LIFTT – Learning Independence For Today and Tomorrow
What's my room like?
Dorm style – Bed, desk, windows and it’s huge!
Is there a kitchen?
Yes! Shared among LIFTT students and it’s nice!
A place to unwind?
Got that too! Living room with TV and comforts!
Learning Independence for Today and Tomorrow
Criteria for Entrance Into the LIFTT Program
Considerations for admittance to the LIFTT program are based on the premise that a young adult participant has a “basic level” of independent living skills. To be considered eligible to apply for the LIFTT program, they MUST have the following pre-requisite skills.
- Participant must be a graduate of a high school program and in an open case status with the Department of Services for the Blind (or, if not living in Washington, the VR agency in the state they reside), and does not qualify for or receive services from other state agencies that provide support for living and self-care, such as the Developmental Disabilities Administration. This means participant is expected to live independently in the future.
- Participant must be at least 18 years old and an emancipated adult.
- Participant is able to perform and consistently demonstrate, without prompting, independence in daily personal care/hygiene.
- Cooking instruction and oversight from LIFTT staff does not occur at every meal. Participant must have the independent skills to manage simple cooking and food handling tasks, such as simple meals, basic clean up skills, managing food allergies independently, etc., to help maintain a healthy lifestyle.
- Participant is personally motivated to participate in the LIFTT program, and can independently formulate and state rational, acceptable reasons for seeking to participate in the program.
- Participant MUST be able to self-manage their behavior, be able to get along with others in a group setting and be safe in an unsupervised setting. (a) Their behavior can not interfere with the activities of other LIFTT participants and (b) LIFTT staff are not always in direct supervision of LIFTT participants, so they need basic personal management skills.
- Participant MUST be trustworthy in using their free time in such a manner to not put themselves or others in jeopardy. It is expected that participant must be able to manage their daily schedule with a general level of independence.
The objective of the LIFTT Program is to provide our participants with an opportunity to experience and practice independence in a safe environment before they venture into less protective settings as young adults. Instruction is not aimed at teaching “basic independence skills”. Rather, it is designed to expand the participant’s present levels of basic independence in areas such as; effective personal management; good management of personal time, self-care, independent travel skills, skills of household management, money management and budgeting, making informed career choices, attending college or vocational schools and maintaining good student standing, and/or getting work experiences/job, and exhibiting good work habits.
Though there is some group instruction and staff organized activities, much of a participant’s time is spent learning the skills they need to live life independently and confidently.
Participants in the LIFTT Program deliberately spend a good deal of their time without staff structuring their time. This allows them to be able to learn to assume personal responsibility for their day to day activities.