Building Full Lives is an initiative of the Board to create opportunities for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) (including individuals with diverse identities and/or who are underserved), to have lives in their community that include:
- Respect: People are respected and valued by others in the community, not just paid staff.
- Community participation: People are involved in a growing network of relationships; this is a relationship network beyond paid staff and disability professionals.
- Competent Contribution: People are assisted to understand their gifts, talents, knowledge, and abilities; and to use these personal assets to make a living through
work, and give back to others. - Choice: People are assisted to make as many choices about their day as possible, including both small choices (e.g. what to wear) and big choices (e.g. where to work)
One key feature of a Full Life is involvement in a diverse community, where people are engaged in the same activities that others who live in the same community engage in. For working-age adults; this has led to a strong connection between Full Days and participation in integrated employment. As Employment First grows across the country, efforts to promote and support Full Lives have come to embrace participation in integrated employment as the anchor of a meaningful day.
For more on Building Full Lives, see https://wi-bpdd.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/BFL-BPDD-Board-Presentation-2017.pdf