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FOR RELEASE: September 6, 2017
Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities Offers
Expansion
and Improvement Funds to Provider Community
COLUMBUS, OH
– Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities (OOD) announces the selection of
vocational rehabilitation partners and providers who will receive opportunity
dollars – a total of more than $280,000 in funds. These dollars are one-time
funds available to develop new programs for individuals with disabilities. The
driving themes of those selected include a focus on connecting students with
disabilities to higher wages and in-demand occupations, partnering with technology
and trade industries, expanding services to rural areas and supporting the
attainment of nationally recognized credentials for staff to provide supported
employment services and work incentives consultations.
“Our providers in the community are
vital to our goal of ensuring that individuals with disabilities receive
quality employment services,” said OOD Executive Director Kevin L. Miller.
“This reinvestment to local providers and businesses would not be possible
without the transformative business practices executed by them and the OOD
staff to make certain all Ohioans with disabilities receive the needed services
to find employment and gain independence.”
OOD received several responses from
across the state to its request for proposals, and coordinated an independent
scoring and selection committee with representatives from OOD, the Ohio
Departments of Developmental Disabilities, Education, Job and Family Services,
and Mental Health and Addiction Services.
The committee selected the
following proposals from vocational rehabilitation providers and partners that
will assist Ohioans with disabilities with expanded and improved opportunities:
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Food for Good Thought - to develop summer youth sites in
the information technology industry
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Capabilities - to develop summer youth work
experience sites in the technology and trade industries, and to develop a new
program to assist students with disabilities in identifying career interests to
better prepare them for post-school employment
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The Cuyahoga County Board of Developmental
Disabilities - to
engage businesses in northeast Ohio to participate in local hiring events for
people with disabilities
In addition, Services for Independent Living in Northeast Ohio, the Hearing, Speech & Deaf Center of
Greater Cincinnati, and the Deaf
Community Resource Center in Dayton will each receive funding to obtain accreditation
from the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF).
An OOD survey recognized an
overwhelming need for Certified Employment Support Professional (CESP) certification
from the Association of Persons Supporting Employment First (APSE) and Work
Incentives Practitioner (WIP) training and Certification from Cornell
University. OOD received more than 550 requests for CESP certification and more
than 160 requests for WIP credentialing, and is committed to funding all
requests.
OOD is the state
agency responsible for assisting individuals with disabilities to gain
meaningful employment, to live independently or receive disability benefits
through the Social Security Administration. www.ood.ohio.gov.
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