Located in:
- Program-Specific Requirements for Vocational Rehabilitation
The Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) Services Portion of the Unified or Combined State Plan* must include the following descriptions and estimates, as required by section 101(a) of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended by WIOA:
__________
* Sec. 102(b)(D)(iii) of WIOA
- d. Coordination with Education Officials
- 2. Information on the Formal Interagency Agreement with the State Educational Agency with Respect To:
- G. Coordination with Employers(Formerly known as Attachment 4.8(b)(5)). Describe how the designated State unit will work with employers to identify competitive integrated employment and career exploration opportunities in order to facilitate the provision of:
- G. Coordination with Employers
- 2. Information on the Formal Interagency Agreement with the State Educational Agency with Respect To:
- d. Coordination with Education Officials
d. 2. G. ii. Transition Services, Including Pre-employment Transition Services, for Students and Youth with Disabilities.
Current Narrative:
Key components of Maine’s Progressive Employment project will target transition—age youth within southern Maine service areas. Selected Community Rehabilitation Providers (CRPs) will develop Progressive Employment opportunities within the catchment area identified. These activities include: informational interviews, job shadows, business tours, on—the—job training/apprenticeships and work experiences. Business Development during the pilot project includes identifying potential business leads based on the goals of the individual referrals and contacting the employer; requesting an informational interview; requesting a tour of the business or facility; sharing information about DVR and determining if the employer is willing to allow the Employment Specialist to conduct assessments, informational interviews, job shadows or on—the—job training at this location. The secondary purpose of this business development process, as it is described, is to gain an understanding of the various positions which this business employs and to ascertain the work environment and work culture. CRPs will develop 125 new business contacts during the length of the pilot and the contact information will be added to the list of active partnerships currently in use, which will greatly enlarge our existing global employer network. This pilot enters Phase II during FFY 2018.
In 2016, DVR was awarded five years of funding from RSA for the Transition Work Based Learning (TWBL) Model Demonstration Grant. This research grant is being delivered in partnership with Jobs for Maine’s Grads, the Institute for Community Inclusion, American Institutes for Research and the Council of State Administrators of Vocational Rehabilitation and will measure the effectiveness of the dual-customer Progressive Employment model with a transition-age population — among other interventions. The grant supports the expansion of Progressive Employment to two additional VR offices, Augusta and Bangor.