Located in:
- Program-Specific Requirements for Vocational Rehabilitation (Combined or General)
The Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) Services Portion of the Unified or Combined State Plan [13] must include the following descriptions and estimates, as required by section 101(a) of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended by title IV of WIOA:
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[13] Sec. 102(b)(2)(D)(iii) of WIOA
- o. State's Strategies
Describe the required strategies and how the agency will use these strategies to achieve its goals and priorities, support innovation and expansion activities, and overcome any barriers to accessing the VR and the Supported Employment programs (See sections 101(a)(15)(D) and (18)(B) of the Rehabilitation Act and section 427 of the General Education Provisions Act (GEPA)):
- o. State's Strategies
o. 8. C. Overcome identified barriers relating to equitable access to and participation of individuals with disabilities in the State VR Services Program and the State Supported Employment Services Program.
Current Narrative:
The 2020 IDVR CSNA reported that the Division has improved its outreach services to unserved, underserved and minority populations.
The agency profile in o.3 shows IDVR’s sustained improvement in equitable access and participation. The Division has exceeded a ratio of minority service to non-minority service ratio of 1.00 for a program year the first time under WIOA achieving a rate of 1.006 for PY 2020. Significant gains in service outreach, an emphasis on accurate coding of race and ethnicity status, and Pre-ETS expansion and outreach are all potential contributors to this trend. The Division continues to improve initiatives to identify and remove barriers to access:
IDVR’s Administrator has championed outreach as a priority moving into 2022. By early January 2022, all Regional Managers will have developed a regional outreach strategy specific to their areas.
Staff recommendation to improve services contained in the CSNA indicated the next focus should be on transition age youth. Sections (o)(3) and (o)(4) of IDVR’s program specific strategies (contained above) further elaborate on how the Division will address equitable access and participation as it relates to this section, including coordination of outreach efforts with combined plan partners at IDOL.