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
25 September 2009
Good morning everyone!
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.
Have a great weekend!
***NEW CONTACT INFORMATION***
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 ]
Good morning Navigators,
There are so many good resources to choose from…..If you are available on October 1st between 2pm and 5pm Eastern Time, then you will probably want to sign up - if you have not already---to participate on the Workforce3 One Webinar on Reauthorization of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998: Listening Session for Disability Stakeholders found under Upcoming Events of Interest.There are several resources to add to your employment toolkit to share during your October activities. Take a few moments to check out the videos that were produced for The Campaign for Disability Employment under Resources of Interest. If you only have time for one, then click on the link to the video “Meet Sue.” This would be an excellent resource to share during a National Disability Employment Awareness Month or Disability Mentor Day event!!!!
REMINDERS
October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM) and
21 October 2009 is Disability Mentoring Day (DMD)
Navigators, it is that time of year again to start preparting for the 2009 National Disability Employment Awareness Month and Disability Mentoring Day. Over the years, the national DPN Program Office and and the national TA provider have been really inspired by the different activities and events communities have planned to raise awareness during these national annual events.
Let us know what activities you are planning this year for NDEAM and we will produce a chart that incorporates the activities and events you have planned for October and circulate it among the projects. If you would like to receive a copy of a chart that highlights what many DPNs did for last year’s celebration (you may get some ideas of different things that you can implement in your area) and/or to submit your activities and events for this year, please send an e-mail to Laura Gleneck [ E–mail lgleneck@ndi-inc.org ] or DJ at [ ddiamond@ndi-inc.org ]
To help you begin to spread the message, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy has copies of the 2009 National Disability Employment Awareness Month poster available depicting this year’s theme, Expectation + Opportunity = Full Participation, which captures the vital role that expectations play in our successes as individuals and as a society. We must ensure that both people with disabilities and their employers expect that they will fully participate in our workplaces. Such an expectation alone, however, is not enough. They must also have opportunity. People with disabilities need access to a full range of employment choices to maximize their talents. With both the expectation and opportunity.
The NDEAM 2009 Poster is available in both English and Spanish. The posters are available in one size, 20” x 15,” at no cost to you. To order online, go to:[ http://www.pueblo.gsa.gov/rc/odep.htm ] .
The maximum order is one hundred posters. You may also download .PDF versions of the posters at [ http://www.dol.gov/odep/pubs/ndeam09.pdf. ]
Throughout the month of October, the national DPN Program Office will be featuring some of the NDEAM and DMD activities shared by DPNs on a soon to be unveiled disability landing page, so make sure you share your activities.
We look forward to learning how your community will be celebrating NDEAM and DMD this year!
Happy Friday!
The Social Security Administration Announces New Community of Ticket to Work Employer Partners
[ http://www.cessi.net/ttw/employer/partners.html ]
CESSI, the Ticket to Work Program Manager for Recruitment and Outreach, is pleased to announce, on behalf of the Social Security Administration (SSA), a new option for employers interested in participating in the Ticket program. The “Employer Partner” of the Ticket program opportunity was officially launched by Mr. Dan O'Brien, the Acting Associate Commissioner for the SSA Office of Employment Support Programs at the U.S. Business Leadership Network’s (USBLN) Annual Conference last week.
Employers that have a demonstrated commitment to hiring people with disabilities are encouraged to consider becoming Employer Partners of the Ticket program. Ticket program Employer Partners get a leg up on the competition in recruiting qualified individuals with disabilities to join their workforce. Being an Employer Partner allows an employer to showcase their company as a disability friendly employer to gain exposure to thousands of Americans with disabilities with a link to an employer’s career or job posting website. Additional benefits of becoming an Employer Partner include:
FOR MORE INFORMATON AND TO BECOME A PARTNER
Becoming an Employer Partner is easy! The partnership requirements employers need to meet are outlined at www.cessi.net/ttw/employer/partners.html. Please join the ranks of the inaugural Ticket Employer Partners - Alumwire, Lockheed Martin, and Terremark - by contacting Susan Samuels, CESSI's Ticket to Work Employer Specialist, at: ssamuels@cessi.net or 703-448-6155 x235.
.
