our founder & timeline

• 1964
  CPRF Founder John F. "Jack" Jonas Jr., along with Deryl Schuster (Vice Chairman of the CPRF Board), opened the Jaycee Cerebral Palsy Ranch - a summer camp for teenagers with disabilities - to make up for the lack of accessible recreational activities available to teens. The Jaycee Ranch offered a traditional camp experience, complete with activities like fishing and swimming, but with wheelchair-accessible features and aides/counselors for assistance with daily living needs and activities.

• 1972
  John F. “Jack” Jonas Jr. founds CPRF.

• 1975
  Jack opens Center Industries Corporation, a manufacturing company that hires people with disabilities at competitive wages. Center Industries seeks contracts in the open marketplace, produces its own goods, and sells them – all while paying its employees a competitive wage with benefits.
  
  Center Industries Corporation’s first contract came from the state of Kansas to manufacture license plates, a project previously undertaken out of state.
  
  Now with more than 250 employees (nearly half of whom have a physical disability) and diversified manufacturing capabilities, Center Industries proves that with the right workspace adaptations, a disability isn’t an employment deal-breaker.

• 1976
  The engineering achievements that made large-scale employment of people with disabilities possible at Center Industries Corporation were fully recognized when CPRF and the College of Engineering at Wichita State became a National Rehabilitation Engineering Center. It was one of only 16 such facilities in the United States at the time.
  
  The RERC project continued until 1998, receiving its funding through the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research. The RERC focused on the use of technology in the vocational environment, and how it could be used to enhance independence for people with severe physical disabilities at school and home. The final RERC program consisted of eight projects, including mental workload assessments of individuals using non-standard computer interfacing, physiological capacities for work of people with neuro-physical impairments, and the development of integrated input systems and computer interface.

• 1979
  CPRF begins construction on The Timbers, a 100-unit apartment complex built specifically for people who use wheelchairs. The Timbers apartment community, located on the CPRF campus, was the first HUD property in the nation built specifically for people who use wheelchairs. With 100 fully accessible apartments, The Timbers continues to provide people with independent living and a sense of community. The addition of the Timber Lines Transportation Services also provides accessible transportation, which gives residents a “full circle” service that increases their sense of independence, dignity, and community.

• 1986
  CPRF opens the Daniel M. Carney Rehabilitation Engineering Center (now the Wheelchair & Posture Seating Clinic), providing customized wheelchairs and seating systems for Kansans of all ages.

• 1987
  The CPRF Adult Day Services program begins offering daily enrichment, learning activities, and care to adults with physical and developmental disabilities.

• 1990
  Along with fellow board members and supporters of the organization, Treasurer Daniel Taylor spearheaded the CPRF Endowment Fund to ensure the organization was positioned to continue our mission for years to come.

• 1999
  The School of Adaptive Computer Training opens for students who need specialized classroom equipment.

• 1999
  Patricia and Bob Patterson, owners of Digital Consulting Software Services, worked with Dan Carney and Jack Jonas to form CPRF's newest affiliate organization: DCSS Ability, a white collar alternative to Center Industries Corporation that offers information technology training and open-source web research.

• 2000
  CPRF receives Projects with Industry grant, which provides funding for students to attend the School of Adaptive Computer Training.

• CPRF founds Business Technology Career Opportunities, Inc., a document imaging company with a mission to employ people with disabilities. BTCO's inaugural contract was with the U.S. Census Bureau.

• 2002
  In order to supplement DCSSA's open-source web research division, CPRF merged DCSSA with Business Technology Career Opportunities, Inc., adding digital document conversion and precise-tolerance plot printing services.

• 2005
  CPRF becomes a founding member of the One Percent Coalition, a federal, bi- partisan initiative seeking to grant federal procurement advantages to employers who hire people with disabilities.

• 2008
  AmeriCorps Financial Empowerment Services begins at CPRF through coordination with Source America's Institute for Economic Empowerment.

• 2010
  CPRF receives the Disability Employment Initiative grant through the Kansas Department of Commerce, via the federal Department of Labor, to expand the School of Adaptive Computer Training through web-based, satellite learning at other locations.

• 2012
  The Bidder’s Preference Program, championed by CPRF, passes through the state House and Senate, giving state procurement advantages to employers who hire people with disabilities.

• 2015
  In partnership with the State of Kansas Department of Commerce, CPRF renews the Disability Employment Initiative Grant, which funds the School of Adaptive Computer Training and Job Placement.

• 2019
  The Employer Tax Credit bill is signed into law, geared toward creating more job opportunities for people with disabilities through a state tax credit for employers. CPRF was instrumental in researching, conceptualizing, proposing, and advocating for this bill.