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
10 November 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 "Resources of Interest."
]
Disability Program Navigators (DPN) have you connected with your state Assistive Technology Program yet? These programs, funded under the Assistive Technology Act of 1998, as amended, work to improve the provision of assistive technology to individuals with disabilities of all ages through comprehensive statewide programs of technology-related assistance. Additionally, the programs support activities designed to maximize the ability of individuals with disabilities and their family members, guardians, and advocates to access and obtain assistive technology devices and services. Your state Assistive Technology project can assist you, the One-Stop Career Center and community organizations in so many ways in terms of connecting you with resources and information on how to use and obtain assistive technology.
You can find contact information for your state Assistive Technology project, by accessing the following U.R.L. and clicking on the link to your state:
http://www.resna.org/taproject/at/statecontacts.html.
[Relevant articles and resources are included below from the contents of the quarterly newsletter.]
Welcome to this special Veterans Day edition of DisabilityInfo Connection. In honoring our veterans, we are reminded that veterans with disabilities represent a frequently untapped source of dedicated and skilled workers. DisabilityInfo.gov, managed by the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy, was developed to respond to the information and resource needs of people with disabilities, to include veterans, employers, service providers and many others. Use DisabilityInfo Connection to stay informed about new developments relating to DisabilityInfo.gov as well as timely information about the important contributions and initiatives of the 21 federal agencies that support this Web site.
W. Roy Grizzard, Jr., Ed.D., Assistant Secretary for the Office of Disability Employment Policy, U.S. Department of Labor
Celebrating Veterans Day — A Proclamation by the President of the United States
"Through the generations, America's men and women in uniform have defeated tyrants, liberated continents, and set a standard of courage and idealism for the entire world. On Veterans Day, our Nation pays tribute to those who have proudly served in our Armed Forces .... This Veterans Day, we give thanks to those who have served freedom's cause; we salute the members of our Armed Forces who are confronting our adversaries abroad; and we honor the men and women who left America's shores but did not live to be thanked as veterans ...."
President George W. Bush. (Read the full text of the Presidential Proclamation.)
For more about Veterans Day and National Veterans Awareness Week, visit News and Events in the Community Life section of DisabilityInfo.gov.
Sponsored by the Department of Defense's Military Severely Injured Center (M.S.I.C.), Operation Warfighter (O.W.F.) is a temporary assignment or internship program for service members who are undergoing therapy at military treatment facilities within the United States. O.W.F. provides recuperating service members with meaningful activity outside of the hospital environment and offers a formal means of transition back to the military or civilian workforce.
M.S.I.C. ties together military and other government programs that have been established to help disabled transitioning service members, such as those run by the Armed Forces and the departments of Labor and Veterans Affairs. Representatives at the center can answer questions related to benefits, employment, financial assistance and much more. If you have been injured or wounded while on active duty or have a family member who needs assistance, contact your M.S.I.C. care representative at 1-888-774-1361.
For information on O.W.F. and other programs available to transitioning service members with disabilities, visit the Employment section of DisabilityInfo.gov.
The Department of Labor offers a comprehensive career Web site for hiring veterans, including those with disabilities: HireVetsFirst.gov. Whether you're a manager, human resource specialist or veteran, you'll find the resources you need for matching employment opportunities with veterans.
Veterans injured or wounded while in service, and who are transitioning into civilian careers, can bring a diverse set of skills to your organization. The National Workforce System is ready to provide interested employers with trained and skilled veterans who can be valuable assets to any team. Visit HireVetsFirst to view the 10 Reasons to Hire a Vet as well as information on how to become a HireVetsFirst employer, employer testimonials and links to other valuable resources. For more information about hiring an injured or wounded veteran and employing people with disabilities, click on Employer Resources in the Employment section of DisabilityInfo.gov.
The Small Business Administration’s (S.B.A.) Office of Veterans Business Development offers resources for veterans, including programs specifically for service-disabled veterans. These resources include Getting Veterans Back to Business, a comprehensive business-planning guide that describes the assistance available from the S.B.A. for self-employed Reserve and Guard members prior to, during and following their active duty service.
The S.B.A. also offers the Service-Disabled Veterans-Owned Small Business Concern Program, which provides federal contracting funds for small businesses owned and controlled by service-disabled veterans. Opportunities are available through sole source contracts, set-asides, simplified acquisition contracts and other procurement options specifically for veterans.
To find out more about S.B.A's Small Business Resources, click on Self-Employment & Entrepreneurship in the Employment section of DisabilityInfo.gov.
Veterans who have service-connected disabilities may be entitled to grant funding from the Department of Veterans Affairs (V.A.) to construct or modify a home to meet the veteran’s special needs. The goal of the Specially Adapted Housing (S.A.H.) Program is to provide a barrier-free living environment that promotes independent living. For questions regarding S.A.H., contact your local V.A. S.A.H. agent. For more information on housing programs for people with disabilities, visit the Housing section of DisabilityInfo.gov.
