VESID / ILC / Toolbox

NYS INDEPENDENT LIVING CENTERS
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT
SYSTEMS CHANGE OUTCOME RESULTS

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Each reporting period includes a narrative summary and data reports.

• October 1, 2000 - September 30, 2001
• October 1, 2001 - September 30, 2002
• October 1, 2002 - September 30, 2003
• October 1, 2003 - September 30, 2004
• October 1, 2004 - September 30, 2005
• October 1, 2005 - September 30, 2006
• October 1, 2006 - September 30, 2007
• October 1, 2007 - September 30, 2008

The Role of Independent Living Centers in
Bringing About Community and Systems Change
2000-2001

New York’s 35 Independent Living Centers (ILCs) receive $10.5 million to provide an array of independent living services to individuals and to advocate for and lead change to systems affecting the lives of people with disabilities. “Systems Change”, in the context of New York State’s Independent Living Standards, Performance Measures and Data Collection Guide means, “Permanent change to policies, practices and decisions in the public and/or private sector that control resources necessary to enhance integration, inclusion and independence of people with disabilities as a group”.

Each of the 35 Independent Living Centers must achieve three results of community and systems change per year under contract with the Office of Vocational and Educational Services for Individuals with Disabilities (VESID). VESID has established six distinct domains of systems change in areas of Education, Employment, Health Care, Commerce, Social and Citizenship. Furthermore, tracking within categories is also done to group similar results together within each domain. For instance, within the Education domain, results are grouped if they have had an impact on A. transition services, B. receipt of funding non-pre-K through university or business program, or C. if the result demonstrated integration of a new educational component into a curriculum. Under the Health Care domain, results are grouped if they addressed A. legislation/regulation/policy, B. consumer directed personal assistance or C. increased access to physician offices/clinics.

A detailed analysis of results are maintained in a systems change inventory database to determine frequency of specific types of systems change in each domain and the number of results in subcategories of each domain. Results are shared with the field on an annual basis to report on outcomes and provide opportunities for exchanges of best practices. Below is a sampling of results from the reporting period, October 1, 2000 – September 30, 2001. During the same reporting period, the network of 35 ILCs served over 66,000 individuals with and without disabilities with direct services.

There were 240 instances of results of community and systems change accomplished by the New York State network of Independent Living Centers with 83 percent of ILCs achieving the required three or more outcomes. One ILC achieved results in each of the six domains of systems change.

The most frequently occurring outcomes of community and systems change are:

• Bringing Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Title III. covered public and private entities into full compliance with accessibility standards under the law. There were 36 successful instances where ILCs worked with owners of such entities as supermarkets, banks, restaurants, malls, etc. to increase access to marketplace goods and services.
• Ensuring that schools pre-k though college including both public and private are accessible physically and programmatically. There were 22 instances of enhanced school access.
• Ensuring that parks and other places of public recreation are fully accessible. There were 15 instances where ILCs facilitated accessibility by working with local, county or state officials to make parks, playgrounds, fishing docks and piers, and other recreational sites accessible to all.
• Increasing the number of employers who hire people with disabilities. There were 14 instances where ILCs developed new employers who hired a person with a disability for the first time.
• Bringing Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Title II. covered entities into full compliance with access standards under the law. There were 14 instances where ILCs worked with local town and county governments to address full access to buildings, programs and services such as libraries, courts, town halls, etc.

Some unique results that span the range of domains include the following:

Education

• Genesee Region Independent Living Center in Batavia achieved systems change in Education when Batavia City Schools and the Center established a written agreement instituting a procedural change whereby transition plans for students with disabilities include information on Plan for the Achievement of Self Support (PASS), NYS Office of Vocational and Educational Services for Individuals with Disabilities (VESID), and agency linkages.
• Southern Tier Independence Center in Binghamton achieved systems change in Education when Johnson City School District rescinded a discriminatory policy restricting children with high medical needs from attending school when the school nurse is absent.
• Catskill Center for Independence in Oneonta achieved systems change in Education when the Center’s efforts led to the removal of the principal and superintendent of Margaretville School leaving the new administration to exercise Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE).
• Independent Living Center of the Hudson Valley in Troy achieved systems change in Education when Schenectady County Community College established an American Sign Language (ASL) curriculum through the use of deaf sign language instructors provided by the Center.
• Northern Regional Center for Independent Living in Watertown achieved systems change in Education when Lafargeville Central School changed a restrictive policy and now allows students enrolled in a GED program to participate in senior-level class activities.

Employment

• Center for Independence of the Disabled in New York in Manhattan achieved systems change in Employment when the Center contracted with NYS Office of Vocational and Educational Services for Individuals with Disabilities (VESID), for the first time, to work with VESID referred consumers on a fee-for-service basis toward obtaining and keeping employment.
• Center for Independence of the Disabled in New York in Manhattan achieved systems change in Employment when the Bronx District Office of NYS Office of Vocational and Educational Services for Individuals with Disabilities (VESID) discontinued referring consumers to an unaccredited vocational training agency and revised its referral practices to ensure that no unaccredited vendors would be used in the future.
• Massena Independent Living Center in Massena achieved systems change in Employment when the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) Summer Youth Program, operated by the local One-Stop Career Center, relocated a scheduled meeting to an accessible site and changed its scheduling policy to hold future meetings at a site and with a format that is accessible to persons with disabilities.
• Action Toward Independence in Middletown achieved systems change in Employment when a Center staff person became a member of the Orange County Codes Council in an effort to increase employer compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and other pertinent laws/regulations affecting the employment of persons with disabilities.

Health Care

• Catskill Center for Independence in Oneonta achieved systems change in Health Care when the Otsego County 9-1-1 system began providing direct access to TTY users.
• Center for Independence of the Disabled in New York in Manhattan achieved systems change in Health Care when Urban Family Health revised and implemented a new front desk protocol to meet the needs of patients with disabilities and created a new protocol for interacting with patients with disabilities during routine medical examinations.
• Rockland Independent Living Center in Rockland achieved systems change in Health Care when Nyack Hospital established a policy regarding the provision of sign language interpreter services.
• Staten Island Center for Independent Living in Staten Island achieved systems change in Health Care when Staten Island University Hospital established a sign language interpreter on call process and installed TDD machines providing them to patients upon request.
• Northern Regional Center for Independent Living in Watertown achieved systems change in Health Care when the Center established a new Consumer Directed Personal Assistance (CDPA) Program at United Cerebral Palsy (UCP) of the North Country.

Commerce

• Capital District Center for Independence in Albany achieved systems change in Commerce when Albany County passed Resolution 445 that mandates an additional $30.00 fine for parking illegally in handicapped parking spaces.
• Brooklyn Center for Independence of the Disabled in Brooklyn achieved systems change in Commerce when Pathmark Supermarket started opening the main gate to the entrance as needed for wheelchair users.
• Access to Independence and Mobility in Corning achieved systems change in Commerce when Southern Tier Library made accessible computers and Braille literature available.
• Resource Center for Accessible Living in Kingston achieved systems change in Commerce when the town of Wawarsing re-striped the parking lot at the Town Building to comply with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973
• Center for Independence of the Disabled in New York in Manhattan achieved systems change in Commerce when the Center’s efforts resulted in the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) conducting an investigation of New York City Housing Authority's (NYCHA) allocation of Section 8 vouchers exclusively to NY Society for the Deaf. NYCHA revised its policy to make them available citywide to anyone with a disability.
• Niagara Frontier Center for Independent Living in Niagara Falls achieved systems change in Commerce when the Main Street Business Association changed its scheduling policy to hold meetings at an accessible site(s).
• Taconic Resources for Independence in Poughkeepsie achieved systems change in Commerce when the Woodstock Justice Court started providing effective communication for persons with disabilities.
• Regional Center for Independent Living in Rochester achieved systems change in Commerce when an accessible door was installed at the Fort Hill Apartments.
• Northern Regional Center for Independent Living in Watertown achieved systems change in Commerce when the Center’s efforts resulted in the city of Watertown changing its planning process to alter the traffic flow in the downtown area to include input from the disability community.

Social

• Catskill Center for Independence in Oneonta achieved systems change in Social when Holiday Lanes bowling alley modified four alleys to be accessible to wheelchair users.
• Center for Independence of the Disabled in New York in Manhattan achieved systems change in Social when the Manhattan Theater Club developed a reduced price ticket program for people with disabilities and made access aides available.
• Massena Independent Living Center in Massena achieved systems change in Social when the tiered amphitheater style seating at the Andrews Street Park was made accessible to persons experiencing disabilities.
• Westchester Disabled on the Move in Yonkers achieved systems change in Social when Yonkers Department of Recreation and Parks created an accessible playground at Welty Park.

Citizenship

• Genesee Region Independent Living Center in Batavia achieved systems change in Citizenship when Stafford Town Hall installed proper signage on its designated parking spaces for persons with disabilities and became fully accessible.
• Southern Tier Independence Center in Binghamton achieved systems change in Citizenship when Center staff began serving on the advisory committee of the Verizon Consumer Advisory Panel.
• Access to Independence and Mobility in Corning achieved systems change in Citizenship when a consumer who completed the New York State Developmental Disabilities Planning Council (DDPC) funded leadership training hosted by the Center was placed on the Board at Southern Tier Library Systems.
• Center for Independence of the Disabled in New York in Manhattan achieved systems change in Citizenship when the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) issued clarifying guidelines to ensure that people with disabilities have equal access to agency services.
• Independent Living, Inc. in Newburgh achieved systems change in Citizenship when the Center’s efforts resulted in the Orange County Board of Elections making a firehouse-based polling site located in the town of Wallkill fully accessible.

OCTOBER 1, 2000 - SEPTEMBER 30, 2001 STATEWIDE DATA REPORT
SYSTEM CHANGE DOMAINS	OUTCOMES ACHIEVED
	# of ILCs	% of 35 ILCs	# of OUTCOMES	% of TOTAL OUTCOMES
EDUCATION	23	66%	53	22%
EMPLOYMENT	10	29%	26	11%
HEALTH CARE	24	69%	38	16%
COMMERCE	26	74%	63	26%
SOCIAL	21	60%	41	17%
CITIZENSHIP	10	29%	19	8%
TOTAL			240	100%

 

OCTOBER 1, 2000 - SEPTEMBER 30, 2001 NUMBER OF SYSTEMS CHANGE DOMAINS ACHIEVED BY ILCS
SYSTEM CHANGE DOMAINS
No.	LOCATION	ILC	EDU-CATION	EMPLOY-MENT	HEALTH CARE	COM-MERCE	SOCIAL	CITIZEN-SHIP	RESULTS *
									TOTAL	S	U
1	Albany	Capital District Center for Independence			X	X	X	X	4	X
2	Amsterdam	Resource Center for Independent Living-Amsterdam	X		X	X			3	X
3	Auburn	Options for Independence				X	X		2		X
4	Batavia	Genesee Region Independent Living Center	X			X	X	X	4	X
5	Binghamton	Southern Tier Independence Center	X		X	X		X	4	X
6	Bronx	Bronx Independent Living Services	X						1		X
7	Brooklyn	Brooklyn Center for Independence of the Disabled	X		X	X			3	X
8	Buffalo	Western New York Independent Living Project	X		X	X	X		4	X
9	Corning	Access to Independence and Mobility			X	X	X	X	4	X
10	Delaware	Catskill Center for Independence	X	X	X	X	X		5	X
11	Glens Falls	Glens Falls Independent Living Center			X	X	X		3	X
12	Harlem	Harlem Independent Living Center							0		X
13	Ithaca	Finger Lakes Independence Center			X	X	X		3	X
14	Jamestown	Southwestern Independent Living Center	X		X	X			3	X
15	Kingston	Resource Center for Accessible Living	X			X	X		3	X
16	Long Island	Long Island Center for Independent Living							0		X
17	Manhattan	Center for Independence of the Disabled in New York	X	X	X	X	X	X	6	X
18	Massena	Massena Independent Living Center	X	X	X	X	X		5	X
19	Middletown	Action Toward Independence	X	X	X	X	X		5	X
20	Newburgh	Independent Living Inc.		X		X	X	X	4	X
21	Niagara Falls	Niagara Frontier Center for Independent Living			X	X			2		X
22	Olean	Directions in Independent Living	.	.	.	.	.	.	0		X
23	Plattsburgh	North Country Center for Independence	X	.	X		X		3	X
24	Poughkeepsie	Taconic Resources for Independence	X	.	X	X	X	X	5	X
25	Queens	Queens Independent Living Center	X	.		X		X	3	X
26	Rochester	Regional Center for Independent Living	X	.	X	X			3	X
27	Rockland	Rockland Independent Living Center	.	.	X	.	X	X	3	X
28	Staten Island	Staten Island Center for Independent Living	.	X	X	..	X	.	3	X
29	Suffolk	Self-Initiated Living Options	X	X	.	X	X	.	4	X
30	Syracuse	ARISE	X	X	X		X		4	X
31	Troy	Independent Living Center of the Hudson Valley	X	.	X	.	.	X	3	X
32	Utica	Resource Center for Independent Living-Utica	X	X	.	X	.	.	3	X
33	Watertown	Northern Regional Center for Independent Living	X		X	X	.	.	3	X
34	White Plains	Westchester Independent Living Center	X	X	X	X	X	.	5	X
35	Yonkers	Westchester Disabled on the Move	X	.	X	X	X	.	4	X
TOTAL ILCs ACHIEVING OUTCOME			23	10	24	26	21	10		29	6
% of ALL ILCs			66%	29%	69%	74%	60%	29%

 

2000-2001 * EXPLANATION OF RESULTS	# ILC	/	TOTAL ILC	=	% ACHIEVED
S - Successful = 3 or more	29	.	35	.	83%
U - Unsuccessful = less than 3	6	.	35	.	17%
Total	35	.	35	.	100%

 

2000-2001 BREAKDOWN OF RESULTS	# ILC	/	TOTAL ILC	=	% ACHIEVED
0	3	.	35	..	9%
1	1	.	35	.	3%
2	2	.	35	.	6%
3	14	.	35	.	40%
4	9	.	35	.	25%
5	5	.	35	.	14%
6	1	.	35	.	3%
Total	35	.	35	.	100%

The Role of Independent Living Centers in
Bringing About Community and Systems Change
2001-2002

New York’s 36 Independent Living Centers (ILCs) receive $10.7 million to provide an array of independent living services to individuals and to advocate for and lead change to systems affecting the lives of people with disabilities. “Systems Change”, in the context of New York State’s Independent Living Standards, Performance Measures and Data Collection Guide means, “Permanent change to policies, practices and decisions in the public and/or private sector that control resources necessary to enhance integration, inclusion and independence of people with disabilities as a group”.

