Information and Referral
Find out about all kinds of resources in your area and around the United States. When we don’t know the answer, we search the Internet. You can, too. We will gladly refer you to any resources you choose and follow up to make sure you receive services. Request Form
Independent Living Skills Training
We offer a life-long learning program for individuals who did not graduate from high school or who need to refresh what they learned in high school. It is an open entry, open exit program from 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m., Monday through Friday. Certified instructors assist each participant to develop an Adult Individualized Education Plan.
The curriculum includes money management, home safety and appliance use, housekeeping, grocery shopping, transportation use, hygiene and grooming, personal attendant management, cooking, computer literacy, including Internet use, leisure time development, and sign language instruction.
This is a collaborative effort among Miami-Dade County Public Schools, Community Education Department; Miami-Dade County Office of Human Services; Miami-Dade County Park and Recreation; and Miami-Dade Transportation Agency. The curriculum includes basic reading, writing and math taught around independent living skills, sign language instruction for those who are deaf or hard of hearing, and basic computer literacy. Medicaid Waiver
Independent Living Skills for Deaf, H/H, and Deaf-Blind
Peer Support
Meet staff and volunteers who are excellent examples of what independent living is all about. They know how to listen and are always willing to share their knowledge and experience to help you live more independently. One student provides peer support to another by communicating in tactile sign language.
Individual Advocacy
It’s all about asking for what you need to live independently. You can learn to advocate for yourself. Know your rights under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and be confident when talking to people who THINK they know what’s best for you.
Housing Assistance
There is a critical shortage of affordable, accessible, integrated housing in the county. Don’t expect miracles, but we will help you fill out applications, get on waiting lists, and search for the type of housing that meets your individual needs and your budget.
Moving from Institutions to Community Living
CILSF is actively moving individuals with disabilities from institutions such as nursing homes, assisted living facilities, mental health centers, and group homes) to the community. However, we can only do this when we are invited into the facility or institution by the person who wants to live in the community. Call the Nursing Home Transition Advocate at 305-751-8025 (voice) or 305-751-8891 (TTY), if you want to live independently in the community, and she will work with you to reach your goals.
Institutions may be hospitals, nursing homes, rehabilitation facilities, mental health facilities, assisted living facilities, shelters, or group homes. If you are living somewhere that feels like an institution, it probably is. The law says that you are entitled to live in the least restrictive environment, but your doctor has to agree that you can live in the community, either with or without community supports like personal attendant care and/or homemaker services.
- How can Center for Independent Living help? Our goal is to help you leave an institution to live in the community if you’re already there, or to divert you to community living if a rehabilitation center or hospital is thinking about sending you to an institution for long-term care. Our role is to help you think about the expenses you’re going to have in the community and budget for them.
- What is the transition process like? It’s often a long term process, not a quick fix. It involves working closely with your advocate and the social worker at the facility where you are living. Your needs have to be carefully assessed to determine if they can be met in the community. For example, do you have to re-learn independent living skills such as cooking, cleaning, managing an attendant, managing money, banking, shopping, employability skills, social skills, and linking with community resources, skills you may have forgotten if you’ve been in an institution for a long time. We can help you relearn any of the skills you might need to live in the community. We can also provide you with a bus pass or paratransit vouchers for up to 3 months once you move to the community.
If you want our help, you have to invite us into the facility where you live. We need your name, address, and a phone number where you can be reach so that we can schedule an appointment with you. Otherwise we aren’t allowed to come in to a facility to talk with you because the law protects your right to privacy.
If you are interested in finding out more about living in the community instead of an institution, call Jackson David at (305) 354-4424 or email him at Jackson@soflacil.org
Transition from High School to Work and Community
If you graduated with a special diploma and don’t know where to go from here, we can help. It doesn’t matter what your age is, you can enroll in educational classes that prepare you to pass the G.E.D. and enjoy field trips to parks, beaches, malls, movies and sports events. Then we’ll show you how to get into a vocational or technical school, even college, if that’s what you want to do. For more information, contact Maria Rodriguez at 305-751-8025, Ext. 124 (voice) or 305-751-8891 (TTY), or e-mail Maria@soflacil.org