News and Alerts

CPR is pleased to announce it has received a $25,000 grant award from the Barbara McDowell Foundation and Public Interest Law Center.

CPR relies on your support so that we may continue to advocate on behalf of people with disabilities

CPR’s executive director, Cathy Costanzo, issues statement following the 2024 presidential election results.

November 2024 Newsletter

October 2024 Newsletter

In September 2024, CPR joined a national coalition of disability organizations in supporting the bipartisan “Transformation to Competitive Integrated Employment Act” (TCIEA) (S. 533 / H.R.1263).  TCIEA would expand individuals’ opportunities for competitive integrated employment, provide grants and technical assistance to support the transformation of segregated employment settings, and gradually sunset the federal subminimum wage program under Section 14(c) of the Fair Labor Standards Act. 

After the federal court approved the comprehensive Settlement Agreement in Marsters v. Healey on June 18, 2024, CPR launched its implementation initiative entitled Bringing People Home. The project will initially focus on implementing this Agreement, but soon will be expanded to include other efforts to promote integration, end unnecessary institutionalization, and allow people to come home to their families, neighbors, and communities. The project will engage people with diverse experiences and expertise, so that CPR’s legal successes can be implemented with and by affected communities.

On October 1, 2024, CPR, its co-counsel, and a number of state officials met for the first quarterly meeting required by the Agreement. Secretaries, Commissioners, and senior staff from all relevant agencies presented status updates on each program required by the Agreement.

On August 28, 2024, CPR Staff Attorney Megan Rusciano presented alongside Judge Paula Carey, retired Chief Judge of the Massachusetts Trial Court, and Elizabeth Moran, Executive Director of The Arc of Colorado, at a plenary session of the National Association of Presiding Judges and Court Executive Officers (NAPCO) conference in Denver, Colorado.  The presentation topic was “Breaking Barriers: Ensuring Effective Communication for Individuals with Disabilities in Court.”

CPR collaborated with the Monorom Family Support Program of the Cambodian Mutual Assistance Association (CMAA) on a workshop for families in Lowell, Massachusetts. The topic was  Supported Decision-Making (SDM) and other alternatives to guardianship. This workshop was part of an initiative designed to increase access to SDM in linguistically, ethnically, and culturally diverse communities in the State. This interactive hybrid workshop – with participants both on-line and in-person–was held on August 24, 2024. It represented the culmination of a series of planning sessions with community leaders and advocates at CMAA over a number of months to ensure that the training’s approach, format, and materials would meet the needs of the audience.