Vocational Rehabilitation Program (Combined or General)

The CDOR, jointly with the SRC, established eight goals for the 2018-2020 VR Portion of the Unified State Plan Modification. These goals were developed based on information from the Comprehensive Statewide Assessment, requirements related to the federal Standards and Performance Indicators, CDOR’s 2013–2018 Strategic Plan, and stakeholder input. The information below provides an evaluation of both the VR and Supported Employment goals (in particular, reference goal eight for Supported Employment).

2018-2020 STATE PLAN GOALS

Goal 1:Fully implement pre-employment transition services through a realignment of staff and service delivery methods.

Objective 1.1: From July 1, 2018, to June 30, 2019, the CDOR will providepre-employment transition services statewide to 29,000 potentially eligible and eligible students with disabilities, ages 16 through 21, with an increase of at least 5 percent by June 30, 2020, increasing the number of students receiving pre-employment transition services to 30,450.

Partially Achieved: In Program Year 2018, CDOR provided pre-employment transition services to 16,853 eligible and potentially eligible students with disabilities. The CDOR is improving data tracking tools to ensure all services are made available and are accurately recorded for students with disabilities. From July 1, 2019, through September 30, 2019, CDOR has provided pre-employment transition services to 11,695 eligible and potentially eligible students with disabilities. It is unlikely CDOR will completely meet its goal of providing pre-employment transition services to 30,450 eligible and potentially eligible students with disabilities in Program Year 2019.

Strategies that lead to the partial achievement of this goal include:

• Redirecting 210 VR staff to work directly with eligible and potentially eligible students with disabilities.
• Fully implementing a potentially eligible case type statewide.
• Revising Transition Partnership Program contracts to include the provision of pre-employment transition services to students with disabilities.

Objective 1.2: Beginning July 1, 2018, and annually thereafter, the CDOR will provide no less than 2,000 students with disabilities with work-based learning experiences at an average of 100 hours per student for pre-employment transition services.

Achieved: In Program Year 2018, CDOR provided work-based learning experiences to 4,390 students with disabilities at an average of approximately 100 hours per student. Between July 1, 2019 and September 30, 2019, in Program Year 2019, CDOR has provided work-based learning experiences to 1,141 students with disabilities and will surpass the goal of 2,000 students with disabilities by the end of the Program Year.

Strategies that lead to the achievement of this goal include:

• Establishing a partnership with the Foundation for California Community Colleges which allowed CDOR to expand work-based learning experience opportunities for students with disabilities.
• Utilizing fee-for-service paid work experience with Community Rehabilitation Programs.
• Establishing and expanding business partnerships on a continual basis to provide opportunities for pre-employment transition services.

Objective 1.3: From July 1, 2018, to June 30, 2020, the CDOR will develop at least two mechanisms to provide students with disabilities information about the statewide availability of pre-employment transition services.

Achieved: In Program Year 2018, CDOR implemented an extensive communication plan to provide information to the public about the availability of pre-employment transition services. In the end of Program Year 2018, CDOR began conducting monthly Student Services (also known as pre-employment transition services) calls with all 14 districts.

Strategies that lead to the achievement of this goal include:

• Redesigning CDOR’s website and introduced a revamped “Services to the Youth” webpage.
• Educating CDOR Team Managers and Service Coordinators about Student Services, so they can train and communicate to their staff about these services.
• Using memos, group discussions, Intranet updates, and Manager Q&A sessions to educate designated VR counselors about CDOR Student Services, so they can effectively communicate the services to students, parents, Local Educational Agencies, America's Job Center of California, regional centers and others.
• Using flyers, brochures, presentations, posters, and follow-up calls to educate school districts about Student Services and connect with staff that support students with an IEP and 504 Accommodations.
• Using flyers and social media to reach out to high school students about Student Services.
• Using various marketing channels to conduct outreach to businesses, parents, guardians, college students, and youths/young adults.
• Monthly Student Services calls with all 14 CDOR districts with over 100 participants per call. Topics included: barriers, challenges, and best practices for Student Services and the Transition Partnership Program, Workability I, non-contracted schools, colleges, and vendors and challenges and solutions to working in rural areas.