The Department of Labor’s Veterans' Employment Training Service hosts the elaws Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) Advisor which helps veterans understand employee eligibility and job entitlements, employer obligations and benefits and remedies under the Act.
USERRA protects civilian job rights and benefits for returning veterans and members of the Reserve. USERRA also provides protections for veterans with disabilities, requiring employers to make reasonable efforts to accommodate a disability. Service members recovering from injuries received during military service or training may have up to two years from the date of completion of service to return to their jobs. For more information on laws and regulations that protect people with disabilities, visit the Civil Rights section of DisabilityInfo.gov.
The Department of Labor’s Disabled Veterans’ Outreach Program (D.V.O.P.) representatives play a crucial role in the employment of veterans across our nation, and deliver intensive services to help eligible veterans find suitable employment. D.V.O.Ps are stationed at the State Workforce Agencies, or One-Stop Career Centers, sometimes referred to as the employment or job service offices.
To help you quickly locate D.V.O.Ps and other service providers in your area, the National Veterans’ Training Institute offers the D.V.O.P. / L.V.E.R. Locator, also known as the Networker. Search by name, city, state and/or zip code to find the D.V.O.P. nearest you. For more information on programs and services available to veterans with disabilities visit the Employment section of DisabilityInfo.gov.
Each year, the Veterans Day National Committee, led by the Department of Veterans Affairs, recognizes select Veterans Day observances throughout the country that represent fitting tributes to America’s heroes. From stirring parades and ceremonies to military exhibits and tributes to distinguished veterans, these events serve as models for other communities to follow in planning their own observances. Each site is recognized by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs and may receive military support from the Department of Defense when available. For information on this year’s sites contact your Regional Site representative.
Interested in having your community observance recognized as a 2007 Veterans Day Regional Site? Download the application and submit it to the committee for consideration. (Instructions for submitting the application are included on the application form.) Please include supporting evidence that demonstrates the scope of your event. Applications for next year must be submitted by May 1, 2007.
For more about Veterans Day and National Veterans Awareness Week, visit News and Events of the Community Life section of DisabilityInfo.gov.
In May 2006, the Social Security Administration (S.S.A.) issued a new competitive Request for Application (R.F.A.) for the former Benefits Planning Assistance and Outreach (B.P.A.O.) Program. Because of an increased emphasis on work incentives, return to work supports and jobs for beneficiaries, the Program was renamed the Work Incentives Planning and Assistance (WIPA) Program. It became effective September 30 with awards to 99 WIPA projects in 49 States. However, S.S.A. did not receive sufficient qualifying proposals to provide full national coverage.
In October 2006, S.S.A. issued a new R.F.A. for areas not covered by the awards made in September. Visit http://www.ssa.gov/oag/grants/current/oesp-07-1/ to see the new R.F.A. which includes a list of those areas covered by this solicitation. You may also visit http://www.socialsecurity.gov/work/WIPARFApopchart.html to access a chart showing State and Territory disability populations and corresponding total available funding. In addition, visit (WIPA Funding Available by County Chart) for the current solicitation. The chart is an Excel spreadsheet with tabs for funding allocations by county for each State and territory.
[ Get Microsoft Office C.D., free trial, S / H applies ] (free but shipping and handling fees apply)
The R.F.A. solicitation will close on December 15, 2006. S.S.A. expects to make awards in March 2007.
The 7th Annual National Youth Development Symposium, presented by the National Association of Workforce Development Professionals, aims to provide best practices and program guidance to workforce development professionals who serve youth. Workshop topics will include: engaging youth with their future, young men with their communities, and the hardest-to-serve youth with programs that can help them; educating youth to meet the new demands of the 21st-century workplace (technology, teamwork, literacy and numeracy, online learning, career academies, alternative education, internships, online learning); and employing youth in good jobs with opportunities to learn and advance by satisfying the business needs of employers.
Access the U.R.L. to link to event information, agenda, registration and hotel information.
The 56 state and territory programs are funded under the Assistive Technology Act of 1998, as amended. State Assistive Technology Act programs work to improve the provision of assistive technology to individuals with disabilities of all ages through comprehensive statewide programs of technology-related assistance. Additionally, the programs support activities designed to maximize the ability of individuals with disabilities and their family members, guardians, and advocates to access and obtain assistive technology devices and services. Key activities of state Assistive Technology Projects include:
You can find contact information for your state Assistive Technology project, by accessing the following U.R.L. and clicking on the link to your state: http://www.resna.org/taproject/at/statecontacts.html.
[The following is excerpted from the fact sheet.]
