[Archived] Alexandria Commission on Persons with Disabilities Announces This Year's $500 Community Organization Grant Recipient


News Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Date:	Wednesday, May 31, 2000
Contact:	Angelita Plemmer, City Manager's Office, (703) 838-4300

Alexandria Commission on Persons with Disabilities Announces This Year's $500 Community Organization Grant Recipient

The Alexandria Commission on Persons With Disabilities (ACPD) announces this year’s Community Organization Grant (COG) recipient, Families First of Alexandria, Inc. Families First will receive a $500 Community Organization Grant at the Commission’s Annual Awards Ceremony and Reception, which will be held Tuesday, June 13, at 6:30 p.m., in Room 2000 of Alexandria City Hall, located at 301 King Street.

Families First is a grassroots family organization formed in March 1998 as a chapter of the Federation of Families for Children’s Mental Health. The organization works to help change the focus of children’s mental health services to support a family-centered planning process for families of children and adolescents with serious emotional, behavioral and other mental disorders.

The $500 COG will be used to support 200 Alexandria family members’ attendance at a September 2000 full-day workshop on the Individuals With Disabilities Act, or I.D.E.A. ’97. “How to Make Special Education Work for Your Child” is an extremely valuable advocacy training and information tool for family members who want to improve outcomes in obtaining services for their children whose mental health needs require special education support. For more information on registering for the workshop, please call Nancy McCormick at (703) 548-2477.

The Commission’s Community Organization Grant Program is designed to assist Alexandria non-profit organizations and agencies in providing services to Alexandria citizens with mental, sensory, or physical disabilities. Each grant must be matched by resources from the recipient organization and can be used for a range of services and programs, including holding special events for persons with disabilities; expanding an existing program to better meet the needs of these individuals; or establishing a volunteer or other new program to meet the needs of Alexandria citizens with disabilities. The Commission raises money for COG through an annual fundraiser.

The Alexandria Commission on Persons With Disabilities is a 17-member citizen advisory board appointed by the Alexandria City Council. The Commission is charged with assuring that each citizen with a disability in the City is treated fairly, provided equal protection under the law, and afforded full and equal opportunity in society.