In 2025, National Disability Institute (NDI) and ABLE NRC partnered with the Division of Community Recovery, Research and Training at UT-Health San Antonio Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences to provide a webinar series designed to enhance financial knowledge and empower individuals living with serious mental illness to achieve greater financial independence. The content applies to all people with disabilities who want to increase their financial stability.
Each session examines topics essential for financial wellness. Click on the session links below to access the recordings and discover practical insights and tools that you can use now to build a better financial future.
Basic Financial Management Skills – Learn more about spending plans, banking and the importance of credit. Whether you are just starting out or looking to refine your skills, you will receive practical tips to help you achieve your financial goals.
Supported Decision Making (SDM) – Learn about the benefits of SDM and self-determination. Discover how to apply SDM in your situation, how it protects individual rights and encourages people to make decisions while staying in charge of their life.
ABLE Accounts – Access this recording to learn all things ABLE and learn how adding an ABLE account to your financial toolkit can help you achieve increased independence and financial stability.
Representative Payee – Learn about Social Security Administration’s (SSA’s) Representative Payee Program which allows beneficiaries who need help with managing their payment benefits to appoint someone to support them. You will gain an understanding of who can be appointed and what records must be maintained to help safeguard benefit payments.
Guardianship, Power of Attorney and Trusts – Learn about powers of attorney, guardianship and trust accounts. Planning can minimize the burden and expense on your family. Learn more about public benefits programs that may help pay for long-term care and how to protect assets while still becoming eligible for those programs.
Ticket to Work – Learn about SSA’s Ticket to Work program and how employment networks help SSA beneficiaries become more self-sufficient through their return to work. Explore eligibility, services offered to beneficiaries and how to get services through a member of NDI’s American Dream Employment Network.
Plan to Achieve Self Support (PASS) – Learn about SSA’s PASS program. It can help Supplemental Security Income (SSI) beneficiaries set aside money and resources related to their work goals. PASS helps people reach their work goal while still receiving the SSI benefits that they need. Learn the types of expenses to include in the plan, how a PASS can be set up and how PASS helps beneficiaries attain their work goals using real-life scenarios.
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