practice expertise include gender-based violence, LGBTQIA support, anxiety, neurodivergence, chronic illness, and reproductive health including infertility and pregnancy loss. In early 2024, she opened Molly McLay Counseling & Consultation Services, PLLC, an organization that provides psychotherapy, clinical supervision, and medical advocacy virtually to individuals across the state. She has spent time working toward a PhD in social work at Washington University in St. Louis, and she has previously worked at a group therapy practice, the University of Illinois Women’s Resources Center, and a federally qualified health center with at-risk pregnant and parenting individuals. She has also been a member of the Champaign County Mental Health Board for the past 4 years and an officer for the board for the past 3 years. She loves singing karaoke, writing poems, listening to most genres of music but especially jazz and musical theater, hanging out with her husband and her senior hound mix Alvin, and talking about whatever is important to you.