Each of the 36 Independent Living Centers must achieve three results of community and systems change per year under contract with the Office of Vocational and Educational Services for Individuals with Disabilities (VESID). VESID has established six distinct domains of systems change in areas of Education, Employment, Health Care, Commerce, Social and Citizenship. Furthermore, tracking within categories is also done to group similar results together within each domain. For instance, within the Education domain, results are grouped if they have had an impact on A. transition services, B. receipt of funding non-pre-K through university or business program, or C. if the result demonstrated integration of a new educational component into a curriculum. Under the Health Care domain, results are grouped if they addressed A. legislation/regulation/policy, B. consumer directed personal assistance or C. increased access to physician offices/clinics.

A detailed analysis of results are maintained in a systems change inventory database to determine frequency of specific types of systems change in each domain and the number of results in subcategories of each domain. Results are shared with the field on an annual basis to report on outcomes and provide opportunities for exchanges of best practices. Below is a sampling of results from the reporting period, October 1, 2001 – September 30, 2002. During the same reporting period, the network of 36 ILCs served over 68,000 individuals with and without disabilities with direct services.

Over 260 instances of results of community and systems change were accomplished by the New York State network of Independent Living Centers with 94 percent of ILCs achieving the required three or more outcomes. Four ILCs achieved results in each of the six domains of systems change.

The most frequently occurring outcomes of community and systems change are:

• Bringing Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Title III. covered public and private entities into full compliance with accessibility standards under the law. There were 30 successful instances where ILCs worked with owners of such entities as supermarkets, banks, restaurants, malls, etc. to increase access to marketplace goods and services.
• Ensuring that polling sites are fully accessible from parking to walkways, to indoor facilities and restrooms. There were 28 instances of enhanced polling site access.
• Increasing the number of employers who hire people with disabilities. There were 17 instances where ILCs developed new employers who hired a person with a disability for the first time.
• Bringing Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Title II. covered entities into full compliance with access standards under the law. There were 17 instances where ILCs worked with local town and county governments to address full access to buildings, programs and services such as libraries, courts, town halls, etc.
• Ensuring that parks and other places of public recreation are fully accessible. There were 17 instances where ILCs facilitated accessibility by working with local, county or state officials to make parks, playgrounds, fishing docks and piers, and other recreational sites accessible to all.

Some unique results that span the range of domains include the following:

Education

• Center for Independence of the Disabled in New York in Manhattan achieved systems change in Education when it created a summer work experience program for students with disabilities in School District 75 in collaboration with New York University’s Metropolitan Center for Urban Education Upward-Bound Program.
• Resource Center for Independent Living in Amsterdam achieved system change in Education when a center accessibility survey found the Claire S. Bacon Elementary School to be inaccessible and it was closed.
• Southwestern Independent Living Center in Jamestown achieved systems change in Education since Center staff attended Committee on Special Education (CSE) meetings at Frewsburg High School as a recognized mandated parent CSE representative.
• North Country Center for Independence in Plattsburgh achieved systems change in Education when the Interagency Council on Transition changed its policy to allow students with disabilities to participate in integrated job fairs. Previously, consumers participated in segregated job fairs.

Employment

• Independent Living Inc. of Newburgh achieved systems change in Employment when it was funded by Orange County’s Office of Mental Health to create a replicable model for providing intensive vocational rehabilitation service coordination for individuals with psychiatric disabilities and co-occurring psychiatric and addictive disabilities.
• Catskill Center for Independence in Oneonta achieved systems change in Employment when the Oneonta One-Stop procured a computer system that is accessible to blind and visually impaired persons.
• Massena Independent Living Center in Massena achieved systems change in Employment when Franklin County Department of Social Services changed its Workfare participation rules to enable training participants to trade required work site hours for time spent working with the Center or participating in the Center's Peer Support for Employment Group.
• Southern Tier Independence Center in Binghamton achieved systems change in Employment since the local Wal-Mart is now using interpreters for the deaf.
• Resource Center for Independent Living in Amsterdam achieved systems change in Employment when the Original Works Employment Agency changed its employment application to eliminate illegal questions.

Health Care

• Northern Regional Center for Independent Living in Watertown achieved systems change in Health Care when it successfully assisted a patient at Pilgrim State Psychiatric Center to be released to home after being court ordered to receive Electro Convulsive Therapy (ECT). ECT was stopped by the advocacy efforts that led to a stay ordered by the Appellate Division of the New York State Supreme Court that has since assisted with the release of three other patients in similar situations.
• Queens Independent Living Center of Queens achieved systems change in Health Care when HS Systems eliminated a policy that denied patients with personal assistants the opportunity to have their assistant accompany them into examination rooms.
• Directions in Independent Living in Olean achieved systems change in Health Care since the Cattaraugus County Department of Health produced an audiotape version of an immunization instruction pamphlet.
• Capital District Center for Independence in Albany achieved systems change in Health Care when the Center established a Consumer Directed Personal Assistance (CDPA) Program called Directed Choices, Inc.
• Regional Center for Independent Living in Rochester achieved systems change in Health Care since the Center's advocacy efforts led to the withdrawal of legislation intended to end the use of Medicaid funds for the testing of lead in children who reside in high-risk areas.

Commerce

• Access to Independence and Mobility in Corning achieved systems change in Commerce when its advocacy efforts led to Steuben County Department of Transportation’s extension of hours and days of service to weekends. It also helped to secure expanded hours for intercounty and intracounty service.
• Southern Tier Independence Center in Binghamton achieved systems change in Commerce when Broome County Transit moved several bus stops to more accessible locations.
• ARISE in Syracuse achieved systems change in Commerce when the center's advocacy efforts resulted in the US Postal Service agreeing to deliver large packages directly to tenants doors in a senior citizens apartment complex.
• Staten Island Center for Independent Living of Staten Island achieved systems change in Commerce since the Center had a vital role in the successful settlement of a lawsuit involving the Eastern Paralyzed Veterans Association (EPVA) and Staten Island that resulted in new pedestrian ramps being constructed.
• Regional Center for Independent Living in Rochester achieved systems change in Commerce when the Rochester Housing Authority implemented an unbiased process for selecting set-aside Section 8 vouchers for Medicaid waiver applicants self identified as disabled. The new process requires an applicant's permission before information is sent to Section 8.
• Niagara Frontier Center for Independent Living in Niagara Falls achieved systems change in Commerce since Niagara Rural Transportation (NRA) started offering "route deviation" that enables rural residents to have better access to transportation. Also, NRA purchased fully accessible buses for use on these deviated routes.

Social

• Independent Living Center of the Hudson Valley of Troy achieved systems change in Social since sign language interpreted performances are now being provided at NYS Theatre Institute.
• Westchester Independent Living Center in White Plains achieved systems change in Social since Westchester Jewish Community Services in White Plains now offers accessible transportation to their integrated social events for persons with disabilities.
• Access to Independence of Cortland County in Cortland achieved systems change in Social when the Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) completed required accessibility modifications that included installation of a pool lift, specially designed changing area with a changing table that raises and lowers, and an aerobic exercise machine, the arm ergometer, in the weight room.
• Center for Independence of the Disabled in New York of Manhattan achieved systems change in Social when the Center established a social/support group linking seniors with disabilities living in Battery Park City to other community groups to address environmental health concerns resulting from the World Trade Center attack. Initially, CIDNY coordinated the group meetings outside of the Center, but after a designated period of time the group elected its own leaders with the goal of continuing as a peer run group not affiliated with a particular organization.

Citizenship

• Access to Independence of Cortland County in Cortland achieved systems change in Citizenship when its advocacy efforts led to the passage of local legislation that allows low income home owners with disabilities to become eligible for a partial exemption on real property taxes paid to the county.
• Catskill Center for Independence of Oneonta achieved systems change in Citizenship when the Center's advocacy efforts resulted in the Board of Elections deciding not to move its office from an accessible location to an inaccessible one.
• Taconic Resources for Independence in Poughkeepsie achieved systems change in Citizenship when the Center signed a contract with the City of Poughkeepsie for the provision of sign language interpreters at all common council meetings.
• Options for Independence in Auburn achieved systems change in Citizenship when the Center's Chairman of the Board of Directors was appointed to the Cayuga County Community Services Board.
• Western New York Independent Living Project of Buffalo achieved systems change in Citizenship since five Erie County Legislators (John Greenan, Jeane Chase, Steven McCarvile, Barry Weinstein, and Dale Larson) installed TTY machines in their offices.

OCTOBER 1, 2001 - SEPTEMBER 30, 2002 STATEWIDE DATA REPORT
SYSTEM CHANGE DOMAINS	OUTCOMES ACHIEVED
	# of ILCs	% of 36 ILCs	# of OUTCOMES	% of TOTAL OUTCOMES
EDUCATION	19	53%	32	12%
EMPLOYMENT	20	56%	38	14%
HEALTH CARE	25	69%	42	16%
COMMERCE	33	92%	74	28%
SOCIAL	18	50%	29	11%
CITIZENSHIP	19	53%	50	19%
TOTAL			265	100%

 

OCTOBER 1, 2001 - SEPTEMBER 30, 2002 NUMBER OF SYSTEMS CHANGE DOMAINS ACHIEVED BY ILCS
SYSTEM CHANGE DOMAINS
No.	LOCATION	ILC	EDU-CATION	EMPLOY-MENT	HEALTH CARE	COM-MERCE	SOCIAL	CITIZEN-SHIP	RESULTS  *
									TOTAL	S	U
1	Albany	Capital District Center for Independence		X	X	X		X	4	X
2	Amsterdam	Resource Center for Independent Living-Amsterdam	X	X	X				3	X
3	Auburn	Options for Independence	X		X	X	X	X	5	X
4	Batavia	Genesee Region Independent Living Center		X		X		X	3	X
5	Binghamton	Southern Tier Independence Center	X	X	X	X			4	X
6	Bronx	Bronx Independent Living Services			X	X		X	3	X
7	Brooklyn	Brooklyn Center for Independence of the Disabled				X	X	X	3	X
8	Buffalo	Western New York Independent Living Project			X	X		X	3	X
9	Corning	Access to Independence and Mobility	X	X	X	X	X	X	6	X
10	Cortland	Access to Independence of Cortland County				X	X	X	3	X
11	Delaware	Catskill Center for Independence		X	X	X	X	X	5	X
12	Glens Falls	Glens Falls Independent Living Center		X		X	X	X	4	X
13	Harlem	Harlem Independent Living Center							0		X
14	Ithaca	Finger Lakes Independence Center	X			X	X	X	4	X
15	Jamestown	Southwestern Independent Living Center	X	X	X	X	X	X	6	X
16	Kingston	Resource Center for Accessible Living	X	X		X	X		4	X
17	Long Island	Long Island Center for Independent Living			X	X		X	3	X
18	Manhattan	Center for Independence of the Disabled in New York	X	X	X	X	X	X	6	X
19	Massena	Massena Independent Living Center	X	X	X	X			4	X
20	Middletown	Action Toward Independence		X	X	X	X		4	X
21	Newburgh	Independent Living Inc.	X	X	X	X	X		5	X
22	Niagara Falls	Niagara Frontier Center for Independent Living		X		X	X		3	X
23	Olean	Directions in Independent Living			X	X			2		X
24	Plattsburgh	North Country Center for Independence	X			X		X	3	X
25	Poughkeepsie	Taconic Resources for Independence			X	X		X	3	X
26	Queens	Queens Independent Living Center		X	X	X			3	X
27	Rochester	Regional Center for Independent Living	X		X	X	X		4	X
28	Rockland	Rockland Independent Living Center	X		X	X			3	X
29	Staten Island	Staten Island Center for Independent Living	X	X	X	X	X	X	6	X
30	Suffolk	Self-Initiated Living Options		X	X	X			3	X
31	Syracuse	ARISE	X			X	X		3	X
32	Troy	Independent Living Center of the Hudson Valley				X	X	X	3	X
33	Utica	Resource Center for Independent Living-Utica	X	X	X	X			4	X
34	Watertown	Northern Regional Center for Independent Living	X	X	X	X			4	X
35	White Plains	Westchester Independent Living Center	X	X	X		X		4	X
36	Yonkers	Westchester Disabled on the Move	X		X	X		X	4	X
TOTAL ILCs ACHIEVING OUTCOME			19	20	25	33	18	19		34	2
% of ALL ILCs			53%	56%	69%	92%	50%	53%

 

2001-2002 *EXPLANATION OF RESULTS	# ILC	/	TOTAL ILC	=	% ACHIEVED
S - Successful = 3 or more	34	,	36	,	94%
U - Unsuccessful = less than 3	2	,	36	,	6%
Total	36	,	36	,	100%

 

2001-2002 BREAKDOWN OF RESULTS	# ILC	/	TOTAL ILC	=	% ACHIEVED
0	1	.	36	.	3%
1	0	.	36	.	0%
2	1	.	36	..	3%
3	15	.	36	.	42%
4	12	.	36	.	33%
5	3	.	36	.	8%
6	4	.	36	.	11%
Total	36	.	36	.	100%

The Role of Independent Living Centers in
Bringing About Community and Systems Change
2002-2003

New York’s 36 Independent Living Ce nters (ILCs) receive $10.7 million to provide an array of independent living services to individuals and to advocate for and lead change to systems affecting the lives of people with disabilities. “Systems Change”, in the context of New York State’s Independent Living Standards, Performance Measures and Data Collection Guide means, “Permanent change to policies, practices, decisions and environments in the public and/or private sector that control resources necessary to enhance integration, inclusion and independence of people with disabilities as a group”.

