N.D.I. Technical Assistance Team
N.D.I. Consulting, Inc.
[ http://www.dpnavigator.net ]
and
The Burton Blatt Institute
Syracuse University
[ http://bbi.syr.edu ]
One–Stop Toolkit Resources of the Week Technical Assistance Project E–Mail listserv
January 8, 2010
Good morning everyone and Happy New Year!
Below please find the website(s) and publication(s) of the week, as well as other resources that we hope will be useful as you work on systems change activities to help improve employment opportunities for persons with disabilities.
To subscribe and / or view past resources of the week archives, access:[ www.onestoptoolkit.org ] and click on the link to "Resources of the Week" on the right hand side of the home page.
Laura Gleneck
Project Coordinator
NDI Technical Assistance Team
Phone: 781-899-0139
Fax: 781-642-0895
[ E–mail lgleneck@ndi-inc.org ]
[ http://www.dpnavigator.net ]
Always many things of interest, but we will focus on a couple in hopes that you check out the others on your own. First, under Upcoming Events of Interest be sure to check out some upcoming events of interest being offered by the National Network of ADA Centers and partners. The schedule for 2010 plus information on how to register are included in this section. Under Resources of Interest you will find an updated fact sheet from the Job Accommodation Network on Real-Time Communication Etiquette and a guide for helping to ensure Universal Design for the workforce development system.
Under this same topic area, you will see reference to the Walgreens Outreach Program and Videos [ http://www.walgreensoutreach.com/ ] . Outreach is an effort by Walgreens to enhance the opportunities it can offer to people with disabilities by creating relationships with entities that serve or are otherwise interested in the employment of people with disabilities. Access the URL to find links to the following Walgreens Outreach information and resources:
The Walgreens Supply Chain and Logistics Division via partnerships with community based organizations and vocational rehabilitation agencies help to create a pipeline of qualified candidates with disabilities. These entities also usually provide the long term support some of the employees need. The website [ http://www.walgreensoutreach.com/ ] describes some of our efforts. There has been great media coverage about our journey and success as we learn how to be a better employer of people with disabilities and we devote a great deal of effort to share what we have learned with other companies when they ask for assistance. We created a DVD that contains videos of the news coverage, a couple videos we have produced and a speech the Senior Vice President gave at a Warehousing conference a couple of years ago. A lot of the information is not news to your Navigators, but I have received many comments that DPNs, job developers, employment support managers, etc utilize our videos when out doing job and community development.
To request any of these videos, use the “Contact Us” button and along with the other requested information, you must include a full mailing address.
**UPDATED INFORMATION**
2010
Listening Tour to Address Critical Employment Issues Facing People with Disabilities
[ http://www.dol.gov/odep/#listen ]
[ http://www.disabilitylisteningtour.com/ ]
On Wednesday, January 6th, the NDI TA team disseminated an announcement regarding the series of six Listening Sessions being held by the Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) and its Federal partners (including the Employment and Training Administration) across the country on disability employment.
ODEP has since updated this information to include the dates for all of the six cities. Please reference the URL s above and see detailed information under For Your Information.
Happy Friday!
ACTION: 2010 Listening Tour to Address Critical Employment Issues Facing People with Disabilities
[ http://www.dol.gov/odep/#listen ]
[ http://www.disabilitylisteningtour.com/ ]
The United States Department of Labor's (DOL) Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) and its Federal partners will hold a series of six Listening Sessions across the country on disability employment. Agencies invited to participate in the Listening Sessions include the Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration (ETA), Veterans' Employment and Training Service (VETS), and Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) and Women's Bureau (WB); the Social Security Administration (SSA); the Department of Education (DED); the Office of Personal Management (OPM); and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
These sessions seek input particularly from:
ODEP Assistant Secretary Kathleen Martinez is spearheading the 2010 ODEP Listening Tour to gain rich insights into both systemic barriers and best practices to obtain input in three key areas:
LISTENING TOUR CITIES
The first two cities/regions (Dallas and Philadelphia) have been confirmed and the flyers are available (please send an e-mail to lgleneck@ndi-inc.org to request either the Dallas or Philadelphia flyer).
