For Providers

Realizing Interdependence Success & Empowerment

(RISE) Client Leadership Team

 Redwood Coast Regional Center is one of 21 locally-based nonprofit private corporations that contract with the State of California to develop and coordinate community resources and supports for people with developmental disabilities and their families. Redwood Coast Regional Center serves Californians who reside in Del Norte, Humboldt, Lake, and Mendocino Counties.

Our group is called Realizing Interdependence Success & Empowerment (RISE). We are a group of self-advocates who make decisions about what would help us and other people with developmental disabilities, and who should help us do what we decide.  This includes deciding how to spend money for HCBS implementation funds FY 24/25.

We have been working together since 2022 on various projects with consistent success and have a history of making great work happen.  We decided to spend most of the money on self-advocacy projects, like peer coaching, developing self-advocacy skills, developing literacy skills and assistive technology for self-advocacy, workshops and trainings led by self-advocates, self-advocates participating in the decisions about what makes services good, focus groups and listening sessions to improve our service systems, sharing our experiences through skits, and building community together. Some of these will be through community learning events. We also decided to keep having RISE meetings to make sure that we know how these projects are going and keep learning from each other.

We agree all of the projects we fund need to be accessible to the people who come (and to everyone whenever possible) across disability experiences and backgrounds.

We support spending money on any or all of these important things. Many of these projects will require support to accomplish (people will be paid to help us make them happen), and we want to choose who does that, too.

Goal:

The money is for helping people (RCRC clients) have good lives in the community, like being safe and having real choices. Self-advocacy is an important way to do this! Self-advocacy is broad and includes learning about and being supported to have choices in all areas of our lives.

The purpose of the project is to support the Home & Community Based Settings Final Rule criteria by supporting clients to connect, have access to, and understand their rights as follows:

  1. Access the Community
  2. Have their choice of service setting
  3. Have a right to be treated well
  4. Maximize their independence
  5. Have their choice of Services and Supports

Residential Settings:

  1. Have the same rights as any other tenant
  2. Have privacy in their living unit
  3. Be in control of their own schedule and have access to food
  4. Have a right to visitors
  5. Live in a home that is physically accessible to them

 Funding:

FY 24/25 Up to $432,287.00 available for projects to be completed June 30th 2027.

 

Projects:

All projects will ensure access, including language translation, physical and/or virtual accessibility and plain language! Elements of a project may include all, or parts, of the following:

  1. Self-Advocacy
  • Peer coaching
  • Client-led workshops and trainings for Direct Support Professionals, RCRC, and others
  • Community-building activities by advocates for everyone
    • may include establishing/restarting People First chapters
    • Includes funds for community event costs in each county
  • May include local and state advocacy
  • May include interpersonal and sexual self-advocacy
  • Literacy and language access, including adaptive technological supports
  1. Relationships and Social Connections
    • Social Skills Groups
    • Friendship and relationship building opportunities
      • Access to opportunities for natural friendships
    • Relationship coaching and counseling
      • Navigating difficult social situations and adverse experiences
      • Complex interpersonal dynamics, such as between people and their paid support
  1. Projects for specific vendors to enhance their services in alignment with the HCBS Final Rule and improve client access to their rights.

All interested parties are required to schedule a presentation about their proposed project with the RCRC RISE Client Leadership Team.  All presentations scheduled will be reviewed by a team of RISE Client Leadership evaluators.  

What to consider in your presentation:

You will be presenting to the RISE Client Leadership Team. The RISE Client Leadership Team is made up of people receiving services who have specific experience and knowledge about self-advocacy. We are passionate about making sure people with developmental disabilities have as many rights and choices as any other person. We recognize the importance of having excellent support staff who facilitate meaningful access to the work of making our vision (a vision of supports directed by people with a range of developmental disabilities and life experiences) a reality. We appreciate your interest in working with us and look forward to your presentation. You will have 20 minutes for your presentation and 20 minutes for questions and answers.

Tips for your presentation:  

Suggested topics and questions to answer in your presentation:

  • What is your mission statement?
  • What do you see as a positive outcome for your project? How will you work to achieve it?
  • How will you approach different learning styles, be engaging, and build relationships with the people you support? These strategies should be reflected in how you deliver your presentation to us, as much as possible.
  • What are some examples of your work with self-advocates, or your work supporting people to reach their goals?
  • What will people do when they participate in your project? How will they give you feedback about what’s working?

Above information needs to be submitted with the request to schedule presentations to:

Alex Ostell, Participant Choice Manager aostell@redwoodcoastrc.org

TIMELINE: Ongoing

Proposals will continue to be considered until all funds have been awarded

Submit request to schedule presentation and supporting information (below) via email to aostell@redwoodcoastrc.org

Presentations MUST include the following items:

  • Identify what elements of the self-advocacy project you will be providing
  • Will your service be one time funding or will you develop a service that may continue beyond the grant funding through an RCRC vendorization
  • Identify where services will be provided (Del Norte, Humboldt, Lake and/or Mendocino Counties).
  • Amount of funds requested for each fiscal year
  • Timeline for the project
  • Equity and Diversity: A statement outlining the applicant’s plan to serve diverse populations, including, culturally and linguistically diverse populations; examples of the applicant’s commitment to addressing the needs of those diverse populations; and any additional information that the applicant deems relevant to issues of equity and diversity.
  • Zero Tolerance Policy for Client Abuse and Neglect: A statement that describes the steps the applicant will take to ensure client safety and to reduce the risk of individuals supported from being abused.

Before beginning work on the RFP or if there are any questions regarding this RFP, it is strongly recommended that interested parties contact the Client Advocate for their area:

Lake & Mendocino Counties:

Alex Bland 707-462-3832 ext. 280

abland@redwoodcoastrc.org

Humboldt & Del Norte Counties:

Elizabeth Hassler 707-445-0893 ext. 321

ehassler@redwoodcoastrc.org

For Technical Assistance please contact Alex Ostell, Participant Choice Manager at 707-445-0893 ext. 317 or aostell@redwoodcoastrc.org  

Contracts:

If a proposal for self-advocacy services is selected, the applicant will be required to enter into a contract with RCRC.

All applicants awarded funds for a project will be required to report monthly to RISE Client Leadership Team  progress on the project development.

RCRC reserves the right to withdraw this Request for Proposals (RFP) at any time without prior notice. Further, RCRC makes no representation that any agreement will be awarded to any applicant responding to this RFP. RCRC reserves the right to reject the proposal of any respondent who, in the opinion of RCRC, is not responsible or has previously failed to perform properly or is not in a position to operate within the service design.

Link to RISE HCBS RPF