Each of the 36 Independent Living Centers must achieve three results of community and systems change per year under contract with the Office of Vocational and Educational Services for Individuals with Disabilities (VESID). VESID has established six distinct domains of systems change in areas of Education, Employment, Health Care, Commerce, Social and Citizenship. Furthermore, tracking within categories is also done to group similar results together within each domain. For instance, within the Education domain, results are grouped if they have had an impact on A. transition services, B. receipt of funding for non-pre-K through university or business programs, or C. if the result demonstrated integration of a new educational component into a curriculum. Under the Health Care domain, results are grouped if they addressed A. legislation/regulation/policy, B. consumer directed personal assistance or C. increased access to physician offices/clinics.

A detailed analysis of results are maintained in a systems change inventory database to determine frequency of specific types of systems change in each domain and the number of results in subcategories of each domain. Results are shared with the field on an annual basis to report on outcomes and provide opportunities for exchanges of best practices. Below is a sampling of results from the reporting period, October 1, 2002 – September 30, 2003. During the same reporting period, the network of 36 ILCs served over 71,000 individuals with and without disabilities with direct services.

Over 300 instances of results of community and systems change were accomplished by the New York State network of Independent Living Centers with 86 percent of ILCs achieving the required three or more outcomes. Three ILCs achieved results in each of the six domains of systems change.

The most frequently occurring outcomes of community and systems change are:

• Bringing Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Title III. covered public and private entities into full compliance with accessibility standards under the law. There were 45 successful instances where ILCs worked with owners of such entities as supermarkets, banks, restaurants, malls, etc. to increase access to marketplace goods and services.
• Bringing Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Title II. covered entities into full compliance with access standards under the law. There were 31 instances where ILCs worked with local town and county governments to address full access to buildings, programs and services such as libraries, courts, town halls, etc.
• Ensuring that parks and other places of public recreation are fully accessible. There were 29 instances where ILCs facilitated accessibility by working with local, county or state officials to make parks, playgrounds, fishing docks and piers, and other recreational sites accessible to all.
• Ensuring that polling sites are fully accessible from parking to walkways, to indoor facilities and restrooms. There were 10 instances of enhanced polling site access.

Some unique results that span the range of domains include the following:

Education

• Action Toward Independence in Middletown achieved systems change in Education when Monticello High School adopted a policy written by the Center that the parents rights information packet will be mailed prior to and not given out at the time of the Committee on Special Education (CSE) meetings.
• Westchester Independent Living Center in White Plains achieved a systems change in Education when Marymount College of Tarrytown instituted flexible scheduling as a reasonable accommodation.
• Westchester Disabled on the Move in Yonkers achieved a result of systems change in Education when Yonkers Public Schools adopted a policy to allow the Center's transition staff to attend the Committee on Special Education (CSE) meetings of students they are working with

Employment

• Center for Independence of the Disabled in New York in Manhattan achieved a systems change in Employment when it received a grant from National Technical Assistance Center in Hawaii to implement an outreach project to New York City’s Chinese-American Community focusing on achieving linguistically and culturally appropriate vocational rehabilitation services.
• Resource Center for Independent Living in Utica achieved systems change in Employment when it became a participating partner at the Working Solutions "One Stop" office in Rome.
• Catskill Center for Independence in Oneonta achieved a result of systems change in Employment when Valley Fashions altered its application form and reworded a question that could have been used to screen out applicants with disabilities.
• Massena Independent Living Center in Massena achieved systems change in Employment when One Work Source in Malone made available a variety of high tech handicapped accessibility equipment including JAWS that allows persons with visual impairment to access the agencies employment preparation/search/retention services.
• Rockland Independent Living Center in Rockland achieved a systems change in Employment when 2 consumers were approved for services through the newly legislated Medicaid Buy-in demonstrating local implementation of the program.

Health Care

• Center for Independence of the Disabled in New York in Manhattan achieved a systems change in Health Care when a collaborative effort with the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) resulted in the development of a video promoting disability literacy for physicians and health care providers that will be produced and distributed by NYSDOH.
• Action Toward Independence in Middletown achieved systems change in Health Care when Woodbourne Correction Facility allowed an outside agency to run a Double Trouble and Recovery (DTR) support group incorporating Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), Narcotics Anonymous (NA), and Mental Illness Recovery Plans to help individuals with a dual diagnosis in a peer environment.
• Directions in Independent Living in Olean achieved a systems change in Health Care when it established a "Call for Help" system securing ongoing funding from Olean Staples Supply Store and arranging for the Elks Club to fund the purchase of cellular phones/phone cards.
• North Country Center for Independence in Plattsburgh achieved a systems change in Health Care when Clinton County Community Services Board Developmental Disabilities Committee made disability awareness an educational priority and developed an educational program and recommend policy and practice changes to improve quality of services in hospitals.
• Regional Center for Independent Living in Rochester achieved a systems change in Health Care when the City of Rochester made existing resources that were combined with additional Federal grants and Monroe County funds available to landlords who are attempting to make their housing units lead free as a result of the Center’s participation on the Rochester Area Lead Free Coalition.

Commerce

• Capital District Center for Independence in Albany achieved systems change in Commerce when Albany Public Housing Authority, Department of Family Self-Sufficiency and Homeownership changed its mediation policy to designate the Center as a mediator in cases involving people with disabilities in denial or eviction cases.
• Bronx Independent Living Services in Bronx achieved a systems change in Commerce when it was awarded a new US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) grant to fund a program to assist persons with disabilities with housing discrimination complaints. This is the first ILC the HUD office in New York has worked with.
• Center for Independence of the Disabled in New York in Manhattan achieved systems change in Commerce when it was awarded an opportunity to develop a statewide accessible housing database by the New York City Department on Housing and Community Renewal.
• Queens Independent Living Center in Queens achieved a result of systems change in Commerce since it was instrumental in the creation of the New York City (NYC) Para-transit Advisory Committee in April 2003 as a formal mechanism for obtaining consumer input regarding the operations of the NYC para-transit system.
• ARISE in Syracuse achieved a systems change in Commerce when the local chapter of Habitat for Humanity agreed to start building visitable homes.

Social

• Southern Tier Independence Center in Binghamton achieved a systems change in Social when Binghamton First Night increased its services to the Deaf by increasing the number of events that have interpreter services and setting up an interpreter station on First Night.
• Access to Independence of Cortland County in Cortland achieved a systems change in Social when the Cortland Cultural Council adopted accessibility guidelines and required that programs funded by NYS Arts Council Decentralization grants in Cortland County include accessibility in proposals, publicity, and programming.
• Long Island Center for Independent Living in Long Island achieved a systems change in Social when the New York Mets baseball team installed TTY service in its customer service and ticket sales office and included the TTY number on both its official website and game schedules.
• ARISE in Syracuse achieved a systems change in Social when the New York State Fair added 500 accessible parking spaces, increased the number of accessible trams and restrooms, and added an accessible wheelchair/scooter rental post at the new accessible parking lot and accessible viewing platform for the grandstand.

Citizenship

• Resource Center for Accessible Living in Kingston achieved systems change in Citizenship when Ulster County Board of Elections committed to no longer granting waivers to new polling sites that are not accessible.
• Staten Island Center for Independent Living in Staten Island achieved a systems change in Citizenship when Staten Island adopted an emergency plan that includes individuals with disabilities.

OCTOBER 1, 2002 - SEPTEMBER 30, 2003 STATEWIDE DATA REPORT
SYSTEM CHANGE DOMAINS	OUTCOMES ACHIEVED
	# of ILCs	% of 36 ILCs	# of OUTCOMES	% of TOTAL OUTCOMES
EDUCATION	14	39%	27	9%
EMPLOYMENT	15	42%	35	11%
HEALTH CARE	19	53%	58	19%
COMMERCE	31	86%	118	39%
SOCIAL	24	67%	38	12%
CITIZENSHIP	19	53%	30	10%
TOTAL			306	100%

 

OCTOBER 1, 2002 - SEPTEMBER 30, 2003 NUMBER OF SYSTEMS CHANGE DOMAINS ACHIEVED BY ILCS
SYSTEM CHANGE DOMAINS
No.	LOCATION	ILC	EDU-CATION	EMPLOY-MENT	HEALTH CARE	COM-MERCE	SOCIAL	CITIZEN-SHIP	RESULTS  *
									TOTAL	S	U
1	Albany	Capital District Center for Independence		X	X	X	X	X	5	X
2	Amsterdam	Resource Center for Independent Living-Amsterdam			X	X	X		3	X
3	Auburn	Options for Independence				X	X	X	3	X
4	Batavia	Genesee Region Independent Living Center				X			1		X
5	Binghamton	Southern Tier Independence Center	X	X		X	X		4	X
6	Bronx	Bronx Independent Living Services			X	X		X	3	X
7	Brooklyn	Brooklyn Center for Independence of the Disabled				X	X	X	3	X
8	Buffalo	Western New York Independent Living Project		X	X	X	X		4	X
9	Corning	Access to Independence and Mobility		X		X		X	3	X
10	Cortland	Access to Independence of Cortland County	X	X		X	X	X	5	X
11	Delaware	Catskill Center for Independence	X	X	X	X	X	X	6	X
12	Glens Falls	Glens Falls Independent Living Center	X		X	X			3	X
13	Harlem	Harlem Independent Living Center							0		X
14	Ithaca	Finger Lakes Independence Center				X	X	X	3	X
15	Jamestown	Southwestern Independent Living Center		X		X	X	X	4	X
16	Kingston	Resource Center for Accessible Living			X	X	X	X	4	X
17	Long Island	Long Island Center for Independent Living				X	X	X	3	X
18	Manhattan	Center for Independence of the Disabled in New York	X	X	X	X	X	X	6	X
19	Massena	Massena Independent Living Center		X		X	X	X	4	X
20	Middletown	Action Toward Independence	X	X	X	X	X		5	X
21	Newburgh	Independent Living Inc.			X	X	X		3	X
22	Niagara Falls	Niagara Frontier Center for Independent Living			X				1		X
23	Olean	Directions in Independent Living			X		X	X	3	X
24	Plattsburgh	North Country Center for Independence	X		X		X	X	4	X
25	Poughkeepsie	Taconic Resources for Independence				X			1		X
26	Queens	Queens Independent Living Center			X	X		X	3	X
27	Rochester	Regional Center for Independent Living		X	X	X	X		4	X
28	Rockland	Rockland Independent Living Center	X	X	X	X			4	X
29	Staten Island	Staten Island Center for Independent Living				X	X	X	3	X
30	Suffolk	Self-Initiated Living Options				X			1		X
31	Syracuse	ARISE	X			X	X		3	X
32	Troy	Independent Living Center of the Hudson Valley	X	X			X		3	X
33	Utica	Resource Center for Independent Living-Utica	X	X		X			3	X
34	Watertown	Northern Regional Center for Independent Living	X		X	X		X	4	X
35	White Plains	Westchester Independent Living Center	X		X	X	X		4	X
36	Yonkers	Westchester Disabled on the Move	X	X	X	X	X	X	6	X
TOTAL ILCs ACHIEVING OUTCOME			14	15	19	31	24	19		31	5
% of ALL ILCs			39%	42%	53%	86%	67%	53%

 

2002-2003 * EXPLANATION OF RESULTS	# ILC	/	TOTAL ILC	=	% ACHIEVED
S - Successful = 3 or more	31		36		86%
U - Unsuccessful = less than 3	5		36		14%
Total	36		36		100%

 

2002-2003 BREAKDOWN OF RESULTS	# ILC	/	TOTAL ILC	=	% ACHIEVED
0	1		36		3%
1	4		36		11%
2	0		36		0%
3	15		36		42%
4	10		36		28%
5	3		36		8%
6	3		36		8%
Total	36		36		100%

The Role of Independent Living Centers in
Bringing About Community and Systems Change
2003-2004

New York’s 36 Independent Living Centers (ILCs) receive $10.7 million to provide an array of independent living services to individuals and to advocate for and lead change to systems affecting the lives of people with disabilities. “Systems Change”, in the context of New York State’s Independent Living Standards, Performance Measures and Data Collection Guide means, “Permanent change to policies, practices, decisions and environments in the public and/or private sector that control resources necessary to enhance integration, inclusion and independence of people with disabilities as a group”.