Registration and comment period OPEN NOW
January 27- Philadelphia (Region II)
Pennsylvania Convention Center
1101 Arch Street
Philadelphia, PA 19107
Open to members of the public residing in the United States Department of Labor's REGION II
Registration and comment period OPEN NOW
February 11 - Chicago, IL
Open to members of the public residing in the United States Department of Labor's REGION V
Registration and Comment Period January 11 through February 13
February 16 - San Francisco, CA
Open to members of the public residing in the United States Department of Labor's REGION VI
Registration and Comment Period January 16 through February 18
February 24 - Atlanta, GA
Open to members of the public residing in the United States Department of Labor's REGION III
Registration and Comment Period January 24 - February 27
March 3 - Boston, MA
Open to members of the public residing in the United States Department of Labor's REGION I
Registration and Comment Period February 3 through March 5
INFORMATION AND REGISTRATION
For more information, to r e gist e r for the event, or to provide input, access: [ http://www.disabilitylisteningtour.com/ ].
ACTION: Tools for America's Job Seekers Challenge Update
United States Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration
January 4 through 15, 2010
[ http://www.dol.gov/challenge ]
The United States Department of Labor has officially announced the kickoff of the second phase of the "Tools for America's Job Seekers Challenge." From January 4 through 15 , workforce professionals and members of the public are invited to visit the URL to explore online career resources and recommend their favorite sites from among nearly 500 job search and career Web sites. Users are invited back to the Challenge Web site after January 18 to see which tools received the most recommendations. The Department of Labor will also post the results of the Challenge on its Web site.
The Department notes:
“The Challenge Web site provides direct access to job boards and other tools that allow users to apply for open positions across industries at companies and organizations around the country. What’s more, everyone who logs on to the site will have an opportunity to cast votes for the tools they find most useful, and post comments. This feedback will help the workforce system identify valuable tools to make available through the One Stop system, and will help future job seekers quickly find online tools that meet their needs.
For the past few weeks we have been reaching out to businesses and organizations around the country and asking them to enter their online tools in the challenge. The response has been impressive, with nationally known companies, regional and niche tools, and new and emerging sites joining the challenge. Now is the time for workforce professionals and job seekers to provide feedback on these online career resources, and of course, to use the sites to find jobs and help explore career opportunities …”
Employer Webinar Series
National Network of Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Centers Collaborate with United States Business Leadership Network (USBLN) and Council of State Administrators of Vocational Rehabilitation (CSAVR)
[ http://sedbtac.org/webinars/index.php ]
The Employer Webinar Series provides in-depth information on recruiting, hiring and retaining qualified individuals with disabilities. Leaders in the field will share their experience and success in promoting the inclusion of people with disabilities in the workforce. This series will enhance employers’ knowledge and increase awareness of practical methods of increasing diversity in the workplace through the inclusion of employees with disabilities in the workforce.
Target Audiences include employers, job development specialists, human resource managers and anyone interested in learning more about employing people with disabilities.
Upcoming webinars include the following:
Thursday, January 14, 2010 - Corporate Infrastructure: Centralizing the
Reasonable Accommodation Process
The purpose of this webinar is to learn about structuring, implementing, and managing a centralized reasonable accommodation process. Centralized reasonable accommodation processes are focused on removing barriers that tend to prevent managers from hiring, retaining and promoting individuals with disabilities.
Thursday, February 11, 2010 - Corporate Infrastructure: Diversity Initiatives that
Promote the Inclusion of Individuals with Disabilities
The purpose of this webinar will be to learn from employers who have developed and implemented a wide range of diversity initiatives with the assistance of community partners that promote the inclusion of individuals with disabilities into the workforce, marketplace and supply chain.
