Funding For Individuals With Disabilities

Web Sites

Wounded Warrior Resource Center (WWRC) | U.S. Department of Defense Provides wounded Service Members, their families, and caregivers with information they need on military facilities, health care services, and benefits. Trained specialists are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week by phone at 1-800-342-9647 or by e-mail at wwrc@militaryonesource.com.

• * Benefits.gov
  Intended to increase access to government benefits information, Benefits.gov provides citizens with easy online access to government benefit and assistance programs. Complete the questionnaire for customized results or browse by category, state, or federal level.
• * Government Benefits, Grants, and Financial Aid for Citizens | USA.gov
  Browse an alphabetical list of individual need topics to find relevant federal government agencies and/or directories of state agencies.
• * Modest Needs
  Allows the general public to safely and securely help hard-working, low-income households to afford short-term emergency expenses. Donors also can give to small nonprofits struggling to serve their communities, but whose needs are generally too small to b
• * 2-1-1 Call Center Search
  2-1-1 is an easy to remember telephone number that, where available, connects people with important community services and volunteer opportunities.
• * Disability.gov
  The Federal government's portal provides quick and easy access to comprehensive information about disability programs, services, laws and benefits. Clickable map provides disability resources by state.
• * Grants for Individuals: The Disabled | Michigan State University Libraries
  Provides a thorough resource listing of funding opportunities including web sites, databases, books, and announcements.
• * Abilities Fund
  Nationwide nonprofit community developer and financial institution focused exclusively on expanding entrepreneurial opportunities for people with disabilities, including access to capital and microloans.
• * Disabled Children's Relief Fund
  Provides disabled children with assistance to obtain wheelchairs, orthopedic braces, walkers, lifts, hearing aids, eyeglasses, medical equipment, physical therapy, and surgery.
• Travis Roy Foundation
  Travis Roy Foundation's individual grant funds have been used to modify vans and to purchase wheelchairs, computers, ramps, shower chairs, and other adaptive equipment to help paraplegics and quadriplegics live their lives.
• College Funding Strategies for Students with Disabilities | University of Washington
  Provides advice and information about federal student aid and state aid, and lists disability-related scholarship programs.
• * Financial Information | DisabilityResources.org
  A nonprofit network staffed by volunteers, Disability Resources provides an extensive online guide to resources, including disability-related financial information for individuals.
• Emergency Relief | National Resource Directory
  Search for services and funding resources available to military families in need of emergency financial assistance. This site provides wounded, ill and injured Service Members, Veterans, their families, and those who support them with a Web-based director
• The Kaitlin Marie Bell Foundation
  Provides financial assistance to children with disabilities who are unable to afford equipment and/or services that they need.
• Start-Up USA
  Funded by the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy, Start-Up USA provides technical assistance, resources and training for people with disabilities interested in pursuing self-employment.
• Funding Questions | Mobility International USA (MIUSA)
  Listings of scholarships, fellowships and places to find funding for overseas exchanges for people with disabilities. Also includes funding tips for access-related accommodations and services. MIUSA is a cross-disability service organization that provides
• State Index | DRM Regional Resource Directory
  Collection of online disability resources, organized into many categories for each state.
• People with Disabilities | Small Business and Self-Employment Service
  Is a service of the Office of Disability Employment Policy of the U.S. Department of Labor which provides information, counseling, and referrals about self-employment and small business ownership opportunities for people with disabilities.
• Entrepreneurship: A Flexible Route to Economic Independence for People with Disabilities (government website)
  From the Bureau of Labor: Entrepreneurship: A Flexible Route to Economic Independence for People with Disabilities
• DisabilityBiz.org
  DisabilityBiz.org is part of a nonprofit organization that provides holistic resources and consulting services to people with disabilities who are starting up or running a small business.
• Guide to Low-Cost / No Cost Online Tools for People with Disabilities | Alliance for Technology Access
  The organization makes available an online publication, "Guide to Low-Cost / No-Cost Online Tools for People with Disabilities", which presents information on Funding for Assistive Technology.
• Complete Disability Resource Guide
  A comprehensive guide to disabilities resources.
• Aunt Bertha | Connecting People and Programs
  Aunt Bertha picks up where Uncle Sam leaves off by making it easy to find food, health, housing and education programs.
• Financial Aid | HEATH Resource Center
  Offers links and tutorial to financial assistance, scholarships, and materials that help students with disabilities attend college, university, career-technical schools, or other postsecondary programs.
• Grants | National Arts Disability Center
  Provides a selected listing of funding related publications, information clearinghouses, and funders.

Books and Articles

Check title availability at our libraries and Funding Information Network locations or your local libraries.

• Financial aid for persons with disabilities and their families 2012-2014 , 2012
  By Schlachter, Gail Ann. El Dorado Hills, CA Reference Service Press 2012 . 510 p , Provides current information…
• Funding for persons with visual impairments : 2012 , 2012
  By Schlachter, Gail Ann. El Dorado Hills, CA Reference Service Press 2012 . 333 p , This large print…
• Financial aid for the disabled and their families 2010-2012 , 2010
  By Schlachter, Gail Ann. El Dorado Hills, CA Reference Service Press 2010 . 480 p , Provides current information…

Disability.gov’s Guide to Federal Government Grants

What Are Federal Government Grants?

Federal government grants are a form of financial assistance from a federal agency that is awarded to an organization, a state or local government agency or an individual for a particular purpose (e.g., to help low-income students pay for college or a technical school). Grants are not loans, meaning they do not have to be paid back. Very often grants are awarded to fund research or programs related to education, community development, energy, science and technology.

There are very few federal government grants for individuals, and those that are available are awarded for very specific purposes, such as helping students pay for their college education or funding scientific research and development. For more information, read Federal Government Grants for Individuals.

Here are a few “quick links” to get you started:

• Grants.gov
• Applying for Federal Government Grants
• DisasterAssistance.gov
• Grants for Students
• Recovery.gov
• U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) Loans & Grants Search Tool

For more information about federal government grants, see below.

Grants.gov has information about more than 1,000 grant programs that visitors can apply for grants on its website. The Grants.gov User Guide offers detailed instructions for every step of the federal government grant application process. Use the search tool to find grants by keyword, category and agency. You can also learn abouteligibility criteria, read answers to frequently asked questions and subscribe to receive email notificationsabout new grant opportunities.

There are also private and nonprofit organizations that can help you find grants from non-government sources. For example, the Foundation Center has information on more than 108,000 foundations, corporate donors and grantmaking public charities in the United States, including more than 3 million of their recent grants. The Center’sFoundation Directory subscription service is the most popular way to search the site’s database. The directory includes information about grants to individuals for many different kinds of support, including scholarships, fellowships, loans and internships; arts and cultural support; research and professional support; and general welfare and special needs.

• Where Can I Find Information on Federal Government Grants for Individuals?
• Where Can I Find Information on Federal Government Grants for Government Agencies, Organizations or Educational Institutions?

Where Can I Get Help if I Am Low-Income?

Grants.gov does not give money to help people pay their bills. Federal government grants are not the same as benefits, such as Social Security disability benefits or those offered through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as Food Stamps. To find out which government benefits you may be eligible to receive, use the Benefit Finder on Benefits.gov.

For information about fixing credit problems or getting out of debt, visit USA.gov. You can also readDisability.gov’s Guide to Financial Help for Low-Income Individuals & Families to learn about federal and state assistance programs that may be able to help you pay for the necessities of life, such as prescription drugs, food and utility bills.