Vision, mission and goals
Vision
CanAssist's vision is to become a major resource for the disability community, to be innovative and sustainable, and to be totally engaged in the progression towards a fully inclusive society.
Mission
CanAssist is dedicated to developing and delivering innovative technology, programs and services that improve the quality of life of those with special needs. We believe passionately that all those with disabilities, regardless of the challenges they face, be provided with every opportunity to fully participate in and contribute to society and that their contributions be celebrated.
Goals
To achieve our vision and mission, CanAssist has developed its programs around four main goals:
1.
The development
of unique, innovative and affordable assistive technology solutions.
This goal can be achieved by uniting and leveraging the resources of the university
and the greater community.
2.
Increasing
awareness of disability issues through inclusion and education.
Engaging and educating students, while involving both UVic and community
volunteers, will help raise awareness and understanding of disability issues.
We believe this is particularly important in the case of students. After all,
as future leaders, they have the potential to become society's champions and
supporters of increased inclusion and accessibility.
3.
Increasing
opportunities for meaningful training and employment for people with
disabilities.
Several areas within the CanAssist program provide a venue for skills training
and rewarding jobs for those with special needs. One focus will be to provide
meaningful work to those with developmental and cognitive disabilities, a group
for whom employment opportunities are very limited. We also intend to
facilitate increasing employment and training opportunities for those with
disabilities across the entire UVic campus and, potentially, at other
universities. In addition, we will offer other employers outstanding guidance
and information about making their workplaces more accessible and accommodating
to people with disabilities.
4.
Develop a
university-based national "centre of excellence."
By continuing to increase and secure partnerships with complementary local,
provincial and national agencies, we will focus on becoming a centre of
excellence that will serve the disability community across the country. This
centre will serve as a broad and inclusive resource for Canadians with special
needs, and will include a dynamic and current facility for information
exchange.