OOD Executive Director Kevin Miller speaking with human resource professionals from state agencies.
In conjunction with Governor John Kasich’s initiative to
ensure individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing have access to employment openings,
Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities (OOD) and the Ohio Department of
Administrative Services (DAS) recently hosted four disability awareness and accessibility
training sessions for state agencies. More than 70 human resource professionals
from 40 state agencies attended these sessions. The next step is for state
agencies to identify a list of positions that can be a focus for hiring
individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing. Each state agency’s recruitment
and hiring staff will meet with OOD staff to discuss the positions. OOD will
then identify and refer potential candidates for available positions and track
each agencies’ hiring progress.
“This is an exciting opportunity for the deaf
community,” said OOD Executive Director Kevin Miller. “Ohioans who are deaf or
hard of hearing make important contributions to business, the arts, athletics,
education and government every day.” Director Miller also met with members of the Community
Centers for the Deaf and encouraged them to share this information within their
constituencies and to contact OOD for services. The deaf community can also apply
for jobs at careers.ohio.gov.
OOD
recognized 30 Ohio Walmart stores with the Committed to Opportunity Award for
their leadership in integrating individuals with disabilities into Ohio’s
workforce.
“Walmart
is the largest retailer in the world and has taken it upon themselves to make
sure that well-qualified and capable individuals who have
disabilities are integrated into their corporate culture,” said
OOD Executive Director Kevin Miller. “By embracing a culture of
inclusion and diversity, the lives of those individuals with disabilities are
enhanced, the community benefits, and the workforce is strengthened.”
OOD’s vocational
rehabilitation counselors and job developers meet with Walmart human resources staff to discuss the skills and
available positions for OOD's job ready candidates. To see the media release, visit Walmart
media release.
While
Sam Thornton, Jr. was fighting to stay sober, he assumed his frequent stumbles
and disorientation were alcohol related. However, over the next few years, as
he achieved sobriety, such events kept happening. He decided to visit an eye
doctor and learned that he was living with diminished vision. He eventually
lost his shipping job as his glaucoma got worse.
Sam,
58, was determined to overcome this new challenge so he could continue as a
certified public speaker to veterans and ex-offenders in recovery where he
shared a life theme he created called FOCUS (Facing Our Circumstances Under
Stress). He realized that he would need to adapt to this new circumstance of
vision loss, and in 2017 he contacted OOD’s Independent Living
Older Blind (ILOB) program.
ILOB helps individuals age 55 or older with visual impairments by providing adaptive equipment and
training on orientation and mobility, assistive technology and daily living
skills.
Sam
met with ILOB Caseload Assistant Katy Mason. She referred him for services at
the Cleveland Sight Center, which helped him with mastering daily living
activities in a new way, learning to use a white cane and obtaining some
low vision aids. Sam was relieved and grateful for the education and tools that
would help him continue to lead a full life.
Today,
Sam stays active giving motivational speeches to those in recovery. He has even
added to his list of FOCUS presentations and speaks to those experiencing
vision loss. Visit
OOD’s Bureau of Services for
the Visually Impaired
for more information on how services and supports can be provided to
individuals with low vision and blindness to help them attain and maintain
employment.
The
month of February is Low Vision Awareness Month. Low vision describes
significant visual impairments that aren't correctable through glasses,
medication, eye surgery or contact lenses. It’s often
characterized by partial sight such as blind spots, tunnel vision or blurred
vision. The most common causes of low vision in the United States are glaucoma,
age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy and cataracts. Other
causes include strokes, traumatic brain injury and various diseases. For
more information on eye diseases, visit Prevent Blindness. If you have a visual
impairment and want to work, visit OODWorks.com and apply for
services.
In OOD’s Business Relations video titled Workforce Success Stories, Kevin Thomas, owner of Town and Country
Sew-n-Vac, contacted OOD after he had an issue with his eye and could no longer
drive trucks. “Starting over is hard but OOD made it a lot easier,” said Kevin.
For more information about how OOD can help your business meet its diverse
workforce needs by including people with disabilities, check out all five of
OOD’s Business
Relations Videos.
Pictured above are Disability Claims Adjudicators Sean Cunningham (left) and Randall Hicks.
Congratulations
to OOD’s newest LeanOhio Camo Belt recipients Sean
Cunningham and Randall Hicks. Sean, a Disability Claims Adjudicator (DCA), led
a group of subject matter experts in identifying the operational definitions
and creating a process map in his Camo Belt training. Randall, also a DCA, sought
to complete the Camo Belt training through his own aspirations to learn more
about Lean Six Sigma. His project involved creating a process map for the work
queue between adjudicators and their reviewers. To receive a Camo Belt both
needed to demonstrate competency in the use of methodology and tools learned in
their Lean training. The mission of LeanOhio is to make government
services in Ohio simpler, faster, better and less costly.
OOD staff conducted Job Developer and Resume Building trainings
that are now available for viewing on YouTube. The trainings are designed to educate job developers and
other providers on expectations of job developers, performance-based services
and resume writing.
Connect to OOD on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube to see items like this
story about a former OOD Youth Leadership Forum delegate. To view this article, visit our Facebook. #ConnectToOOD #OODWorks
Please share this publication and
encourage others to subscribe to the OOD Focus E-newsletter on
our website. Also, be sure to join
us on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and LinkedIn.
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