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
j. 1. E. Who are youth with disabilities and students with disabilities, including, as appropriate, their need for pre-employment transition services or other transition services.
Current Narrative:
Transition age youth, ages 14-24, comprise 41.4% (n = 20,784) of the 50,198 total individuals served by the DVRS VR program in PY 2018-19, including potentially eligible students with disabilities and individuals who applied for VR services but had not been determined eligible by the end of the program year. Within this youth population, 13,593 (65.4%) of the 20,784 transition-age youth were ages 14-21 at the start of the program year and were identified as students with disabilities at either application to the VR program or the start date of their pre-employment transition services, of which 2,567 (18.9%) were potentially eligible for VR services but had not applied.
About 80% of transition age youth served in PY 2018-19 had applied and were determined eligible for VR services (n = 16,623). Within this population, 40.6% (n = 6,754) were individuals with MSD, 50.4% (n = 8,381) had significant disabilities, and 9% (n =1,488) did not have significant disabilities; 37.1% (n = 6,160) were female and 50.7% (n = 8,427) were of a minority race or ethnicity, of which and 7.5% (n = 1,240) of Hispanic or Latino ethnicity.
The services provided most for transition-age youth in PY 2018-19 as an indication of their rehabilitation service needs are listed in table J.3.
Table J.3. VR Services provided for Transition-age Youth, PY 2018-19
| Service Type | Number of clients that received the service | Percent of transition-age youth population served |
|---|---|---|
| Assessment | 16,357 | 98.4% |
| Job Placement Assistance | 2,793 | 16.8% |
| Job Search Assistance | 2,282 | 13.7% |
| Counseling and Guidance | 2,157 | 13.0% |
| Diagnosis and Treatment | 2,066 | 12.4% |
| Short Term Job Supports | 1,969 | 11.8% |
| Supported Employment Services | 1,542 | 9.3% |
| Job Readiness Training | 1,395 | 8.4% |
| Literacy Training | 1,377 | 8.3% |
| Maintenance | 1,161 | 7.0% |
| Transportation | 1,003 | 6.0% |
| University Training | 655 | 3.9% |
| Information and Referral Services | 436 | 2.6% |
| Vocational Training | 413 | 2.5% |
| Community College | 410 | 2.5% |
| Miscellaneous Training | 309 | 1.9% |
| On The Job Training | 275 | 1.7% |
| Benefits Counseling | 243 | 1.5% |
| Rehabilitation Technology | 175 | 1.1% |
| Disability Related Skills Training | 169 | 1.0% |
| Interpreter Services | 158 | 1.0% |
| Customized Employment Services | 134 | 0.8% |
| Customized Training | 91 | 0.5% |
| Graduate School Training | 53 | 0.3% |
| Reader Services | 30 | 0.2% |
| Personal Assistance Services | 24 | 0.1% |
In a survey of rehabilitation professionals 70% (n = 470) of 671 survey participants identified one or more needs for transition-age youth. The need most frequently identified was job readiness training which was mentioned in 204 (43.4%) of the responses; 18% reported communication; 17% identified a need for transportation; and 15% identified a need for more job opportunities. Other themes regarding client needs included training, transition services, pre-employment transition services, social development, more VR in schools, family support, SSI/SSDI, and assistive technology.
A long-term follow-up study completed in 2019 found that, from a cohort of students that graduated high school in North Carolina, those with disabilities earned 21% less than their peers without disabilities, but that differences in higher education attainment accounted for half of the wage gap between those with and without disabilities. The findings were that higher education leads a high-paying careers, and that those with disabilities tend to increase their earnings they attain a post-secondary credential. This suggests a need to promote post-secondary training towards credential attainment and measurable skill gains among youth and students with disabilities.