IL LEND 2025-26 Training Program Taking Applications Until March 1
Build your leadership skills and improve the quality of life for people with disabilities through this free training program for graduate students, self-advocates and family members.
The University of Illinois Chicago’s (UIC) Leadership and Education in Neurodevelopmental and related Disabilities Program (IL LEND) training program is now accepting applications for the 2025-26 school year.
IL LEND is housed in the Department of Disability and Human Development at UIC. It is part of LEND’s nationwide network providing interdisciplinary training to improve the health and well-being of individuals with disabilities.
LEND focuses on providing individuals with the skills necessary to create positive change on all levels, from the individual to systems.
The IL LEND fellowship program brings together trainees from diverse backgrounds. The interdisciplinary leadership training includes 15 disciplines (see the IL LEND brochure for a complete list). Classroom and hands-on learning experiences focus on seven key areas:
- Leadership
- Public health
- Interdisciplinary clinical training and practice
- Cultural competence
- Family-centered care
- Emerging issues
- Research
Sessions take place over two semesters starting August 2025 and ending May 2026.
The training will focus on serving individuals with disabilities and their families through coordinated, culturally competent and family-centered care. It will also focus on gaining a deeper understanding of public health services and policy systems change.
Training will include:
- An individually tailored mentorship
- Weekly didactic (classroom) sessions
- Research or leadership projects
- Community outreach
- Policy and advocacy training
- Clinical training with a focus on Autism
There is no cost to participate in the fellowship program. Eligible trainees can receive a stipend.
This program is open to graduate students, adults with developmental disabilities, and parents and/or siblings of individuals with developmental disabilities. All trainees complete 300-plus hours of leadership and discipline-specific classroom (didactic), clinical and community training.
IL LEND trainees from the Chicago metropolitan area meet in person at UIC for their LEND training. Trainees can also join remotely through training sites at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and Southern Illinois University Carbondale.
The program gives priority to the following applicants:
• Family members
• Self-advocates
• Graduate students in the represented disciplines, which include nursing, social work, developmental pediatrics, disability studies and public health.
See the IL LEND graduate program brochure for more details and a complete list of study areas.
Read more about applying on the IL LEND website. You can also click on the links below to download the:
• Self-advocate application
• Family member application
• Graduate student application
The deadline to apply is March 1.