All
Together Kids
Geographic Area Served:
Description: All Together Kids is UCP's education and aftercare
program for children. This program
provides direct funding supports to families of children with severe
disabilities in order that they may access community based summer, aftercare,
recreation, arts, camps, therapeutic, and other programs that are specific to
their individualized needs, and targeted to advance personalized educational
and developmental progress goals in the most integrated and inclusive
environment possible. Further, UCP provides a a DVD and web based training
curriculum, technical assistance and consultation to community-based children’s
programs throughout the Metro area aimed toward development of infrastructure capacity
to include children with disabilities in their programs and activities.
Disability
Housing Assistance Program
Geographic Area Served: Statewide except for Davidson,
Description: The Tennessee Disability Housing Assistance Program is
a project of the Tennessee Housing Trust Fund.
The program is administered by United Cerebral Palsy of Middle Tennessee
and is funded by Tennessee Housing Development Agency. The program provides
housing-related grants and low-cost disability-related home modifications and
repairs specific to the needs of low income Tennesseans with severe
disabilities. The mission of the program
is to ensure that Tennessee citizens with disabilities have access equal to all
citizens, to safe, sound homes and opportunities to live in their communities.
A total of $560,748 is available for distribution in grants prior to June 30,
2009. This will be accomplished through
a network of partner agencies established by UCP across the state of
Educational
Travel Fund
Geographic Area Served: Statewide
Description: The Educational Travel Fund allows individuals with
disabilities of all types throughout the state of
Educational
Video and Photography
Geographic Area Served: All
Description: UCP produces educational video programming on issues
affecting individuals with disabilities.
Among these include investigative reports on Inclusive Education,
Transportation, Fair Housing, Adoption of Special Needs Children, ADA
Accommodations, Tenessee State Title 33, Emergency Preparedness for Persons
with Disabilities, and the Supreme Court’s Olmstead Decision.
Equipment
Exchange
Geographic Area Served: Statewide, plus South
Description: The UCP Durable Medical and Adaptive Equipment
Exchange Program enables individuals with disabilities and their families to
become self-sufficient through the provision of durable medical and adaptive
equipment. The Equipment Exchange first
emerged through the gratitude and concern of families who received equipment
for their children through UCP’s Barry Dean Fulton Special Needs Fund. This included items such as wheelchairs,
walkers, prone standers, wheelchair lifts, and augmentative communication
devices. As their children outgrew the equipment, parents were returning it to
UCP, asking to make it available to other families. Over the years, the
Equipment Exchange experienced a quiet but steady growth as new families and
service providers learned of its existence.
The program was expanded to include individuals with all types of
disabilities, and other organizations joined with UCP in collecting, storing
and distributing equipment. The program is now one of UCP's hallmark services.
Family
Support
Geographic Area Served: UCP has the state contract for
Description: Family Support is a statewide service to individuals
with disabilities supplied by the state of
Geographic Area Served: Middle
Description: Each year volunteers gather and distribute
Home
Access/Wheelchair Ramps
Geographic Area Served: Statewide
Description: United Cerebral Palsy builds ramps and coordinates
state-wide construction of wheelchair ramps for individuals with mobility
disabilities whose homes are without proper accessibility. Working in
conjunction with collaborating agencies, volunteers from churches, civic clubs,
and other area groups, UCP spearheads the construction wheelchair ramps on to
the homes of persons with disabilities across the state of Tennessee. Lumber and supplies for the program are
funded through a grant from the Tennessee Housing Development Agency (THDA).
Information
and Referral
Geographic Area Served: Generally Middle Tennessee, plus some services to
persons from other parts of the state and individuals planning to move to
Description: United Cerebral Palsy serves as the doorway through
which many families learn about the condition known as cerebral palsy, and also
about community services available to individuals with many types of physical
disabilities. A large number of requests pertain to information about unmet
needs of the constituency. These include
requests for help in funding assistive technology, personal and attendant care
services, respite care, prescription pharmaceuticals, and other items not
covered under TennCare and private insurance. A large percentage of requests
for information relate to cerebral palsy.
The remaining calls and e-mails
have to do with a more broad-based area of inquiry related to
disabilities in general.
Public
Policy
Geographic Area Served: Statewide
Description: UCP has entered into a public policy alliance, the
purpose of which is to identify, articulate, and promote sound and effective
public policy in the best interest of citizens with disabilities in the state
of
Special
Needs Funds
Geographic Area Served: Middle
Description: One of UCP's first programs of service was special
needs fund, initiated by the family of former Nashville Mayor Richard Fulton,
and named in memory of his son, Barry Dean Fulton. While desigated funds for
this program have been long since depleted, UCP continues to use the Fulton Fund
designation for emergency aid to families when no other source of immediate aid
can be identified. Because of the small
amount of discretionary money available, this aid is limited to extreme
emergency situations.
The Burch
Family Special Needs Fund at United Cerebral Palsy was established in the year
2000 by the Burch Family Foundation for the purpose of supplying assistance to
individuals with disabilities in Franklin, Tennessee who are of birth
multiples.
In the
letter establishing the fund at United Cerebral Palsy, Mr. Lucius E. Burch III
stated:
“It has
recently come to my attention that cerebral palsy often affects children of
multiple birth. The funds from the Burch
Family Foundation are to be used to establish a fund to provide direct aid for
medical, therapeutic, technological, or other specialized needs for children of
multiple birth with disabilities located in the city of Franklin, Tennessee.”
UCP also
has opportunities to serve individuals through the UCPA Bellows Fund. A small portion of interest earned from this
fund is distributed to indivduals throughout the
Sports
and Recreation Program
Geographic Area Served:
Description: United Cerebral Palsy's Sports and Recreation Program
is a year round activity for people with disabilities and their families which
takes place every Wednesday evening and during specially designated
weekends. Participation in these
activities affords consumers an opportunity to engage in activities which have
both physical and social interaction benefits. Among regular activities offered
include bowling, wheelchair basketball, board games, and movie nights. Special activites include
the UCP annual family picnic and social at Centennial Park and "Fans on
Wheels" activities at area sporting venues. Children may participate on
UCP's Challenger League Baseball team.