Day Support Activities in Grants Pass & Medford
Real community — Rogue River trails, Bear Creek Park, farmers markets, art studios, volunteer shifts — for teens and adults with I/DD across Josephine and Jackson counties.
Who this page is for
If you landed here, you’re probably one of three people. This page is written for all three:
- A parent or guardian of a teenager with I/DD who’s thinking about what happens after school, or who needs structured daytime support right now.
- A parent or guardian of an adult child with I/DD who’s looking for something more meaningful than a day room — and who pays for it through Oregon Medicaid.
- An adult with I/DD exploring Day Support for yourself — directing your own services, or working with a Personal Agent to do it.
Jump to the section written for you:
What is Day Support Activities, in plain language
Day Support Activities (DSA) is a community-based program funded through Oregon Medicaid — the K Plan and 1915(c) waivers — for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. It is not a day room, not a babysitting service, and not a clinical setting. It’s a structured, person-centered schedule of community outings, skill-building, creative work, and connection.
The point is building real skills — money handling, social confidence, communication, self-advocacy — inside real places, with the same staff and same small group week after week.
For parents of teens
If your teenager is approaching the end of high school in Grants Pass, Medford, Central Point, or anywhere across the Rogue Valley, you may be looking ahead at what happens after the IEP ends. This is the transition window. It’s the time to start connecting with the Josephine County or Jackson County CDDP, build an Adult ISP, and explore what Day Support could look like for your family.
Day Support is not the same as school. It is the next chapter — a place where your teen can keep growing, keep building friendships, and keep doing things that matter. We help families figure out whether DSA is the right fit, and how to slot it alongside in-home attendant care if both are needed.
Read our full guide to the school-to-adult-services transition.
For parents of adult children
If your adult child has been receiving services for a while and you are looking for a better Day Support option — or your first one — you are not alone. Many families find their way to us after years of programs that felt static, generic, or disconnected from the person they know best. Our Rogue Valley DSA is built around real outings, small groups, and consistent staffing.
We are a direct-employment provider. Our Direct Support Professionals are W-2 employees with training, support, and supervision — not 1099 contractors. That distinction shows up in continuity of care, in safety, and in the depth of relationships staff build with the people they support.
For self-directing adults
If you are an adult with I/DD directing your own services — working with a Personal Agent, choosing your providers, deciding how your ISP gets used — we’d love to talk. Our Day Support program in the Rogue Valley is shaped around what participants actually want to do. The schedule comes from the people who attend it, not a template.
Bring your goals, your interests, and your questions. We’ll walk through what a typical week looks like, and you decide whether it’s a fit.
What the Rogue Valley program actually looks like
Programming is built around the rhythms of southern Oregon life. Some examples of what a week might include:
- Trail walks and outdoor time in the parks and natural areas around the Rogue Valley, with accessibility and sensory needs built into every plan.
- Art and creative expression — painting, music, crafts — at local studios and community centers.
- Visits to farmers markets, libraries, the Grants Pass riverfront, Bear Creek Park in Medford, and the small businesses that make this region distinctive.
- Volunteer shifts at community organizations — real, recurring contribution.
- Skill-building tied to participants’ goals: cooking, budgeting, navigating the bus, ordering at a counter, self-advocating in a meeting.
- Quiet, low-stimulation options on the days that call for them.
Group size stays small. Staffing stays consistent. Plans flex around the people in the room.
How it gets paid for
Day Support Activities is funded through Oregon Medicaid for individuals who are eligible for I/DD services through the Office of Developmental Disabilities Services (ODDS). The two main funding paths are the Community First Choice State Plan (the K Plan) and the 1915(c) waivers.
For most families, that means the program comes at no out-of-pocket cost, with hours authorized through the participant’s Individual Support Plan (ISP). If you are not yet eligible or you are early in the process, we can help point you to the right first steps with the local CDDP or brokerage.
Read our explainer on Oregon’s brokerage system, Personal Agents, and case management.
How to start
The path to enrollment is simpler than families sometimes expect. In most cases:
- Reach out to us. A short conversation tells us a lot. We’ll ask about your loved one, what you’re looking for, and what has (and has not) worked elsewhere.
- Loop in your Services Coordinator or Personal Agent. We’ll coordinate from there.
- Visit. Meet the staff. See the program in action before you commit.
If you’re not yet eligible for ODDS services, that’s okay too — we can point you to the right first steps in Josephine or Jackson County.