UC’s IDD Education Center’s Eighth Annual Red and Black Blast
The University of Cincinnati’s Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD) Education Center will be hosting the eighth annual Red & Black Blast on February 27, 2025, at the Tangeman University Center, Great Hall on UC's campus, 6 p.m. – 9:30 p.m.
Guests are invited to enjoy dinner, cocktails, silent auction and hear inspiring stories. Attendees will have chances to bid on original artwork by IDD Education Center participants and opportunities to win prizes. The 8th Annual Red & Black Blast will celebrate the life-changing IDD Education Center programs; Collaboration for Employment and Education Synergy (CEES), Transition and Access Pathways (TAP), IMPACT Innovation (IMPACT) and our newest program, Regional Autism Advisory Council (RAAC). These programs are instrumental in helping people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) gain independence, uncover their passions, and thrive in a supportive and inclusive community.
At the event, the center will honor Ted Karras, NFL Center for the Cincinnati Bengals and founder of The Cincy Hat Foundation, with the Champion for Inclusion Award. Ted advocates for equal access to education, employment and housing for people with disabilities. In 2022, Ted launched The Cincy Hat brand as a fundraiser for the Village of Merici in Indianapolis, an independent living and services provider for adults with IDD. Building on this success, Ted created the Scholarship Series Hat in 2024 to fund scholarships for the IDD Education Center program, TAP, an inclusive college education for students with IDD.
For more event details and how to purchase tickets, please visit https://bit.ly/3C8NZUN or contact Sadie Everett at 312-961-1030, sadie.everett@uc.edu.
All proceeds will benefit the IDD Education Center programs; CEES, TAP, IMPACT and RAAC to provide inclusive education, employment and social opportunities to improve outcomes for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
For information on how you can become a sponsor, contact Sadie Everett, sadie.everett@uc.edu.
Featured image at top is a collage of the 2024 blast, with the words Red & Black Blast overlaid on the image.
The IDD Education Center
UC’s IDD Education Center’s mission is to create meaningful, life-changing experiences for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) through innovative research, education and service. Nested in UC’s College of Education, Criminal Justice, Human Services and IT (CECH), the IDD Education Center provides programs for teens and adults to further their education, independence, and life skills. Program participants reach their potential and find their purpose in a community that accepts and supports them to be the best they can be. The IDD Education Center embraces the University’s strategic direction of Next Lives Here, breaking boundaries and providing inclusive opportunities for employment, social connections, and life-long learning.
We believe every individual possesses unique power, potential, and purpose.
Latest UC News
- CCM Philharmonia performs a US premiere in Nov. 25 concertThe CCM Philharmonia welcomes distinguished guest conductor Guido Rumstadt, from the Hochschule für Musik in Nuremberg, in a program spanning 200 years of German music on Monday, Nov. 25. Featuring CCM faculty artist Dror Biran in Schumann’s beloved Piano Concerto in A Minor. Tickets are on sale through the CCM Box Office.
- Hoxworth’s new Wall of Life: celebrating lives savedThe new “Wall of Life” in Hoxworth’s Transplantation Immunology Department (TID) stands as a powerful symbol of the impact the team has on saving lives through their critical laboratory work. This wall not only celebrates successful organ transplants within the community, but also educates and inspires the staff who make these successes possible.
- UC Athletics boasts another outstanding graduation success rateThe NCAA announced its latest Graduation Success Rate (GSR) data earlier this week, and the University of Cincinnati achieved a 96 percent mark, its sixth-straight year above 92 percent.
- Icelandic volcano previously dormant for 800 years erupting againUC geosciences Professor Thomas Algeo tells ABC News that the latest eruption of an Icelandic volcano created slow-moving lava flows that endanger parts of a coastal town.
- Black Thriving in America: A Continued Conversation Dec. 2The School of Criminal Justice – part of the College of Education, Criminal Justice, Human Services, and Information Technology – invites the UC community and public to “Black Thriving in America: A Continued Conversation” on Dec. 2. The event explores critical insights from the 2024 report on Black life experiences in America.
- UC student inspired by other women in techAs a high school student, Minha Raza was determined to pursue a degree in the medical field after graduation. However, after taking the introductory Engineering Design Thinking course her first year at the University of Cincinnati, she found an untapped passion for engineering and problem solving. She switched her major to computer science and is now leading a student group and attending conferences in her field.
