Investment Initiatives

The Council makes investments (grants) to a wide variety of organizations and individuals to help improve the lives of people with disabilities and entire communities. Calls for Investments are made throughout the year. For an information packet, contact the Council's Springfield office at (217) 782-9696.

The State Plan outlines the Council's priorities and objectives in nine areas of emphasis. Click on any area to find out about the latest Council-funded programs.

Education & Early Intervention
Employment
Child Care
Formal/Informal Community Supports
Health
Housing
Quality Assurance
Recreation
Transportation
Cross-Cutting

Education and Early Intervention

Project: Transition, Inclusion, Independence (TI2): Organizational Transformation for Students with Developmental and Intellectual Disabilities
Investment Partner: Lewis & Clark Community College
Location: Godfrey, Illinois
Investment: $136,554

TI2 (Transition, Inclusion, Independence) will expand and strengthen Lewis & Clark Community College’s relationships with secondary schools in the region of southwest Illinois through an investment from the Illinois Council on Developmental Disabilities.  Students with intellectual disabilities who are in their last year of high school and are interested in attending college will have an opportunity to attend L&C for two semesters of dual enrollment with a variety of supports not previously offered at the College.  While enrolling in courses of their choice, TI2 students receive college transition support at their high school and support from a learning coach and peer mentor.  After high school graduation, TI2 students who are then independent and experienced in self advocating for accommodations will use the resources available to all students as they enroll in further courses or career programs offered by Lewis and Clark.

Contacts:
Project Staff: Martie Buck mbuck@lc.edu
Council Staff: Margaret Harkness Margaret.Harkness@illinois.gov
Website: http://www.lc.edu/

Project: HALO Peer Mentoring & Faculty Training
Investment Partner: Heartland Community College
Location: Normal, Illinois
Investment: $148,000

This grant will build the capacity to further support HCC’s Heartland Academy for Learning Opportunities (HALO) program by providing faculty and staff additional tools for engaging students in the classroom and throughout campus.  At the heart of the grant will be the creation and delivery of faculty and staff training centered around universal design and disability awareness.  Some funding also will be used to provide training and support to HALO’s existing peer mentoring program, which supports HALO students in accessing classes, services and activities across campus.

Contacts:
Project Staff: Anita Moore anita.moore@heartland.edu
Council Staff: Margaret Harkness Margaret.Harkness@illinois.gov
Website: http://www.heartland.edu/

The Everyone Works Initiative will develop 3 Community Action Teams in the Northern Suburban Special Education District Cooperative (NSSED) catchment area with active and working partnerships with Total Link2 Community, NSSED, community businesses and business leaders, families and friends, state and community agencies with a commitment and intention to establish and maintain a culture where people with disabilities are competitively employed in their home communities using the principles of customized employment.

Contacts:
Project Staff: Janice Weinstein jmomart@aol.com
Council Staff: Margaret Harkness Margaret.Harkness@illinois.gov
Agency Website: N/A

The Chicagoland Chamber will expand upon its existing partnerships and Workforce Developer Network with the business community, Mayor’s Office/WIPAs, and DRS, to include Chicago Public Schools (CPS). By the end of this initiative, new systems will be operating that result in the inclusion of persons with developmental disabilities in the Network's workforce pool and working in competitive, community jobs.

Contacts:
Project Staff: Mark Williams mwilliams@chicagolandchamber.org
Council Staff: Margaret Harkness Margaret.Harkness@illinois.gov
Agency Website: www.chicagolandchamber.org

A recommendation of the Employment and Economic Opportunity for Persons with Disabilities Task Force (established by legislation in 2009) is for Illinois to become an Employment First state.  Employment First simply means employment in the community would be the first and preferred option for individuals with disabilities receiving publicly funded services in Illinois.  To enact that recommendation, the Task Force held an invitation-only Summit on January 31, 2012 with ICDD support.  The summit included a cross-section of individuals with disabilities, family members, policymakers, disability professionals, and educators.

The Employment First Summit Report summarizes the findings from the summit, and lays out a series of recommendations for turning the vision of Employment First discusses at the summit into reality.  The Executive Summary contains a summary of the recommendations developed as a result of the summit.  The Full Report contains much greater detail on these recommendations, along with extensive documentation of the proceedings, links to a wide variety of resources within the text, and an extensive series of resources in the appendix.