Who are people with disabilities? What do we know about people with disabilities? How many individuals with disabilities use assistive devices? How many people with disabilities are working? What are people with disabilities' demographics? These are just a few of the questions that are asked every day as we develop and implement programs and strategies to combat the high unemployment rate of persons with disabilities. Numerous resources are available to provide statistical data to answer these questions and provide information on other disability related topics. Many resources now post their information on Web sites, which makes researching disability data readily accessible and fast. Outlined below is information on some of the data resources regarding people with disabilities.
Disclaimer: The purpose of this fact sheet is to provide you with disability research related resources. U.S. Department of Labor, Office Disability Employment Policy does not endorse these sites.
The U.S. Department of Labor, Civil Rights Center (C.R.C.) developed the "W.I.A. Section 188 Disability Checklist" to ensure meaningful participation of people with disabilities in programs and activities operated by recipients of financial assistance under the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (W.I.A.), including those that are part of the One-Stop delivery system. Section 188 of W.I.A. (W.I.A. Section 188) ensures non-discrimination and equal opportunity for various categories of persons, including persons with disabilities, who apply for and participate in programs and activities operated by recipients of W.I.A. Title I financial assistance.
The layout of this Checklist is modeled after the nine elements of the W.I.A. Methods of Administration (MOA). Each Governor is required to establish and adhere to an MOA. An MOA is a document that contains policies, procedures, and systems that are designed, when successfully implemented, to provide a reasonable guarantee of compliance with the non-discrimination and equal opportunity requirements of W.I.A. and its implementing regulations. All Governors have submitted a W.I.A. MOA that has been approved by the C.R.C. Director.
The Appendix to the Section 188 Disability Checklist
(http://www.dol.gov/oasam/programs/crc/section188.htm#appendix) includes examples of policies, procedures and other recommended steps that L.W.I.A. grant recipients can take to ensure that people with disabilities have equal access to W.I.A. Title I programs and activities. These "examples of practices" are not mandatory requirements. They do not create new legal requirements or change current legal requirements. Instead, they suggest ways in which L.W.I.A. grant recipients might meet their obligations to ensure that individuals with disabilities have equal access to those programs and activities.
[The following is excerpted from the Executive Summary to the report.]
Creating Livable Communities is an outgrowth of the National Council on Disability's (N.C.D.) interest and recent work in the topic of livable communities for people with disabilities. The main impetus for this interest is threefold: 1) the prospect of a growing population of people with disabilities as the baby boom generation ages, 2) the desire that people with disabilities - indeed, all people - have to live in their own homes and communities and maintain their self-determination, dignity, and independence for as long as possible, and 3) the pressures that these factors will exert on local communities that strive to become livable for people of all ages and abilities. Two research reports recently published by N.C.D. thoroughly examine these challenges, as well as promising practices in addressing them: Livable Communities for Adults with Disabilities (2004) and The State of 21st Century Long-Term Services and Supports: Financing and Systems Reform for Americans with Disabilities (2005). The findings in these reports motivated N.C.D. to delve deeper into the topic of livable communities, identify barriers to developing them, and shed light on potential methods for overcoming these barriers.
Disability prevalence is rising in the under-age-65 population and, although it has decreased slightly for people aged 65 and older, it will begin to rise sharply as the current senior population of 34 million doubles over the next 20 years. In light of these demographic developments, communities will face significant challenges as they strive to address consumers' needs in a coordinated and comprehensive manner, reduce fragmentation in the service delivery system, provide consumer choice, and implement policies and programs that help adults with disabilities remain independent and involved in community life.
As the findings from the two reports mentioned above suggest, collaboration and coordination among federal agencies, as well as between these agencies and the states, can support communities as they build and sustain key elements of livability.
Creating Livable Communities presents six strategies or policy levers, gleaned from the two previous research reports, that can be implemented on the federal and local levels to promote collaboration and coordination and support livable community objectives. Each of these strategies is illustrated by actual promising practices at both the federal and state levels that can be adapted and replicated elsewhere. It should be noted that these general policy levers and specific illustrative examples were selected from a vast array of actions that can be taken to address the various elements of community livability.
The selected strategies and examples in this report offer possibilities to change the way government organizes and manages resources, interacts with the business community and community developers, and responds to the expectations of evolving consumer interests, needs, and preferences for more choice and control in the delivery of support services. The recommendations for action included in the report offer multiple, complementary options for the legislative and executive branches of the Federal Government as well as states to proactively adopt strategies and policy levers that invest in livable community outcomes. With the aging of America and the challenges of disability in over 20 percent of families nationwide today, and possibly a greater percentage tomorrow, it is vital to focus on knowledge utilization and transfer from best practice examples.
The recent Hurricane Katrina and Rita disasters demonstrated that lack of cooperation and coordination at all levels of government can have disastrous effects on people of all walks of life, particularly those who are among the most vulnerable. These events and their aftermath bring a new sense of urgency to the need to promote cooperation and coordination among agencies as well as adoption of livable community principles for the benefit of all Americans.