MCIL patrons help to improve state services

Needs Assessment for People with Disabilities in Tennessee

By Christina Clift, 

Over the past six months members of the State Rehabilitation Council in collaboration with the Division of Rehabilitation Services (DRS) staff worked to develop a Comprehensive Statewide Needs Assessment survey which is required to be conducted every three years.  Tennessee’s last Comprehensive Statewide Needs Assessment (CSNA) report was submitted in 2016. 


The responses gathered through the comprehensive needs assessment surveys are used to identify areas in need of improvement.  So, it is important to get as much feedback as possible from the public.  As a result, members of the state rehabilitation council and DRS wanted to increase the number of survey responses by simplifying the questions, reaching out to all groups that interact with the Division of Rehabilitation Services and identify the best method to distribute the survey. 


We also wanted to ensure that the information being gathered would be beneficial for the Division of Rehabilitation Services staff and the State Rehabilitation Council.  I believe that we accomplished all three of our goals. 

    

First, The Comprehensive Statewide Needs Assessment surveys were distributed to five groups of people that interact with the Division of Rehabilitation Services. They included customers and caregivers, community rehabilitation providers, Division of Rehabilitation Services counselors, stakeholders such as MCIL, Disability Rights of Tennessee, the Arc Midsouth, Clovernook Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired, SRVS, and many more.  The assessment also included partners that work with the Workforce Investment and Opportunity Act. 


Surveys were distributed by email at the beginning of June and responses were collected for three weeks.  Responses in all five groups increased from 2016.  Once all of the data was collected, members of the State Rehabilitation Council read and reviewed them before making seven key recommendations which are reflected in this year’s report. 

They include:

•     Talent Management - Staff hiring, training and retention, including addressing adequate compensation to improve recruitment and retention of Master's Vocational Rehabilitation Counselors.
•     Communication and Responsiveness - Communication, responsiveness and response time, including communications within VR, with clients, with CRP's, with WIOA Partners and with the public.
•     Timeliness of Services - Timeliness of services, i.e., improve process and timeliness of assistive technology services, better utilize various levels of staff to expedite the provision of services.
•     Customer Engagement - Focus on encouraging active participation by customers throughout the VR process to ensure customers are empowered to practice informed choice in the development of their Individualized Plan for Employment.
•     Transportation - Address transportation barriers based on individual client need to ensure clients are able to fully participate in services necessary to achieve their employment objectives.
•     Community Partners and Resources - Identify and develop community resources to ensure both staff and customers have a clearer understanding of the services available through WIOA partners and other community agencies.
•     Pre-Employment Transition Services - Monitor and improve the provision of Pre-Employment Transition Services to ensure VR is meeting the needs of students with disabilities statewide and is meeting the requirement to expend 15% of federal funds for this service.

Now, it will be the job of both the SRC and DRS to find ways to address these seven priority areas.  This might be done by improving training, changing policies and practices, building new partnerships, and thinking outside the box for new ideas. 


This process would not have been possible without the time individuals took to complete the surveys, and members of the SRC and DRS thank you.  The Comprehensive Needs Assessment is one of the ways that your voice can be heard when it comes to DRS and the job that they are doing to assist individuals with disabilities to find employment. 


Other ways include communication with your counselor and their supervisor when troubles arise in your case.  Using the Client Assistance Program through Disability Rights of Tennessee if you can’t resolve issues with your counselor or disagree with their decision.  Attending SRC meetings which are open to the public.  Finally, by completing future surveys. 


Read the Comprehensive Needs Assessment report.

Clift Notes: The State Rehabilitation Council

A funny thing happened on my way to convention…

By Christina Clift

I checked my e-mail and discovered that I’d been appointed by Governor Haslem to serve on the State Rehabilitation Council of Tennessee.   

Why was this funny? First of all I’d forgotten about submitting the application.  Second, I thought that I hadn’t been selected since I submitted my application at the end of August 2017 and it was April 3, 2018 when I received notification that I had been approved.  

 Honestly, no one could have been more surprised than me when I read the message. Finally, I was 95 percent sure that I would be elected to serve as president of the National Federation of the Blind of Tennessee that weekend and I knew that it would increase my responsibilities.  I did get elected and now my calendar is definitely full.  Never a moment of boredom.   

So you might be asking yourself what is the State Rehabilitation Council of Tennessee and why does it matter to me?  

The mission of the State Rehabilitation Council (SRC) of Tennessee is to advise, evaluate and partner with the public rehabilitation program in support of improving access to employment and promoting a diverse workforce statewide.  In other words, the SRC acts as the voice of the consumer and other stakeholders in the VR program. 

Like Centers for Independent Living, the SRC must have at least 51 percent participation from former or existing Vocational Rehabilitation clients which are people with disabilities.  Working for MCIL I know about the struggles individuals have gone through to receive training, to receive needed equipment, and to get and maintain employment.  I also learned that first-hand as a client of Vocational Rehabilitation myself.  

I knew that I wouldn’t have any problem being on the side of the consumer.  However, I knew that I had to keep an open-mind because issues aren’t always black and white and you have to be able to see both sides.

The meeting kicked off fairly smoothly with representatives from Vocational Rehabilitation giving an update on the four metrics currently being used to assist The Department of Rehabilitation Services.  They are referred to as customer focused goals. And they include: Vocational training services, providing job readiness, post-secondary education, and successful closures.  

These four areas enable the SRC and Vocational Rehabilitation the ability to track performance.  For example, the number of successful case closures for 2017-2018 is 2000 and currently they have closed 1776.  The metrics can then be examined to see the barriers to Vocational Rehabilitation clients or staff being able to close cases. They also reported on the impact that programs such as pre-employment transition services, Employment and Community First, and The Tennessee Promise are having on new applications.

Other areas of discussion were fairly straight forward.  They included member recruitment, creating outreach materials such as brochures, websites, and social media.  We also discussed ways to increase responses to customer satisfaction surveys for Vocational Rehabilitation.  Suggestions included: using events like the Mega Conference, NFB of Tennessee conventions, and more to set up tables.  Use of technology like survey monkey, texting links, and having organizations like CIL’s to assist as well. 

Overall, I think serving on the SRC will be a positive experience.  It will enable me to speak up on policies that act as barriers to service.  I will enable me to network with other agencies who have members on the SRC including STEP, the Department of Education, DRT, representatives from the business community, and other advocates speaking on behalf of disability populations.  These meetings are open to the public and I would strongly encourage anyone to attend.  After all, “nothing about us, without us.”  

 The next meeting is scheduled for August 9, 2018 in Nashville at the Airport Hilton located at 2200 Elm Hill Pike.