The Full Inclusion Fund offers microgrants to people with disabilities who are either self-directing their services or working towards self-directing their services. These microgrants, which are capped at $500 each, are intended to supplement funding available through waivers and personal income, which we know often falls short of the real costs of self-direction. One of the Fund’s major goals is to help people become more active members of their communities.
By making it possible for people to overcome basic obstacles to self-direction, the Full Inclusion Fund gives people with disabilities the ability to live fully included lives of their own design.
Eligibility for Microgrants
Our first round of applications for microgrants are currently closed as of April 25, 2020. Recipients were notified on May 19, 2020.
So that we can continue to support people with disabilities, we will offer future opportunities to apply for a microgrant, depending on the availability of funds.
Expenses related to self-direction that may qualify for a microgrant include:
- Transitioning to self-directed services (i.e. switching your agency or hiring support staff)
- Keeping self-directed services (i.e. paying fees to keep your support staff)
- Living in your community of choice (i.e. helping with move-in costs to a new place to live)
- Having maximum control over your services and life (i.e. paying for adaptive technology that will help you have more control over your space)
- Improving quality of life (i.e. paying for a weekend retreat to go on your own)
It changed my life when I no longer had to go to a day program or a group home. Instead, thanks to self-direction, I am living MY life, not someone else’s idea of what my life should be. That’s why the Full Inclusion Fund is so important
Disabled people like myself, especially people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, are extremely disproportionately likely to be impoverished, unemployed, precariously employed, or unemployed. For many of our community members, a small amount of money can go a huge way. I’ve known disabled people for whom $300 made it possible to stay in a motel for a week to escape an abuser, $400 made it possible to travel out of state for a court date, and $500 made it possible to escape homelessness, start college in another state, and obtain needed medical treatment. The Full Inclusion Fund can make it more possible for someone to stay in their community and/or leave an institution that denies them freedom and human rights.
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