Toolkit and White Paper on Improving Transition Outcomes of Youth with Disabilities through Apprenticeship
U.S. Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration
Training and Employment Notice (TEN) Number 10-09
September 21, 2009
[ http://wdr.doleta.gov/directives/corr_doc.cfm?DOCN=2805 ]
This training and employment notice was sent from Assistant Secretary of the Employment and Training Administration, Jane Oates, on September 21st to all State Workforce Agencies, Workforce Liaisons, Apprenticeship Agency Directors and Field Technicians and state and regional Directors, Workforce Investment Boards and staff (both state and local). The purpose of this notice is to disseminate a white paper and toolkit which focus on expanding apprenticeship opportunities for youth and young adults with disabilities.
Access the URL to view and download this training and employment notice, which includes links to the following attachments:
Award of Cooperative Agreements to Improve Registered Apprenticeship Training for Youth and Young Adults with Disabilities
U.S. Department of Labor Office of Disability Employment Policy News Release
September 17, 2009
[ http://www.dol.gov/opa/media/press/odep/ODEP20091107.htm ]
(The following is excerpted from the news release.)
The U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) has awarded cooperative agreements to The Workplace Inc. in Bridgeport, Conneticut., and the SkillSource Group Inc. in Vienna, Va., to lead consortia to develop innovative models of providing inclusive registered apprenticeship training to youth and young adults with disabilities. "By improving the capacity of systems to provide apprenticeship training to youth and young adults with disabilities, we can change the expectations of these students and put them on the path to good jobs in high-growth, high-demand industries," said Assistant Secretary of Labor for Disability Employment Policy Kathy Martinez.
The Workplace Inc. will receive an award of $200,000 to lead a consortium that includes Career Resources Inc., the Disability Resource Center of Fairfield County Inc., the Family Services Woodfield-Literacy Volunteers, the State of Connecticut Department of Social Services, the State of Connecticut Board of Education and Services for the Blind, the New England Regional Council of Carpenters, Microboard Processing Inc., and the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America Local 210. The SkillSource Group Inc. will receive an award of $243,631 to lead a consortium that includes ServiceSource, Northern Virginia Community College, and the Virginia Department of Labor and Industry. Each cooperative agreement was awarded as a result of a competitive process and both have a 24-month period of performance.
Go Direct
[ http://www.godirect.org/ ]
Direct deposit is safer, easier and more convenient than getting a paper check in the mail. Yet despite the advantages, many people who rely on Social Security, Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Veteran’s (VA) Compensation and Pension payments still get checks. The U.S. Department of the Treasury and the Federal Reserve Banks are sponsoring Go Direct, a campaign to motivate people who receive federal benefit checks to use direct deposit.
Go Direct gives Americans who have checking or savings accounts a fast, free way to sign up for direct deposit. To sign up, people can call the toll-free helpline at (800) 333-1795, go online to www.GoDirect.org, or visit their local bank or credit union.
[ http://www.workforce3one.org/view/5000926034463890808/info ]
Please join Seth Harris, Deputy Secretary for the U.S. Department of Labor; Jane Oates, Assistant Secretary for the Employment and Training Administration (ETA); and Kathy Martinez, Assistant Secretary for the Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) for a "listening session" focused on the reauthorization of the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) of 1998, and its impact on programs and services for people with disabilities.
Presenters:
Moderator: Gary Gonzalez, Webinar Facilitator, Office of Workforce Investment, Employment and Training Administration
TIME AND DATE
The listening session for disability stakeholders will be conducted on Thursday, October 1, 2009, between 2pm and 5pm (EST) at the U.S. Department of Labor, Room numberC-5320, Room 6, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW, Washington, DC, 20210.
REGISTRATION
A. Webinar
There will be a number of pre-scheduled five minute presentations by disability stakeholders as well as an opportunity for all participants to provide comments. Interested attendees must register at Workforce3One.org. Registrants will be able to participate in the listening session either in person at the Department of Labor or remotely via Webinar or teleconference. A teleconference number and Webinar link with access to closed captioning will be provided to those who wish to remotely attend the listening session.
Registration for this Webinar is limited and seating is on a first-come, first-served basis. Please click the link below to login to Workforce3 One and register today!
http://www.workforce3one.org/view/5000926034463890808/info. Note, you must be (or become) a registered user of the Workforce3 One website.
B. In Person Attendance
If you are interested in attending the listening session in person, please contact Randee Chafkin at chafkin.randee@dol.gov. Please also contact Ms. Chafkin if you are requesting an accommodation. Space is limited and participation in person will be on a first registered basis; if there are more registrants who want to attend in person than there is space, you will be notified by e-mail prior to the session and will be able to participate by Webinar or teleconference.
