National Nonprofit receives $1 Million Dollar grant for National Advocacy Project
PRESS RELEASE – NATIONAL, CHILDREN, FAMILIES, ADVOCACY
COMMUNITY OPTIONS, INC. SUPPORTING PEOPLE WITH DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES SINCE 1989
National Nonprofit receives $1 Million Dollar grant for National Advocacy Project
Community Options receives National Significance Grant to empower families and children with disabilities
(September 28, 2009 – Princeton, NJ) Community Options, a national nonprofit that has been developing community-based homes and employment supports for people with developmental disabilities across the country for over twenty years, has received a prestigious grant from the federal government. The organization is the recipient of a $1 million dollar grant from the Administration on Developmental Disabilities, an arm of the Administration for Children and Families.
Community Options, Inc. will use its existing 26 offices in nine states to support families of children with disabilities to evaluate, promote and provide national leadership training through a Family Web 2.0 project. Families will teach each other how to evaluate and operate training programs and how to engage in positive policy development to ensure ongoing support services. Family Web 2.0 means moving toward citizen-centric information, education and resources that are truly usable and accessible.
The project will be based on the spirit and energy of the award winning Partners in Policy Making program and will combine strong grass roots advocacy, national and state resources, and state of the art communication and social networking technology to identify, evaluate, develop and disseminate training materials that meet the expressed needs of families.
“This grant of national significance is the culmination of our team’s relentless efforts to improve the lives of children with disabilities and to empower families,” says, Jessica Guberman, Executive Director of the organizations Northern New Jersey operation.
Community Options will begin to work immediately on the project in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Tennessee, South Carolina, Kentucky, Texas and New Mexico.