About Us
Quest for Independence operates day habilitation programs in several Ohio locations set in spacious, state-of-the-art facilities that offer teaching kitchens, laundry facilities, computer labs, sensory rooms and transportation services. Participants at QFI experience a variety of activities from money skills training, community activities and exercise classes, to hands on vocational experience each and every day. Participants have well-documented and applicable goals to work on. Because of the small group size and quiet atmosphere, QFI has been very successful with persons who have significant behavioral issues. Everyday and every experience is used for teaching and learning.
Our History: Why We Were Created
Day services for persons with developmental disabilities in the state of Ohio have historically been provided by the respective County Boards of MR/DD. Individuals attended vocational workshops that housed large numbers of persons with varying disabilities. While the needs and cognitive functioning levels of these individuals varied greatly, this was the only option for people. Most went to work in a warehouse type setting, seated at a table with a large number of other individuals and one direct care worker. The vocational activities were generally simple piece work submitted by large manufacturers in the area. Individuals who attended the programs earned a small wage, (less than $10 a month in most cases). These programs are still in existence today, and many individuals continue to benefit from them. But one size does not fit all.
In keeping with the attitudinal shift of services to persons with disabilities, the state of Ohio changed the funding stream for Day Habilitation Services in 2005. This change is truly revolutionary, and can be likened to the de-institutionalization movement of the 1980’s and beyond. People now have the choice of how to spend their monies for day services, and Quest for Independence was formed to offer them a high quality program from which to choose.
Quest for Independence was formed by a team of persons from the ViaQuest family who have decades of experience in providing high quality services to persons with disabilities in the private sector. This team has taken residential programs serving persons with various cognitive abilities from a struggling upstart, to becoming some of the highest quality programs available in the state. In August of 2004, these programs voluntarily went through a rigorous accreditation program and boast back to back 3 year accreditation certificates through CARF International (Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities).