Each of the 36 Independent Living Centers must achieve three results of community and systems change per year under contract with the Office of Vocational and Educational Services for Individuals with Disabilities (VESID). VESID has established six distinct domains of systems change in areas of Education, Employment, Health Care, Commerce, Social and Citizenship. Furthermore, tracking within categories is also done to group similar results together within each domain. For instance, within the Education domain, results are grouped if they have had an impact on A. transition services, B. receipt of funding for non-pre-K through university or business programs, or C. if the result demonstrated integration of a new educational component into a curriculum. Under the Health Care domain, results are grouped if they addressed A. legislation/regulation/policy, B. consumer directed personal assistance or C. increased access to physician offices/clinics.

A detailed analysis of results are maintained in a systems change inventory database to determine frequency of specific types of systems change in each domain and the number of results in subcategories of each domain. Results are shared with the field on an annual basis to report on outcomes and provide opportunities for exchanges of best practices. Below is a sampling of results from the t reporting period, October 1, 2003 – September 30, 2004. During the same reporting period, the network of 36 ILCs served over 68,000 individuals with and without disabilities with direct services.

Close to 300 instances of results of community and systems change were accomplished by the New York State network of Independent Living Centers with 89 percent of ILCs achieving the required three or more outcomes. Three ILCs achieved results in each of the six domains of systems change.

The most frequently occurring outcomes of community and systems change are:

• Bringing Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Title III. covered public and private entities into full compliance with accessibility standards under the law. There were 39 successful instances where ILCs worked with owners of such entities as supermarkets, banks, restaurants, malls, etc. to increase access to marketplace goods and services.
• Bringing Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Title II. covered entities into full compliance with access standards under the law. There were 24 instances where ILCs worked with local town and county governments to address full access to buildings, programs and services such as libraries, courts, town halls, etc.
• Ensuring that physician offices and public and private clinics provide both accessible facilities and services. There were 23 instances of enhanced health care access.
• Ensuring that polling sites are fully accessible from parking to walkways, to indoor facilities and restrooms. There were 23 instances of enhanced polling site access.
• Ensuring that schools pre-k though college including both public and private are accessible physically and programmatically. There were 21 instances of enhanced school access.
• Increasing the number of employment opportunities for people with disabilities. There were 18 instances where ILCs worked with local and regional One-Stop Centers to improve physical and programmatic accessibility.
• Ensuring that parks and other places of public recreation are fully accessible. There were 13 instances where ILCs facilitated accessibility by working with local, county or state officials to make parks, playgrounds, fishing docks and piers, and other recreational sites accessible to all.

Some unique results that span the range of domains include the following:

Education

• Independent Living, Inc. of Newburgh achieved systems change in Education when Orange-Ulster Board of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES) adopted a policy that allows the Center's transition staff to attend the Committee on Special Education (CSE) meetings of students they are working with.
• North Country Center for Independence of Plattsburgh achieved systems change in Education since it was awarded a $15,000 grant from Partners for Youth with Disabilities to establish a peer mentoring program (disabled adults mentor disabled youth) serving Plattsburgh High School, Peru Central School, and Champlain Valley Educational Services.
• Regional Center for Independent Living of Rochester achieved systems change in Education since Brighton High School revised its emergency evacuation policies that pertain to students with disabilities to be safer including the acquisition of an evacuation chair and staff training in its safe and proper use.
• ARISE in Syracuse achieved systems change in Education when the Center’s filing of a US Department of Education, Office of Civil Rights (OCR) complaint against Syracuse City School District resulted in Webster Elementary School stopping the practice of keeping the accessible school entrance locked.

Employment

• Southern Tier Independence Center of Binghamton achieved systems change in Employment when the Center’s efforts resulted in 5 consumers being approved for services through the newly legislated Medicaid Buy-In demonstrating local implementation of the program in Broome County.
• Action Toward Independence in Middletown achieved systems change in Employment since the Center was a catalyst for the Middletown One-Stop Center to submit a funding application that was approved to make it accessible. The One-Stop is now equipped with a push button door opener.
• Resource Center for Independent Living in Utica achieved systems change in Employment when US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued an opinion that sheltered workers are not properly categorized, for employment law purposes, as “independent contractors”, thus making it the responsibility of sheltered workshops to pay FICA taxes to the government.

Health Care

• Resource Center for Independent Living in Amsterdam achieved systems change in Health Care since the Center was a catalyst for University of Albany and other community agencies to submit a funding application that was approved to establish a Center for the Study of Minority Health and Health Disparities in the Latino community.
• Harlem Independent Living Center in Harlem achieved systems change in Health Care when New York City Commission on the Public Health System agreed to include legal language ensuring area hospitals are compliant with Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) when requesting increased funding to meet translation needs of the Deaf/hard of hearing community.
• Self-Initiated Living Options of Suffolk achieved systems change in Health Care when the dental office of Dr Sciotto in Jamesport improved its access by installing a ramp at both front and rear entrances, widening doorways, and reallocating office space to allow free access to the dental hygienist and dental examination/treatment chairs.
• Resource Center for Independent Living in Utica achieved systems change in Health Care when Sitrin Rehabilitation Center in Utica changed its policy and is now providing sign language interpreters upon request.

Commerce

• Capital District Center for Independence of Albany achieved systems change in Commerce when City of Cohoes established new policies for On-Street Accessible Parking Spaces for Persons who are Physically Challenged and, as part of the submission process, requires an applicant for residential signage to be personally interviewed by the Center.
• Southern Tier Independence Center of Binghamton achieved systems change in Commerce when Broome County Transit established a policy to buy more buses with ramps instead of lifts.
• Western New York Independent Living Project in Buffalo achieved systems change in Commerce since the Center was a catalyst for Erie County Office of Mental Health to allocate funds for the first time to assist consumers not eligible for the Single Point of Entry Program to maintain their housing.
• North Country Center for Independence of Plattsburgh achieved systems change in Commerce since the Center’s advocacy efforts resulted in the NYS Attorney General’s Office concluding an agreement with the Golden Gate Beach Motel in Plattsburgh to alter its policies to allow service animals.
• Queens Independent Living Center in Queens achieved systems change in Commerce when Bank of America on Woodhaven Boulevard in Glendale installed accessible ATM machines with headsets for the use of visually impaired customers.
• Regional Center for Independent Living in Rochester achieved systems change in Commerce since Greater Rochester Association of Realtors (GRAR) now includes in its multiple listing database (used by most realtors in the Rochester area) accessibility features for both “rental” and “for sale” listings.
• Self-Initiated Living Options of Suffolk achieved systems change in Commerce when the Suffolk County Tax Code was amended to include a tax exemption for accessibility changes to homeowners seeking to make accessibility changes.

Social

• Options for Independence of Auburn achieved systems change in Social when Cayuga Museum in Auburn (on the State's Historic Buildings registry) installed a larger elevator to allow people with disabilities to visit the main exhibit areas on the first and second floors.
• AIM Independent Living Center of Corning achieved systems change in Social when Chemung County Soil and Water Conservation in collaboration with Trout Unlimited created an accessible recreation fishing spot off of Route 228.
• Harlem Independent Living Center in Harlem achieved systems change in Social since Harlem Theater implemented a policy regarding the use of American Sign Language (ASL) interpreters for Deaf/hard of hearing patrons.
• Self-Initiated Living Options of Suffolk achieved systems change in Social when the Town of Brookhaven constructed Long Island’s first accessible softball park at Bald Hill Town Park. A wheelchair softball team, Brookhaven Ducks, utilizes this field that is integrated with other areas of the town park.
• Westchester Disabled on the Move in Yonkers achieved systems change in Social when Bally's Health Club in Yonkers, based on a legal settlement begun 2 years ago, was modified and made fully accessible including the installation of an elevator and a lift to provide vertical access.

Citizenship

• Genesee Region Independent Living Center in Batavia achieved systems change in Citizenship when Orleans County Board of Elections incorporated disability sensitivity materials into its training manuals/classes for election inspectors.
• Independent Living, Inc. of Newburgh achieved systems change in Citizenship when Orange County Board of Elections officially committed to no longer granting waivers to new polling sites that are not accessible.
• ARISE of Syracuse achieved systems change in Citizenship since the Center’s filing of a US Department of Education, Office of Civil Rights (OCR) complaint against the Village of Phoenix for not having an accessible Town Hall resulted in the Village making an alternative accommodation.

OCTOBER 1, 2003 - SEPTEMBER 30, 2004 STATEWIDE DATA REPORT
SYSTEM CHANGE DOMAINS	OUTCOMES ACHIEVED
	# of ILCs	% of 36 ILCs	# of OUTCOMES	% of TOTAL OUTCOMES
EDUCATION	21	58%	41	14%
EMPLOYMENT	20	56%	38	13%
HEALTH CARE	24	67%	54	18%
COMMERCE	28	78%	95	31%
SOCIAL	21	58%	36	12%
CITIZENSHIP	15	42%	35	12%
TOTAL			299	100%

 

OCTOBER 1, 2003 - SEPTEMBER 30, 2004 NUMBER OF SYSTEMS CHANGE DOMAINS ACHIEVED BY ILCS
SYSTEM CHANGE DOMAINS
No.	LOCATION	ILC	EDU-CATION	EMPLOY-MENT	HEALTH CARE	COM-MERCE	SOCIAL	CITIZEN-SHIP	RESULTS  *
									TOTAL	S	U
1	Albany	Capital District Center for Independence	X	X	X	X			4	X
2	Amsterdam	Resource Center for Independent Living-Amsterdam		X	X		X		3	X
3	Auburn	Options for Independence	X	X	X	X	X	X	6	X
4	Batavia	Genesee Region Independent Living Center		X	X			X	3	X
5	Binghamton	Southern Tier Independence Center	X	X		X	X		4	X
6	Bronx	Bronx Independent Living Services							0		X
7	Brooklyn	Brooklyn Center for Independence of the Disabled			X	X	X		3	X
8	Buffalo	Western New York Independent Living Project	X	X	X	X			4	X
9	Corning	Access to Independence and Mobility			X	X	X	X	4	X
10	Cortland	Access to Independence of Cortland County	X			X	X	X	4	X
11	Delaware	Catskill Center for Independence		X		X		X	3	X
12	Glens Falls	Glens Falls Independent Living Center		X	X	X	X		4	X
13	Harlem	Harlem Independent Living Center			X	X	X		3	X
14	Ithaca	Finger Lakes Independence Center				X	X	X	3	X
15	Jamestown	Southwestern Independent Living Center	X		X	X	X	X	5	X
16	Kingston	Resource Center for Accessible Living	X				X	X	3	X
17	Long Island	Long Island Center for Independent Living	X	X		X			3	X
18	Manhattan	Center for Independence of the Disabled in New York	X	X	X			X	4	X
19	Massena	Massena Independent Living Center		X		X	X		3	X
20	Middletown	Action Toward Independence	X	X	X		X		4	X
21	Newburgh	Independent Living Inc.	X	X	X	X	X	X	6	X
22	Niagara Falls	Niagara Frontier Center for Independent Living	X	X	X		X		4	X
23	Olean	Directions in Independent Living			X	X			2		X
24	Plattsburgh	North Country Center for Independence	X	X		X			3	X
25	Poughkeepsie	Taconic Resources for Independence	X		X	X		X	4	X
26	Queens	Queens Independent Living Center			X	X			2		X
27	Rochester	Regional Center for Independent Living	X		X	X			3	X
28	Rockland	Rockland Independent Living Center		X		X		X	3	X
29	Staten Island	Staten Island Center for Independent Living	X		X	X			3	X
30	Suffolk	Self-Initiated Living Options		X	X	X	X		4	X
31	Syracuse	ARISE	X		X	X	X	X	5	X
32	Troy	Independent Living Center of the Hudson Valley		X		X			2		X
33	Utica	Resource Center for Independent Living-Utica	X	X	X		X		4	X
34	Watertown	Northern Regional Center for Independent Living	X		X	X	X		4	X
35	White Plains	Westchester Independent Living Center	X	X	X	X	X	X	6	X
36	Yonkers	Westchester Disabled on the Move	X			X	X	X	4	X
TOTAL ILCs ACHIEVING OUTCOME			21	20	24	28	21	15		32	4
% of ALL ILCs			58%	56%	67%	78%	58%	42%

 

2003-2004 *EXPLANATION OF RESULTS	# ILC	/	TOTAL ILC	=	% ACHIEVED
S - Successful = 3 or more	32		36		89%
U - Unsuccessful = less than 3	4		36		11%
Total	36		36		100%

 

2003-2004 BREAKDOWN OF RESULTS	# ILC	/	TOTAL ILC	=	% ACHIEVED
0	1		36		3%
1	0		36		0%
2	3		36		8%
3	13		36		36%
4	14		36		39%
5	2		36		6%
6	3		36		8%
Total	36		36		100%

The Role of Independent Living Centers in
Bringing About Community and Systems Change
2004-2005

New York’s 36 Independent Living Centers (ILCs) receive over $10.1 million to provide an array of independent living services to individuals and to advocate for and lead change to systems affecting the lives of people with disabilities. “Systems Change”, in the context of New York State’s Independent Living Standards, Performance Measures and Data Collection Guide means, “Permanent change to policies, practices, decisions and environments in the public and/or private sector that control resources necessary to enhance integration, inclusion and independence of people with disabilities as a group”.

