An organization like AbilityFirst, with many clients and staff, whose headquarters, homes, centers, and camps function span hundreds of miles, faces a challenge when it comes to training. Before using CDS online curriculum, too often training meant, gathering employees, new or old, to one site, which can be daunting, especially for a small non-profit, and usually means scheduling challenges and long face-to-face… Read more

For April El, becoming a direct support professional (DSP) meant following the advice that her grandfather gave her many years ago. “He told me that you can be on the sidelines, or you can get in the game,” April says. “Provide changes for someone else and do something!”

Beginning in 2002, Kansas offered a grant to implement the College of Direct Support (CDS) curriculum to organizations around the state. At the time, any intellectual developmental disability service provider could access the CDS online curriculum at no cost.

For nearly a decade, Pennsylvania’s Department of Public Welfare Office of Developmental Programs (ODP) has continued to provide self-advocates, families and direct support staff with access to DirectCourse/College of Direct Support (CDS). Pennsylvania became the first state in the country to adopt the CDS online curriculum for uniform education across the entire state.

See how Kentucky made strides to provide the highest quality training available for their DSPs and other support staff.

There is a unique initiative underway at the University of New Hampshire’s Institute on Disability. Its name is “DirectConnect” and it was created to help identify and put into place sustainable best-practice models for the recruiting, training, educating and retaining of directcare workers across four population sectors – aging, mental health, physical and developmental disabilities.

Learn more about OHI’s greatest assets, the 260 Direct Support Professionals (DSPs), who support more than 600 people with intellectual disabilities, mental illnesses and autism – many of whom are or have recently been homeless.

Inclusion is the most important factor in the field of intellectual and developmental disabilities. Discover how Apple Patch provides the support services needed to help individuals become more included and succeed on a personal level.

The Emory Valley Center (EVC) began using the College of Direct Support (CDS) online learning in 2008 and our staff, unaccustomed to computer-based training, responded quite well! How well? EVC staff members who once dreaded training now request classes from the CDS.