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
p. 2. A. Identify the strategies that contributed to the achievement of the goals
Current Narrative:
Goal 1: VR Supported Employment providers will increase knowledge and skills on the provision of supported employment services, including greater understanding and focus on development of natural supports, job readiness training techniques, customized employment, and strategies for achieving stabilization on the job.
Measure: BRS will invest in training for supported employment providers including classroom-based, web-based, and hands-on workshops that focus on job coaching and job readiness training techniques. BRS will examine strategies for improvement of community rehabilitation providers to ensure capacity to carry out increased expectations under the new model, such as provision of funding for Establishment projects. At least one new training strategy will be implemented annually, such as micro-training or innovative hands-on training opportunities.
Outcome: Achieved. Provider training was enhanced with the addition of mentoring/coaching to supplement classroom-based training. Additionally, BRS continued to support establishment projects through the end of the 4-year project period. During the final year of the establishment project period, 2398 individuals received supported employment services, compared to a baseline 774 individuals receiving supported employment prior to project start.
Goal 2: VR will increase the provision of supported employment to individuals with a most significant disability, through increased education and training to VR and CRP staff.
Measure: Increased provision of supported employment services by employment services providers receiving funding through Establishment projects. This will be measured through quarterly reports submitted by providers, comparing supported employment utilization by end of year 4 of the project (March, 2021) compared to supported employment utilization at the end of year two of the project (March, 2019). The targeted percent increase from year 2 to year 4 is to increase supported employment utilization by an additional 10%.
Outcome: Partially achieved. While overall supported employment utilization increased as a result of the establishment project, the COVID-19 pandemic had a negative impact on the fourth and final year of the project. The supported employment utilization peaked in year 2 of the project with 2698 receiving this service, with a small decrease in year 3 (2365) and year 4 (2398). However, the overall supported employment utilization increased substantially from baseline pre-project (774) to all four years of the project period.