Each of the 36 Independent Living Centers must achieve three results of community and systems change per year under contract with the Office of Vocational and Educational Services for Individuals with Disabilities (VESID). VESID has established six distinct domains of systems change in areas of Education, Employment, Health Care, Commerce, Social and Citizenship. Furthermore, tracking within categories is also done to group similar results together within each domain. For instance, within the Education domain, results are grouped if they have had an impact on A. transition services, B. receipt of funding for non-pre-K through university or business programs, or C. if the result demonstrated integration of a new educational component into a curriculum. Under the Health Care domain, results are grouped if they addressed A. legislation/regulation/policy, B. consumer directed personal assistance or C. increased access to physician offices/clinics.

A detailed analysis of results are maintained in a systems change inventory database to determine frequency of specific types of systems change in each domain and the number of results in subcategories of each domain. Results are shared with the field on an annual basis to report on outcomes and provide opportunities for exchanges of best practices. Below is a sampling of results from the reporting period, October 1, 2004 – September 30, 2005. During the same reporting period, the network of 36 ILCs served over 76,000 individuals with and without disabilities with direct services.

Over 350 instances of results of community and systems change were accomplished by the New York State network of Independent Living Centers with 97 percent of ILCs achieving the required three or more outcomes. Three ILCs achieved results in each of the six domains of systems change.

The most frequently occurring outcomes of community and systems change are:

• Bringing Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Title III. covered public and private entities into full compliance with accessibility standards under the law. There were 40 successful instances where ILCs worked with owners of such entities as supermarkets, banks, restaurants, malls, etc. to increase access to marketplace goods and services.
• Ensuring that polling sites are fully accessible from parking to walkways, to indoor facilities and restrooms. There were 36 instances of enhanced polling site access.
• Bringing Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Title II. covered entities into full compliance with access standards under the law. There were 33 instances where ILCs worked with local town and county governments to address full access to buildings, programs and services such as libraries, courts, town halls, etc.
• Ensuring that hospitals, physician offices and public and private clinics provide both accessible facilities and services. There were 25 instances of enhanced health care access.
• Ensuring that parks and other places of public recreation are fully accessible. There were 10 instances where ILCs facilitated accessibility by working with local, county or state officials to make parks, playgrounds, fishing docks and piers, and other recreational sites accessible to all.
• Ensuring that schools pre-k through college including both public and private are accessible physically and programmatically. There were 9 instances of enhanced school access.

Some unique results that span the range of domains include the following:

Education

• Resource Center for Independent Living (RCIL) in Amsterdam achieved systems change in Education since Center staff was invited to join and is co-chairing the Magnet School Exploration Committee that has resulted in many positive improvements including, but not limited to, the program eligibility and lottery selection policy giving children with disabilities an equal chance to get into the magnet school.
• Bronx Independent Living Services (BILS) in New York City achieved systems change in Education when Foreign Language Academy for Global Studies (FLAGS) High School in the Bronx committed to hosting a Disabilities Awareness Day program in the school during the month of October and making this an ongoing part of the school’s program.
• Westchester Independent Living Center (WILC) in White Plains achieved systems change in Education since Edgemont Union Free School District in Scarsdale implemented a fee for service agreement with the Center to provide transition planning services.

Employment

• Western New York Independent Living Project (WNYILP) in Buffalo achieved systems change in Employment since Christopher & Banks Corporation corporate Human Resources issued a memo to managers of all New York Christopher & Banks and C. J. Banks stores instructing them as to the legal necessity of proper reasonable accommodations as mandated by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
• Catskill Center for Independence (CCFI) in Oneonta achieved systems change in Employment since CDO Workforce, Delaware County One-Stop, Delhi Resource Room re-located from an inaccessible second floor office space to a first floor office space made more accessible by a ramp.
• Independent Living, Inc. (ILI.) in Newburgh achieved systems change in Employment when Orange County Employment & Training Administration modified policies and procedures that ensure that One-Stop services in Orange County are fully accessible and available to students transitioning from school to adult life.
• Directions in Independent Living (DIL) in Olean achieved systems change in Employment since The Employment Connection, a division of the Rehabilitation Center, in Olean implemented a DIL developed job club for adults with disabilities that adapted the Center’s N.E.X.T. Step Program designed for students in transition.

Health Care

• AIM Independent Living Center (AILC) in Corning achieved systems change in Health Care since Arnot Ogden Medical Center Hospital in Elmira purchased five signs to assist with requesting interpreters that were placed throughout the Medical Center in the Hospital, main office, Falck Cancer Center, Heart and Vascular Institute, and the Health Center for Women.
• Center for Independence of the Disabled in New York (CIDNY) in New York City achieved systems change in Health Care since the Terms and Conditions attached to the new Medicaid Advantage Plans (hybrid Medicaid/Medicare plans) now include provisions that protect the right to due process for dual eligibles with a broad definition of medical necessity.
• Taconic Resources for Independence (TRI) in Poughkeepsie achieved systems change in Health Care since Hudson River Community Health operating a network of facilities located in the Counties of Dutchess (Poughkeepsie, Amenia, Beacon, Dover Plains, and Pine Plains), Orange (Goshen and Walden), Ulster (New Paltz), and Westchester (Peekskill) now provides interpreter services to effectively communicate with patients who are Deaf/hard of hearing.
• Westchester Disabled on the Move (WDOM) in Yonkers achieved systems change in Health Care when the Medical Building at 944 North Broadway in Yonkers reconfigured three accessible parking spaces and provided proper signage, removed and inner door at the end of a ramp that impeded accessibility, applied Braille markings to external and internal elevator controls, and replaced door hardware on rest rooms to provide accessible lever handles.

Commerce

• Genesee Region Independent Living Center (GRILC) in Batavia achieved systems change in Commerce since City of Batavia’s new City Center installed automatic door openers that had been omitted during its construction.
• Capital District Center for Independence (CDCI) in Albany achieved systems change in Commerce since the Center was involved in the local effort that led to the Capital District Transportation Authority (CDTA) Special Transportation Available by Request (STAR) service changing its transportation application to include people with hidden disabilities and to exclude questions that were more invasive and did not relate to eligibility.
• Brooklyn Center for Independence of the Disabled (BCID) in New York City achieved systems change in Commerce when Chase Bank renovated an existing automatic teller machine (ATM) at a branch in Brooklyn at 1663 East 17th Street to improve access for individuals who use a wheelchair.
• Long Island Center for Independent Living (LICIL) in Levittown achieved systems change in Commerce since the Center's work with Disability Rights Council of Greater Washington D.C. in filing an Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Title III lawsuit against the retail chain of National Wholesale Liquidators (NWL) was won and resulted in NWL being ordered to ensure that its entire chain meets accessibility guidelines as mandated under ADA.

Social

• Southwestern Independent Living Center (SILC) in Jamestown achieved systems change in Social since Winifred Crawford Dibert Boys & Girls Club Strider Field Athletic Complex of Jamestown made its swimming pool accessible by reconfiguring the pool so the shallow end is closest to the locker room and by purchasing a lift.
• Resource Center for Accessible Living (RCAL) in Kingston achieved systems change in Social since City of Kingston Office of Economic Development changed its Waterfront Development Standards to improve access for people with disabilities to recreation areas by including statements that any developments or improvements must meet all federal requirements of the ADA.
• Rockland Independent Living Center (RILC) in Nanuet achieved systems change in Social since Rockland Lake State Park in Congers installed the following: minimum number of parking spaces required according to Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Accessibility Guidelines (ADAAG) standards, curb cuts in Parking Lot #5, van accessible spots in Field #1 and Field #4, and a reconstructed ramp in the Executive Golf Club.
• ARISE in Syracuse achieved systems change in Social since the New York State Fair held in Syracuse made 2 restrooms in the Science and Technology Building accessible and added directional signs to identify accessible entrances to all buildings.

Citizenship

• Options for Independence (OFI) in Auburn achieved systems change in Citizenship when the City of Auburn installed a new assistive listening system for its City Council Chambers to assist people who are hard of hearing that attend City Council Meetings.
• Access to Independence of Cortland County (ATI) in Cortland achieved systems change in Citizenship since the Center established the "Go-Getters" advocacy group for people with developmental disabilities that meet weekly for training and information sharing to respond to Action Alerts and act on current issues.
• Southern Adirondack Independent Living (SAIL) in Queensbury achieved systems change in Citizenship since the City of Glens Falls moved a polling site to the Glens Falls Middle School to improve accessibility.
• Harlem Independent Living Center (HILC) in New York City achieved systems change in Citizenship since Manhattan Community Board #10 serving Harlem and Polo Grounds created a line item for its budget that sets aside monies for American Sign Language (ASL) interpreters, states in all literature distributed that an ASL interpreter will be provided upon request, and holds Community board meetings in locations accessible for people who use scooters/chairs.

OCTOBER 1, 2004 - SEPTEMBER 30, 2005 STATEWIDE DATA REPORT
SYSTEM CHANGE DOMAINS	OUTCOMES ACHIEVED
	# of ILCs	% of 36 ILCs	# of OUTCOMES	% of TOTAL OUTCOMES
EDUCATION	28	78%	51	14%
EMPLOYMENT	19	53%	23	6%
HEALTH CARE	26	72%	69	20%
COMMERCE	33	92%	119	34%
SOCIAL	21	58%	34	10%
CITIZENSHIP	24	67%	56	16%
TOTAL			352	100%

 

OCTOBER 1, 2004 - SEPTEMBER 30, 2005 NUMBER OF SYSTEMS CHANGE DOMAINS ACHIEVED BY ILCS
SYSTEM CHANGE DOMAINS
No.	LOCATION	ILC	EDU-CATION	EMPLOY-MENT	HEALTH CARE	COM-MERCE	SOCIAL	CITIZEN-SHIP	RESULTS  *
									TOTAL	S	U
1	Albany	Capital District Center for Independence	X	X		X			3	X
2	Amsterdam	Resource Center for Independent Living-Amsterdam	X		X	X			3	X
3	Auburn	Options for Independence	X			X	X	X	4	X
4	Batavia	Genesee Region Independent Living Center	X			X	X		3	X
5	Binghamton	Southern Tier Independence Center	X	X	X	X	X	X	6	X
6	Bronx	Bronx Independent Living Services	X		X			X	3	X
7	Brooklyn	Brooklyn Center for Independence of the Disabled	X			X	X		3	X
8	Buffalo	Western New York Independent Living Project	X	X	X	X	X	X	6	X
9	Corning	AIM Independent Living Center	X	X	X	X			4	X
10	Cortland	Access to Independence of Cortland County	X		X	X	X	X	5	X
11	Delaware	Catskill Center for Independence		X	X	X		X	4	X
12	Glens Falls	Glens Falls Independent Living Center	X	X	X	X	X	X	6	X
13	Harlem	Harlem Independent Living Center	X		X	X	X	X	5	X
14	Ithaca	Finger Lakes Independence Center			X	X	X	X	4	X
15	Jamestown	Southwestern Independent Living Center			X		X	X	3	X
16	Kingston	Resource Center for Accessible Living	X		X	X	X	X	5	X
17	Long Island	Long Island Center for Independent Living	X			X	X	X	4	X
18	Manhattan	Center for Independence of the Disabled in New York	X	X	X	X		X	5	X
19	Massena	Massena Independent Living Center	X	X	X	X	X	X	6	X
20	Middletown	Action Toward Independence	X	X	X	X	X	X	6	X
21	Newburgh	Independent Living Inc.	X	X	X	X	X	X	6	X
22	Niagara Falls	Niagara Frontier Center for Independent Living	X		X		X		3	X
23	Olean	Directions in Independent Living		X	X	X		X	4	X
24	Plattsburgh	North Country Center for Independence	X	X		X		X	4	X
25	Poughkeepsie	Taconic Resources for Independence		X	X	X	X	X	5	X
26	Queens	Queens Independent Living Center				X			1		X
27	Rochester	Regional Center for Independent Living			X	X		X	3	X
28	Rockland	Rockland Independent Living Center		X		X	X		3	X
29	Staten Island	Staten Island Center for Independent Living	X	X	X	X			4	X
30	Suffolk	Self-Initiated Living Options	X			X	X		3	X
31	Syracuse	ARISE	X		X	X	X	X	5	X
32	Troy	Independent Living Center of the Hudson Valley	X	X	X	X			4	X
33	Utica	Resource Center for Independent Living-Utica	X	X		X	X		4	X
34	Watertown	Northern Regional Center for Independent Living	X		X	X		X	4	X
35	White Plains	Westchester Independent Living Center	X	X	X	X		X	5	X
36	Yonkers	Westchester Disabled on the Move	X	X	X	X		X	5	X
TOTAL ILCs ACHIEVING OUTCOME			28	19	26	33	21	24		35	1
% of ALL ILCs			78%	53%	72%	92%	58%	67%

 

2004-2005 EXPLANATION OF RESULTS	# ILC	/	TOTAL ILC	=	% ACHIEVED
S - Successful = 3 or more	35		36		97%
U - Unsuccessful = less than 3	1		36		3%
Total	36		36		100%

 

2004-2005 BREAKDOWN OF RESULTS	# ILC	/	TOTAL ILC	=	% ACHIEVED
0	0		36		0%
1	1		36		3%
2	0		36		0%
3	10		36		28%
4	11		36		31%
5	8		36		22%
6	6		36		16%
Total	36		36		100%

The Role of Independent Living Centers in
Bringing About Community and Systems Change
2005-2006

New York’s 36 Independent Living Centers (ILCs) receive over $10.7 million to provide an array of independent living services to individuals and to advocate for and lead change to systems affecting the lives of people with disabilities. Systems Change”, in the context of New York State’s Independent Living Standards, Performance Measures and Data Collection Guide means, Permanent change to policies, practices, decisions and environments in the public and/or private sector that control resources necessary to enhance integration, inclusion and independence of people with disabilities as a group.

