Mission Statement

Access to Independence advocates and educates to support and empower people with disabilities.

Vision Statement

As a community leader, Access to Independence (ATI) works toward accessibility and full inclusion of all people with disabilities.  As a multicultural and cross disability organization, ATI is a trusted resource for information, education, advocacy and empowerment.

Access to Independence (ATI) Values


Self Determination
  • ATI promotes the right of people to take charge of their own lives.
 
Consumer Control
  • ATI values and utilizes the life experiences of people with disabilities throughout its   operations.
          
Diversity and Cultural Competency
  • ATI values diversity and cultural differences and strives to provide services in a culturally competent manner.
          
Community Integration and Inclusion
  • ATI works to promote equal access to the full range of employment and other opportunities available in the community.
 
Respect
  • ATI treats all people with dignity, and promotes the respectful treatment of all people.   
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Access to Independence, Inc. is a non-profit, consumer controlled Independent Living Center (ILC) that provides an array of services to people of all ages with all types of disabilities in Dane, Columbia, Green, and Dodge counties in south-central Wisconsin. 

ILC's are a nationwide network of consumer controlled disability resource centers, where the majority of board and staff are people with disabilities.  Through our Independent Living (IL) Philosophy, we help people develop the tools and skills to make informed choice for themselves and work to increase the choices available to people with disabilities.

We are a part of a network of centers across the nation and one of the eight centers in Wisconsin.  All centers share the Independent Living Philosophy and focus on providing specific services that help people with disabilities live as independently as they choose.

Independent Living Philosophy


The independent living (IL) philosophy is based on the idea that people have the right to make their own choices, manage their own affairs, and live as independently as they choose.

Access helps people develop the tools and skills to make informed choices for themselves, and works to increase the choices available to people with disabilities.

Access to Independence Brochure
Access to Independence Brochure (Spanish)

The history of Disability Rights and Independent Living Movements


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“I am a slow walker, but I never walk backward… be not deceived, my friends, revolutions do not go backward.”  Lincoln


Prior to the 1960’s, people with significant disabilities were invariably incarcerated in state-run institutions.  People with mental illness, developmental disabilities, and sensory or physical disabilities were kept in appalling and inhumane conditions often far worse than criminals were subjected to, even at the time.  De-institutionalization is a process that began to occur in the 1960’s in which people with significant disabilities were gradually released from institutions to return to their communities where treatment was to be available.  This process created for the first time in American history an opportunity, an imperative, for people with disabilities...[click to read more]
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IL-Wisconsin website
Click map to view a larger image of our ILC Service Area Map
If we do not serve your county, please contact us so we can refer you to the right center.

Click here to download the map
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