Goal 2: Increase coordination of services between CDOR and other partners to support students with disabilities.   

Objective 2.1: Annually, the CDOR will participate with secondary transition organizations and stakeholders to develop an action plan for state capacity building on secondary education and transition services and establish baseline information on capacity building needs in order to develop future objectives. 

Achieved: During Program Years 2018 and 2019, CDOR participated annually with secondary transition organizations and stakeholders (California Community of Practice on Transition) to develop an action plan to build state capacity. A new action plan was developed by the Community of Practice in May 2019 and the plan targets capacity building strategies that detail increasing collaboration between agencies, youth, families, community partners and employers. The CDOR is in the process of working with the Community of Practice on a new action plan for the next year.

Strategies that lead to the achievement of this goal include:

• Developing an action plan in Program Year 2018 that includes conducting cross-training between regional centers, CDOR, Employment Development Department, America Job Centers and LEAs to build capacity of services provided by each entity and develop collaborative relationships and providing a webinar on diploma options.
• Co-leading regular meetings with the Community of Practice on Secondary Transition.
• Working with the California Transition Alliance to assist in the facilitation of at least one “Bridge to the Future” conference.
• Attending the annual National Technical Assistance Center on Transition Capacity Building Institute.

Objective 2.2: From July 1, 2018, to June 30, 2020, CDOR Districts will maintain a liaison to public secondary school districts; district school liaisons will communicate with applicable school district staff at least annually with increased communication based on the needs of the students at each school district. This will help increase communication with schools about CDOR services, a need identified in the Comprehensive Statewide Assessment.

Achieved: In Fall 2018, CDOR Student Services letter from CDE and CDOR was mailed out to all Superintendents and District Administrators. The CDE emailed this letter to all Special Education Local Plan Area (SELPA) Directors in September 2018 to formally encourage collaboration with CDOR in providing Student Services. In 2019, the CDOR, in collaboration with CDE, reached out to the LEAs and CDOR districts to share resources to support the development of strong local partnerships between the two.

Strategies that lead to the achievement of this goal include:

• Developing three new resources – a collaboration worksheet, CDOR school contact list, and a CDOR Student Services flyer. The collaboration worksheet was jointly developed by CDOR and CDE.
• Signing an Interagency Agreement with CDE regarding the provision of DOR Student Services. This agreement serves as a mechanism for CDOR, CDE and LEAs to clearly specify the plans, policies, and procedures for coordinating services to facilitate the transition of students with disabilities.
• Updating CDOR’s School Liaison list no less than annually and post on the CDOR’s website.
   

Goal 3: Expand and improve California’s infrastructure and capacity for making available pre-employment transition services to students with disabilities in need of such services by utilizing pre-employment transition services Authorized Activities. 

Objective 3.1: From July 1, 2018, to June 30, 2020, the CDOR will collaborate with the California Department of Education, local educational agencies, and/or other stakeholders to develop and conduct at least two pre-employment transition services Authorized Activities to address the need identified in the Comprehensive Statewide Assessment.

Achieved: The CDOR utilized Authorized Activities funding to send 254 CDOR staff to training that lead to connections with education partners, other state agencies, and parents throughout California. The CDOR also utilized Authorized Activities funds during Program Year 2018 to contract with Cornell University’s K. Lisa Yang and Hock E. Tan Institute on Employment and Disability to provide CDOR Student Work Incentives Planning Services training. During Program Year 2019, CDOR is not authorized to spend any additional Authorized Activities funds and will not be continuing or completing Authorized Activities until funds are approved.