Thursday, March 11, 2010 - Corporate Strategy: Providing Accessibility for
Employees and Customers
Three-quarters of people with disabilities are heads of household; nearly half (48
percent) of people with disabilities are the principal shoppers in their household. Capturing brand loyalty from these consumers is a solid strategy for increasing sales within this segment. The purpose of the webinar will be to highlight how businesses can create a competitive edge and avoid litigation by providing the same level of customer service to all customers including individuals with disabilities.
Thursday, April 8, 2010 - Corporate Infrastructure: Understanding ADA and
Americans with Disabilities Amendments Act of 2008
The purpose of this webinar will be to learn about businesses and employer rights and responsibilities under the ADA and the recently enacted ADA Amendments Act. This brief but thorough overview of both Acts will inform you about what the ADA actually says and requires—and what it does not. For example, it is not an affirmative action law; it is a civil rights law that protects qualified individuals with disabilities from discrimination on the basis of their disability. You can fire an individual with a disability for failure to perform the essential functions of the job; if requested, you do need to provide a cost-effective, reasonable accommodation to their disability to enable them to perform those essential functions. Learn all this and more in this fast-paced and accurate overview of both laws.
For More Information and Registration
Access the URL and click on the links on the top menu bar.
2010 Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Audio Conference Series
National Network of ADA Centers
[ http://www.ada-audio.org/Schedule/ ]
This audio conference series is sponsored by the Great Lakes ADA Center and provides in-depth information on the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The program is designed to increase knowledge of regulations and trends under the ADA. Upcoming audio conferences will cover the use of service animals, older workers with disabilities and conducting effective accessibility surveys.
All Sessions are scheduled from 1pm to 2:30pm (90 minute sessions) Central Time Zone (CT). The program is available in three formats:
All sessions will have a written transcript as well as a digital recording of the session archived on the website.
Upcoming audio conferences include the following:
January 19, 2010 - Service Animals: Unraveling the differences and best practices
The rights of people with disabilities who use service animals vary, depending on which law applies. The Americans with Disabilities Act, the Air Carrier Access Act, and the Fair Housing Act each have different standards for service animals and their owners. Complicating the topic even further is the issue of the definition of service animals, especially in relation to emotional support or therapy animals. This session will provide information about the definition of service animals and the rights of service animal owners under the ADA, the ACAA, and the FHA. We will also discuss the differences in how the various laws treat service animals versus emotional support or therapy animals, as well as model service animal policies for educational institutions and healthcare facilities.
Speaker:
Jacquie Brennan, Attorney, DBTAC -Southwest ADA Center
Guest Moderator:
Wendy Wilkinson, Project Director, DBTAC-Southwest ADA Center
February 16, 2010 - Aging Workers with Disabilities: Implications for Employers
The aging workforce is likely to result in increasing numbers of workers with disabilities. By the year 2010, this group will account for nearly half (44
%) of the working age population (20
to 64), and the number of people with disabilities between the ages of 50
and 65
is predicted to double. Disability management and accommodation policies and practices readily lend themselves to addressing the challenges employers will face with an aging workforce, and the increasing prevalence of disability that these demographics bring. Join this session for a discussion of the practices associated with maximizing the productivity of an aging workforce and contribute to aging worker retention.
Speakers:
Susanne Bruyere, Director of Employment and Disability Institute, Cornell University
Wendy Strobel, Project Coordinator, DBTAC-Northeast ADA Center
March 16, 2010 - Conducting Effective Accessibility Surveys Part I
What to measure, how to measure, who is qualified to do a survey and what tools are available to support this activity are commonly asked questions. This two part series will explore the requirements to conduct accessibility surveys by business, government and educational institutions to ensure that they meet the requirements of the ADA. Topics to be covered include what to look for in an existing facility as well as a facility that has undergone renovation and/or was newly constructed since the implementation date of the ADA. Experts in the field will share their "lessons learned" and tricks of the trade.
