Easterseals Southeast Wisconsin

Our purpose is to change the way the world views and defines disabilities by making profound, positive differences in people's lives every day.

We will accomplish this by:
• Educating families and the community on early identification of developmental delays and signs of autism.
• Providing services early in life to improve each child's school readiness.
• Providing employment programs to ensure that students and adults secure and maintain meaningful employment.
• Providing community-based services and supports that give individuals living with disabilities and their families the opportunity to stay in their community of choice and reach their life goals.

Easterseals Southeast Wisconsin will employ the following strategies to accomplish our goals:
• Develop and adopt evidenced-based best practices that improve outcomes.
• Adapt business practices that increase effectiveness and provide better outcomes of our services.
• Connect partners from the public, private and non-profit sectors to build understanding and create effective collaborations that strengthen our community.
• Advocate for our vision and create community awareness of disability-related issues at all government levels with support from our national Easter Seals network.
• Assemble an innovative, professional, and culturally diverse team of staff and volunteers who support and create opportunities to make our vision a reality.
• Employ technology and systems that support our community-based approach and allow greater flexibility in service delivery.

Easterseals provides direct care, education and intervention services for approximately 10,000 individuals and their families each year in Milwaukee, Ozaukee, Washington, Racine, Kenosha, and Waukesha Counties.
We have earned a positive reputation and have built a respected brand from nearly 80 years of service to our community. We are seen as a “trusted expert" in disability and community issues. Here's why:
• Nearly 50 years of job training experience and relationships with local employers.
• Proven ability to adapt in a rapidly changing environment through two successful mergers and multiple program expansions.
• Network of community-based facilities allows us to meet local and regional needs.
• Partnerships with leading organizations (Children's Hospital of Wisconsin, ManpowerGroup) that allow local employers and companies to engage in our mission through volunteerism, financial support and service development.
• Investment in infrastructure and human capital to achieve our vision by:
a. Bringing together the best, brightest and most passionate staff with professional experiences across the lifespan.
b. Tapping into the generosity of our region with over 500 volunteers engaged in volunteer activities.
c. Technology structure that supports community-based service delivery.

Easterseals knows that we are making progress based on the impact that our services have in the lives of the individuals we serve, as well as our overall community. The following impact statements illustrate our program outcomes:
• When identified early in a child's life, Easterseals early intervention services increases school readiness, thereby decreasing the need for special education services by 50%. This results in a savings of thousands of dollars in remediation costs for every child served.
• Easterseals autism services increases a child's ability to learn and grow alongside typically-developing peers, enabling them to develop into adults who live and work independently in our community. This results in a savings of more than $1 million per person in education and adult living costs.
• Easterseals Community Support services (Care Management Unit and Guardianship services) reduce costly institutional placements, saving an average of $452 per month for each individual in Wisconsin's long term care system. By coordinating care and tapping into community-based services, we improve the quality of life and health for individuals, enabling them to live in the community of their choice.
• It is estimated that due to caregiving responsibilities, the total retirement funds of a typical caregiver is reduced by $303,880. Easterseals Adult Day Services improves the overall quality of life and financial stability of families and caregivers of adults with chronic illnesses or disabilities, allowing caregivers to earn a living while their loved one develops new skills, has increased relationships and while their overall health needs are met.
• Easterseals Recreation and Camp programs lower children and adolescents' risk for health problems such as obesity and heart disease by engaging in physical activities that are adapted to meet their individual needs.
• Hiring individuals with disabilities saves our communities dollars and generates economic growth. In 2011, the cost for employment services in Wisconsin was $26,803,459 with annual earnings of $56,393,506 from those individuals. This is a 2:1 cost ratio.