Strategies that lead to the partial achievement of the goal include:

• Communicating opportunities with CDE, LEAs, and, or, other stakeholders to conduct one or more of the nine pre-employment transition services Authorized Activities.
• Co-sponsoring, presenting and attending the Bridges to the Future Institute Training in November 2018. It enhanced the coordination between CDOR and education agencies, families and youth service providers.
• Providing Student Work Incentives Planning Services training and, as a result, 41 Student Services Coordinators and Work Incentives Planners completed the case file review for full credentialing to provide CDOR Student Work Incentives Planning Services.

Goal 4: Collaborate with partners to provide information and referral to out-of-school youth with disabilities who are identified as unserved or underserved in the Comprehensive Statewide Assessment.

Objective 4.1: From July 1, 2018, to June 30, 2020, the CDOR will establish at least one statewide linkage with another California state agency to support information and referral to out-of-school youth with disabilities who are identified as unserved or underserved.

Achieved: The CDOR participated in the California Health and Human Services Agency-coordinated “Trauma Informed Systems of Care” leadership workgroup with the California Departments of Health Care Services, Social Services, DDS and CDE as well as county and local partners. The purpose of the workgroup was to better serve foster youth, including out-of-school youth, who are receiving services from multiple programs. The workgroup drafted a Systems of Care MOU and Resources Library. The MOU is a framework for triaging foster youth and need interdivisional approach; handled by statewide leadership. The Resource Library is a cache for resources including federal and state law and regulations, sample templates and brochures, and county letters detailing services available and responsibilities.

Strategies that lead to the achievement of the goal include:

• Participating in California’s Improving Educational Outcomes of Children in Care (IEOCC) workgroup. The IEOCC workgroup is facilitated by FosterEd and is comprised of leaders representing multiple state public agencies that support the educational success of children and youth in foster care, including the California Department of Education, California Department of Social Services, Administrative Offices of the Courts, and the Child Welfare’s Directors Association.
• Developing at least one innovative strategy to support information and referral for out-of-school youth with consideration to cultural barriers that may prevent youth from seeking services.

Goal 5: Increase partnerships with local businesses to develop or expand work experience, internship, and employment opportunities for adults and youth with disabilities.

Objective 5.1: From July 1, 2018, to June 30, 2020, the CDOR will develop relationships and provide direct services to at least 100 new business partners. The CDOR developed relationships and provided direct services to 100 new business partners from 2016 through 2017. This effort will support CDOR’s efforts to increase median wages for consumers, as identified in the Comprehensive Statewide Assessment.

Achieved: In Program Year 2018, the CDOR formed relationships with 192 new business partners. In the first quarter in Program Year 2019 the CDOR has formed relationships with 34 new business partners and expects to increase this number by the end of the program year.

Strategies that lead to the achievement of the goal include:

• Partnering with the Foundation of California Community Colleges to offer businesses the opportunity to have paid and insured student workers on site for 100 hours at no charge to the business. In its first year, 600 business participated in the program and has since been expanded to include more businesses.
• Changing the staffing infrastructure change to, in part, assist with the needs of businesses by hiring a Regional Director in each of the fourteen CDOR districts. CDOR has involved these new Regional Directors in meetings with Amazon in order strategize, then implement solutions in Amazon’s hiring needs, and to get job seekers with disabilities engaged with and working at Amazon.
• Coordinating with the local Workforce Development Boards when conducting outreach to local business partners.
• Identifying other stakeholders, such as local business associations, to partner with for outreach efforts.
• Identifying and approaching businesses that have public contracts with requirements for the hiring of individuals with disabilities.
• Supporting the recruitment of job seekers with disabilities through direct referral from CDOR offices and through the Talent Acquisition Portal online job matching system.
• Serving as a resource to the local Workforce Development Boards, America’s Job Center of California, and core partners to support the hiring, retention and promotion of adults and youth with disabilities.

