History | Community Options, Inc.

Community Options, Inc. was incorporated on February 9, 1989 to develop residential and employment supports for people with severe disabilities.

Since its inception, Community Options has been devoted to serving individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, thus cultivating a reputation for providing exceptional person-centered services that are unique to each individuals’ needs.

A Timeline of Achievements.

With a mission to develop housing and employment opportunities for people with disabilities, Community Options believes in the dignity of every person, and in the freedom of all people to experience the highest degree of self-determination. Throughout its history, Community Options has participated in institutional closure and community residential placement for thousands of people across several states. As a national agency, COI does not administer any large programs; rather, we recognize that people with the most severe disabilities require environments, equipment, clinical staff, and supports that are individualized and tailored to their specific needs. COI programs and services include community-based living, employment supports, high school transition programs, and specialized programs for respite and medically fragile people with disabilities.

The officers, management and staff of Community Options have many years of experience in providing community based residential and employment support to people with developmental and intellectual disabilities such as Autism Spectrum Disorder, Cerebral Palsy, Down Syndrome, physical disabilities, traumatic brain injury and dual diagnoses. The agency has developed an expertise in working with state and county based authorities to facilitate community placement for persons moving from institutions, as well as transitioning from their family home. This expertise includes the utilization of national staff to support locally recruited executive directors in submitting individualized service plans, locating and securing appropriate homes, condos and apartments, and recruiting and training experienced staff. Community Options has a vast network of experts and consultants in the field of intellectual and developmental disabilities to assist staff in designing and operating services that meet very specific needs.

Community Options contracts with various government entities and is supported by dedicated staff in programs throughout several states: Arizona, Iowa, Maryland, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Utah.

Additionally, the organization is experienced in providing International support services in Europe, South America, and the Middle East.