Each of the 36 Independent Living Centers must achieve three results of community and systems change per year under contract with the Office of Vocational and Educational Services for Individuals with Disabilities (VESID). VESID has established six distinct domains of systems change in areas of Education, Employment, Health Care, Commerce, Social and Citizenship. Furthermore, tracking within categories is also done to group similar results together within each domain. For instance, within the Education domain, results are grouped if they have had an impact on A. transition services, B. receipt of funding for pre-K through university or business programs, or C. if the result demonstrated integration of a new educational component into a curriculum. Under the Health Care domain, results are grouped if they addressed A. legislation/regulation/policy, B. consumer directed personal assistance or C. increased access to physician offices/clinics.

A detailed analysis of results are maintained in a systems change inventory database to determine frequency of specific types of systems change in each domain and the number of results in subcategories of each domain. Results are shared with the field on an annual basis to report on outcomes and provide opportunities for exchanges of best practices. Below is a sampling of results from the reporting period, October 1, 2005 – September 30, 2006. During the same reporting period, the network of 36 ILCs served over 81,000 individuals with and without disabilities with direct services.

Over 300 instances of results of community and systems change were accomplished by the New York State network of Independent Living Centers with 94 percent of ILCs achieving the required three or more outcomes. Two ILCs achieved results in each of the six domains of systems change. These centers are AIM Independent Living Center (AIM) in Corning and Southwestern Independent Living Center (SILC) in Jamestown. The two ILCs with the highest number of occasions of systems change are AIM Independent Living Center with 51 and Taconic Resources for Independence (TRI) in Poughkeepsie with 22.

The most frequently occurring outcomes of community and systems change are:

• Bringing Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Title III. covered public and private entities into full compliance with accessibility standards under the law. There were 63 successful instances where ILCs worked with owners of such entities as supermarkets, banks, restaurants, malls, etc. to increase access to marketplace goods and services.
• Ensuring that polling sites are fully accessible from parking to walkways, to indoor facilities and restrooms. There were 29 instances of enhanced polling site access.
• Ensuring that hospitals, physician offices and public and private clinics provide both accessible facilities and services. There were 26 instances of enhanced health care access.
• Bringing Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Title II. covered entities into full compliance with access standards under the law. There were 25 instances where ILCs worked with local town and county governments to address full access to buildings, programs and services such as libraries, courts, town halls, etc.
• Ensuring that parks and other places of public recreation are fully accessible. There were 10 instances where ILCs facilitated accessibility by working with local, county or state officials to make parks, playgrounds, fishing docks and piers, and other recreational sites accessible to all.
• Ensuring that schools pre-k through college including both public and private are accessible physically and programmatically. There were 8 instances of enhanced school access.

Some unique results that span the range of domains include the following:

Education

Resource Center for Independent Living (RCIL) in Amsterdam achieved systems change in Education since the Amsterdam City School District modified its policy to advise students with disabilities about transitional services at the beginning of the 11th grade rather than later in the 12th grade and increased the parental involvement of Spanish speaking families in their children’s education by creating and launching a Spanish Web site for parents and students at http://www.gasd.org/spanish/index.htm. This Web site helps Spanish speaking families with children who are disabled to become and stay involved in their children’s education.

Southern Tier Independence Center (STIC) in Binghamton achieved systems change in Education when the Binghamton City School District purchased $25,000 worth of Learning Software to assist students with disabilities in improving/achieving better academic outcomes.

Long Island Center for Independent Living (LICIL) in Levittown achieved systems change in Education since the Nassau Community College Center for Students with Disabilities entered into a formal agreement for the Center to conduct its specially designed curriculum entitled “Empowerment Through Independent Living: Exploring the History, Philosophy, and Culture of the Disability Rights Movement” for faculty and staff in a train-the-trainer format to be provided at least once per semester.

Employment

Access to Independence of Cortland County (ATI) in Cortland achieved systems change in Employment when a collaborative funding application with J. M. Murray Center in Cortland to the NYS Developmental Disabilities Planning Council (DDPC) was approved for a Peer Mentoring and Supports for Employment grant to assist people with disabilities to obtain community employment by pairing them with a mentor who has successfully navigated this path.

Independent Living, Inc. (ILI.) in Newburgh achieved systems change in Employment since the Feders Acura automobile dealership in Middletown modified its established policies and procedures to provide reasonable accommodation to employees who are Deaf.

North Country Center for Independence (NCCI) in Plattsburgh achieved systems change in Employment when the Ray Brook Federal Correctional Facility created an accessible entrance for its employees who are disabled by installing a ramp between the inside of the gated entrance to the top of the first staircase into the building and by installing a small footprint lift to overcome the steps between the foyer and the ground floor.

Health Care

Genesee Region Independent Living Center (GRILC) in Batavia achieved systems change in Health Care since the NYS Department of Health agreed to ensure Medicaid health plan compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) before initiating mandatory enrollment of Supplemental Security Income (SSI) beneficiaries into such plans by requesting updated ADA compliance plans, reviewing them, and recommending corrective action, if indicated.

AIM Independent Living Center (AIM) in Corning achieved systems change in Health Care since the Arnot Ogden Medical Center Hospital in Elmira installed videophone services - one for patients who are Deaf and one for staff use.

Harlem Independent Living Center (HILC) in New York City achieved systems change in Health Care when the Mobile Dental Clinic provided American Sign Language (ASL) interpreters and/or other communication methods for patients who are Deaf, hard of hearing or Deaf Blind and changed its flyer to promote these services to the community. The Clinic’s administrative office is in Brooklyn but provides dental services in all five boroughs by way of a board certified, licensed dental van.

Commerce

Western New York Independent Living Project (WNYILP) in Buffalo achieved systems change in Commerce since the Erie County Department of Mental Health in Buffalo created the Home Ownership Process for Everyone (HOPE) Program as an ongoing resource available to persons who are disabled on benefits and interested in purchasing a home.

Finger Lakes Independence Center (FLIC) in Ithaca achieved systems change in Commerce when the City of Ithaca Department of Public Works amended its policy on sidewalks, snow and ice to state that sidewalks will be free from snow and ice for the full paved width of such sidewalk within 24 hours after the beginning of a snowfall.

Westchester Independent Living Center (WILC) in White Plains achieved systems change in Commerce since the Center and another ILC (Westchester Disabled on the Move (WDOM) in Yonkers) worked with Westchester Residential Opportunities to develop an Accessible Apartment Building Guide that is available on the Westchester County Department of Planning Web site http://www.westchestergov.com/planning/housing. It was compiled from a survey of over 700 multi-family dwellings in Westchester County to determine the degree of access for persons with mobility impairments.

Social

Options for Independence (OFI) in Auburn achieved systems change in Social since the Auburn Public Theatre, a new arts complex in Auburn that includes live theater events, music venue and a soon-to-be-open movie theater, improved its access by adding a permanent ramp to the stage so that actors who use a wheelchair could access the stage.

Brooklyn Center for Independence of the Disabled (BCID) in New York City achieved systems change in Social when the Miller Evangelical Christian Union Church in Brooklyn moved from an inaccessible building to a new building that includes fully accessible bathrooms with grab bars and ramps to access two of the three front entrances. Also, the Church now offers Hymns in large print by Power Point projection.

Massena Independent Living Center (MILC) in Massena achieved systems change in Social when the St. Lawrence International Junior Carp Tournament now provides for the reservation of wheelchair accessible fishing locations for participants with disabilities. Held in the St. Lawrence River corridor from Ogdensburg to the Town of Louisville, the tournament previously assigned fishing sites by random draw.

Citizenship

Catskill Center for Independence (CCFI) in Oneonta achieved systems change in Citizenship since the "accessible" voting machine was moved from the Delaware County Board of Elections (BOE) building in Delhi to the Delhi Town Hall because the BOE building was not accessible.

Southwestern Independent Living Center (SILC) in Jamestown achieved systems change in Citizenship since the Chautauqua County Board of Elections agreed to make accessible transportation available through local providers to assist consumers in gaining access to the 5 designated polling sites with accessible voting machines.

ARISE in Syracuse achieved systems change in Citizenship since an individual with a disability now serves on the Oswego County Emergency Evacuation Committee, and Committee meetings were moved to an accessible location.

OCTOBER 1, 2005 - SEPTEMBER 30, 2006 STATEWIDE DATA REPORT
SYSTEMS CHANGE DOMAINS	OUTCOMES ACHIEVED
	# of ILCs	% of 36 ILCs	# of OUTCOMES	% of TOTAL OUTCOMES
EDUCATION	20	56%	35	11%
EMPLOYMENT	19	53%	28	8%
HEALTH CARE	23	64%	63	19%
COMMERCE	33	92%	123	38%
SOCIAL	20	56%	28	9%
CITIZENSHIP	23	64%	49	15%
TOTAL			326	100%

 

OCTOBER 1, 2005 - SEPTEMBER 30, 2006 NUMBER OF SYSTEMS CHANGE DOMAINS ACHIEVED BY ILCS
SYSTEM CHANGE DOMAINS
No.	LOCATION	ILC	EDU-CATION	EMPLOY-MENT	HEALTH CARE	COM-MERCE	SOCIAL	CITIZEN-SHIP	RESULTS  *
									TOTAL	S	U
1	Albany	Capital District Center for Independence	X	X	X	X		X	5	X
2	Amsterdam	Resource Center for Independent Living-Amsterdam	X	X		X		X	4	X
3	Auburn	Options for Independence			X	X	X	X	4	X
4	Batavia	Genesee Region Independent Living Center		X	X	X			3	X
5	Binghamton	Southern Tier Independence Center	X		X	X	X	X	5	X
6	Bronx	Bronx Independent Living Services		X			X	X	3	X
7	Brooklyn	Brooklyn Center for Independence of the Disabled				X	X	X	3	X
8	Buffalo	Western New York Independent Living Project			X	X	X		3	X
9	Corning	AIM Independent Living Center	X	X	X	X	X	X	6	X
10	Cortland	Access to Independence of Cortland County		X	X	X	X	X	5	X
11	Delaware	Catskill Center for Independence	X	X	X	X		X	5	X
12	Glens Falls	Southern Adirondack Independent Living Center	X		X	X	X	X	5	X
13	Harlem	Harlem Independent Living Center	X	X	X	X			4	X
14	Ithaca	Finger Lakes Independence Center	X	X	X	X		X	5	X
15	Jamestown	Southwestern Independent Living Center	X	X	X	X	X	X	6	X
16	Kingston	Resource Center for Accessible Living	X		X		X	X	4	X
17	Long Island	Long Island Center for Independent Living	X	X		X		X	4	X
18	Manhattan	Center for Independence of the Disabled in New York			X	X		X	3	X
19	Massena	Massena Independent Living Center		X		X	X	X	4	X
20	Middletown	Action Toward Independence	X			X	X	X	4	X
21	Newburgh	Independent Living Inc.	X	X	X	X		X	5	X
22	Niagara Falls	Niagara Frontier Center for Independent Living		X		X			2		X
23	Olean	Directions in Independent Living	X		X	X		X	4	X
24	Plattsburgh	North Country Center for Independence		X	X	X			3	X
25	Poughkeepsie	Taconic Resources for Independence	X		X	X	X		4	X
26	Queens	Queens Independent Living Center							0		X
27	Rochester	Regional Center for Independent Living	X			X		X	3	X
28	Rockland	Rockland Independent Living Center		X		X	X		3	X
29	Staten Island	Staten Island Center for Independent Living	X	X	X	X			4	X
30	Suffolk	Self-Initiated Living Options	X			X	X		3	X
31	Syracuse	ARISE	X		X	X	X	X	5	X
32	Troy	Independent Living Center of the Hudson Valley	X	X	X	X			4	X
33	Utica	Resource Center for Independent Living-Utica	X	X		X	X		4	X
34	Watertown	Northern Regional Center for Independent Living	X		X	X		X	4	X
35	White Plains	Westchester Independent Living Center	X	X	X	X		X	5	X
36	Yonkers	Westchester Disabled on the Move	X	X	X	X		X	5	X
TOTAL ILCs ACHIEVING OUTCOME			28	19	26	33	21	24		35	1
% of ALL ILCs			78%	53%	72%	92%	58%	67%

 

2005-2006 *  EXPLANATION OF RESULTS	# ILC	/	TOTAL ILC	=	% ACHIEVED
S - Successful = 3 or more	34		36		94%
U - Unsuccessful = less than 3	2		36		6%
Total	36		36		100%

 

2005-2006 BREAKDOWN OF RESULTS	# ILC	/	TOTAL ILC	=	% ACHIEVED
0	1		36		3%
1	0		36		0%
2	1		36		3%
3	11		36		31%
4	14		36		39%
5	7		36		18%
6	2		36		6%
Total	36		36		100%

The Role of Independent Living Centers in
Bringing About Community and Systems Change
2006-2007

New York’s 36 Independent Living Centers (ILCs) receive over $10.7 million to provide an array of independent living services to individuals and to advocate for and lead change to systems affecting the lives of people with disabilities.  “Systems Change”, in the context of New York State’s Independent Living Standards, Performance Measures and Data Collection Guide means, “Permanent change to policies, practices, decisions and environments in the public and/or private sector that control resources necessary to enhance integration, inclusion and independence of people with disabilities as a group”. 

