Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Grants $435,000 to Easter Seals Washington

Garry Wyckoff   
Easter Seals
Phone: 206.281.5700 Ext. 101

Seattle — The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has granted Easter Seals Washington $435,000 to upgrade and expand Easter Seals Assistive Technology Services and Computer Loan Program. The grant, distributed through the Community Access to Technology (CAT) program of the foundation, serves Easter Seals’ and the foundation’s common goal of bridging the digital divide for children and adults with disabilities.

Funds from the grant will be used to update existing equipment at Easter Seals Assistive Technology Service Center in Spokane, establish specialized computer skills training for people with disabilities, and bring computers equipped with assistive technology to people with disabilities throughout Washington state.

Easter Seals President, Garry Wyckoff, sees the partnership with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation as an unprecedented opportunity.  “Advances in computer technology are of particular significance to people with disabilities,” he said.  “Computers provide people with disabilities and special needs unprecedented tools that can dramatically enhance their ability to be self sufficient and fully included in their communities.  With this grant, we can bring these amazing tools, and the skills to use them, to the people who need them most.”

Easter Seals Washington has been bringing Assistive Technology Services to people with disabilities for more than seven years at its Assistive Technology Service Center.  The center was originally established through a grant from the Washington Assistive Technology Alliance (WATA).  The center provides a multitude of services to help people with disabilities use assistive technology to obtain and keep employment, live more independently, and achieve greater inclusion in their communities.

“This partnership takes a multi-faceted approach to ensuring that people with disabilities are not caught in the digital divide,” said Ken Thompson, program officer for the foundation’s CAT program.  “Easter Seals was a natural partner in this effort because of their long and proven track record in providing services to people with disabilities.”

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation grant will enable Easter Seals to update the center’s equipment for the first time since it was established, and provides funds for the purchase of new equipment that takes advantage of the cutting edge advances in assistive technology. The grant will also allow the center to expand its services by utilizing assistive technology and specialized curricula to help people with disabilities obtain advanced computer skills.

Grant funds will also be used to expand Easter Seals Computer Loan Program, which distributes donated computers to people with disabilities who cannot afford to purchase them.  The grant will provide funds to purchase new computers and software that will give more people with disabilities access to computers with the most up to date assistive technology.

Expanding Assistive Technology Services and the Computer Loan Program is part of an overall five-year, $5-million plan for Easter Seals Washington called “The Plan for the Future.” The plan was developed over two years by Easter Seals staff and board of directors and establishes the future course of Easter Seals and its core programs.