NCIL: Celebrating 25 Years of Independent Living

Grant Opportunity for Disability Advocates Building Best Practices for Collaboration with the Aging Community in Aging Disability Resource Centers (ADRCs)

The U.S Administration on Aging (AoA) ( www.aoa.gov ) and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, (CMS) ( www.cms.gov ) both part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, launched the Aging and Disability Resource Center (ADRC) grant initiative to promote the integration of long-term care information and referral services, benefits and options counseling services, and access to publicly and privately financed services and benefits for those in need of long-term supports and their families. ADRC grants were awarded to 43 states beginning in 2003, and these states have opened ADRCs that serve older adults and individuals with disabilities.

NCIL has been working closely with the AoA to bridge the gap between the disability community and the aging community. NCIL was awarded a second grant to help implement intensive technical assistance and peer-to-peer mentorship to ensure inclusion and collaboration between aging and disability organizations in establishing a new ADRC or enhancing an existing ADRC.

The request for proposals is open from June 15 to July 15th, 2009. All RFPs must be received by 12:00pm 7/15/09 to be considered. Awards will be made by August 15th, 2009 and the grant period is from August 15th to November 15, 2009. 

In 2008, NCIL received over 15 applications requesting one of the five mini grants.  Given the quality of applications, it was a very competitive grant review process. The winning applicants were from Indiana, Tennessee, District of Columbia, Illinois and Maryland. Their applications stood out among the many received because they told us about exciting ways to collaborate or continue collaboration with aging advocates. 
NCIL wants to continue with collaboration efforts between disability & aging advocates.

NCIL has five (5) $4,000 mini-grants for five (5) states that develop exemplary plans for collaboration, education and exchange of information and resources between the Independent Living community and the aging community. To apply for the grant, interested CILs, Associations of CILs or SILCs must submit a written plan co-signed by the organizations they plan to collaborate with. After the grant activities are completed, a detailed report of the event(s) sponsored and evaluations or outcomes from the event(s) must be reported. You may also be asked to present your outcomes to the NCIL ADRC taskforce. 

We are looking to further develop best practices from the field. Every state and community is different. We are looking to you, our members, to tell us the best ways to collaborate with different communities to reach common goals. Healthcare, housing, transportation and a discrimination-free society! There are many ways CILs can work with the AAA. We have many issues in common, we just see the world through different eyes. Visit http://www.ncil.org/conference/ADRCTranscript.html for a side-by-side comparison of CILs and AAAs and get ideas on how to collaborate.   

Contact Person's Name:  
ddress:  
City:
State:
Zip: 
Organization: 
Voice: 
TTY: 
Fax: 
E-mail: 

1. Please describe the current state of the relationship between disability and aging organizations and agencies in your state.  If applicable, list all specific barriers to collaboration and education as well as any success and positive relationships that currently exist.  

2. Please describe the results you expect to achieve and how this grant will allow you to break down existing barriers and build upon positive relationships between the disability and aging communities and the organizations, agencies and advocates that offer services.  

3. What events and activities do you propose to achieve the outcomes you have detailed in response to Question 2?  

4. Expanding upon your response to Question 3, please attach a brief project budget and scope of work to this application.


Please list at least two aging organizations/ agencies within your state that you will collaborate with.  An authorized representative of each organization will need to sign to demonstrate their intent to participate in the project.  

1. Organization / Agency:
Signature:
Date:

2. Organization / Agency:
Signature:
Date:	

3. Organization / Agency:
Signature:
Date:

4. Organization / Agency:
Signature:
Date:

Your signature below indicates your understanding of all that has been presented above and certifies that, if funded, you agree to provide all required documents and materials.
Typed or Printed Name:
Date:
Signature:

If you have any questions about this form or the CIL / ADRC Project, please contact Kelly Buckland: 202.207.0334 (Voice) or 202.207.0340 (TTY) or Kelly@ncil.org (Email).

Please send completed applications to:
National Council on Independent Living
Attn: Kelly Buckland
1710 Rhode Island Ave. NW, 5th Floor
Washington, DC 20036; OR, 
FAX – 202.207.0341; Email – Kelly@ncil.org