Easter Seals Project ACTION Mini Grants for Trainees in the AUCD Network
February 26, 2007
Mini Grant Highlights- Awards of $1,000 for up to three mini grants to trainees in the AUCD network.
- Produce a report or literature review in APA
style on a topic of significance related to public transportation from the
disability community perspective.
- ESPA will review the student's final draft
report and make recommendations so the resulting report will be publication-ready
for our clearinghouse.
- ESPA will offer the project report in its clearinghouse and website.
Mini Grant
Announcement
Easter Seals Project ACTION (Accessible Community
Transportation in Our Nation), in cooperation with the Association of
University Centers on Disabilities (AUCD), announces a student mini-grant opportunity
to produce a product that relates to public transportation for people with
disabilities. Please note: proposed
projects may not be related to airline travel.
Through this program, ESPA awards mini grants to a selected group of undergraduate or graduate students participating in LEND or UCEDD programs. Grant awards are for $1,000 for each project and payment will be made in 2 payments: $500 will be paid at the time of a signed agreement, and $500 will be paid upon acceptance of the final project report.
The intent of ESPA is to fund projects to create report or literature review in APA style on a topic of significance related to public transportation from the disability community perspective. The report should address issues related to transportation challenges that people with disabilities encounter in their communities. ESPA will review the student's final draft report and make recommendations so the resulting report will be publication-ready for the ESPA Clearinghouse. In addition, this sponsored project seeks to increase the involvement of university students in the issues that surround accessible transportation and the impacts and implications on the lives of people with disabilities.
Some sample topic areas for consideration:
- Travel training and other customer supports for using transportation.
- Accessibility issues related to paying fare on public transportation.
- Ways to increase fixed-route ridership for people with disabilities.
- The role of Personal Care Assistants on public transportation.
- An overview of the issues faced by people with mental illness and public transportation use.
- ADA transportation options through coordinated private networks.
- An exploration of the issues related to environmental barriers in the pedestrian environment.
- Importance of incorporating the concept of universal design in transit projects.
- A discussion on the topic of transitioning youth and the integration of public transportation as part of an IEP.
ESPA is a national technical assistance program funded through the US Department of Transportation, Federal Transit Administration. Established by Congress in 1988, ESPA facilitates cooperation between the transportation and disability communities and works to increase the availability and use of accessible transportation for people with disabilities of all ages. ESPA provides a variety of training, technical assistance, and products, and supports research opportunities and projects.
Mini Grant
Application Instructions
Applicants must submit, by email, a brief proposal and a letter
of support from a LEND or UCEDD staff member of their institution to Maggie
Nygren by March 13, 2007. The brief proposal (no more than 1.5 pages)
must:
- Identify a proposed topic (must be related to public transportation and may not be related to airline travel) and proposed product type (e.g., literature review, white paper, etc.).
- Provide a brief explanation of the significance of the topic to the disability community.
- Offer an acknowledgement that the final draft report will be provided to ESPA no later than June 30, 2007 and a revised final project report will be provided to ESPA within two weeks of receipt of reviewer comments.