Objective 5.2:  From July 1, 2018, to June 30, 2020, the CDOR will promote participation for consumers in career pathways (which are multi–entity, partnership efforts) to meet business sector and consumer employment needs identified in the Comprehensive Statewide Assessment.

Achieved: The CDOR held multiple Lights! Camera! Action! (LCA) events in the state in which job seekers with a career goal of employment in digital media/entertainment gain a deeper understanding of how to disclose disability, request accommodation, find work through networking to jobs in media. The recorded webinars become part of the online curriculum available to all LCA graduates statewide. The CDOR also initiated an apprenticeship partnership with Cisco and significantly expanded its Student Work Experience partnership to increase opportunities for students to work for businesses statewide.

Strategies that lead to the achievement of the goal include:

• Contributing to the 2018 Youth Leadership Forum (YLF) event through management participation on the YLF Governance Committee. YLF is an annual, five-day vocational awareness program for approximately 60 high school students with disabilities in California. The forum integrates state agencies, community advocates, and students who serve and represent the diversity in the developmentally disabled community in our state.
• Working with Regional Business Specialist to review, disseminate and connect information from the Regional Planning Units.
• Continuing to engage and expand business engagement with federal and state partners.
• Renewing its partnership with disABLEDPerson, Inc. – a non-profit to promote the Microsoft Imagine Academy, providing IT skills training to DOR job seekers.

Objective 5.3: From July 1, 2018, to June 30, 2020, the CDOR will develop at least two new statewide partnerships withregional/national businesses on recruitment and retention for qualified individuals with disabilities.

Achieved: The CDOR developed a new statewide partnership with Uniqlo, an International clothing retailer, and afforded CDOR consumers the opportunity to bypass the traditional interview process for a practical interview where consumers were observed working with customers, how they learn to display merchandise, and interacting with team members. The CDOR also develop a statewide partnership with Thermo Fisher Scientific, a global corporation to develop a Neurodiversity Hiring project recruiting applicants who are on the autism spectrum for Information Technology and analyst roles.

Strategies that lead to the achievement of the goal include:

• Maintain the CDOR Hot Jobs webpage for business partners and job seekers to use as a job search tool.
• Monthly calls with Regional Business Specialist to review and support local partnerships. 
• Calls with National Employment Team with national business partners.
• Utilization of Talent Acquisition Portal (TAP) for businesses and job seekers.

Goal 6: Both internally and with CDOR’s partners, develop systems capacity, knowledge, skills, and abilities in order to effectively meet the needs of businesses. 

Objective 6.1: From July 1, 2018, to June 30, 2020, at least 300 CDOR district staff will participate in training to increase knowledge, skills, and abilities to effectively meet the needs of businesses and CDOR consumers identified in the Comprehensive Statewide Assessment.

Achieved: Since July 1, 2018, over 300 CDOR district staff have participated in training to increase knowledge, skills, and abilities to effectively meet the needs of businesses and consumers.

Strategies that lead to the achievement of the goal include:

• Launching webinars that offer training on how to find employment with the State of California or federal government.
• Hosting monthly conference calls to provide training and resources to CDOR field staff. These meetings coach VR Teams on how to build connections with businesses and how to promote the talent pool of job seekers who are also CDOR consumers.
• Developing at least one training, specific to CDOR staff, on career pathways and the utilization of labor market information.
• Conducting monthly regional business sector calls.
• Appointing and training 14 CDOR Regional Business Specialists to manage sector strategies in their assigned area.

Goal 7: Establish or enhance partnerships to increase the capacity of CDOR and the WIOA core program partners to improve service delivery for adults and youth with disabilities.

Objective 7.1: From July 1, 2018, to June 30, 2020, CDOR in collaboration with the California Workforce Association and the State Workforce Board, will provide at least 30 disability access, disability accommodations, or disability awareness trainings within local regional planning units and make these available to all 45 local workforce development boards, America’s Job Center of California operators and local WIOA partners. 

