STIC is a not-for-profit 501(c)3, community-based advocacy and service organization for children and adults with all types of disabilities. We are funded through a wide variety of state contracts, fees-for-service, corporate event sponsorships, project-specific foundation grants and private individual donations.
We are a “Center for Independent Living” (CIL) however, no one lives at STIC and we don’t operate housing of any kind.
Established in 1983 with a single grant through the State Education Department for $100,000 and a staff of four, we have diversified our programs, services and funding to meet the needs of individuals with disabilities, employing approximately 750 people under 30 different funding sources.
All of the programs and services through STIC share common themes: they all promote independence; inclusion; and community integration.
Imagine a world that is accessible to everyone, where no barriers to independence exist; where everyone is allowed to be themselves, free to let their disabilities be just another part of who they are. Southern Tier Independence Center’s board of directors and employees believe that together we can shape this world.
Having a disability does not mean we should have to occupy a different world from everybody else. To pave the way toward this vision, we offer a wide variety of services and supports to children and adults with all disabilities and to their friends and families, as well as businesses, agencies, public officials and government entities.
Advocacy is central to each of our programs—it is the foundation of everything we do. Teaching people with disabilities to advocate for themselves, and to advocate to change the systems that serve them, will shape our dream of a barrier-free inclusive world.
We believe that people with disabilities have the right to: choose with whom and where they live; work in a competitive job at a fair wage; plan their own social activities; worship where they wish; use public transportation; vote independently in an accessible polling place; and have adequate supports to live the lives they choose, while being treated with dignity and respect.
If this is what you believe as well, then STIC may be just what you’re looking for.
Our mission, philosophy and values statements will describe who we are, and our services and programs will tell you what we do, but it is your involvement and support that will lead us into our future.
Click button below for a link to mission, philosophy, and our values.
