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The Florida Grantor, Fall 2005

FGA Update

Emergency Preparedness Conference

The Disability Task Force on Emergency Preparedness for People with Disabilities will hold an Emergency Preparedness Conference January 30-31, 2006 in Tampa, Florida. Sessions will be held on topics such as special needs shelters, health care perspectives and the impact of specific disasters on persons with various types of disabilities. Agency representatives, disability service providers and interested individuals are invited to attend.

For more information, call The Able Trust toll-free at 888.838.2253.

RFP Released for Creation of New Florida High School/High Tech Program Sites

Request for Proposal (RFP) #VR/DOE/06-3 is being issued by The Able Trust to expand the Florida High School/High Tech (HS/HT) program into 10 new project sites. Funding for the development of these sites is made possible by the Florida Department of Education Division of Vocational Rehabilitation.

The HS/HT Program, a transition program to motivate and prepare high school students with disabilities for college, jobs and careers, is currently operated in 20 sites in Florida. The goals of HS/HT are to help reduce the dropout rate of youth with disabilities, increase their enrollment in college and improve their participation in education, vocational and employment-related activities.

Existing Florida not-for-profit 501 (c)(3) organizations, associations and agencies that provide Florida citizens with disabilities with employment and education-related services are eligible to apply. Proposals are encouraged from organizations located in Miami-Dade, Key West, the Panhandle and rural and urban areas. The deadline to submit proposals is December 8, 2005 at 5 p.m. For a complete copy of RFP #VR/DOE/06-3, visit www.abletrust.org/grant/rfp_06_03.shtml or call toll-free 888.838.2253.

Now Accepting 2006 Youth Leadership Forum Applications

The Able Trust is currently accepting applications for the Florida Youth Leadership Forum (YLF), a unique leadership program that will take place July 20–23, 2006 in Tallahassee. Fifty current high school sophomores and juniors who have disabilities will be selected as delegates for the forum. The YLF, which is co-sponsored by The Able Trust and the Florida Developmental Disabilities Council, is designed to bring together young people with disabilities with leadership potential and help prepare them for the future.

Student delegates will be housed at Southgate Campus Centre, a private dormitory between Florida State University and Florida A & M University. Chaperones, medical attendants and security will be provided. There is no fee for delegates to attend the YLF. The Able Trust will pay for all travel and living/meal expenses through corporate sponsorships and donations.

The delegate application deadline is December 9, 2005. To download a YLF application or for more information, visit www.floridaylf.org.

Florida Nationally Recognized for Employment Practices

Florida was one of nine states recognized in a recently released report by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) on the efforts to employ more people with disabilities. The study, Final Report on Best Practices for the Employment of People with Disabilities in State Government, is the third EEOC publication released in October as part of National Disability Employment Awareness Month.

Florida was noted in the report as one of only three states with identified partnerships with the business community to promote the employment of individuals with disabilities. In Florida, this partnership is known as the Florida Business Leadership Network (BLN), which is made up of more than 950 small and large business employees, ranging from CEOs to human resource professionals.

For more information about the Florida BLN, visit www.floridabln.org. To read more from the EEOC report, visit www.eeoc.gov/initiatives/nfi/final_states_best_practices_report.html.