Located in:
- Program-Specific Requirements for Vocational Rehabilitation (Blind)
The Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) Services Portion of the Unified or Combined State Plan [13] must include the following descriptions and estimates, as required by section 101(a) of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended by title IV of WIOA:
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[13] Sec. 102(b)(2)(D)(iii) of WIOA
- i. Comprehensive System of Personnel Development; Data System on Personnel and Personnel Development
Describe the designated State agency's procedures and activities to establish and maintain a comprehensive system of personnel development designed to ensure an adequate supply of qualified State rehabilitation professional and paraprofessional personnel for the designated State unit, including the following:
- 1. System on Personnel and Personnel Development
- A. Qualified Personnel Needs
Describe the development and maintenance of a system for collecting and analyzing on an annual basis data on qualified personnel needs with respect to:
- A. Qualified Personnel Needs
- 1. System on Personnel and Personnel Development
- i. Comprehensive System of Personnel Development; Data System on Personnel and Personnel Development
i. 1. A. i. The number of personnel who are employed by the State agency in the provision of VR services in relation to the number of individuals served, broken down by personnel category;
Current Narrative:
(i) Comprehensive System of Personnel Development
Data System on Personnel and Personnel Development
FDBS recognizes the Certified Rehabilitation Counselor (CRC) credentials as a standard for counselors. Counselors who wish to obtain certification or acquire Continuing Education Units (CEUs) (for standing CRC holders) receive FDBS’s support to the highest extent. The FDBS encourages credential attainment by providing a salary increase to those who have or achieve certification as rehabilitation counselors.
Personnel must meet the academic requirements described in the “Personnel Standards” section of this document. Florida utilizes the People First human resource system to collect, track and maintain personnel information related to hiring and staff records. The Human Resources (HR) section extracts data from People First indicating staff vacancies and those enrolled in the Deferred Retirement Option Program (DROP). Each employee in the DROP system must terminate on a specific date; this enables FDBS to predict, to the extent possible, when some vacancies will occur. The HR section notifies supervisors of employees who are in the DROP program 12 months prior to their term/retirement date.
The following table identifies the number of positions within FDBS during SFY 2020-2021. Positions, such as district administrators, assistant district administrators, VR counselors, employment placement specialists, and program administrators contribute to the coordination of vocational rehabilitation services and consist of those carrying a caseload. Additionally, a number of employees at the rehabilitation center conduct assessments and provide orientation and mobility training, counseling/guidance and job placement under the VR umbrella. Currently, these totals/positions are sufficient to meet the needs of FDBS to provide vocational rehabilitation services for the blind. Considering factors such as the retirement of staff who are in the DROP system, staff resignations (turnovers), and the number of clients who may require vocational rehabilitation services, the FDBS projects a slight change to the number of staff needed to administer program services in five years. This change is predominately in the number of counselors required to serve clients as this number increases. The main goal is to continue to provide efficient and quality services, which is only achievable when counselors have time to dedicate to each client’s unique circumstances. If the trend in the number of clients served continues on its current trajectory, FDBS will need one or two additional counselor positions.
Figure 10.01
Personnel Employed by FDBS
| Bureau | Positions |
|---|---|
| Administrative Office | 17 |
| Fiscal | 8 |
| Information Technology | 6 |
| Operations and Compliance | 12 |
| Business Enterprise | 16 |
| Braille and Talking Book Library | 26 |
| Rehabilitation Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired | 46 |
| Client Services | 159 |
| Total | 290 |
FDBS obtains data to determine the counselor-to-client ratio from Aware case management system. FDBS served 5,129 individuals in the VR Program in SFY 2020-2021, which represents an increase of 139 from the previous year. The FDBS served 4,990 individuals in SFY 2019-2020. The average ratio of clients per counselor is 56 to 1 in the VR Program. A comparison of the four years prior indicates a statistically insignificant change in the ratio of clients served per counselor (See Figure 10.02). There are occasions when these ratios fluctuate based on counselor vacancies within each district. There were 12 counselor vacancies throughout eight districts during the drafting of this report.