Program:
Information, Referral, Training & Technical Assistance
- Budget:
-
$75,000
- Category:
-
Education
- Population Served:
-
Disabled, General or Disability Unspecified
Program Description:
Provide information & referral to resources; one-to-one technical assistance on the special education process; educational training events for families, community members, and volunteers; lending library, monthly e-digest of local events and quarterly newsletter; annual parent conference & resource fair.
Program Long-Term Success:
By families working together with each other and with educators, children with disabilities will have value and a sense of belonging while gaining a good educational foundation. Outcomes for children with disabilities leaving the public education system will be improved. Because of our work together, families will be able to dream again; and our children with disabilities will live quality lives and accomplish whatever goals they may desire.
Program Short-Term Success:
In 2010, 1300 trained at educational events. Provided information to 20,000+ through phone, email, mail outs, quarterly newsletter, monthly e-digest. Resource Fair & Conference attended by 350. 1000 Volunteer hours to support programs.
Program Success Monitored by:
Evaluations after Training events
Annual survey
Program Success Examples:
See comments on www.Greatnonprofits.org
A parent with a language barrier was able to successfully learn the special education process and use that information to get the speech services her 4 year old child needed.
A young adult with autism graduates from high school and goes to work part time at Walgreens.
A parent calls and requests information as the school has told her that her child cannot come back unless the parent accompanies him every day. With the information provided, she returns to school and ensures that the school is providing the necessary supports so that she can continue to work at her own job.
Another young adult with significant disabilities starts his own shredding business with supports.
Program:
Family Friends
- Budget:
-
$40,000
- Category:
-
Human Services
- Population Served:
-
Children and Youth (infants - 19 years.)
-
Disabled, General or Disability Unspecified
-
Aging/Elderly/Senior Citizens
Program Description:
A volunteer mentoring program matching adult volunteers to a child with a disability to provide support to the child and the family.
Program Long-Term Success:
The mentoring relationships built between the volunteer and the child with a disability, as well as the support provided to the family often helps young families, as well as the volunteer that provides the mentoring.
Program Short-Term Success:
Volunteers provided over 3600 hours of respite support to families in 2010 and over 500 hours of volunteer support to the organization.
48 Children with disabilities/families were matched with a volunteer.
Program Success Monitored by:
Monthly reports collected from volunteers on hours spent with child/family; on activities performed with them, and any significant outcomes reported.
Program Success Examples:
Program:
Texas Project FIRST
- Budget:
-
$250,000
- Category:
-
Education
- Population Served:
-
General Public/Unspecified
-
Disabled, General or Disability Unspecified
Program Description:
A bilingual website, created by parents, for parents to provide accurate and consistent information on the special education process. Website supports the Texas Continuous Improvment Process of Texas Education Agency and Region 9 Education Service Center to fulfill goals of the State and of the Parent Training committee.
Program Long-Term Success:
Ultimate success of the project will be that more parents will understand their rights and responsibilities and be more involved in the special education process so that their children will receive a quality education which will prepare them for further education, employment, and/or independent living.
Program Short-Term Success:
Website received over 1.7 million hits up from 1.5 million in 2009. Over 1400 people from 109 different counties in Texas have registered for updates in 2010 (up 30% from 2009). Added 84 pages of content & 12 pdfs in 2010 bringing the total pages to 533. Distributed 15000 bookmarks. We provided approximately 60 trainings around the state of Texas in the 2010 year.
Program Success Monitored by:
Use Googleanalytics to measure website usage. Monthly data collected on people registering for updates (parent/educator/other, county, school district). Tentative Zoomerang survey planned for current registrants on effectiveness of site.
Program Success Examples:
Program:
Disability Leadership Network of Houston
- Budget:
-
$75,000
- Category:
-
Civil Rights, Social Action & Advocacy
- Population Served:
-
Disabled, General or Disability Unspecified
-
Ethnic/Racial Minorities -- General
Program Description:
This is a local leadership and advocacy training program for parents of children with disabilities, adults with disabilities, and community members who are interested in learning more about disability issues.
Program Long-Term Success:
Adults with disabilities, family and community members will better advocate for persons with disabilities and/or issues concerning rights of persons with disabilities. The main purpose of this program is to teach people "basic" advocacy principles of the Texas Council for Developmental Disabilities (www.txddc.state.tx.us) in order to prepare them to continue on to more advanced leadership and advocacy training, while understanding the basic tenants of people first language, the history of the various disability movements, inclusive education/community, self advocacy, self determination, and person centered planning.
Program Short-Term Success:
Individuals will advocate for themselves or others in their local communities or at a state level.
Individuals will share materials provided at the trainings with others.
Program Success Monitored by:
Training evaluation forms.
Annual survey to past program participants
Program Success Examples:
1) One parent realized that she was the person who was holding her child with a disability back; changed her way of thinking and her attitude, and provided her child with opportunities to advocate for himself and advocated for him to be more included in school.
2) An adult with a disability went out and found a job by advocating for himself in the workplace.
3) A community member contacts his legislator to provide insight on disability issues.