Achieved: Since July 1, 2018, the CDOR has provided over 50 classes to more than 1,000 individuals on topics including disability access, disability accommodations, and disability awareness.

Strategies that lead to the achievement of the goal include:

• Providing training to local America’s Job Center of California staff on topics such as: CDOR services; eligibility; job placement; case management; benefits counseling; job readiness and soft skills; disability awareness and etiquette; hiring persons with disabilities; disability disclosures; competitive integrated employment; customized employment; assistive technology; and, reasonable accommodation.
• Providing referral resource information to the WIOA core programs serving individuals with disabilities, such as accommodations for individuals who are blind and visually impaired or deaf and hard of hearing.
• Identifying the single point of contact for all local WIOA core program partners.

Goal 8: Increase competitive integrated employment opportunities, outcomes, and supports for adults and youth with disabilities, particularly those with the most significant disabilities, including those receiving Supported Employment services, and those underserved.

Objective 8.1: From July 1, 2018, to June 30, 2020, the CDOR will implement no less than 50 new Local Partnership Agreements between local educational agencies, CDOR districts, and regional centers to identify the ways in which the partners will work together to assist individuals with the most significant disabilities to achieve competitive integrated employment.

Partially achieved: Since July 1, 2018, the CDOR has implemented 38 new Local Partnership Agreements between local educational agencies, CDOR districts, and regional centers. The CDOR anticipates implementing at least 50 Local Partnership Agreements by June 30, 2020.

Strategies that lead to the partial achievement of the goal include:

• Collaborating with the California Department of Education, and the California Department of Developmental Services will provide technical assistance and guidance on the development of Local Partnership Agreements to local core partners.
• Collaborating with the California Department of Education, and the California Department of Developmental Services will post resources to assist in the development of Local Partnership Agreements on the California Health and Human Services Competitive Integrated Employment webpage.
• Developing and distributing joint written guidance with the California Department of Education and the California Department of Developmental Services to local educational agencies, CDOR district staff, and regional centers that provides strategies for collaboration and coordinated service delivery in the local communities.
• Coordinating and collaborating with the California Department of Education and the California Department of Developmental Services, as outlined in the Blueprint, to prepare and support all individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities that choose competitive integrated employment.
• Holding stakeholder meetings and forums to communicate information on achieving competitive integrated employment for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
   

Objective 8.2: From July 1, 2018, to June 30, 2020, the Achieving Community Employment services team will provide at least 17,000 individuals earning subminimum wage with career counseling and information and referral services in partnership with over 130 14(c) Certificate Holders / Employers (based on Department of Labor Lists of all registered 14c certificate holders and number of workers paid subminimum wage issued in October 2017).

Partially achieved: Since July 1, 2018, 14,101 unduplicated individuals have received one or more career counseling and information and referral (CCIR) service. It is likely the CDOR will provide CCIR services to another 3,000 individuals working in subminimum wage employment and exceed the goal of providing the service to at least 17,000 individuals before the end of the program year.

Strategies that lead to the partial achievement of the goal include:

• Including individualized person-centered services in CCIR services for individuals expressing a desire to explore and achieve competitive integrated employment.  
• Increasing outreach efforts with caregivers, partners, and employers to promote the benefits of transitioning individuals from subminimum wage jobs to competitive integrated employment.
• Helping individuals receiving career counseling and information and referral to enroll in VR services in collaboration with local CDOR staff; and will track, monitor, and support the individuals as they navigate through the VR services towards successful achievement of competitive integrated employment.
• Continually seeking input from individuals and stakeholders to further enrich career counseling and information and referral resources, guidance, and materials for optimal service delivery in support of Section 511 of the WIOA and the Competitive Integrated Employment: Blueprint for Change goals.

The CDOR achieved or partially achieved all eight of its goals during Program Year 2018 and 2019 and is implementing five new goals in the 2020-2023 Program Years.