WRITTEN COMMENTS
Written comments are also welcome and can be submitted via email to WIA.Reauthorization2009@dol.gov through October 15, 2009. This listening session will be recorded and archived on Workforce3One.org so that interested parties may access the recording and transcript at any time.
What Can YOU Do? Video Contest Winners
To celebrate the launch of the What Can YOU Do? Campaign, the Campaign for Disability Employment asked aspiring filmmakers to produce their own 60-second video in support of the What Can YOU Do? effort. Filmmakers were asked for creative, fun, compelling videos, of all genres, that illustrate positive images of people with disabilities at work and help viewers re-think their assumptions about people with disabilities and employment. With more than 135 entries, selecting the top videos was extraordinarily challenging, but several videos made the top of the list!
The links to the videos can be found at the bottom of the page.
In support of the What Can YOU Do? outreach effort, the Campaign for Disability Employment is pleased to present video tools. Help spread the word about the value and talent that people with disabilities bring to the workplace by sharing these videos and playing the Campaign for Disability Employment’s “I Can” public service announcement (PSA).
The U.S. Census Bureau announced that real median household income in the United States fell 3.6 percent between 2007 and 2008, from $52,163 to $50,303. This breaks a string of three years of annual income increases and coincides with the recession that started in December 2007 .
These findings are contained in the report Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2008 (see “Publications of the Week”). This news release includes results for the nation that were compiled from information collected in the 2009 Current Population Survey (CPS) Annual Social and Economic Supplement (ASEC):
Asset-building is an anti-poverty strategy that helps low-income people move toward greater self-sufficiency by accumulating savings - and purchasing long-term assets. For homeless veterans, asset-building can greatly increase the motivation to seek and retain employment.
The Assets for Independence Program is a Federal program that provides funding to organizations offering Individual Development Accounts (IDAs) to enable low-income individuals and families to save toward the purchase of a first home, enrolling in an educational or training program, or starting a small business. Each dollar that the participant saves is matched by up to $8 from federal, state, local, and private funds.
Access the URL to link to the two-page fact sheet.
The TechMatrix is a powerful tool for finding educational and assistive technology products for students with special needs. TechMatrix's search tool generates results based on subject area and learning supports, including adaptive devices, text-to-speech software, touch screens, electronic references and resources, multiple formats of text, alternate access to computers and peripheral devices (input and output) and more.
Testimony Presented To: Social Security Subcommittee House Ways and Means Washington, DC, May 19, 2009
Presented By: John Kregel, Ed.D., Principal Investigator
Work Incentives Planning and Assistance National Training Center, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, Virginia
On May 19, 2009, Dr. John Kregel provided testimony to the Social Security Subcommittee of the Ways and Means Committee of the U.S. House of Representatives on ways to improve the Social Security Administration’s employment and return to work programs. His testimony is provided in this JVR article in its entirety.
The purpose of this report is to provide a review of the recent evaluation activities being conducted for a number of state and federal programs, policies, and initiatives designed to promote the employment of people with disabilities. The review is intended to provide a single source for information on the nature of the initiatives and the evaluation efforts that have been recently completed or are currently under way and the findings to date related to the effectiveness of these initiatives. This broad review is also intended to provide some evidence of the progress we are making. The report also suggests avenues where further efforts and progress might be warranted. Twenty-seven initiatives or programs were identified and their associated evaluations that represent a federally sponsored program, policy, or initiative designed specifically to improve employment of the working-age adult population with disabilities. Because of resource constraints, this report does not review initiatives designed to improve the adult employment outcomes of youth with disabilities, such as the Social Security Administration (SSA) sponsored Youth Transition Demonstrations. It also did not review small-scale studies evaluating the effectiveness of specific clinical, supported employment, or vocational rehabilitation (VR) approaches. It only looked at information related to the major federal programs serving people with disabilities, general legislation and policies, and initiatives that were fairly large-scale in nature.
This report presents data on income, poverty, and health insurance coverage in the United States based on information collected in the 2009 and earlier Annual Social and Economic Supplements (ASEC) to the Current Population Survey (CPS) conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. Data presented in this report indicate the following:
Disability is both a fundamental cause and consequence of income poverty. The income-poverty rate for persons with disabilities is between two to three times the rate for persons without disabilities. Yet, contemporary policy debate and research about income poverty in the United States is largely silent about disability. This paper argues that we need to have a broader view of what poverty is and also that disability must be taken into account in anti-poverty policy.