Located in:
- Program-Specific Requirements for Vocational Rehabilitation (Combined or General)
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
d. 2. D. Procedures for outreach to and identification of students with disabilities who need transition services.
Current Narrative:
ARS counselors attend IEP and transition planning meetings, career fairs, back to school nights, group orientations, and transition fairs, and make presentations to schools and families throughout the year with partner agencies like Arkansas Transition Services, Department of Youth Services, Department of Human Services, Adult Education, Workforce Services and the Division of Services for the Blind. ARS collaborates with partner agencies through shared recruiting and the application processes for special programs outreach. These outreach efforts provide creative programs like the Youth Leadership Forum, the Inclusion Film Camp, the Transition Employment Program, and the Opportunities for Work-Based Learning Program in order to identify students and get them interested in work and in participating in the full array of transition services. Additionally, ARS goes directly to educational settings in Department of Youth Services facilities, where youth who are at-risk are identified and provided Pre-ETS, as well as given an opportunity to apply for full vocational rehabilitation services. ARS also provides brochures and introductory meetings to explain what Project SEARCH can offer youth seeking permanent employment outcomes.
ARS works directly with the schools and community partners to provide education on Pre-ETS and Section 511 of the Rehabilitation Act.
Transition stakeholders and partners participate in NTACT’s sponsored capacity building activities, such as The Capacity Building Institute and related regional and/or national meetings. Arkansas utilizes a state implementation team to support personnel development opportunities for Arkansas educators and service providers. The implementation team participates in data review, problem solving, and strategic planning that informs personnel development opportunities.
Referral Process and Parental Consent
Pre-ETS counselors directly assigned to the school provide Pre-ETS referral packets to all students and schools. Students who are interested complete the referral packet with their parent/guardian with assistance from the Pre-ETS counselor. The Referral packet includes:
- Cover Letter
- Pre-ETS Referral Form
- Informed Consent/Release of Information – This form is required to be signed and uploaded in the electronic case file prior to the initiation of services.
- Benefits Planning Consent Form (if applicable)
- Social Security Administration 3288 Consent Form (if applicable)
Number of Potentially Eligible in the State
Each year in September ARS requests a data pull from the Arkansas Office of Information Technology, which provides a total count of students aged 16-21 in the state on Individual Education Plans and on 504 plans within the public school system.
Set-aside Process for Authorized Activities
ARS utilizes the WINTAC guidance formula for determining the total amount of funds that can be expended on authorized activities. First, ARS uses the WINTAC formula to find the cost per student on coordination and core services using the financial information for this fiscal year.
Using Office of Information Technology statistics, we locate the total number of students in the system who could be potentially eligible and divide that by the total amount of money spent on core and coordination services. That total cost is divided by the total of potential students to calculate a cost per student. Because we have no clear documentation that can show what percentage refuse services, we leave this amount at 0%. Then the total number of students is multiplied by the cost per student. That number is subtracted by the total of our 15% set-aside.
It is important to note that as a result of completing this exercise for the 2018-2019 school year, the projected total cost per student was $172.00, much lower than what ARS should spend to provide a quality service with enough time investment to impact students in a positive way. For this reason, ARS made the decision to focus on core and coordination activities for expenditures to the 15% in the future.