A Better Bottom Line:  Employing People with Disabilities is an initiative of the National Governor’s Association and Illinois’ Governor’s Office has committed to the Taskforce to keep it and Illinois informed as this national initiative unfolds.   Change on many fronts will be needed to make Illinois an Employment First state.  Interest in seeing people with disabilities employed by our Governor is a welcome validation of what the Task Force envisions for Illinois.

Individuals have access to other services available or offered in a community, including formal and informal community supports that improve their quality of life.

Project: Outreach and Support for Closures
Investment Partner: Arc of Illinois
Location: Statewide
Investment: $76,160

This grant project will develop a peer mentoring model to assist individuals with developmental disabilities who are transitioning from State Operated Developmental Centers (SODCs) to the community and would also illustrate successes of individuals who have already transitioned.

Contacts:
Council Staff: Jennifer Harrison Jennifer.Harrison@illinois.gov
Organization Website: www.thearcofil.org/

Project: Evaluation of PUNS and Improvement of ISPs, Service Implementation and Monitoring
Investment Partner: National Association of State Directors of Developmental Disabilities Services (NASDDDS)
Location: Alexandria, VA
Investment: $449,262

NASDDDS will outline the Illinois PUNS process and instrument as it works today, along with recommendations of how they could/should be changed for future use. They will also analyze existing processes for individual service plans, service implementation and monitoring to develop recommendations for improvement.
In addition, a detail system design will be developed that may include recommendations across multiple agencies to revise rules, protocols and procedures, a description of practices that must discontinue, as well as new practices to be started. As a result, this grant would also improve the process of developing service plans, delivering services and monitoring health, welfare and outcomes for people with developmental disabilities.

Contacts:
Project Staff: Robin Cooper RCooper@nasddds.org
Council Staff: Sandy Ryan Sandy.Ryan@illinois.gov
Project Website:www.nasddds.org/

Health

Please check back frequently to find out more about investments in this area.

Housing

Quality Assurance

The Council's Quality Assurance investments focus on improving consumer and family-centered quality assurance and consumer protections, including monitoring services and supports that protect against all forms of exploitation and abuse. This area includes training in leadership, self-advocacy, and self-determination for individuals with developmental disabilities and interagency coordination to improve services to and supports for people with developmental disabilities.

Project: Consumer Stipend Program
Investment Partner: The Arc of Illinois
Location: Frankfort, IL
Investment: $100,000

This project provides stipends for people with disabilities and their families to attend conferences on disability-related issues.

Contacts:
Project Staff: MaryLynne Paris MaryLynneParis@aol.com
Council Staff: Jennifer Harrison Jennifer.Harrison@illinois.gov
Agency Website: www.thearcofil.org

Project: Special Education Advocacy Clinic
Investment Partner: DePaul University
Location: Chicago, Illinois
Investment: $123,500

Through this four-year investment, DePaul University will train at least 21 culturally diverse law students who have a family member with a developmental disability, through an innovative, comprehensive advocacy program that emphasizes ongoing collaboration between school districts and parents. The project will impact people with developmental disabilities through direct legal advocacy.

Contacts:
Project Staff: Mary Bandstra MBANDSTR@depaul.edu
Council Staff: Margie Harkness Margaret.Harkness@illinois.gov
University Website: http://www.depaul.edu/

Project: Illinois Statewide Self-Advocacy Organization
Investment Partner: Illinois Self-Advocacy Alliance (The Alliance)
Location: Statewide
Investment: $625,000

The Alliance will consist of a network of self-advocacy groups and self-advocates that, through local action, will improve their lives, change local service practices, or make contributions to their communities. In addition, self-advocates, by working together, will promote statewide needed changes in disability policy and practices.

Contacts:
Project Staff: Krescene Beck krescenebeck@gmail.com
Council Staff: Sandy Ryan Sandy.Ryan@illinois.gov
Project Website: http://selfadvocacyalliance.org/

Project: Partnership for Self-Directed Supports
Investment Partner: National Association of State Directors of Developmental Disabilities Services (NASDDDS
Location: Alexandria, VA
Investment: $29,300

Tthis grant project is responsible for providing guidance and technical assistance to self-advocates and the Division of Developmental Disabilities to ensure that the voices of individuals with developmental disabilities are heard and their input included in the development of the waiver.

Contacts:
Project Staff: Robin Cooper RCooper@nasddds.org
Council Staff: Sandy Ryan Sandy.Ryan@illinois.gov
Project Website:www.nasddds.org/

Recreation

Transportation

Cross-Cutting