Speakers:
Panel of Speakers to be announced
Guest Moderator:
Don Brandon, Project Director, DBTAC-Northwest ADA Center
April 20, 2010 - Conducting Effective Accessibility Surveys Part II
This is the conclusion of the two-part series that explore the requirements to conduct accessibility surveys by business, government and educational institutions to ensure that they meet the requirements of the ADA. Topics to be covered include what to look for in an existing facility as well as a facility that has undergone renovation and/or was newly constructed since the implementation date of the ADA. Experts in the field will share their "lessons learned" and tricks of the trade.
Speakers:
Panel of Speakers to be announced
Guest Moderator:
Don Brandon, Project Director, DBTAC-Northwest ADA Center
May 18, 2010 - Reservations Please: Ensuring access for customers with disabilities
Customers with disabilities are a growing market in the hospitality industry. Millions of people with disabilities regularly travel, shop, and eat out with family and friends. According to Census 2000, approximately 20.9 million families in this country have at least one member with a disability. An Open Doors Organization study estimated in 2003
that diners with disabilities would spend $35
billion in restaurants that year and the number was expected to grow and it has. The study also found that more than 75% of people with disabilities report that they eat out at restaurants at least once a week. Furthermore, The New York Times reported that spending by travelers with disabilities exceeds $13.6 billion annually. These statistics alone make the business case for ensuring access for customers with disabilities. Join this session to hear more about what the hospitality industry is doing to serve this market and their experiences doing so.
Speaker:
TBA
Guest Moderator:
Marian Vessels, Director, DBTAC - Mid-Atlantic ADA Center
June 15, 2010 - Disability Statistics: What do they tell us?
Where does the 54
million Americans living with a disability number come from? Where can I get more information about disability data sources? Why are there different numbers out there about the unemployment rate of people with disabilities? These are just a few of the questions that are frequently asked about disability statistics. Join this session as we explore the various sources of statistics related to disability, how to use them and interpret them and what can we expect to learn about disability from the 2010 US Census.
Speaker:
Andrew Houtenville, Associate Professor of Economics, University of New Hampshire
July 20, 2010 - ADA Update: 20th Anniversary of the ADA
Mark the historic 20th
anniversary of the ADA by joining this audio conference as we listen to representatives of the Federal Agencies present an update on their litigation, technical assistance and enforcement efforts over the past year, including highlights of accomplishments over the past 20
years. Participants will have an opportunity to pose questions to the presenters regarding issues in their own workplace or community.
Speakers:
Sharon Rennert, Senior Attorney Advisor, Americans with Disabilities Act Division
John Wodatch, Chief, Disability Rights Section of the Civil Rights Division, United States Department of Justice
August 17, 2010 - ADA & After School and Daycare Programs for children with disabilities
Parents of children with disabilities are often faced with limited choices when it comes to locating appropriate after school and daycare programs to meet the needs of their children. Many daycare and after school providers are reticent about accepting children with disabilities into their programs based on the fear that they are not able to provide the child with the services that they need, they don't have the "specialized " staff that may be needed, unfounded fear that the cost of serving a child with a disability is too great or a general bias against serving individuals with disabilities. Join our speakers as they discuss best practices in day care and after school programs for serving children with disabilities and resources that are available to assist providers and parents.
Speaker:
TBA
Guest Moderator:
Shelley Kaplan, Director, DBTAC-Southeast ADA Center
September 21, 2010 - Corrections and the ADA: Balancing the rights of people with disabilities while incarcerated
Studies show that a large number of individuals within the prison system are people with disabilities. The literature discusses how the various systems serving incarcerated individuals have historically treated people with disabilities as second class citizens and ignored their rights to equal access whether it be access to medical care, the removal of physical barriers or provision of effective communication. This session will explore the strides that have been made and strategies implemented within the corrections community to address the rights of individuals with disabilities while retaining it's focus on imposing punishment.
Speaker:
TBA
Guest Moderator:
Jim DeJong, Director, DBTAC-Great Plains ADA Center
For More Information and Registration
Access the URL to click on links to this information on the right hand side of the page. The ADA Audio Conference Series is coordinated by the Great Lakes ADA Center. For assistance with any of the conferences contact (877) 232 - 1990 or (877) 232 - 1990 (V
/TTY
).
