Society for the Blind Receives $30K Grant From Ability Central

Ability Central recently awarded Society for the Blind in Sacramento a $30,000 capacity building grant to create a leadership program for staff. Of the first seven staff members to be trained for management roles, six are visually impaired.

“Cultivating our employees’ leadership skills and moving them into managerial positions at Society for the Blind is our mission in action,” said Shari Roeseler, executive director, Society for the Blind. “Having leadership and staff that reflect the people we serve will position us even better to be the provider of choice for people with vision loss.”

With several long-time employees nearing retirement, the organization is working to cultivate leadership from within. The grant from Ability Central will allow Society for the Blind to conduct an assessment, generate a strategic plan and create an accessible leadership program over the next year.

“Ability Central is excited to support Society for the Blind’s leadership and capacity building efforts,” said Silke Brendel-Evan, associate program officer, Ability Central. “We are impressed by Society for the Blind’s inclusive practices – emphasizing the importance of stakeholder input and empowering individuals with vision impairments to become leaders – and the overall thoughtful planning for sustainable leadership development.”

For 66 years, Society for the Blind has created innovative ways to empower individuals living with low vision or blindness to discover, develop and achieve their full potential. Society for the Blind has grown from a dedicated group of volunteers to a nationally recognized agency and the only comprehensive rehabilitative teaching center that provides services for a 27-county region of northern California. The nonprofit provides low-vision eye care, life and job skills training, mentorship, and access to tools to maintain independence for more than 5,000 youth, working-age adults and seniors experiencing vision loss each year. For more information or to make a donation, visit SocietyfortheBlind.org.

Ability Central works to improve communications access for people with disabilities. Formerly known as Disability Communications Fund, Ability Central awards grants to community-based nonprofit or educational organizations in California that establish projects and programs to benefit the communication needs of Californians of all ages with disabilities. For more information, visit DCFund.us.