Each of the 36 Independent Living Centers must achieve three results of community and systems change per year under contract with the Office of Vocational and Educational Services for Individuals with Disabilities (VESID).  VESID has established six distinct domains of systems change in areas of Education, Employment, Health Care, Commerce, Social and Citizenship.  Furthermore, tracking within categories is also done to group similar results together within each domain.  For instance, within the Education domain, results are grouped if they have had an impact on A. transition services, B. receipt of funding for pre-K through university or business programs, or C. if the result demonstrated integration of a new educational component into a curriculum.  Under the Health Care domain, results are grouped if they addressed A. legislation/regulation/policy, B. consumer directed personal assistance or C. increased access to physician offices/clinics. 

A detailed analysis of results are maintained in a systems change inventory database to determine frequency of specific types of systems change in each domain and the number of results in subcategories of each domain.    Results are shared with the field on an annual basis to report on outcomes and provide opportunities for exchanges of best practices.  Below is a sampling of results from the reporting period, October 1, 2006 – September 30, 2007.  During the same reporting period, the network of 36 ILCs served over 71,000 individuals with and without disabilities with direct services. 

Close to 400 instances of results of community and systems change were accomplished by the New York State network of Independent Living Centers with 94 percent of ILCs achieving the required three or more outcomes.  Three ILCs achieved results in each of the six domains of systems change.  These centers are Southern Tier Independence Center (STIC) in Binghamton, AIM Independent Living Center (AIM) in Corning, and Westchester Independent Living Center (WILC) in White Plains.  The two ILCs with the highest number of occasions of systems change are Staten Island Center for Independent Living (SICIL) in Staten Island with 32 and Southern Tier Independence Center with 29.

The most frequently occurring outcomes of community and systems change are:

• Bringing Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Title III. covered public and private entities into full compliance with accessibility standards under the law.  There were 36 successful instances where ILCs worked with owners of such entities as supermarkets, banks, restaurants, malls, etc. to increase access to marketplace goods and services.
• Bringing Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Title II. covered entities into full compliance with access standards under the law.  There were 27 instances where ILCs worked with local town and county governments to address full access to buildings, programs and services such as libraries, courts, town halls, etc.  
• Ensuring that hospitals, physician offices and public and private clinics provide both accessible facilities and services.  There were 27 instances of enhanced health care access.
• Ensuring that schools pre-kindergarten through college including both public and private are accessible physically and programmatically.  There were 13 instances of enhanced school access.
• Ensuring that parks and other places of public recreation are fully accessible. There were 12 instances where ILCs facilitated accessibility by working with local, county or state officials to make parks, playgrounds, fishing docks and piers, and other recreational sites accessible to all. 
• Ensuring that polling sites are fully accessible from parking to walkways, to indoor facilities and restrooms.  There were 8 instances of enhanced polling site access. 
• Increasing the number of employment opportunities for people with disabilities.  There were 7 instances where ILCs worked with local and regional One-Stop Centers to improve physical and programmatic accessibility. 

Some unique results that span the range of domains include the following:

Education

• Resource Center for Independent Living (RCIL) in Amsterdam achieved systems change in Education since the Amsterdam City School District changed its procedures to have the Special Education staff provide a Benefits Information Fact Sheet, which was developed by RCIL and translated into Spanish, to all parents and special education students at all CSE meetings;
• Action Toward Independence (ATI) in Middletown            achieved systems change in Education since Southeast regional Disability And Business Technical Assistance Center permanently changed three final exam questions on its online Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) course ensuring people with learning disabilities opportunity to take this curriculum.
• ARISE in Syracuse achieved systems change in Education since West Genesee Senior High School in Camillus improved access to its softball field by providing a temporary accommodation of using a golf cart to shuttle persons with disabilities to the field until other more permanent access solutions are created.

Employment

• ARISE in Syracuse achieved systems change in Employment since the Syracuse Post Standard daily newspaper installed automatic door openers and a lift to make the path of travel from its parking garage to the office area accessible for a recently hired employee who has a disability.
• Independent Living, Inc. (ILI.) in Newburgh achieved systems change in Employment since Center contracted with the Washingtonville Central School District to provide support services to transition students from school to work
• Rockland Independent Living Center (RILC) in Rockland achieved systems change in Employment since Grecia’s Unisex Salon in West Haverstraw now provides its employment application in a format that is accessible for persons who are visually impaired.

Health Care

• Center for Independence of the Disabled in New York (CIDNY) in Manhattan achieved systems change in Health Care since the NYS Department of Health implemented changes in the processing of durable medical equipment (DME) requests to make them more readily accessible and now: requires prior approval only in limited circumstances; provides a process that is fast, user-friendly and effective; trains staff on changes with an emphasis on customer service; educates stakeholders; provides controls to encourage professional and ethical provider practices; and actively monitors fraud and abuse.
• Independent Living of Niagara County (ILNC) in Niagara Falls achieved systems change in Health Care since the Center established a Consumer Directed Personal Assistance (CDPA) Program in Niagara County.
• Staten Island Center for Independent Living (SICIL) in Staten Island achieved systems change in Health Care since the Staten Island University Hospital changed its policies and now offers patient informational materials in alternate formats.

Commerce

• Capital District Center for Independence (CDCI) in Albany achieved systems change in Commerce since the Capital District Transportation Authority (CDTA) Special Transportation Available by Request (STAR) improved service by revising Handbook policies and procedures and by implementing new systems that included a revised reservations process and utilization of taxis to help meet demand.
• Harlem Independent Living Center (HILC) in Harlem achieved systems change in Commerce since a cable television station, News 12 The Bronx, now provides closed captioning for its viewers who are Deaf and hard of hearing.  The station is a member of the News 12 Networks that comprises seven regional cable news channels in the New York metropolitan area offering local news 24-hours a day.
• Staten Island Center for Independent Living (SICIL) in Staten Island achieved systems change in Commerce since the St. George Ferry Terminal on Staten Island installed a “Talking Kiosk” to help direct passengers who are disabled.  The ShopABLE NYC Program provided $20,000 in funding to the West Brighton Local Development Corporation (WBLDC) to create the Kiosk.

Social

• Western New York Independent Living, Inc. (WNYIL) in Buffalo achieved systems change in Social since Buffalo Zoo changed its policies and practices regarding media releases so that they promote the inclusion of persons with disabilities in zoo events and activities.
• Finger Lakes Independence Center (FLIC) in Ithaca achieved systems change in Social since Ithaca Festival now publishes in its program all venues that will be American Sign Language (ASL) interpreted, previously ASL interpreted events could only be identified by telephoning the Festival office.
• Action Toward Independence (ATI) in Middletown achieved systems change in Social since International Paper John Dillon Park in Long Lake no longer requires documentation of disability for admission to the park, changed its website to reflect policy change from restricting the campground to people with disabilities to admitting the general public to promote community integration, and improved bathroom access at each campsite by changing to stall-type walls to provide adequate turning space and by installing grab bars.

Citizenship

• Resource Center for Accessible Living (RCAL) in Kingston achieved systems change in Citizenship since the City of Kingston Assessors Office implemented new procedures for tax reduction based upon documented disabilities to ensure that all residents who apply will be given the proper information and tax reduction.
• Long Island Center for Independent Living (LICIL) in Levittown achieved systems change in Citizenship since the Center formally established Disability Rights Initiative for Voter Empowerment (DRIVE) a civic group comprised of a core group of persons with disabilities to ensure that candidates for public office, political representatives, and government officials are aware of the issues and concerns of importance to voters with disabilities.  The group received training on issues such as the basic political process, the importance of legislation, and New York State’s failure to comply with the Help America Vote Act (HAVA).
• North Country Center for Independence (NCCI) in Plattsburgh achieved systems change in Citizenship since the Clinton County Board of Elections changed its policies to permit people with disabilities to use the accessible polling machine in the same room as other voters at the Clinton County Government Center, formerly they had been required to vote in a separate location.

OCTOBER 1, 2006 - SEPTEMBER 30, 2007 STATEWIDE DATA REPORT
SYSTEMS CHANGE DOMAINS	OUTCOMES ACHIEVED
	# of ILCs	% of 36 ILCs	# of OUTCOMES	% of TOTAL OUTCOMES
EDUCATION	27	75%	62	16%
EMPLOYMENT	12	33%	28	7%
HEALTH CARE	30	83%	99	26%
COMMERCE	34	94%	138	36%
SOCIAL	20	56%	32	8%
CITIZENSHIP	22	61%	29	7%
TOTAL			388	100%

 

OCTOBER 1, 2006 - SEPTEMBER 30, 2007 NUMBER OF SYSTEMS CHANGE DOMAINS ACHIEVED BY ILCS
SYSTEM CHANGE DOMAINS
No.	LOCATION	ILC	EDU-CATION	EMPLOY-MENT	HEALTH CARE	COM-MERCE	SOCIAL	CITIZEN-SHIP	RESULTS  *
									TOTAL	S	U
1	Albany	Capital District Center for Independence	X			X	X		3	X
2	Amsterdam	Resource Center for Independent Living-satellite	X		X	X		X	4	X
3	Auburn	Options for Independence			X	X	X	X	4	X
4	Batavia	Genesee Region Independent Living Center		X	X	X	X	x	5	X
5	Binghamton	Southern Tier Independence Center	X	X	X	X	X	X	6	X
6	Bronx	Bronx Independent Living Services			X	X			2		X
7	Brooklyn	Brooklyn Center for Independence of the Disabled	X			X	X	X	4	X
8	Buffalo	Western New York Independent Living Project (WNYILP)			X	X	X	X	4	X
9	Corning	AIM Independent Living Center	X	X	X	X	X	X	6	X
10	Cortland	Access to Independence of Cortland County	X		X	X	X	X	5	X
11	Delaware	Catskill Center for Independence		X		X	X		3	X
12	Glens Falls	Southern Adirondack Independent Living Center	X		X	X			3	X
13	Harlem	Harlem Independent Living Center	X		X	X	X	X	5	X
14	Ithaca	Finger Lakes Independence Center	X	X	X	X	X		5	X
15	Jamestown	Southwestern Independent Living Center		X	X	X	X		4	X
16	Kingston	Resource Center for Accessible Living	X		X	X	X	X	5	X
17	Long Island	Long Island Center for Independent Living	X		X	X		X	4	X
18	Manhattan	Center for Independence of the Disabled in New York	X		X	X			3	X
19	Massena	Massena Independent Living Center	X		X	X		X	4	X
20	Middletown	Action Toward Independence	X		X	X	X		4	X
21	Newburgh	Independent Living Inc.	X	X	X	X		X	5	X
22	Niagara Falls	Independent Living of Niagara County-WNYILP satellite			X	X	X		3	X
23	Olean	Directions in Independent Living	X			X		X	3	X
24	Plattsburgh	North Country Center for Independence				X		X	2		X
25	Poughkeepsie	Taconic Resources for Independence	X		X	X	X		4	X
26	Queens	Center for Independence of the Disabled in New York-satellite			X	X		X	3	X
27	Rochester	Regional Center for Independent Living	X		X	X		X	4	X
28	Rockland	Rockland Independent Living Center	X	X		X		X	4	X
29	Staten Island	Staten Island Center for Independent Living	X	X	X	X			4	X
30	Suffolk	Self-Initiated Living Options	X		X		X		3	X
31	Syracuse	ARISE	X	X	X	X	X		5	X
32	Troy	Independent Living Center of the Hudson Valley	X		X	X	X	X	5	X
33	Utica	Resource Center for Independent Living	X		X			X	3	X
34	Watertown	Northern Regional Center for Independent Living	X		X	X		X	4	X
35	White Plains	Westchester Independent Living Center	X	X	X	X	X	X	6	X
36	Yonkers	Westchester Disabled on the Move	X	X	X	X			4	X
TOTAL ILCs ACHIEVING OUTCOME			27	12	30	34	20	22		34	2
% of ALL ILCs			75%	33%	83%	94%	56%	61%

 

October 1, 2006 - September 30, 2007 *  EXPLANATION OF RESULTS	# ILC	/	TOTAL ILC	=	% ACHIEVED
S - Successful = 3 or more	34		36		94%
U - Unsuccessful = less than 3	2		36		6%
Total	36		36		100%

 

October 1, 2006 - September 30, 2007 BREAKDOWN OF RESULTS	# ILC	/	TOTAL ILC	=	% ACHIEVED
0	0		36		0%
1	0		36		0%
2	2		36		6%
3	9		36		25%
4	14		36		39%
5	8		36		22%
6	3		36		8%
Total	36		36		100%

The Role of Independent Living Centers in
Bringing About Community and Systems Change
2007-2008

New York's 39 Independent Living Centers (ILCs) receive over $13.2 million to provide an array of independent living services to individuals and to advocate for and lead change to systems affecting the lives of people with disabilities. "Systems Change", in the context of New York State's Independent Living Standards, Performance Measures and Data Collection Guide means, "Permanent change to policies, practices, decisions and environments in the public and/or private sector that control resources necessary to enhance integration, inclusion and independence of people with disabilities as a group".