The Pacific Rim International Conference on Disabilities
Hawaii Convention Center
Honolulu, Hawaii
April 12
and 13, 2010
[ www.pacrim.hawaii.edu/ ]
The International Pacific Rim Conference (Pac Rim) on Disabilities has been widely recognized over the past 25 years as one of the most “diverse gatherings” in the world. The event encourages and respects voices from “diverse” perspective across numerous areas, including: voices from persons representing all disability areas; experiences of family members and supporters across all disability areas; responsiveness to diverse cultural and language differences; evidence of researchers and academics studying disability; stories of persons providing powerful lessons; examples of program providers, natural supports and allies of persons with disabilities and; action plans to meet human and social needs in a globalized world.
Access the URL for more information including Call for Proposals and registration.
Fact Sheet: Real-Time Communication Etiquette for Communicating with Customers with Disabilities
Job Accommodation Network Fact Sheet Series
Updated December 2009
[ www.jan.wvu.edu/media/telefact.doc ].
This fact sheet from the Job Accommodation Network includes effective ways to communicate with customers with disabilities using non face-to-face methods of communication such as text and instant messaging. It includes information on communicating with people with speech, cognitive, fine motor, vision and hearing impairments.
Walgreens Outreach Program and Videos
[ http://www.walgreensoutreach.com/ ]
Outreach is an effort by Walgreens to enhance the opportunities it can offer to people with disabilities by creating relationships with entities that serve or are otherwise interested in the employment of people with disabilities. Walgreen Company has a long history of employing people with disabilities, in each situation; a new relationship has been formed with a different entity. Outreach helps the company mainstream these efforts and maintain a resource databank for employees.
Access the URL to find links to the following Walgreens Outreach information and resources:
Walgreens Outreach Background
{Excerpted from the website]
In 2002, Senior Vice President Randy Lewis had an idea. Since the company was investing in new technology to make distribution more efficient, why not create opportunities for people with disabilities? While creating new systems, machines and processes, engineers intentionally used universal design concepts while creating the new equipment. After Anderson, SC was selected as the site of the latest distribution center, Walgreen Co. met with agencies that provide employment services to people with disabilities to help plan a pipeline of qualified applicants for the 2007 opening of the center. The last step was to create training opportunities for the new managers to help insure an inclusive workplace. Now the Supply Chain Division has incorporated the lessons we learned in Anderson and applied them to our new Distribution Centers and utilized them in our older buildings when possible.
Universal Design for the Workforce Development System
National Center on Workforce and Disability/Adult
National Collaborative on Workforce and Disability/Youth
[ http://www.ncwd-youth.info/assets/guides/quick_reference_guides/universal_design_matrix.pdf ]
As public and private workforce development systems strive to meet the diverse needs of their business and career seeking customers, including individuals experiencing barriers to employment, personnel working within these systems need a clear understanding of how to design programs, services, and activities that provide genuine, effective, and meaningful opportunities for all. Universal design is a proactive approach to establishing simple, flexible, and efficient programs and services. With universal design, providers can anticipate diverse career seeker and business needs from the outset of planning, rather than later incurring retrofitting costs.
Universal design for the workforce development system is defined as the design of environments, products, and communication practices as well as the delivery of programs, services, and activities to meet the needs of all customers of the workforce development system.
Originally developed in response to the needs of an increasing aging population and people with disabilities, the concept of universal design benefits all people. Closed captioning, for instance, was designed for individuals with hearing impairments. Now people in gyms and at sports bars rely on it. The universal design concept has since expanded far beyond physical and technological features to include design of local policies, administrative practices, and service programming, resulting in exemplary systems that meet the needs of the widest possible range of customers. When public and private workforce development systems adopt this approach, they structure policies, operational practices, services, and physical environments that result in improved outcomes for both business and career seeker customers.
