“Fostering a community environment in which individuals with disabilities can live as independently as they choose.”

The IRC is a private, non-profit corporation in Charlottesville, VA serving the communities of Virginia’s Planning Disctrict Ten via four core services.

Noted for its innovative independent living skills programs both on and off site, IRC works with local school programs to provide ILS training to students with disabilities.

The IRC provides a wide range of community services such as sign language classes. Others include specialty advising on ADA, community education, and Braille services.

The IRC aims to transform the community into an environment that is both accessible and receptive to people with disabilities.

The IRC-sponsored Charlottesville Cardinals are a nationally ranked wheelchair basketball team that also gives educational demonstrations for the community.

The IRC board of directors and the staff of the center are composed of a majority of local people with disabilties. Our doors are always open.

Who We Are

IRC is a non-profit corporation serving central Virginia dedicated to fostering a community environment in which people with disabilities can live as independently as they choose.

What We Do

The IRC offers peer counseling, technical assistance, discounted adaptive equipment, and advocacy, to name a few services. You can visit our services page for full details or just give us a call!

Welcome! The Charlottesville IRC is dedicated to helping disabled individuals live independently via both personal skills and adaptation of the community environment. On our website you can read the latest news from the justice department, view what adaptive equipment we have available, check for local resources, email our staff, and learn more about what we do.

Latest News
Featured Article

  • Calling Ourselves “Physically Challenged” is Bad for Disability Rights

    June 16, 2011

    The problem with “challenge.” There. I heard it again. “It’s not our problem, it’s his challenge,” a young mother was saying about her disabled child. “My child is the same as any child. His challenges are just greater. I guess you’d say he’s physically challenged.” “Physically challenged.” The new phrase. We try to find ways […]

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Community Action

  • IRC and Transportation

    June 16, 2011

    A bus in front of a CAT station.

    Five years before the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act requiring nondiscriminatory transportation services, the city of Charlottesville  became the first city in Virginia to commit to making its entire public transit fleet accessible.  A year later, IRC persuaded the Charlottesville government to expand para-transit services within the urban ring; in 1987 operating hours […]

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