 Pictured above are staff from the City of Cleveland's Department of Public Utilities talking with an OOD job seeker.
The National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM)
and Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities’ (OOD) 3rd annual
Job Fairs concluded in October. Since that time, OOD has continued tracking the
outcomes of the attendees. As of today, 16% of OOD’s job seekers are either
employed or have a closed rehabilitation status. OOD’s goal of 16% inclusion 90
days past the last job fair has been
met two weeks ahead of schedule. The average hourly wage for those job seekers
is $10.39 and they are working an average of 26 hours per week.
In addition to these job seekers’
successes, OOD formed a new collaboration with the City of Cleveland’s
Department of Public Utilities. When the Department of Public Utilities Chief
Information Officer Mark Lasic saw OOD’s job fair signs being displayed prior
to the event, he and his colleagues decided they had to attend. When they
approached the job fair, OOD’s Business Relations Specialist (BRS) Heather Mauk
immediately showed them to the last available table where they advertised eight
IT job openings. Two OOD job seekers were interviewed.
As a result of this new partnership, OOD is able to submit
candidates to several departments within the City of Cleveland including the
Department of Public Utilities, Cleveland Public Power and Water Pollution
Control. If you are an employer looking to diversify and strengthen your
workforce through the inclusion of people with disabilities, contact the OOD BRS
in your area at http://ood.ohio.gov/Employers/BSA-Contact-Info.
 Pictured above are Lindsay Blusiewicz (left) and Cassandra Blusiewicz participating in the Chalk the Block event at Easton Town Center.
Ever
since she can remember, former consumer and OOD Graphic Artist Lindsay
Blusiewicz has enjoyed delving into various forms of art. Lindsay and her
identical twin sister Cassandra were born with Treacher Collins Syndrome, a
rare genetic condition that affects the development of the bones and tissues of
the face.
The
Blusiewicz sisters enter street painting competitions as a team. Street
painting in laymen’s term is chalk art. Chalk art is one area the Blusiewicz
sisters excel.
Lindsay
pursued artwork in high school and continued at Otterbein University. She began
an internship at OOD, which lead to a full-time position in OOD’s Office of
Communications. “OOD has helped me grow in my field and has given me an outlet
to link my imaginative side with the business needs of state government,” said
Blusiewicz.
As the population of Ohio ages, a growing challenge many individuals experience is the loss of vision. OOD can help Ohioans overcome challenges related to this disability and maintain their independence through our Independent Living Services for Older Blind (ILOB) program. The ILOB program promotes independence and self-sufficiency by providing low vision services, activities of daily living (e.g., cooking and housework) and orientation and mobility services (e.g. white cane training and traveling) to eligible individuals. For more information about ILOB services, visit http://ood.ohio.gov/Programs/Independent-Living/Independent-Living-Services-for-ILOB.
OOD's Bureau of Services for the Visually Impaired (BSVI)
has updated and posted its annual compilation of Vision and Hearing Loss
Resources. The document contains internet links and other information on
general resources. Advocacy groups, media and communications access, hearing aid
assistance, and learning assistance is also available. For more
information, visit http://ood.ohio.gov/Core-Services/BSVI/Vision-and-Hearing-Resources.
 Pictured above are the Division of Disability Determination’s Disability Claims Supervisor Julie Keel (left), Deputy Director Erik Williamson and Disability Claims Specialist Christian Mateos.
Carolyn W. Colvin, Acting Commissioner of the Social
Security Administration (SSA) announced the 2016 Commissioner’s Honor Awards.
One individual is recognized nationwide from the states that have a state
operated Disability Determination Agency.
This year, Deputy Director Erik Williamson was the
recipient of the Commissioner’s SSA Disability Program Leadership Award. This
particular category recognizes significant contributions to the success of the
SSA’s Disability Program.
Christian Mateos, one of our disability claims
specialists in the hearings department, received the SSA Commissioner’s
Citation. Specifically in recognition of contributions to excellent
customer service as a bilingual disability claims specialist.
Separately, DDD Disability Claims Supervisor
Julie Keel was named a recipient of the 2016 Associate Commissioner’s Citation
from the SSA Office of Disability Determinations. Keel participated in a
Limited English Proficiency workgroup and is being recognized for her hard
work, attitude, actions, and pride in serving the citizens of Ohio.
If you
have a disability and want to work, visit http://oodworks.com/ to
get started on your path to employment.
Microsoft has a free program for people with disabilities
where technicians access computers in need of repair remotely. For more
information, visit https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/accessibility/disability-answer-desk
Correction:
In last week's Weekly Focus, we
incorrectly identified Benjamin W. Arnett of Greene County as the first
African-American/Native-American state legislator elected in Ohio. The first
African-American to serve in the Ohio General Assembly was George W.
Williams who served from 1880-1881.
Vocational Rehabilitation
Current FFY2017
Individuals in Job Ready Status: 2,994 1,992
For county level information
& map, visit our website.
Individuals Employed: 2,077 1,668
Employed, not yet
successfully closed
Successful Closures: 1,929
Employed for over 90 days,
case closed successfully
Disability Determination
(FFY 2017 as of 1/13/2017 – Week 15)
Applications Received: 50,252
Determinations: 55,155
Productivity Per Work Year (PPWY) 357.5
Total number of cases processed divided
by the number of work years funded
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