Lexington, MA (September 30, 2021) — Family Voices is pleased to announce that we have received a new five-year funding award from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Community Living, to support a National Healthcare Transition Resource Center (NHCTRC) for youth with intellectual and developmental disabilities (ID/DD). The Center will provide healthcare transition training and resources to a broad and diverse group of youth and young adults with ID/DD, ages 12-26, their families, and the professionals who serve them. The Center will have a national Youth Steering Committee that guides all project activities, as well as a National Advisory Committee composed of representatives of organizations committed to the empowerment of youth to direct and manage their healthcare transitions.
The work of the Center will be carried out through a collaborative partnership of Family Voices with the National Alliance to Advance Adolescent Health/Got Transition, SPAN Parent Advocacy Network in New Jersey, the University of Missouri-Kansas City and the Waisman Center at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
“Family Voices looks forward to establishing a center that addresses a critical need for youth with special healthcare needs, specifically the ID/DD community, by bringing together organizations with a superb history of commitment to transition issues,” notes Nora Wells, Executive Director of Family Voices. “We are thrilled that Allysa Ware, MSW, will utilize her lived experience as the mother of a young adult with a developmental disability and professional knowledge as a social worker and long-standing member of the Got Transitions Cabinet Executive Team to aid in establishing this new center.”
“We are excited to build on our Got Transition infrastructure to support this much-needed new work!” says Peggy McManus, President of The National Alliance to Advance Adolescent Health and co-Project Director of Got Transition.
“SPAN is so proud to be part of this collaborative effort with such dedicated partners,” states Diana Autin, Executive Director of SPAN. “SPAN brings years of experience providing transition-related technical assistance and training, and we are incredibly fortunate to have Dr. Josie Badger, Project Director of our RAISE RSA Transition Parent TA Center, to lead our efforts with this new center.”
Further announcements will be forthcoming as to the timing and availability of a center website, app, and numerous other transition resources.
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