Law, Health Policy & Disability Center
University of Iowa College of Law
http://disability.law.uiowa.edu/dpn/
and
The Burton Blatt Institute
Syracuse University
http://bbi.syr.edu
One–Stop Toolkit
Resources of the Week Technical Assistance Project E–Mail listserv
5 May 2006
Good morning everyone,
Below please find the web site and publication 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.
To view an indexed list of the resources of the week by subject matter, visit the L.P.H.D.C. web site at http://disability.law.uiowa.edu/lhpdc/resources/wig/default.asp. It currently includes 20 categories, covering over 300 annotated references. Each category opens to a new window with each Resource of the Week which covered material in that area.
Have a good day and weekend!
Laura Farah
Program Associate
Law, Health Policy & Disability Center
University of Iowa College of Law
P: 617–489–0086
F: 617–489–1374
[ E–mail Lgleneck@mail.law.uiowa.edu ]
[ E–mail LFarah8@aol.com ]
[ http://www.onestoptoolkit.org ]
[The full announcement is located under the section heading "For Your Information."
]
As you continue your Navigator outreach activities, it may be beneficial to spread the news that the Social Security Administration (SSA) has recognized the urgent need to make substantial changes in their disability determination process. SSA expects that these changes will improve the accuracy, consistency, and timeliness of decision-making throughout the disability determination process and in the summer of 2006, they will begin implementation in the Boston Region (comprised of Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont). Download the following information from the website above and provide it to all of your community partners and throughout the disability community for awareness on these important changes.
The final rule provides for:
DATES: Applications are due by June 2, 2006
SUMMARY: The Justice and Mental Health Collaboration Program seeks to increase public safety through innovative cross-system collaboration for individuals with mental illness who come into contact with the criminal or juvenile justice systems. BJA is seeking joint applications from eligible applicants seeking to plan, implement, or expand an adult or juvenile collaboration program. This program is funded through the Mentally Ill Offender Treatment and Crime Reduction Act of 2004 (MIOTCRA) (Public Law 108-414).
The Justice and Mental Health Collaboration Program will increase public safety by facilitating collaboration among the criminal justice, juvenile justice, and mental health and substance abuse treatment systems to increase access to services for offenders with mental illness. The Program encourages early intervention for system-involved individuals with mental illness; provides new and existing mental health courts with various treatment options; maximizes diversion opportunities for non-violent offenders with mental illness and co-occurring disorders; promotes training for justice and treatment professionals on criminal justice processes and mental health and substance abuse issues; and facilitates communication, collaboration, and the delivery of support services among justice professionals, treatment and related service providers, and governmental partners.
ELIGIBILITY: Applicants are limited to states, units of local government, Indian tribes, and tribal organizations. BJA will only accept joint applications; each application must demonstrate that the proposed project will be managed jointly by a mental health agency and a unit of government with responsibility for criminal justice activities.
Award Categories Justice and Mental Health Collaboration grants are available in one of the following three categories. Each category requires a joint application with a mental health agency and unit of government responsible for criminal and/or juvenile justice activities.
CATEGORY I: PLANNING Grant maximum: $50,000. Project period: 12 months. Category I applicants will design a strategic, collaborative plan to initiate systemic change for the identification and treatment of offenders with mental illness. Key to the planning category is the development of an effective collaboration representing support from all levels of government, justice, mental health and treatment services, transportation, housing, advocates, consumers, and family members. This collaboration will ultimately form the basis for a problem- solving model, or strategic plan, to intercept individuals from the system at the earliest point possible while promoting public safety. Category I grantees will receive intensive technical assistance from BJA throughout the grant period to support their planning efforts.
CATEGORY II: PLANNING AND IMPLEMENTATION Grant maximum: $250,000. Project period: 30 months. Category II applicants will complete an already-initiated strategic plan for their mental health collaboration, and then begin implementation of the plan during the project period. Applicants in this category will submit their draft plan as part of the application review process. While plans need not be final, they should reflect substantive thought and activity toward planning a mental health collaboration. Approximately six months of the total project period should be used to complete details on plans, with the remaining months used to begin implementation of the plan. Category II grantees will receive approval from BJA to begin the implementation phase of their grant once they have successfully met all planning performance measures, and will receive intensive technical assistance from BJA during the planning period of the grant.