This resource includes a Universal Design matrix for the workforce development system demonstrating strategies that should be reflected throughout the multiple functions performed by public and private workforce development systems: marketing and outreach; orientation; assessment; service coordination; service delivery; and business services. Further, it provides workforce professionals with concrete strategies to guide their Workforce Investment Board and/or strategic planning efforts, while serving as a valuable reference tool to assist in formal state and local planning efforts. Adopting a universal design approach within the workforce development system enhances the cost-effectiveness of the system while improving the quality of services and performance outcomes.
The Corporation for Enterprise Development (CFED) believes that expanding economic opportunity to include all people will bring greater social equity, alleviate poverty and lead to a more sustainable economy. CFED brings together community practice, public policy and private markets in new and effective ways. CFED is a major supporter of Individual Development Accounts (IDAs). IDAs are matched savings accounts that enable low-income American families to save, build assets, and enter the financial mainstream. This website includes information and resources about IDAs including a resource library and a directory of IDA providers.
Pew's Economic Mobility Project (EMP) focuses public attention on economic mobility - the ability to move up or down the income ladder within a lifetime, or from one generation to the next. By forging a broad and nonpartisan agreement on the facts, figures and trends in mobility, the project is generating an active policy debate about how best to improve economic opportunity in the United States and to ensure that the American Dream is kept alive for generations that follow.
For the first time, data related to economic mobility and the American Dream in the United States will be consolidated and presented in terms the American public and policymakers can understand, debate and discuss. How do my children's opportunities to achieve the American Dream compare to mine, to those of my parents? Is mobility thriving in other countries while waning here in the United States? How much economic mobility is there for people in poverty? To what extent is mobility affected by inherited wealth? How is mobility impacted by gender, race and level of education?
The Social Security Administration (SSA) and CESSI, the Program Manager for Recruitment and Outreach for the Ticket to Work (Ticket) program, launched the new Choose Work website for people with disabilities receiving Social Security disability benefits in celebration of the 10th Anniversary of the enactment of the Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Improvement Act (Ticket Act).
In 1999, Congress passed the landmark Ticket Act to expand choice and provide improved services and supports to beneficiaries with disabilities who decided to Choose Work. SSA has worked continuously to improve the Ticket program over the past decade and the program has come a long way since the first Ticket was issued in 2002.
Based on input SSA received from beneficiaries, Employment Networks and the disability community, regulatory improvements were made to the Ticket program in July 2008 and those changes have resulted in significant program growth and the emergence of some very encouraging trends:
And these are just a few of the positive trends that have emerged since the new regulations were implemented. Stay tuned in the new year for a full report on the impact of the regulatory changes.
SSA is launching this website to renew Congress’ challenge to willing Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) beneficiaries to “Choose Work” by participating in the Ticket to Work program and using the other SSA Work Incentives. For the first time, those unfamiliar with the program can view short, informative videos; hear powerful stories told by people just like themselves whose circumstances have led them to explore the Ticket and other Work Incentives; experience a Work Incentive Seminar Event; Find local resources and other helpful information in one interactive location online.
ChooseWork.net enables you to hear directly from some of the people with disabilities the Ticket program has helped to Choose Earnings, Choose Fulfillment and Choose Work.
Choose Work Resources Map"Disability-Friendly Colleges: A Guide for Students with Physical Disabilities" is an online college guide for students with physical disabilities containing interactive charts of the most disability friendly colleges and profiles of the colleges that provide services necessary for students with physical disabilities to live on campus. The website includes a link to a 2009 disability friendly college guide and information on preparing for and visiting colleges.
Information from the Social Security Administration's Office of Employment Support Programs on how to become an Employment Network (EN) under the Ticket to Work Program. As an EN, employers are offered a financial incentive to hire people with disabilities. Employers can recruit from hundreds of Social Security disability beneficiaries who want to work, and generate over $4,700 in income within the first 9 months of a beneficiary's employment.