Announcing 10 New TIP (Transforming and Improving Practices Through Customized Technical Assistance) Grantees!

The DD Council and Maryland Works, Inc. are awarding TIP (Transforming and Improving Practices Through Customized Technical Assistance) grants that total $96,405 to ten provider agencies, three of which are in rural regions of Maryland. The grants will fund technical assistance from subject matter experts so that people with developmental disabilities have improved employment outcomes and opportunities for meaningful participation in the community. 

 

This investment, the second round of TIP grant funding in two years, is one of several ways the Council is addressing the following 5 Five Year State Plan goal: “Children and adults with developmental disabilities meaningfully participate in all facets of community life, and are valued and supported by their communities.” The first round of TIP awards were granted in 2016 and resulted in 13 grantees, five of which are in rural areas. 

Read the 2016 project summary here.

 

All of the agencies in this current round are receiving TIP grants for the first time. As part of this initiative, grantees will also participate in a learning community to share successes, challenges, strategies, and best practices. Read the current project summary here.

 

Selected recipients:   

  • Ardmore Enterprises – to support closure of the day center, use person-centered planning, and measure data-driven outcomes.
  • Bayside Community Network – for support to transform from a sheltered work/day program model to a community employment model.
  • Community Living, Inc. – for support to transform from a facility-based agency to a community-based agency with person-centered supports.
  • Gallagher Services – to assist with an agency-wide cultural change and the use of of person-centered thinking and planning.
  • Melwood –  to help develop a strategic plan and a staffing/scheduling model that supports people to engage in meaningful employment.
  • Opportunity Builders – to assist in the development of a business plan to phase out sub-minimum wage contract work.
  • Rehabilitation Opportunities – to assist in improving the agency’s strategic plan and work flow chart and develop a process to move people from sheltered workshops to community employment.
  • The Arc Baltimore – to assist with improving staff culture, organizational infrastructure, and implementation of customized job coaching.
  • The Arc Central Chesapeake Region – to help develop a cohesive plan specific to achieving outcomes in rural settings.
  • The Arc Montgomery County – to assist employment staff in the development of a process to streamline employment discovery and customization process with an identified pilot group. 

Council Vice Chairperson Damon Briggs comments, “The technical assistance will help change services and support. It will help more people to get the jobs they want and will allow them to choose the things they want to do to have meaningful days.”  

 

Jonathon Rondeau, CEO of The Arc Central Chesapeake Region, comments on receiving a TIP grant, “While the challenges of raising employment rates for people with a disability in rural areas are significant, we believe strongly in the ability of everyone to achieve their goals and dreams. Receiving this funding from the Maryland Developmental Disabilities Council and Maryland Works, Inc. helps us to focus our efforts on strategically expanding our job development in rural communities in Anne Arundel County and the Eastern Shore. These resources will be focused on professional development and family engagement to improve job outcomes for those we serve. At the Arc Central Chesapeake, we have a strong history of improving employment outcomes for people with a disability, and we’re excited that this funding will help us develop long-term solutions to stubborn barriers to employment for people we serve in rural areas.”