When: Friday, July 10, 2020, 10:00 - 11:00 a.m. EDT
Online only: https://www.brookings.edu/events/affordable-housing-for-special-needs-adults/
What: Adults with disabilities face serious challenges finding accessible, affordable housing that offers them a supportive community. Today, fewer than one in four adults with disabilities live independently. Existing housing alternatives are limited, expensive, and lack meaningful inclusion. Of the 5.1 million Americans with an intellectual or developmental disability, 3.5 million of them live with their families, generally with aging parents who carry immense worry about what will happen to their adult children when they are gone.
In addition to a lack of housing options, adults with disabilities lack opportunities to be full and active members of their communities. When they reach the age of 21, they lose federal entitlements to education. Many are unemployed or underemployed, and lack social and community anchors.
On Friday, July 10, the Brookings Metropolitan Policy Program will host an event exploring strategies for addressing housing and community engagement for adults with disabilities. Brookings Senior Fellow Michael O’Hanlon will moderate a conversation between Jillian Copeland, the founder of Main Street, a multi-purpose and inclusive apartment complex and community center, and Brookings Fellow Jenny Schuetz, discussing how some of these same concepts can be adapted for other cities, situations, and population groups.
Viewers can submit questions for panelists by emailing events@brookings.edu or tweeting using the hashtag #InclusiveHousing.