Each of the 39 Independent Living Centers must achieve three results of community and systems change per year under contract with the Office of Vocational and Educational Services for Individuals with Disabilities (VESID). VESID has established six distinct domains of systems change in areas of Education, Employment, Health Care, Commerce, Social and Citizenship. Furthermore, tracking within categories is also done to group similar results together within each domain. For instance, within the Education domain, results are grouped if they have had an impact on A. transition services, B. receipt of funding for pre-Kindergarten through university or business programs, or C. if the result demonstrated integration of a new educational component into a curriculum. Under the Health Care domain, results are grouped if they addressed A. legislation/regulation/policy, B. consumer directed personal assistance or C. increased access to physician offices/clinics.

A detailed analysis of results are maintained in a systems change inventory database to determine frequency of specific types of systems change in each domain and the number of results in subcategories of each domain. Results are shared with the field on an annual basis to report on outcomes and provide opportunities for exchanges of best practices. Below is a sampling of results from the reporting period, October 1, 2007 - September 30, 2008. During the same reporting period, the network of 39 ILCs served over 80,000 individuals with and without disabilities with direct services.

Over 400 instances of results of community and systems change were accomplished by the New York State network of Independent Living Centers with 100 percent of ILCs achieving the required three or more outcomes. Three ILCs achieved results in each of the six domains of systems change. These centers are Access to Independence of Cortland County in Cortland, Southern Tier Independence Center in Binghamton, and Catskill Center for Independence in Oneonta. The three ILCs with the highest number of occasions of systems change are Southern Tier Independence Center with 35, Southern Adirondack Independent Living in Glens Falls with 21, and Taconic Resources for Independence in Poughkeepsie with 21.

The most frequently occurring outcomes of community and systems change are:

• Bringing Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Title III. covered public and private entities into full compliance with accessibility standards under the law. There were 32 successful instances where ILCs worked with owners of such entities as supermarkets, banks, restaurants, malls, etc. to increase access to marketplace goods and services.
• Ensuring that polling sites are fully accessible from parking to walkways, to indoor facilities and restrooms. There were 26 instances of enhanced polling site access.
• Ensuring that hospitals, physician offices and public and private clinics provide both accessible facilities and services. There were 24 instances of enhanced health care access.
• Bringing Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Title II. covered entities into full compliance with access standards under the law. There were 18 instances where ILCs worked with local town and county governments to address full access to buildings, programs and services such as libraries, courts, town halls, etc.
• Ensuring that schools pre-kindergarten through college including both public and private are accessible physically and programmatically. There were 16 instances of enhanced school access.
• Increasing the number of employment opportunities for people with disabilities. There were 9 instances where ILCs worked with local and regional One-Stop Centers to improve physical and programmatic accessibility.
• Ensuring that parks and other places of public recreation are fully accessible. There were 5 instances where ILCs facilitated accessibility by working with local, county or state officials to make parks, playgrounds, fishing docks and piers, and other recreational sites accessible to all.

Some unique results that span the range of domains include the following:

Education

• Brooklyn Center for Independence of the Disabled (BCID) in Brooklyn achieved systems change in Education since the Clara Barton High school in Brooklyn established an agreement with the Center to conduct a Saturday workshop for parents of children with an Individualized Education Program (IEP) that includes training in the IEP process, parent advocacy, and networking opportunities.
• Catskill Center for Independence (CCFI) in Oneonta achieved systems change in Education since the Riverside Elementary School in Oneonta purchased new cafeteria tables that comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Accessibility Guidelines (ADAAG); placed accessible signage to identify room numbers; adjusted the pull force of the interior doors to comply with ADAAG; and installed a door bell for the exterior doors due to the extreme force required to open them.
• Staten Island Center for Independent Living (SICIL) in Staten Island achieved systems change in Education since the Center was active in the regional effort that led to the successful settlement of the lawsuit L.V. et al. v. New York City Department of Education et al. that was brought by Advocates for Children of New York and the law firm of Milbank,Tweed, Hadley and McCloy. The class action lawsuit filed in 2003 challenged the systemic failure of the New York City Department of education (DOE) to timely and fully implement orders of impartial hearing officers assigned to resolve disputes over special education services. Under the settlement agreement, DOE agreed to comply with a series of benchmarks for implementation of orders going forward and that an independent Auditor would monitor its compliance with the benchmarks.

Employment

• Resource Center for Independent Living (RCIL) in Amsterdam achieved systems change in Employment since the Working Solutions One-Stop Center in Amsterdam changed its registration process to permit applications to be completed in advance offsite, which provides more employment opportunities for persons with significant disabilities as it alleviates stress and confusion during the process and allows more time for questions.
• Bronx Independent Living Services (BILS) in Bronx achieved systems change in Employment since the JC Penny department store corporate headquarters in Texas changed its recruitment policy from requiring all employment applicants to apply through the store's national website to providing a reasonable accommodation for persons who are disabled by permitting them to apply in person at local stores.
• Westchester Independent Living Center (WILC) in White Plains achieved systems change in Employment since the Center was approved for funding by Westchester County Department of Community Mental Health through its Prisoner Re-entry Program to assist individuals who have a history with the criminal justice system to successfully engage the vocational habilitation and re-socialization process on their re-entry into the community.

Health Care

• Finger Lakes Independence Center (FLIC) in Ithaca achieved systems change in Health Care since as a result of the Center's participation on the Tompkins County Point of Entry/Long-Term Care Services Advisory Council the referral process for Consumer Directed Personal Assistance (CDPA) services was moved from the County Department of Social Services (that had a stigma attached) to the County Office for the Aging (a more neutral site), which operates Tompkins Care Connection that is the central access point for long-term care services.
• Independent Living Center of the Hudson Valley (ILCHV) in Troy achieved systems change in Health Care since the Blue Shield of Northeastern New York established an annual special meeting for Deaf community to discuss updates on the Senior Blue Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) Plans with sign language interpreter services provided and agreed to include with their advertising for this meeting information about other community meetings.
• Northern Regional Center for Independent Living (NRCIL) in Watertown achieved systems change in Health Care since the NYS Department of Correctional Services changed its practices to allow in the State prison system a new condom negotiation curriculum to reduce HIV/AIDS transmission.

Commerce

• Options for Independence (OFI) in Auburn achieved systems change in Commerce since the Habitat for Humanity Cayuga County Chapter in Auburn incorporated visitability into the construction of its homes.
• Independent Living, Inc. (ILI.) in Newburgh achieved systems change in Commerce since the Orange County Family Court changed its preliminary hearing policy from not providing sign language interpreters for such proceedings to providing an interpreter for all preliminary proceedings.
• ARISE in Syracuse achieved systems change in Commerce since the Central New York Regional Transportation Authority (CENTRO) created a single ride pass for the Call-A-Bus paratransit service that can be used in all paratransit vehicles. It enables passengers to travel without using money, which has been an issue for some riders who have visual impairments as well as other disabilities.

Social

• Southern Adirondack Independent Living (SAIL) in Queensbury achieved systems change in Social since an Albany chapter of Fishing Has No Boundaries (FHNB) was established. FHNB is a national non-profit volunteer organization that provides recreational fishing opportunities for persons with disabilities.
• Directions in Independent Living (DIL) in Olean achieved systems change in Social since the Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA) in Olean purchased several pieces of adaptive cardiovascular equipment for use in its wellness programs by individuals with disabilities.
• Southwestern Independent Living Center (SILC) in Jamestown achieved systems change in Social since the Jamestown Municipal Boatlanding/McCrea Point Park installed an accessible bathroom.

Citizenship

• Resource Center for Accessible Living (RCAL) in Kingston achieved systems change in Citizenship since the City of Kingston Assessors Office implemented new procedures for tax reduction based upon documented disabilities to ensure that all residents who apply will be given the proper information and tax reduction.
• Long Island Center for Independent Living (LICIL) in Levittown achieved systems change in Citizenship since the Center formally established the Disability Rights Initiative for Voter Empowerment (DRIVE) a civic group comprised of a core group of persons with disabilities to ensure that candidates for public office, political representatives, and government officials are aware of the issues and concerns of importance to voters with disabilities. The group received training on issues such as the basic political process, the importance of legislation, and New York State's failure to comply with the Help America Vote Act (HAVA).
• Rockland Independent Living Center (RILC) in Nanuet achieved systems change in Citizenship since the Rockland County Board of Elections in New City eliminated 14 inaccessible polling places and went from 134 sites to 120, thus making polling sites more accessible to people with disabilities.

OCTOBER 1, 2007 - SEPTEMBER 30, 2008 STATEWIDE DATA REPORT
SYSTEMS CHANGE DOMAINS	OUTCOMES ACHIEVED
	# of ILCs	% of 36 ILCs	# of OUTCOMES	% of TOTAL OUTCOMES
EDUCATION	28	78%	58	14%
EMPLOYMENT	19	53%	31	7%
HEALTH CARE	35	97%	127	31%
COMMERCE	37	103%	122	30%
SOCIAL	14	39%	27	7%
CITIZENSHIP	23	64%	47	11%
TOTAL			412	100%

 

OCTOBER 1, 2007 - SEPTEMBER 30, 2008 NUMBER OF SYSTEMS CHANGE DOMAINS ACHIEVED BY ILCS
SYSTEM CHANGE DOMAINS
No.	LOCATION	ILC	EDU-CATION	EMPLOY-MENT	HEALTH CARE	COM-MERCE	SOCIAL	CITIZEN-SHIP	RESULTS  *
									TOTAL	S	U
1	Albany	Capital District Center for Independence		X	X	X			3	X
2	Amsterdam	Resource Center for Independent Living-satellite		X	X	X		X	4	X
3	Auburn	Options for Independence	X		X	X	X	X	5	X
4	Batavia	Genesee Region Independent Living Center	X		X	X		X	4	X
5	Binghamton	Southern Tier Independence Center	X	X	X	X	X	X	6	X
6	Bronx	Bronx Independent Living Services	X	X			X		3	X
7	Brooklyn	Brooklyn Center for Independence of the Disabled	X			X	X	X	4	X
8	Buffalo	Western New York Independent Living (WNYILP)		X	X	X		X	4	X
9	Corning	AIM Independent Living Center	X		X	X			3	X
10	Cortland	Access to Independence of Cortland County	X	X	X	X	X	X	6	X
11	Delaware	Catskill Center for Independence	X	X	X	X	X	X	6	X
12	Glens Falls	Southern Adirondack Independent Living Center	X	X	X		X	X	5	X
13	Harlem	Harlem Independent Living Center	X	X		X	X		4	X
14	Herkimer	Resource Center for Independent Living - satellite	X		X	X			3	X
15	Ithaca	Finger Lakes Independence Center			X	X	X	X	4	X
16	Jamestown	Southwestern Independent Living Center	X	X	X	X	X		5	X
17	Kingston	Resource Center for Accessible Living			X	X		X	3	X
18	Long Island	Long Island Center for Independent Living		X	X	X			3	X
19	Manhattan	Center for Independence of the Disabled in New York	X		X	X		X	4	X
20	Massena	Massena Independent Living Center	X	X	X	X	X		5	X
21	Middletown	Action Toward Independence	X		X	X			3	X
22	Newburgh	Independent Living Inc.	X	X	X	X		X	5	X
23	Niagara Falls	Independent Living of Niagara County-WNYIL satellite			X	X		X	3	X
24	Olean	Directions in Independent Living	X		X	X	X	X	5	X
25	Plattsburgh	North Country Center for Independence		X	X	X			3	X
26	Poughkeepsie	Taconic Resources for Independence	X		X	X			3	X
27	Putnam	Putnam Independent Living Services - WILC satellite	X		X	X		X	4	X
28	Queens	Center for Independence of the Disabled in New York-satellite	X		X	X		X	4	X
29	Rochester	Regional Center for Independent Living	X		X	X		X	4	X
30	Rockland	Rockland Independent Living Center		X	X	X		X	4	X
31	Staten Island	Staten Island Center for Independent Living	X			X	X		3	X
32	Suffolk	Self-Initiated Living Options	X		X	X		X	3	X
33	Sullivan	Action Toward Independence-satellite	X	X	X	X			4	X
34	Syracuse	ARISE	X		X	X		X	4	X
35	Troy	Independent Living Center of the Hudson Valley			X	X	X	X	4	X
36	Utica	Resource Center for Independent Living	X	X	X	X		X	5	X
37	Watertown	Northern Regional Center for Independent Living	X		X	X			3	X
38	White Plains	Westchester Independent Living Center	X	X	X	X			4	X
39	Yonkers	Westchester Disabled on the Move		X	X	X		X	4	X
TOTAL ILCs ACHIEVING OUTCOME			28	19	35	37	14	23		39	0
% of ALL ILCs			78%	53%	97%	103%	39%	64%

 

October 1, 2006 - September 30, 2007 *  EXPLANATION OF RESULTS	# ILC	/	TOTAL ILC	=	% ACHIEVED
S - Successful = 3 or more	39		39		100%
U - Unsuccessful = less than 3	0		39		0%
Total	39		39		100%

 

October 1, 2007 - September 30, 2008 BREAKDOWN OF RESULTS	# ILC	/	TOTAL ILC	=	% ACHIEVED
0	0		39		0%
1	0		39		0%
2	0		39		0%
3	13		39		33%
4	16		39		41%
5	7		39		18%
6	3		39		8%
Total	39		39		100%