July 2021 Newsletter
Indiana’s “Work to Include” Coalition
Advancing Employment for Individuals with Disabilities
Indiana Work to Include Coalition Holds Employment First Summit
2021 Summit In Review
The Indiana Work to Include Coalition hosted a virtual Employment First Summit on May 25-27, 2021.
The event had a different theme each day. It was so exciting to see and over 169 people attended including individuals with disabilities, family members, legislators, Work to Include Team Leaders, state agency staff, and providers. All engaged in learning about Employment First across the country.
Day 1 opened with a welcome from the Lt. Governor, Suzanne Crouch, who reiterated the state’s commitment to employment for individuals with disabilities and the $15.00 per hour wage increase for Direct Support Professionals. Christine Dahlberg, Executive Director of the Governor’s Council for People with Disabilities spoke about the GCPD’s 5-year plan that included Employment First priorities. Susan Rinne, Co-Director of the Work to Include Coalition, indicated that the Coalition is comprised of over 500 members in 10 communities and shared the goals of the state’s Employment First legislation and plans. Kim Dodson from the Arc of Indiana informed participants about the recommendations of the 1102 Task Force and Self-Advocates of Indiana to eliminate subminimum wages (14C) in Indiana.
State agency leaders each spoke about how their agency is enacting the Employment First law and state plan. Cathy Robinson from the Bureau of Developmental Disability Services indicated that the state is restructuring their case management system, with plan for more training and hiring more case managers. Michael Barnes from the Department of Workforce Development (WorkOne) spoke about their collaboration with Vocational Rehabilitation to hire individuals with disabilities. Traci Hackleman, Assistant Director of Special Education at the Indiana Department of Education emphasized the need for high quality transition planning beginning by age 14 and accessing Pre-Employment Transition Services (Pre-ETS) to improve outcomes. Kelsi Linville from the Department of Mental Health and Addiction shared information about DMHA’s engagement with the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Disability Employment Policy to learn how other states have increased employment outcomes for people experiencing mental health issues.
There were two keynote speakers on Day 1. Julie Christensen, Interim Executive Director of national APSE – Employment First for All. Julie reviewed a wide array of federal policy efforts that are underway to advance competitive integrated employment, including the elimination of 14 C subminimum wages and the expansion of the ABLE Act.
Bob Lawhead, Policy Advisor for the Colorado Development Disabilities Council and father of Jess, who has Down Syndrome, provided the second keynote address. Bob shared the progress they have made regarding Employment First, including how the state-funded an Employment First entity.
#INCLUSIONWORKS
Day 2 of the Summit (May 26th) began with comments from three of our Work to Include Team Leaders, Mark Hublar, Bonnie Bomer, and Jeff Scherer. Mark spoke about the need for real jobs with real pay and shared his journey from working in a sheltered workshop to being a public speaker. Bonnie, who works at Indiana Disability Rights and leads the Indianapolis team, also shared her personal story as a person who is blind. Jeff, who leads the Ft. Wayne team, emphasized the need to develop community partnerships and build allies among all stakeholders.
Pat Rogan, Work to Include Co-Director and Professor in the School of Education at IUPUI focused her presentation on how lessons learned over the past 45 years and how service provider agencies can shift their practices from sheltered workshops to community-based employment and individualized supports.
Brian Dague (University of Vermont), Jennie Masterson (Vermont Supported Employment and Postsecondary Education), and James Smith (Vermont Division of Vocational Rehabilitaton) provided the Day 2 keynote presentation. This group discussed the fact that Vermont stopped funding sheltered workshops in 2002 and they have 0 workshops now.
Kelly Mitchell, CEO and President of Southern Indiana Resource Solutions (SIRS) also provided a presentation about how her organization has shifted from sheltered to integrated employment services. Kelly included a former workshop participant, Bob, who shared his satisfaction with being employed in the community.
The final day of the Summit focused on Medicaid Buy-in and benefits planning and assistance. Brian Gilbert and BreAnn Teague from the Indiana Office of Medicaid Policy and Planning shared information about MEDWorks. Annette Shea from Shea Consulting discussed improving Medicaid Buy-In for employees with disabilities. Beth Waldman from Massachusetts shared her experiences with Medicaid Buy-in programs and employment of individuals with disabilities. Our final speaker was Acacia McGuire Anderson, Statewide Employment First Coordinator and Employment/Eligibility Manager at the Oregon Department of Human Services, who discussed work incentive education for all in Oregon.
Breakout sessions
Breakout sessions were held each day to discuss the information that had been shared by the speakers and to make recommendations regarding action steps that Indiana should take. Participants were asked to vote on their top 3 recommendations.
The following summary highlights some of the recommendations that were made:
Benefits
Improve Medicaid Buy In to make it easier for people to access. Remove asset limites. Educate people about how it works.
Educate all about MED Works, ABLE accounts, and work incentives.
Appoint at least one person who uses Medicaid buy in to OMPP’s Medicaid Review Committee.
Add Benefits Counseling to the Pre-ETS program so that more can be done with youth and families before exiting school.
Add annual benefits counseling to Medicaid Waiver services and require it.
Expand Benefit Information Network to ensure everyone can receive the service before going to work and after.
Educate employers and HR personnel about disability benefits and work incentives.
Education and Advocacy
Collect stories to illustrate the barriers people encounter as well as the successes. Demonstrate for policymakers how the system works or doesn’t work.
Educate legislators, families, and other stakeholders about Employment First and the rights and talents of people with disability.
Develop peer-to-peer counseling/mentoring on self-advocacy and Employment First.
Policy – Employers - Training
Develop better transitions from high school to post-secondary settings using Pre-ETS.
Eliminate subminimum wages and sheltered workshops.
Develop better staff training for all who work with individuals with disabilities on Employment First and work incentives, for example: residential providers, mental health case managers, behavior specialists, state agency staff.
Align all Government Policy makers in Indiana with Employment First.
To better hold employment providers accountable, add financial incentives for successfully meeting set benchmarks (i.e., 50% successful community employment rate).
Educate employers and HR personnel on the return on investment for hiring talent with disabilities and how to hire, support and promote them. Incorporate in state economic development materials.
Transportation
Provide more support for individuals in rural areas, especially across county lines.
Collaboration between the state and small local agencies that serve people with disabilities to find funding sources for transportation.
More funding options for accessible vehicles. This needs to include the upkeep of the vehicle and accessible ramps.
Expand education on vehicle modifications.
The Work to Include Coalition will use these recommendations to guide activities during Year 4 of the initiative. Don’t worry if you missed it! The materials, videos of the sessions, and related material can be found on our website…check it out!
#INCLUSIONWORKS
CHECK US OUT…
Please help get the word out! Go to our Facebook and LinkedIN pages and share them widely. We hope you enjoy the access to employment-related content and are sure others will, too. Thanks!
HAVE AN EMPLOYMENT SUCCESS STORY YOU ARE WANTING TO SHARE?EMAIL SRINNE60@GMAIL.COM. SHORT, SWEET AND A PICTURE WOULD BE WONDERFUL!
Thank you!
For more information please contact our Co-Directors,
Pat Rogan, Professor, IUPUI School of Education at progan@iupui.edu
or
Susan Rinne, MPA at srinne60@gmail.com