CATEGORY III: IMPLEMENTATION AND EXPANSION Grant maximum: $200,000. Project period: 24 months. Category III applicants will implement—and may expand—their well-established collaboration plan. Implementation and expansion grants can support mental health courts and diversion / alternative prosecution and sentencing programs, crisis intervention teams, and treatment accountability services; specialized training for justice and treatment services professionals; service delivery for collateral services such as housing; and corrections, transitional, and re-entry services to create or expand mental health and support services. Category III funding can be used to support limited expansion planning, if the planning is implemented within the project period.
Access the URL to read the full announcement including application and submission information.
Mental Health Month is an annual observance sponsored by the National Mental Health Association (NMHA) and the National Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare (NCCBH). It is designed to increase awareness about mental health and mental illness. For more information on mental health or this year’s Mental Health Month theme, call NMHA at 800-969-NMHA (6642), or visit the web site at E-mail best-morris.vicky@dol.gov.
If you or your One-Stop / community is involved in any activities to help celebrate and bring awareness to mental health, please send me a description to highlight in a One-Stop Toolkit Resources of the Week during the month of May.
San Bernardino County's Employment Resource Center (One Stop Career Center) staff will participate in a "Mind Your Health" Wellness Event on May 6th to help celebrate and bring awareness to mental health. At the event, One-Stop staff will assist people with their job search questions, distribute flyers describing the services available at the One-Stop Career Centers, and distribute employment-related brochures that are of specific interest to persons with disabilities (e.g., the Medical Working Disabled Program, Disability Rights Laws, Job Accommodation Network, Jobline, Department of Rehabilitation, and the local BPAO and Center for Independent Living). The one-day event will include fun activities for the whole family and provide information on mental health wellness and recovery.
[The following information on Anti-Stigma is copied and pasted below in its entirety.]
Stigma is not just a matter of using the wrong word or action. Stigma is about disrespect. It is the use of negative labels to identify a person living with mental illness. Stigma is a barrier. Fear of stigma, and the resulting discrimination, discourages individuals and their families from getting the help they need. An estimated 22 to 23 percent of the U.S. population experience a mental disorder in any given year, but almost half of these individuals do not seek treatment (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2002; U.S. Surgeon General, 2001). The educational information on this website encourages the use of positive images to refer to people with mental illness and underscores the reality that mental illness can be successfully treated.
[The News Release is included below in its entirety.]
For their efforts to promote equal employment opportunity, seven companies and organizations were honored today [April 26, 2006] by the U.S. Department of Labor at an annual awards ceremony hosted by the department's Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP). Three types of awards — the Secretary of Labor's Opportunity Award, Exemplary Voluntary Efforts Award, and Exemplary Public Interest Contribution Award — were presented to recognize innovative workplace programs and initiatives that increase equal employment opportunity for the American workforce. "These employers are to be commended for their efforts to promote equal employment opportunities at their workplaces," said Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao. "Their commitment to ensure that people with disabilities, veterans, people of color and women have access to gainful employment and the American dream is laudatory."
The Secretary of Labor's Opportunity Award, OFCCP's most prestigious honor, was awarded to Dell, Inc. of Round Rock, Texas for its innovative programs and initiatives designed to ensure equal opportunities for all applicants and employees. The three contractors receiving Exemplary Voluntary Efforts Awards for their outstanding equal employment opportunity (EEO) programs were Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan; Bright Horizons Family Solutions of Watertown, Massachusetts; and Southern Methodist University of Dallas.
OFCCP also recognized three public interest organizations with Exemplary Public Interest Contribution Awards for their support of federal contractors in their EEO efforts. These organizations are typically formed to help individuals with the least opportunities find and retain employment, and are often aligned with federal contractors to further EEO in the workplace. The recipients were Tommy Nobis Center of Marietta, Georgia; Operation Stand Down Nashville, Inc. of Nashville, Tennessee; and Cypress Mandela / Women in Skilled Trades Center of Oakland, California.
