The Nebraska Alliance for Full Participation team sponsored a series of five webinars in the Spring of 2011. Click on the links below to view the webinars.
During the webinar, activities engaged in by several of the 38 state teams associated with AFP are discussed. Topics include community initiatives spanning service, post-secondary education, and corporate diversity agendas for people with disabilities, and how these initiatives can be replicated in Nebraska. Speaker: Karen Flippo, Alliance for Full Particpation.
Customized self-employment builds on the energy created by supported employment, taking it to another level by refining the job development process, including self employment as a legitimate career option. Topics include identifying a variety of collaborative funding and resource opportunities, advantages of self employment over wage employment, and the role of rehabilitation systems in expanding the use of customized employment strategies. Speaker: Cary Griffin, Senior Partner at Griffin-Hammis.
Persons who experience disabilities and their families are in the best position to make choices about work when they receive good information about the impact of work on benefits. The more you know and understand, the better choices you can make about work. This webinar will help provide a general overview of the disability benefits that are administered by the Social Security Administration and the work incentives that individuals have available to them once work begins. Speaker: Crystal Norvell, Easter Seals Nebraska
Employment First has become a national movement among some state agencies, employment and self advocacy organizations, such as National APSE, AFP and SABE, and employment service providers. Topics include career planning, how to create the expectation of work, setting employment outcomes for your agency, data collection, and national approaches to promote change within a service organization. Speaker: Darla Wilkerson, The CSI Network
In January of 2011, the NE AFP Team collaborated with the Nebraska State Council for the Society of Human Resource Management (SHRM) to survey the membership of the SHRM Nebraska chapters about their perceptions and experiences in recruiting and hiring job candidates with intellectual/developmental disabilities. The webinar reviews the survey results and implications. Speaker: Susan Rocker, University of Missouri, Region & TACE Center.
Nebraska Planning Council Grant.
The Nebraska AFP team has been awarded a one-year grant from the Nebraska Planning Council on Developmental Disabilities. The grant is an “Opportunity Grant”. These grant funds are intended to support smaller, innovative projects and give applicants freedom to propose unique ideas that fit within the Council’s priorities for funding. The grant will begin April 1, 2010 and continue through March 31, 2011.
The grant will pay for the newly formed Nebraska AFP team to hold a strategic planning retreat to create a detailed work plan to accomplish the goal of doubling the rate of employment for Nebraskans with developmental disabilities. A professional facilitator will guide the 17 person team through two days of planning. The cost of the facilitator, along with expenses for team members to participate in the retreat, will be covered by the grant. Following this planning retreat, the grant will assist with travel expenses of AFP team members who are not supported by an organization to participate in subsequent meetings. It will also pay for some promotional items to spread information across the state about AFP’s goal and the Nebraska work plan. The grant required a 25% match, which is being covered by the AFP members’ time (in-kind match).
The grant was written by Susan Rocker from the Region 7 TACE Center, and awarded to the NE APSE Chapter. The grant must be awarded to an organization with a federal identification number, so it could not be awarded directly to the Nebraska AFP team. For additional information about the grant, contact Susan Rocker by email:
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State Team Leaders Share Practices
AFP State team leaders participated in a webinar on February 18 to share best practices and learn how states are working to increase integrated employment opportunities. Susan Rocker, chair of the AFP Missouri State Team, shared that state's innovative collaboration with the Society for Human Resource Management.
Across the nation, AFP's state teams are measuring how well their state performs in relation to the policies, practices and strategies that increase competive employment opportunities for people with intellectual and developmental disabiliites using a scorecard created under the guidance of AFP's Advisory Council. The scorecard, based in the industry's leading practices, measures key process, policy and programmatic areas essential to building an environment that supports employment growth. The answers to the questions on the scorecard will help state teams identify priorities, set goals, and outline strategies for doubling their states' rate of employment for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
"While we ask each team to take a thoughtful, collaborative approach to completing the scorecard, exactly what that process looks like varies from state to state" said Karen Flippo, AFP state team coordinator. "Some states begin with a facilated meeting to hash out their scores. Oregon sent members a copy of the scorecard and asked each to rate the state. The results were compiled and then in a face-to-face meeting, team members discussed and resolved differences in ratings." Oregon's completed scorecard shows the results of their process--it provides a clear assessment of the state's current situations and clearly identifies priorities and areas for growth. Iowa created a survey, and completed the Iowa State Team scorecard based on the responses. New Hampshire's State Team scorecard shows several areas of strength, and a few key areas for focus.
Maryland DDA Employment First Current Projects
Maryland Developmental Disabilities Administration Employment First Current Projects 6/17/10
Employment First Advisory Group (large multi-stakeholder group to provide recommendations to Administration on expanding and improving Employment and integrated Day Services)
10 Year Vision and Benchmarks
5 Year Strategic Employment Plan
Alliance for Full Participation (report card, State updates on website)
Infrastructure Workgroup (policy, regulations, rates/funding, quality, and data collection)
Policy
Establishing definitions (Employment and Day Services and Outcomes)
Creating process to allow people to simultaneously access DDA Waiver services and the Employed Individuals with Disabilities Program (a.k.a., Medicaid Buy-in)
Creating a business process between the Division of Rehabilitation Services and DDA Services
Developing transitioning youth policy to emphasize "employment first" and services provided in the most integrated setting
Data
TY Data Research Project – Monica Simonsen – doctoral candidate from the University of Maryland
Unemployment Insurance Data Project to collect data on employment outcomes for people receiving services – partnership with Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation, University of Baltimore and Maryland Department of Disabilities
Rates/Funding - beginning to explore rates/funding for employment and day services through participation in the State Employment Leadership Network Study
Capacity Workgroup (training, technical assistance, marketing and collaborations with other partners)
Training
Employment training series (customized employment, SSA benefits awareness, assistive technology and workplace accommodations, self employment) Employment First "kick-off" event (targeted for Fall 2010) Employment First "Awareness" trainings for providers, resource coordinators, families, individuals, Division of Rehabilitation Services staff, local school system staff, etc...
Technical Assistance
Up to 10 grants awarded through MD Developmental Disabilities Council and Medicaid Infrastructure Grant for provider organizational change to increase and improve employment outcomes for people with developmental disabilities.
Organizational Change Peer Network (8 providers that received organizational change grants for the purpose of linking these agencies together to share stories, resources, and to brainstorm solutions to agency, system and other barriers to employment
Vermont Conversion Institute (Maryland team consisting of 8 representatives from 2 provider agencies and Statewide Coordinator for Employment Services participated in this event)
Individual meetings with 10 provider agencies to begin strategizing organizational change
Community Learning Services Workgroup (new workgroup to help implement and build capacity for this integrated day service option)
State Teams 
