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What is the Self-Determination Program?
The Self-Determination Program is meant to empower people with disabilities and their families who are Regional Center consumers. Meeting the needs of the individual through a Person-Centered Plan (PCP) is key. A PCP lays out the person’s goals with steps to achieve them and is used to create a budget. The money Regional Center spends on the participant becomes their budget. An independent facilitator will write the PCP and create a spending plan based on the budget. One of the benefits of the Self-Determination Program is participants can purchase goods and services from the community instead of sticking with vendored providers. The Self-Determination Program was founded on five key principles: freedom, authority, support, responsibility, and confirmation. As a person with a disability, I understand first-hand how the traditional service model doesn’t work for everyone. My job, as an independent facilitator is easing the transition from the traditional system into the Self-Determination Program. My Background I’ve been a Regional Center client my entire life. Some services were easily attained, others not so much. The same can be said for the school district. My parents were my best advocates as a child. By watching and talking to them I learned how to advocate for myself. In high school, I ran my IEPs. This was excellent practice for working with the Regional Center on my IPPs and my IPEs for the Department of Rehabilitation. When the Self-Determination Program pilot began I sat on the Consumer Advisory Committee. My passion to empower others led to Cal State University Northridge where I graduated Summa Cum Laude with a Bachelor’s degree in Social Welfare and Social Justice. I spent three years on the Board of Directors for the CHIME Institute. Currently, I’m on the Regional Advisory Committee and the Self-Advocate Committee for the local State Council on Developmental Disabilities. I'm a scholar at the California Leadership, Education, for Neurological and Related Disorders (LEND) Program at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. My participation with Inclusion Matters by Shane’s Inspiration resulted in a position as Resource Manager for their website. As an independent facilitator I will:
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