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What Does the Agency Do to Support Employment?
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Supports Individuals to Obtain and to Maintain Community Employment.
Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities (OOD) is a state agency that assists Ohioans with disabilities to prepare for, obtain, and maintain community employment.
OOD does this through two areas:
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Bureau of Vocational Rehabilitation (BVR) - Assists people who have physical, mental and emotional disabilities
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Bureau of Services for the Visually Impaired (BSVI) for those individuals that are blind or have visual challenges
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Supports Individuals to Plan For, Obtain and Maintain Community Employment.
Ohio Department of Developmental Disabilities (DODD) is the state agency that supports many individuals with Developmental Disabilities, including ASD and LI, throughout their lifespan. This can include employment supports and services as well as supports to live and participate as a community member. DODD works through the local County Board of Developmental Disabilities (CBDD) to provide support and services.
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Who is eligible?
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Transition age students (age 14 and older) and adults with disabilities may be eligible for employment services and supports through OOD.
To be eligible for OOD services a person must:
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Have a physical, cognitive and/or mental impairment that makes it hard to get or keep a job
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Want to be employed in competitive integrated employment (a job in their community)
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Require vocational services in order to get or keep a job
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Be able to benefit from the employment services that OOD is able to provide (This means the services must be able to help the person gain competitive integrated employment)
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Individuals that are eligible for CBDD/DODD services must meet an established criteria:
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Have a developmental disability/ delay
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Disability occurred before age 22
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Disability results in multiple functional limitations
"Functional' refers to essential skills to learn, work, play, and be a part of the community
How?
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County Boards use records provided by the person as well as assessment tools to determine eligibility.
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The amount of support that an individual is eligible to receive is determined using additional planning and assessment methods.
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Some identified supports may require the individual to be eligible for Medicaid.
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Can a person be eligible for both agency services?
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Yes. A person may be eligible for both OOD and CBDD/DODD services.
Each agency has a procedure for determining eligibility.
Being eligible for one agency's services does not automatically mean a person will be eligible for services from the other agency.
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How are Services Determined?
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OOD Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) counselors work with a person and the team to identify a community employment goal.
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Necessary services are then identified. Services are based on what the person needs in order to obtain and maintain the identified community employment, but are time limited.
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A plan is developed called an Individualized Plan for Employment or IPE
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CBDD Service Support Administrators (SSA) use a person centered planning process to identify life goals, including employment, and to identify the person's place on the "Path to Employment' (see Path to Employment tab in guide)
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Needed services are then identified to assist the person to advance on the path to employment to the desired employment goal.
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A plan is developed may be called an Individual Service Plan (ISP), Individual Plan (IP) or sometimes something else.
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What would happen in the planning process when a person is involved with OOD and CBDD?
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When a person is eligible for both OOD and CBDD/DODD services:
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The IPE and ISP goals for employment should be the same in both documents
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The OOD VR Counselor and CBDD SSA work together with the person to determine which agency services should be used at what point in the person's career development, identify this in the person's plans and reference this in progress documentation.
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How are Services Provided?
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CBDD do not usually provide the direct service to the person (except in some situations).
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How long will the agency provide employment supports?
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Support Is Time-Limited.
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The length of time OOD provides services varies based on the person's needs and progress.
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OOD services are not intended to support a person in employment on an ongoing basis. OOD services are time-limited, meaning that the services will end and the case closed at some point
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In some situations, OOD may reopen a person's case after it is closed or open a new case if the employment situation changes.
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Support May Be Long-Term
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CBDD/DODD employment support and services may continue for an extended time (beyond the time OOD is able to provide support/service)
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In some situations, employment supports/services through CBDD/DODD may be provided for several years through the use of Medicaid funding or local CBDD funding
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Employment support is generally not intended to be life-long,
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Some individuals are able to access ongoing assistance through natural supports
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What are some examples of Employment Services?
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Variety of Services
Types of services provided by OOD may include:
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Vocational evaluation or assessment
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Vocational guidance, planning and training
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Assistance to attend an educational program
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Therapies, equipment and adaptive technology
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Work Incentives Counseling,
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Job development and placement and coaching
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Spectrum of Service Delivery
CBDD/DODD can provide employment supports/services, as well as other types of community living support that a person may need.
Employment support and services include:
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Employment Navigation /Case Management
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Career Discovery
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Job Training and Career Exploration
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Supports to Help Find a Job
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Long and Short-term Job Coaching
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Transportation
Service Model
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Services should be individually designed.
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Some pre-employment services may be provided as a group service or program.
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Many employment services are only effective when provided as an individual service.
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What types of services can be offered to youth in the transition years?
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Pre-Employment Transition Services (Pre-ETS)
Pre-ETS can be provided to students with disabilities (ages 14 through age 21) who have been determined eligible or are potentially eligible for VR services and who have an identified need Pre-ETS.
Types of Pre-ETS Services include:
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Job Exploration Counseling
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Work Based Learning
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Counseling on Opportunities for Enrollment in Post-Secondary Education
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Workplace Readiness Training
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Instruction in Self Advocacy.
OOD works in partnerships with other agencies to provide these services.
Beginning at age 14, for eligible youth, OOD can open a case and provide additional services if needed. These services can go beyond the services offered by Pre-ETS.
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Transition Youth Services Vary
DODD/CBDD generally does not provide direct employment services to transition youth while still in high school. However, in some countries, the CBDD does engage youth in pre-employment or pre-vocational services. Examples include:
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Several CBDD are Pre-ETS providers for OOD
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Some CBDDs offer school services within a CBDD school or in collaboration with a local school district.
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Some CBDDs have developed and supported innovative partnerships that provide transition services focused on employment outcomes for youth with DD in the county
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SSAs or other CBDD staff participate in transition planning and focus on the Path to Employment
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CBDDs host, co-host or participate in transition fairs or expos to provide information about transition planning and adult employment services
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The Ohio Employment First Rule suggest that CBDD collaborate with the school district in a person centered planning process with the youth as he/she nears graduation.
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Where can additional information be found?
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