1. To evaluate the clients through the use of assessment.
2. to develop individual program plans (IPP) based on assessment that identify the objectives.
3. To hire and train staff to effectively meet the needs of the clients.
4. To evaluate individual progress on all clients quarterly.
5. To evaluate the program annually.

The long range goal of Faye Clark's New Horizons  is to insure that each client enrolled in the training program receives the measure of programming and training needed to facilitate as much independence as the individual can attain.

1. teach the survival skills necessary for social acceptance and more independent living.

2. Promote and develop the emotional and social maturity and well-being of each resident, in keeping with individual abilities.

3. Teach the skills necessary for independence, such as: money management, budgeting, banking, cooking, grocery shopping, using restaurant facilities, housekeeping laundry, dry cleaning, sewing personal grooming and hygiene, communication skills, use of public transportation, medical care, sex education, employment, drivers' education, safety, fire and emergency procedures, which would lead to managing one's own home or apartment.

4. Teach and encourage the use of leisure time, the goal being that the individual will cultivate his/her own interest in hobbies, recreation, etc., rather than depending on structured activities, thereby helping him/her to explore possibilities and make his/her own choices independently.

1. De-emphasis on the Need for Life Support Services. This approach would obviate programs which provide only life support services. Instead, all programs would aim toward growth and development of those skills necessary to achieve independence. For the developmentally disabled individual, this approach means that the services he receives will be designed to increase his level of functioning rather than maintain him/her on a certain and often permanent level of activity.

2. Reduction in the labeling Process. An approach which assesses those criteria necessary to achieve independence doesn't use a relative IQ score to determine potential level of functioning. Instead, the method focuses primarily on those social, economic, and physical skills which individuals have or will need to achieve independence. Plans for a developmentally disabled person's future development will not be based on an IQ level which often implies a static condition with negative expectations. Instead, each developmentally disabled person will be recognized as having varying degrees of abilities and having individual needs which can be developed to achieve independence.

3. Activation of a Developmental Model Programs aimed at achieving independence use a developmental approach in providing services to developmentally disabled persons. They will be viewed within a framework which recognizes and encourages the potential for growth. A dynamic and growth-oriented approach thus replaces traditional models which often implies inabilities and limitations. Such an approach will affect the way a mentally retarded person views himself/herself as well as the way family members and the general community perceive him/her. If an individual lacks certain skills to be independent the approach aims to develop them so that the developmentally disabled person can achieve the highest level of independence.

4. Motivation and Direction for the Developmentally Disabled. An ultimate goal of independence can motivate and direct a developmentally disabled individual and lend a sense of purpose to his family and friends. The stated goal implies that developmentally disabled persons can develop skills to live more independently if they receive appropriate resources. The goal clearly defines a purpose for each program and provides direction for our efforts. This clearly defines a approach shows the developmentally disabled individual and his family the level on which he is functioning and what skills need to be developed for independence. Programs of services thus become more understandable and purposeful because the family and the individual know what they are working toward.

5. Recognition of Individual Competence. This approach replaces the more traditional attitude of incompetence associated with developmentally disabled persons and recognizes the abilities that a developmentally disabled persons has or can develop Thus, " the adoption of this goal will replace a negative attitude with a growth oriented one which leaves room for, and indeed encourages , active participation by the developmentally disabled person in decision-making process."(5)

          Faye Clark's New Horizons will provide specialized intensive training in skills for independent living. A concentration of trained staff will implement individual program plans developed to meet the specific habilitative needs of each resident. This same type of training has long been in existence at the Macomb-Oakland Regional Center in Michigan, under the direction of David Rose, and is considered highly successful in the teaching of skills that lead to independence.

          The overall objective of the program is to develop and maintain an intensive training program to teach clients, within the mild to borderline range of mental retardation, and other developmentally disabled individuals, the skills necessary for independence. This training program will make the clients more independent and self-sufficient. If will also provide them with more highly developed decision-making skills. It is also, within the scope of this program to provide on-going support services, such as counseling and guidance, to the clients who move on to independent living, in order to help them maintain their independent status.

(5) New neighbors, The Retarded Citizen in Quest of a Home, President's Committee on Mental Retardation, Washington, D.C. 20201, 1974