Throughout 2016, milestones marked progress across the Foundation. Our scientists successfully competed for funding for a wide variety of research projects, our program center funded new local and national employment initiatives, and our development team raised interest in our work, and record donations, too.  You’re invited to learn more about how lives are being changed through the work of Kessler Foundation. This interactive report highlights the impact of the work we do on the lives of people with disabilities.

 

Focusing research efforts over the long-term yields results that change lives. For the fifth time, our scientists were awarded a five-year federal Spinal Cord Injury Model System grant – one of only 14 in the United States. Since 1990, Kessler Foundation has participated in this national network of care and research. That translates into nearly 30 years of contributing to local and national efforts to improve the lives of thousands living with spinal cord injury. From the broader perspective, the scope of our research has widened. We now apply our expertise to studies in children with disabilities, new ways to approach cancer rehabilitation, and the development of new robotic technology.  

 

This year, we’re taking a longer look at the impact of our work in employment. We’re highlighting four of our grant-funded programs – local and national - that illustrate real gains for veterans, high school students, artists, and athletes. Through our disability research, we’re stepping back to look at the big picture of employment in the U.S.  National leaders in policy, education, government and vocational services are gaining valuable insights from the 2015 Kessler Foundation National Employment & Disability Survey – the first such survey of people with disabilities and the workplace. We’ll build on these findings with a new survey of supervisors of workers with disabilities, to be released in 2017. 

 

Achieving our mission depends upon adequate support for the necessary technology, infrastructure, and human resources.  Our development team exceeded its revenue goal in 2016, and raised awareness of opportunities to make an impact through targeted giving.  Two of the pilot studies funded are highlighted for their potential impact on care and research.

 

Thanks to the efforts of our Board of Trustees, and departments of Finance and Operations, we filled our critical need for more space, succeeded with external grant applications, executed a new agreement with Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, increased recruitment for our studies, purchased new equipment, and planned expansion of our neuroimaging and mobility research.