Vision
Communities and families in which and through which people with mental retardation and related disabilities are supported and empowered to make choices, to have opportunities to realize thier goals and to meaningfully participate in community life.
Mission
The Arc of Davidson County is a family-based organization dedicated to increasing the desire and capacity of our community to include people with mental retardation and related disabilities and support them in having self-determined, meaningful lives.
History and Constituency
The Arc of Davidson County has served and represented Nashville's adults and children with mental retardation and related disabilities since 1952. The arc is a non-profit memebership organization, whose Board of Directors is comprised primarily of people with disabilities and family members of people with disabilities. Today, The Arc has over 5,000 constituents. We are a chapter of The Arc of Tennessee and The Arc of The United States, the largest national disability organization.
Money
The Arc of Davidson County has an annual operating budget of 1.4 million dollars. It has contracts and grants with The Tennessee Division of Mental Retardation and The U.S. department of Education participates in the United Way Community Solutions Fund, sells discarded household items through contracts with B&R Salvage and J&I, L.L.C. and receives donations through the United Way anddirect giving, including memberships
Today The Arc is:
- Campaigning to fund services for 2300 individuals and families on "waiting lists" in Tennessee.
- Supporting the Special Education Advocacy Network (SPAN-TN) and the Disability Coalition on Education (DCE).
- Supporting individual families through negotiation and alternative dispute resolution in Metro and other public school systems.
- Providing grants of up to $4,000.00 to individuals and families in Davidson, Williamson and Rutherford Counties for family and self-support relating to a disability.
- Helping secure and coordinate community services for adults and children with mental retardation in Davidson and 25 other Middle Tennessee Counties.