Cuyahoga DD Awarded DODD Keeping Families Together Grant

The Ohio Department of Developmental Disabilities (DODD) recently awarded $1 million in funding to County Boards of Developmental Disabilities to support the goal of keeping the families of multi-system youth intact through its Keeping Families Together grant. Cuyahoga DD was awarded $132,000; $44,000 allocated for the 2022 fiscal year and $88,000 for the 2023 fiscal year.

The Keeping Families Together funding will be used to supplement existing programs Cuyahoga DD has in place for multi-system youth, including a new four-bed respite home in Shaker Heights and a youth Intermediate Care Facility (ICF). Funding will be used to provide staff incentives, such as sign-on bonuses, to help ensure the continuity of care, and it will allow for staff with clinical experience to be placed in each facility. In addition, Keeping Families Together funding will be used to purchase equipment and technology to help people adapt and be comfortable in these temporary settings, and it will provide individuals with an item that they can take with them, to ease the transition back home with their families.