Philip Adams, director of the Arkansas PROMISE project, received a social justice award last week from the Arkansas affiliate of the Association on Higher Education and Disability.

The Ark-AHEAD award recognizes a person, agency or association in Arkansas that works to promote social justice on a daily basis for people with disabilities in their communities.

Arkansas PROMISE is funded by a five-year, $35.7 million federal grant to the College of Education and Health Professions at the University of Arkansas and the Arkansas Department of Education. PROMISE provides a group of 1,000 teens who receive Supplemental Security Income two paid summer work experiences as well as additional training and intensive support services. Each work experience is about 200 hours. A second group of 1,000 teens receives only the usual services provided to youth with disabilities. PROMISE is an acronym for Promoting the Readiness of Minors in Supplemental Security Income.

CURRENTS, one of the partners that works on the PROMISE project, nominated Adams for the award. CURRENTS, which stands for the Center for the Utilization of Rehabilitation Resources for Education, Networking, Training and Service, is also based in the College of Education and Health Professions.

"Through the work of Arkansas PROMISE, many youth with disabilities are experiencing for the first time the excitement and thrills of summer camp, are perfecting their soft skills and developing a strong work ethic through the competitive work experience, and are becoming first generation college students," the nomination said.

Adams ensures major partners and resources from around the state are involved in the lives of the youth and participate in their successful outcomes. Services provided through PROMISE in addition to the paid work experiences include intensive case management, education and employment training and support for youth and families, benefits counseling, and health and wellness training. Families also participate in a financial literacy workshop that focuses on asset building, financial planning and financial management.