We need to study the common characteristics of youth who become successfully employed and develop training programs around those skill-sets.
There needs to be more support for providers that are wanting to provide more community based employment supports for people with disabilities. It is difficult to transition from a traditional, facility-based model under current funding structures. Transportation and support needs to be flexible and responsive to people's real needs and real outcomes.
There are tremendous programs and ideas out there to help serve the special needs community. Companies who employ individuals with special needs should be rewarded for their mission. Employment rates amongst youth with ASD are low and opportunities are minimal. http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/early/2012/05/09/peds.2011-2864 If companies and programs had tax and monetary incentives to employ those... View full idea »
As a 25-year-old Hispanic woman with Spinal Muscular Atrophy I can tell you I am grateful that I have been blessed with lots of opportunities to participate in higher education, to the point of reaching a Master’s degree last month, but I can also say that this success is only small step into what is to come. To be honest, I am not sure what is to come. I have seen first hand that there are major roadblocks I will have... View full idea »
Self-employment for individuals with disabilities has fast become a recognized option. Could two year colleges perhaps offer a course of study, coupled with mentoring, and networking opportunities to spur this employment option that leads to student employment success? Are there incentives for two year colleges to join the cause!
Transportation, transportation, transportation...need I say more? If a community does not offer adequate public wheelchair transportation options serving individuals with disabilities and their families, then there should be some sort of assistance program to help individuals and their families acquire a wheelchair accessible vehicle!
Having grown up in the aftermath of IDEA and ADA, I believed that I was living in a much more progressive situation for people with disabilities. I was shocked to learn that under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), employers may pay individuals with disabilities below the minimum wage. This law was passed in 1938, long before deinstitutionalization and integrated education. Individuals with disabilities deserve equal... View full idea »
Currently, if a person who continues to need employment support is funded for that support in one state, parents are unable to leave that state without losing that support. A move can mean going to the end of a very long waiting list. IEPs transfer from state to state. Adult services should, also.
There is a strong evidence base that students with disabilities who leave school as self-determined young people achieve more positive employment and independent living outcomes. Further, instruction to promote self-determination results in greater academic and transition goal attainment and access to the general education curriculum. There are multiple methods, materials, and strategies that have evidence of their... View full idea »
What are the ways we can leverage technology to focus on the Abilities innate with in all SWD. We all have strengths and weakness's. Sometimes SWD have larger divides between the two. How can we start a Think Tank to generate ideas to harness the opportunity that technology has opened up. Forming teams of industry, developers, teacher, parents, service providers, SSI folk, employers, healthcare, legislators, policy makers.... View full idea »
I've had very good luck in the past with my kids when I had a stipend program set up for them. We paid the people a $5 hour stipend when they worked with our kids on a job site. An example like a trainer at McDonald's, with a plumber,roofer, mechanics and a few other positions. I had and 75% success rate of employment for my students because the people were working also side of my students. Another major plus was the... View full idea »
What disincentives exist, if any, in federal laws and regulations to providing effective employment-related services to youth and young adults with disabilities? How do you think these should be addressed?
The ABLE Act has earned 35 cosponsors in the US Senate and 150 cosponsors in the US House and is being led by a bipartisan, bicameral set of Congressional champions, including: Senator Robert Casey, Jr., (D-PA) and Senator Richard Burr (R-NC) and Congressman Ander Crenshaw (R-FL), Congressman Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) and Congressman Pete Sessions (R-TX). Under current law,... View full idea »
Create a program that allows older students with disabilities that have successfully transitioned into college or workforce to mentor younger youth with similar disabilities. This could fulfill SSI or HHS requirements. It is empowering for both the youth and their family to view a successful pathway. Hope is an amazing motivator for all.
I developed a partnership with several state of New Mexico Government agencies to create a work experience summer program for disabled youth. It was very successful. The youth were paid by the state for their work experience, and were considered volunteers by the federal government during the summer. Several of them were so good at their work that several agencies wanted them converted into the Federal Pathways student... View full idea »