OFCCP, an agency of the U.S. Labor Department's Employment Standards Administration, enforces Executive Order 11246 and other laws that prohibit employment discrimination by federal contractors. The agency monitors federal contractors to ensure that they provide equal employment opportunities without regard to race, gender, color, religion, national origin, disability or veterans' status.
In light of the significant growth in the number of disability claims and the increased complexity of those claims, the need to make substantial changes in the Social Security Administration’s (SSA) disability determination process has become urgent. SSA published a final rule that amends its administrative review process for applications for benefits that are based on whether they are disabled under title II of the Social Security Act (the Act), or applications for supplemental security income (SSI) payments that are based on whether they are disabled or blind under title XVI of the Act. SSA expects that this final rule will improve the accuracy, consistency, and timeliness of decision-making throughout the disability determination process. In the summer of 2006, SSA plans to begin implementation in the Boston Region, which is comprised of the six states of Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont. The rule is effective on August 1, 2006.
The final rule provides for:
Proyecto Visión’s annual Bridges to Employment Conference is the premiere event on employment and Latinos with disabilities in the United States. Each year recruiters, vocational experts and job seekers from around the country convene to participate in trainings and exchanges on occupational issues, and collaborate to increase job opportunities for Latinos with disabilities.
Representatives from Latino and disability advocacy organizations, employers and professional Latinos who have disabilities will lead workshops and roundtables on a variety of topics. Training sessions will provide information about vocational training opportunities and regional job openings. Other agenda topics include resume writing; interview preparation; recruiting, retention and promotion; asset-building programs; benefits and transitions to employment; current legislation and advocacy, and providing culturally competent services. Sessions will be conducted in either English or Spanish with simultaneous translation into whichever language is not being used.
Access the URL for more information including registration, hotel and program information.
Mental illnesses include such disorders as schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, panic and other severe anxiety disorders, autism and pervasive developmental disorders, attention deficit / hyperactivity disorder, borderline personality disorder, and other severe and persistent mental illnesses that affect the brain. These disorders can profoundly disrupt a person's thinking, feeling, moods, ability to relate to others and capacity for coping with the demands of life.
Mental illnesses can affect persons of any age, race, religion, or income. Mental illnesses are not the result of personal weakness, lack of character, or poor upbringing. Mental illnesses are treatable. Most people with serious mental illness need medication to help control symptoms, but also rely on supportive counseling, self-help groups, assistance with housing, vocational rehabilitation, income assistance and other community services in order to achieve their highest level of recovery.
Here are some important facts about mental illness and recovery:
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's (SAMHSA) National Mental Health Information Center provides information about mental health via a toll-free telephone number (800-789-2647), this website, and more than 600 publications. It was developed for users of mental health services and their families, the general public, policy makers, providers, and the media. The website contains a lot of valuable resources including:
NAMI (the National Alliance on Mental Illness) is the nation’s largest grassroots mental health organization dedicated to improving the lives of persons living with serious mental illness and their families. The NAMI organization operates at the local, state and national levels. Each level of the organization provides support, education, information and referral and advocacy to support the fifteen million Americans who live with serious mental illness and their families. Local affiliates and state organizations identify and work on issues most important to their community and state.
This business brief is the first of two produced by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Center for Workforce Preparation (CWP). It draws from the 2004 – 2005 findings of the ongoing When Work Works initiative, where employers in eight chamber of commerce-sponsored community forums across the United States presented their experiences in providing flexibility.
Workplace flexibility once thought of as an unconventional perk solely for top-performing employees in large companies is finding new life. Managers across diverse industries are discovering the business benefits of implementing flexible work practices. In fact, one type of workplace flexibility - working from home through telecommuting - is growing in popularity. A recent Wall Street Journal article points to research conducted by Gartner Inc., a technology research firm which maintains that "more than 23% of the country's workforce worked at least one day a month at home in 2005, up from 12% in 2000. Gartner predicts that this figure will grow to more than 100 million workers by 2008."