28th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act July 26, 2018 marks the 28th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) signed by President George H.W. Bush on July 26, 1990. The ADA and the ADA Amendments Act of 2008 (ADAAA) give civil rights protections to individuals......
02 July, 2018Community Conversations Designed to Increase Input from People with Disabilities in SPIL The SILC kicked off its Community Conversations series on April 13 as part of the Statewide Needs Assessment used to inform the development of the Statewide Plan for Independent Living (SPIL) in......
17 April, 2018UPCOMING ELECTIONS State and Federal Primary and General Elections are Aug. 2 and Nov. 6, 2018. You can find more information about who’s running at the Tennessee Secretary of State’s website. Local elections happen May 1st. Information can be found at the Tennessee Secretary of State’s website......
01 April, 2018The primary duty of the SILC is to develop a State Plan for Independent Living (SPIL) in partnership with the Centers for Independent Living (CILs). This is a big undertaking, as the needs of our communities are diverse and unique to each person’s abilities and......
20 March, 2018Share your Nursing Home Transition Success Story “Money Follows the Person” is a straight forward name for a program designed to help people with disabilities live in their communities. The Money Follows the Person (MFP) Program promotes community-based care and services that allow people with......
26 February, 2018SILC was thrilled to attend the 2017 SOUTHEASTERN POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION ALLIANCE (SEPSEA) Conference in Nashville at Vanderbilt University. The speakers were all engaging and informative students in postsecondary programs, teachers, administrators, family members, and advocates. SILC loved learning from them and is excited to share the......
25 February, 2018STATEWIDE INDEPENDENT LIVING COUNCIL OF TN The SILC TN is governed by a Council appointed by the Governor for three year commitments. The SILC is comprised of Tennesseans with diverse disabilities and advocates for people with disabilities from across the state. The SILC strives to......
22 January, 2018by Francisca Guzman, SILC TN Associate Director One of my cousins has an 18-year-old son, Jaime, who has a developmental disability. Being from a large family, there was little thought given to this fact. Jaime was a member of the family, and he and his......
09 January, 2018Dear Friends: As we approach the end of 2017, I find myself, as I’m sure many of you do, reflecting on the year behind us. This year, the Statewide Independent Living Council of Tennessee (SILC) faced many transitions. We saw changes in our leadership, responded......
19 December, 2017As part of Disability Employment Awareness Month, the SILC is participating in Hire My Strengths! Hire My Strengths is a social media campaign that encourages anyone and everyone (with a disability or not) to think about what they’re good at. No matter what it is,......
05 October, 2017THE BENEFITS OF INDEPENDENT LIVING Boston University’s Master of Science in Health Communication program just released a new infographic sharing some of the many benefits of Independent Living for people with disabilities. BETTER QUALITY OF LIFE One of the leading benefits of living independently is better quality......
02 September, 2017This article was originally published by TennesseeWorks. By Linnet Overton, SILC TN Executive Director Most people take for granted their ability to choose where and how to live, work, and play. For the more than a million Tennesseans with disabilities though, barriers in our communities......
02 August, 2017At the June 2017 SILC Quarterly Meeting Tennessee’s Centers for Independent Living Shared some great successes achieved in the past quarter. Memphis Center for Independent Living We are thrilled to inform you that MCIL was selected for a Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation Paralysis Resource......
30 June, 2017CBO score released on Senate Health Care Bill, new provision added to penalize lapse in coverage by TN Council on Developmental Disabilities Due to rapid developments this week, we are writing with updates related to the Senate health care bill, the “Better Care Reconciliation Act“. Yesterday, Monday......
27 June, 2017New Executive Director, Statewide Independent Living Council of Tennessee, INC. The Statewide independent Living Council of Tennessee (SILC) is announced a vacancy for an Executive Director to provide administrative leadership for the organization in May 2017. SILC was sad to see their previous Executive Director......
22 June, 2017Supported Decision-Making: Creating a Continuum of Choice is a white paper that highlights an emerging best-practice known as Supported Decision-Making (SDM). SDM provides a framework for broadening the choices available to people with disability who need help making decisions. Unlike existing options, which include conservatorships and Powers......
20 March, 2017Disability Day on the Hill 2017 Wednesday, February 8th 9am-2pm CST Welcome Event 10:15 – 11:45am, Old Supreme Court Room 301 6th Ave North, Nashville, TN 3724 We encourage you to call and set up in-person meetings with your state legislators! Find them at: www.capitol.tn.gov......
01 March, 2017The Independent Living (IL) philosophy seeks to empower people with disabilities to exert influence, choice, and control over all aspects of their lives. In practice, IL support teaches the self advocacy process of goal determination and navigating barriers to achieve one’s goals. For example, Ashley,......
17 January, 2017The Statewide Independent Living Council of Tennessee (SILC) holds regular meetings on the second Wednesday of July, October, January, and April for each fiscal year. Proposed meeting schedule for FY19 is as follows, in addition to proposed alternate meeting dates in the event of inclement......
07 March, 2016