About CSD

The Center for Self-Determination is a highly interactive working collaboration of individuals and organizations committed to the principles of self-determination to help all persons create the lives they want, connected to and with their communities and pursuing long term relationships and economic futures

Grassroots Movement

Hosted by Community Living Services of Wayne County, Michigan, the Center is composed of two inter-related initiatives: a grassroots movement to promote the principles of self-determination across the country and a training and technical assistance center. The grassroots movement is committed to an equal partnership among individuals with disabilities, family members and professional/direct support workers who will create networks that will be linked together. These partnerships, which begin at the local and state level, are committed to new forms of leadership and the creation of true communities where individuals with disabilities and those committed to them will take their positions as both leaders and teachers. The Center is committed as well to support the development and recognize the leadership of those with disabilities. The education and technical assistance component makes multiple interactive learning opportunities available to all those committed to the five principles of self-determination: Freedom to choose a meaningful life in the community, authority over a targeted amount of dollars, support to organize resources in ways that are life enhancing and meaningful to the individual with a disability, responsibility for the wise use of public dollars and recognition of the contribution individuals with disabilities can make to their communities, and confirmation of the important leadership role that individuals with disabilities and their families must play in a newly re-designed system and support for the self-advocacy movement.

The Work of The Center

The Center offers assistance to individuals and organizations attempting to change their systems of support based upon the self-determination principles. It builds upon the rapidly growing experience and learning about creating individual budgets: developing independent brokers/support coordinators who work for each individual receiving support: designing effective ways to help people pay for the supports and services they purchase, and helping public and private agencies create the needed changes in their organizational structures.

The Difficult Issues

Just as important, the Center for Self-Determination addresses the difficult issues which are emerging more clearly as we work across North America helping people create more meaningful lives. A few of these issues include:

the impoverishment of individuals with disabilities together with the near impoverishment of those who most directly support them
the slow pace of employment and lack of entrepreneurial opportunities
outdated guardianship statutes and practices
many systems' dependence upon property and costly mortgages
quality assurance which depends upon rules and monitors and ignores the importance of people's relationships with families and other allies
the lack of equity and fairness in distributing public dollars
the lack of attention to the simple and profound needs of the people we support for relationships, love and spiritual connection

As a network of individuals and organizations, the Center for Self-Determination is managed in a non-hierarchal way by a consortium representing an equal partnership among people with disabilities, family allies and key professionals and policy makers. The Center has created a network of affiliated sites committed to grassroots organizing and systems change, including individuals with extensive experience in implementing the principles of self-determination.

Multiple Connections

The Center supports multiple connections and accelerates the learning among individuals and organizations, beginning at the local level. Where local or state groups are already organized for grassroots support or for systems change based upon self-determination principles, the Center connects those groups with one another, sharing ideas, resources, and questions. Where such groups need support to form and grow, the Center will offer initial or ongoing assistance. The Center has the capacity to bring people together using websites and other internet technology. The website will evolve to help create and support individual, local and state or provincial sites that will provide continually updated information throughout the network. Discussion groups will be facilitated on specific areas of interest; with new groups forming as the learning continues and new issues emerge.

Individuals with Disabilities and Families

The Center effectively connects the network including: a regularly published e- newsletter; and a resource list of local "practitioners"--individuals who have experience and knowledge to share in implementing self- determination principles in their lives, organizations or systems. The list will describe the particular area of knowledge, expertise or wisdom of each person, and how to contact them. This is a primary source of knowledge and education to the network. An important element of the work of the Center is to identify and support the leadership of local resources in sharing expertise and knowledge; ready access to individuals who have extensive experience in implementing the principles of self-determination across localities, states and regions; a capacity to organize or participate in a variety of local, state and regional learning opportunities, including workshops on specific topics and learning retreats of varying intensity and an ability to host retreats to explore and deepen out understanding of emerging issues.

A Learning Community

By developing an open and continually evolving network, the Center for Self-Determination is designed to support a different kind of learning. It is created to foster and support active participation and leadership by every member, whether individual or organization. By working together in this way, the wisdom and experience of each individual will be tapped as we change our systems to enable all persons to create the lives they want, connected to and with our communities. Recent activities include assisting states with the development of innovative Medicaid Waivers that feature purchasing authority for creative employment opportunities, self employment and control of the means of transportation as well as post secondary education and training and matched savings accounts that do not count against benefits under special Social Security Waivers.