Does anyone know these folks?
Heidi Lawyer
Executive Director
Virginia Board for People with Disabilities (VBPD)
1100 Bank Street, 7th Floor, Richmond, VA 23219
From: Kelsie Adkisson [mailto:xxxxxx@3cisd.com]
Sent: Monday, June 22, 2015 4:03 PM
To: Lawyer, Heidi (VBPD)
Cc: Deb Childress
Subject: Letter of Support Requested
Hello Ms. Lawyer,
I am contacting you on behalf of the 3C Institute in Durham, NC. 3C Institute focuses on the development and dissemination of empirically based interventions and programs aimed at promoting social and life skills in children and young adults.
Currently our team is in the process of preparing an application to the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR), formally NIDDR, for funding to develop and test an online program to be used by high school students with intellectual disabilities to aid them in developing the skills required to make a successful transition to employment and life outside of school. The program, called W.O.R.K., will provide a suite of integrated technologies for individuals with disabilities, families, and providers specifically designed to enhance job training interventions, directly engage families in the job training and finding process, and support quality implementation of the intervention by providers. For students, we will develop an innovative, individualized web-based program with units targeting specific domains or topics relevant to finding and keeping employment for this population (e.g., finding a job, applying for a job, and social skills required in employment settings). For teachers and parents, we propose to develop an Online Implementation and Family Center with interactive practice activities and parent educational resources to extend training and practice into the home environment, as well as reporting functions to track and monitor intervention goals and treatment outcomes. We believe that the suite of integrated resources for all members of the team will result in better outcomes for the students.
Recently, 3C Institute finished conducting Phase I testing of a fully functional prototype of the W.O.R.K. program. Students, their parents, and educators supporting these students were asked to review and rate the program. All stakeholder groups rated the program as high in quality, usefulness, innovation, and ease of use. Educators found the prototype to be of high feasibility and reported there isn’t enough work-based technology for students with intellectual disability. Stakeholders were also able to give us outstanding recommendations for further development (e.g., ways to help students bridge skills to class, blend of visual elements).
I am contacting you in hope that you might consider writing a letter of support for this grant. We feel that the mission and values of your organization in helping individuals with intellectual disabilities develop job skills and increase independence matches our goals of developing this online program. Your support of the development of this program would be invaluable in our efforts and aid in receiving funding from NIDILRR. Providing a letter in no way obligates you to anything…instead it just demonstrates to reviewers and NIDILRR that this program is needed, wanted and that funds should be spent to build this tool. Dr. Childress, Project PI, or I would be happy to talk with you more about this grant if you have any questions. I have also included the link to 3C Institute below.
If willing, I would be happy to draft a sample letter that you can then edit if that would be helpful. We need finalized letters by July 16th to integrate them into our application prior to submission.
Unfortunately, we are under rather tight time constraints so I would appreciate it if you could reply as soon as possible. Of course, if you have any questions, please feel free to contact me. I look forward to hearing from you!
Best regards,
Kelsie
Kelsie Adkisson
Research Assistant
3C Institute
Debra Childress, Ph.D.
Senior Research Associate
3C Institute
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