Easter Seals Inc.

Filing Period

Jan 1, 2012 to Dec 31, 2012

Signed

Jul 25, 2013

Return Version

2012v2.1

Gross Receipts

$91,736,706

Mission

Major Activities

Activity 2

Easter Seals Project Action (ESPA) is a cooperative agreement funded by the Department of Transportation, Federal Transit Administration (FTA). Its mission is to further accessible transportation for people with disabilities of all ages through partnerships, resources, training and outreach.Highlights of 2012 activities include: ESPA carrying the message of accessible transportation to nearly every state and the District of Columbia, reaching 7,168 individuals 2,971 more than in 2011; making significant progress in the health and transportation initiative to expand awareness about the connection between health and wellness and access to transportation; providing technical assistance to 4,576 people, an increase of more than 260 percent over the previous year; and producing 27 new or updated products. ESPA is a national leader in travel training as well as creating community awareness about the importance of accessible transportation through the Livability and Sustainability Program championed by FTA. Through very close partnerships with the two national transit associations American Public Transportation (APTA) and Community Transportation Association of America (CTAA) ESPA promoted collaborations in the Partnership for Mobility Management and the National Human Services Consortium.Training & Technical Assistance: ESPA staff conducted more focused, in-depth training to continue a community involvement approach begun in 2011. We provided accessible transportation-related education to 2,592 people at 43 events, with a 5 percent increase of people trained over 2011. Technical assistance continues to expand to local communities with a greater depth of engagement. Rates of support in technical assistance and information and referral services jumped to 4,576 persons served, a more than 260 percent increase from 2011. Staff assisted nine communities with technical assistance through the Accessible Transportation Coalition Initiative (ATCI) community-based, systems-change model. We saw a significant increase in the time needed and devoted to providing in-depth technical assistance during 2012. Staff upped the level and depth of follow-up assistance provided to each of the ATCI teams from 2011 to 2012 in addition to following up with each new team as their community event took place. The total number of customers who contacted ESPA (attending training, using our 800# or getting targeted technical assistance) was 7,168 an increase of more than 70 percent from 4,197 in 2011. Outreach/Communication: ESPA expanded awareness about accessible transportation, presenting at 50 events with over 2,640 attendees. In addition, staff participated in 56 meetings related to topics included in our 2012 statement of work goals. This total of 106 events/standing committee activities averaging almost 2 per week is comparable to 111 events in 2011.Partnership is an essential element of ESPA's outreach. ESPA has formal collaborations that include significant joint educational product development over 24 years. In 2012, ESPA produced pocket guides with the American Medical Association on "Planning for Transportation After Medical Services," The Daniel Jordan Fiddle Foundation and Feeley Consulting on "GET Going! Guide" for people on the autism spectrum, and the CDC Aging Network on a "Neighborhood Wayfinding Assessment." ESPA's 2012 education and awareness efforts on youth transportation yielded a collaboration with the Chicago Public Schools and the Chicago Regional Transit Authority on a student travel-training and transporting-education program that can be replicated in other venues. ESPA products were ordered by and shipped to 1,375 customers. Over the course of the year, ESPA wrote, edited, printed and/or posted a record total of 27 new or revised products and resources, including pocket guides, informational topic guides, training manuals, curriculum and special reports. E-news was sent monthly, with an average of 8,580 monthly subscribers at year's e

Activity 3

National Center on Senior Transportation (NCST) The FTA re-competed the National Center for Senior Transportation (NCST) cooperative agreement in 2012 and Easter Seals, along with our partner the National Association of Area Agencies on Aging, won this full and open competition. The new program began in June 2012. This report includes information and figures that cross over two cooperative agreements with a significant amount of time when no agreement was in effect. The lower level of activity reflected in this report is a result of this gap.The NCST educates and promotes awareness of the issues around and the need for more transportation options for older adults in the communities. The program is distinct in its focus on community grant-making for the purpose of finding and testing best practices in senior transportation options. The NCST gained prominence as a key "go to" organization for information and best practices on transportation options for older adults, serving a very wide group of national and local stakeholders through the outreach of staff and the partnership with the National Association of Area Agencies on Aging (n4a). Easter Seals and n4a co-lead this grant. Key initiatives in 2012 were community mini-grants with a focus on diversity and building bridges with the gerontology and public health community, which led to strong partnerships with the Centers for Disease Control and the American Medical Association. The NCST continues to lead the way in diversity outreach and hosts coalition building meetings that further the understanding of the many barriers elders from multi-cultural and multi-lingual communities face. Through partnerships with national aging organizations and services providers, NCST has increased national awareness of the transportation needs of older adults. The partnership with the Eldercare Locator vastly expanded in the new NCST - continues to make the NCST a resource to assist older adults who need a ride.Technical assistance and information and referral: 644 people were provided with technical assistance and information and referral service through the toll-free 800#. In partnership with the Eldercare Locator, NCST convened a teleconference that 31 Area Agencies on Aging from 14 states joined. An additional 8,354 people received assistance with their transportation needs as a result of that call. The total number of customers who contacted NCST either using our 800# or getting targeted technical assistance was 8,998 in 2012, up from 2,371 in 2011.Outreach/Communication: NCST created awareness at 33 events reaching 1,661 attendees. E-news subscriptions grew 4 percent from 2011 to 4,937 subscribers by year's end. Website traffic remained steady with the monthly average number of unique visitors at 4,661. In addition, the number of online community members totaled 243 and the new Twitter account included 65 followers by year's end. The total number of events hosted by or participated in totaled 45 for 2012, a little more than half of the 77 in 2011. Again, comparable considering the period of full staff activity was about six months. The total number of persons served was 15,628, which includes the average monthly website visitors. Considering the project was nearly dormant for six months of the year, this number is a significant upward trend given the 2011 full year number was 18,310 persons served. Grant efficiency improved significantly with the new grant in 2012. Grant revenue/# persons served was $24 per person, a 50 percent decrease in per-person-served cost from the $47 per-person-served from 2011.Total FTEs for 2012 were 5.4 (2.4 ES staff and 3 n4a staff), resulting in grant effectiveness for 2012 (# persons served/# FTEs) of 2,878 persons served per FTE, approximately a 5 percent increase over the 2,733 persons served/FTE in 2011. Thus, despite having the new grant for only six months of the year, the interest and volume of customers was significantly higher than the old grant. This

Filer

EIN

36-2171729