Community Options first office in Bordentown, NJ

About Us

1989 Community Options, Inc. is incorporated on February 9, 1989 to develop residential and employment supports for people with severe disabilities.
1990 The Americans with Disabilities Act passed. Its overall purpose is to make American society more accessible to people with disabilities.
1990 Governor James Florio announces he will close Johnstone in Bordentown, NJ.
1991 The first COI Business Advisory Council (COBAC) meeting is held in October of 1991. The focus of the COBAC is to recruit local business members within the community to help connect people with developmental disabilities to competitive employment.
1991 The Betty Pendler Award is first presented.
1992 The first four New Jersey homes were purchased.
1992 Burlington and Mercer County NJ offices are established to provide residential and employment support services to individuals with disabilities in New Jersey. COI believes there are four values critical to supporting individuals with disabilities and their families successfully: individual choice; customer satisfaction; person-centered planning; and economic empowerment.
1992 The Division of Developmental Disabilities closes the Johnstone Training and Research Center in New Jersey.
1992 Tim O’Donoghue becomes Chairman to the Board of Directors.
1993 COI contracts with Texas Department of Aging and Disabilities (DADS) for the Texas Homeliving (TxHML) and Home and Community Based Services(HCS) Medicaid waiver programs.
1994 Community Options, Inc. of Southern Tier is established to provide residential and employment support services to individuals with disabilities in the Binghamton, New York area.
1994 The Pittsburgh office is established to provide residential and employment support services to individuals with disabilities in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
1995 An office in New York City is established to provide residential and employment support services to individuals with disabilities in all five boroughs of NYC.
1995 COI’s first Pennsylvania home is purchased to help people to live independently in community settings.
1995 The State of New Jersey closes the North Princeton Developmental Center, with the very last of the individuals being removed in 1998.
1996 An office is established to cover the areas of Somerset County, NJ. It provides community-based options for residential and employment support services to individuals with disabilities and people with traumatic brain injuries living in the area.
1996 A Southeast Pennsylvania office is established to provide residential and employment support services to individuals with disabilities living in the Southeast region of Pennsylvania.
1997 Princeton Daily Plan It opens first entrepreneurial business with rental offices and infrastructure comprised of persons with disabilities earning minimum wage or better.
1997 The first office in Nashville Tennessee is established with the purchase of a large home functioning as a commercial entity. Plans are underway to expand in Tennessee.
1997 Brooklyn, NY office is established to provide support services to individuals with disabilities in Brooklyn, New York.
1997 The office in Dallas is established to provide residential and employment support services to individuals with disabilities living in (16) counties in the Northern Texas Region to include Dallas, Collin, Denton and other surrounding counties.
1997 El Paso, TX office is established to provide residential and employment support services to individuals with disabilities in El Paso, Texas.
1997 The first home in Texas is purchased.
1998 The office in Amarillo is established to provide support services to individuals with disabilities in the Texas Panhandle.
1999 Vaseful opens as a unique floral business which provides employment for people with disabilities in an integrated setting, operated by Community Options Enterprises.
1999 Community Options, Inc. of Albuquerque, New Mexico is established to provide residential and employment services to individuals with disabilities in the Metro and Northeast Region.
1999 The first NY home is purchased in the city of Endicott.
1999 The Daily Plan It opens in Morristown, NJ. The organization offers businesses small offices with conference space and low-cost services, such as receptionist work, maintenance duties, filing and copying.
2000 Syracuse, NY office is established to provide residential and employment support services to individuals with Traumatic Brain Injury in the Syracuse, New York area.
2000 Western Center in Canonsburg PA is closed. In 1992, the Western Center was the subject of a lawsuit brought by disability advocates against the Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare; the lawsuit resulted in a settlement that permitted the state to move residents to communitybased facilities.
2000 Dr. Clarence York and Robert Stack create The York Foundation to establish an endowment to further our effort and help empower individuals with disabilities. The Foundation seeks to assist individuals with disabilities in achieving their maximum potential by integrating independence, self-determination, and productivity into all facets of their lives.
2001 Tim Dunigan appointed as Chairman to the Board of Directors.
2004 The Santa Fe office opens to provide services in northeastern New Mexico. Staff meets with the individual, their family, and other supporting team members, to ensure that the individual’s service plans provide person-centered care, incorporating the person’s preferences accordingly.
2004 A new service area in Cookeville, Tennessee is established. A new office building is purchased in Nashville. Tennessee continues to rely on Community Options to help move people from institutions into the community.
2005 The office in San Antonio Texas is established to provide residential and employment services to individuals with disabilities in San Antonio and surrounding areas.
2005 Due to expansion, a new office is purchased in El Paso, TX.
2006 The first home opens in San Antonio, Texas.
2006 COI holds the first annual National iMatter Conference in Austin, Texas to examine best practices for employment for people with disabilities.
2006 New office building is purchased in Pittsburgh, PA.
2006 The Las Cruces New Mexico office building is established. It services the southwestern New Mexico communities.
2007 Community Options Enterprises grows with the opening of a third Daily Plan It office in Moorestown and purchases the Presents of Mind gift store in Flanders, NJ.
2007 The first home in South Carolina is purchased.
2007 Amarillo, Dallas and San Antonio, Texas offices are purchased.
2008 Presents of Mind a luxuriously appointed gift shop, opens for business. It is another business operated by COE that provides employment supports to people with disabilities.
2008 The School to Employment Program (STEP) opens to provide students with transferable vocational education and relevant social skill development as part of their Individualized Education Plan, improving future opportunities for competitive employment and/or post-secondary education.
2009 The first annual Cupid’s Chase 5K is held. In keeping with the Valentine’s Day theme, runners wear T-shirts describing their relationship status: available or unavailable. Run with your heart this Valentine’s Day.
2009 Community Options, Inc. of Corpus Christi is established to provide residential and employment support services to individuals with disabilities in (18) counties in the Southern Texas Region.
2009 Robert Stack, rings The NYSE Opening BellSM to commemorate the organization’s 20th anniversary of providing residential and employment support services to people with developmental disabilities.
2010 Mary Pat Christie, First Lady of New Jersey, visits the Daily Plan It in Morristown.
2011 COI visits the NASDAQ MarketSite in New York City’s Times Square to ring the opening bell. Community Options, alongside its corporate partners Withum Smith + Brown, Gunlocke Furniture and Dani Leather was joined by Senator Joe Kyrillos of New Jersey’s 13th Legislative District.
2012 The office in Lubbock Texas, is established to provide support services to individuals with disabilities in the area.
2012 New Jersey Governor Chris Christie announces he will close two institutions.
2013 New building is purchased in Wayne, NJ. for the Red Ribbon Academy. It is a state of the art program for the most medically fragile individuals.
2013 South Carolina Governor Nikki Halley visits one of our homes in Columbia.
2014 Community Options, Inc. rings the Closing Bell at the New York Stock Exchange.
2014 The first office is purchased in Philadelphia, PA.
2014 Vaseful purchases new location for its flower shop, in Edison, NJ.
2015 Thomas Kean, the 48th Governor of New Jersey, is the recipient of Betty Pendler Award.
2015 Operations open in Arizona to provide personal care, support services and vocational programs.
2015 The Rockville office is established to provide residential and employment support services to individuals with disabilities in Rockville, Maryland.
2016 Ogden office is established to provide support services to individuals with disabilities in Ogden, Utah.
2016 Community Options rings both the Opening and Closing Bell at the New York Stock Exchange.
2016 Community Options opened its second Red Ribbon Academy, in Hillsborough, NJ.
2017 United States Ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Halley is the recipient of Betty Pendler Award.
2017 Community Options, Inc. rings The NYSE Opening Bell.
2017 Community Options opens a new office in King of Prussia, PA. The new and professional office space will facilitate current operations, as well as provide the opportunity for future development and growth in the region.
2019 Community Options opens a second Vaseful location in Princeton, NJ.
2020 Department of Strategic Operations is inaugurated.
2020 Community Options opens the fifth Daily Plan It in Wayne, NJ.
2020 Senator Bob Casey receives the Betty Pendler award.
2020 Philip Lian, Chair of Community Options Enterprises, is dually appointed Chair of the York Foundation.
2021 James Buckley is appointed as Treasurer to the Board of Directors.
2021 Megan Crowley receives the Betty Pendler award.
2022 The first home in Iowa is purchased in Council Bluffs.
2022 Dorothy Goodwin is appointed Chair of the Board of Directors.
2023 The first office in New Hampshire is opened.
2023 The first Daily Plan It in Phoenix, AZ is opened.
2023 Dedication ceremony held for the Lian Mueller Daily Plan it in Newtown, PA.
2023 The First Children’s home in South Carolina is opened.
2023 Implemented the NBA Foundation grant.
2023 Governor Chris Christie receives the Betty Pendler award from Geraldo Rivera and Dorothy Goodwin, Chair of Community Options at the Union League in Philadelphia.
2024 In collaboration with Governor Reynolds’ office and selected agencies, Community Options facilitates the closure of the Glenwood Resource Center, enabling over 200 Iowans to transition to community-based homes.
2024 Kelly Garcia, Director of the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services receives the Betty Pendler award.
2025 The Daily Plan It expands with three new locations in Rutherford, NJ, Myrtle Beach, SC and Salt Lake City, UT.
2025 Mark Berkowsky, Jonathan Will, and the late John Hager are honored with the Betty Pendler Award.