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Virtual Series: Disability Employment – Looking Back & Moving Forward

Date: October 2020

Four Events (1 podcast & 3 webinars)

  1. Podcast: ADA Live! Celebrating 100 Years of Vocational Rehabilitation with RSA Commissioner Mark Schultz
  2. Webinar: Shaping Modern Disability Employment Policy through the Lens of Past Veterans’ Experience
  3. Webinar: RRTC Disability Inclusive Employment Policy Center
  4. Webinar: Future Images of the Face of Vocational Rehabilitation

Description

“Increasing Access and Opportunity” was the October 2020 theme for the annual National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM). This year marks the 75th year of NDEAM lead by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP). During 2020 we also celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the 100th anniversary of Vocational Rehabilitation (VR). In recognition of these important milestones, the Southeast ADA Center hosted a FREE four-event Virtual Series: Disability Employment – Looking Back & Moving Forward on each Wednesday in October 2020.

Individuals with disabilities have been disproportionately affected by COVID-19 over the past year and a half. Whether it be through lack of access to important health resources, obstacles to get COVID-19 testing and now the vaccine, as well as some of the long-term effects it can have on individuals with existing medical conditions.

Archives [1 podcast & 3 Webinars]

Podcast: ADA Live! Celebrating 100 Years of Vocational Rehabilitation with RSA Commissioner Mark Schultz

Wednesday, October 7, 2020 

Presenters

Mark Schultz

Guest: Mark Schultz, Commissioner, Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA)

Barry Whaley

Host: Barry Whaley, Director, Southeast ADA Center

Description

For the past 100 years, Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) under the guidance of the Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) has enabled people with disabilities to overcome barriers to access, maintain, or return to employment. Join RSA Commissioner Schultz in discussing the past, present, and future of Vocational Rehabilitation.

Audio Recording – 45 minutes (October 7, 2020)

Transcript

Resources

Webinar 1 of 3: Shaping Modern Disability Employment Policy through the Lens of Past Veterans’ Experience

Wednesday, October 14, 2020

Presenters

Larry Logue

Larry Logue, Senior Fellow at Burton Blatt Institute (BBI) at Syracuse University and former Professor of History at Mississippi College

Peter Blanck

Peter Blanck Ph.D., J.D., University Professor & Chairman Burton Blatt Institute

Description

What can the past tell us about contemporary employment policy for veterans with disabilities?  For the past decade, Dr. Larry Logue and BBI Chairman, Dr. Peter Blanck have conducted research on Union army veterans’ experience with disabilities and federal government benefits. Their new book “Race, Ethnicity, and Disability: Veterans and Benefits in Post-Civil War America,” a volume in the Cambridge University Press Disability Law and Policy series investigates veterans’ longevity and African Americans’ treatment in the pension system.  Join this webinar to discover the historical and contemporary views of the employment of veterans with disabilities.

Recording (October 14, 2020)

Transcript

Presentation

Post Test

Part 1: Post Test (link opens in new window)
Link: bit.ly/ndeam2020-test-1

Evaluation

Your feedback is important to help determine the effectiveness of this webinar in meeting your needs and to guide planning for future webinars.

Part 1: Evaluation Form (link opens in new window)
Link: bit.ly/ndeam2020-eval-1

Resources

Webinar 2 of 3: RRTC Disability Inclusive Employment Policy Center

Wednesday, October 21, 2020

Presenters

Peter Blanck

Host: Peter Blanck Ph.D., J.D.,
University Professor & Chairman Burton Blatt Institute

Michael Morris, J.D.

Guest: Michael Morris, J.D.
Senior Adviser, Burton Blatt Institute  Founder and Senior Strategic Advisor, National Disability Institute

Meera Adya

Guest: Meera Adya
Senior Researcher
Burton Blatt Institute at Syracuse University

Nicole Maestas

Guest: Nicole Maestas, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Health Care Policy at Harvard Medical School

Doug Kruse

Guest: Doug Kruse
Distinguished Professor  School of Management and Labor Relations Rutgers University

Elaine Zundl

Guest: Elaine Zundl
Research Director
Center for Women and Work
Rutgers University

Description

The unprecedented health, social, and economic challenges raised by the coronavirus pandemic have greatly affected employees with disabilities.  What does the future of U.S. employment policy look like for people with disabilities? Learn about the newly funded Rehabilitation Research and Training Center (RRTC) on Disability Inclusive Employment Policy (DIEP). The National Institute on Disability, Independent Living and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR) provides funding for this new initiative. The Center is formed by a key partnership of Syracuse, Harvard, and Rutgers Universities.  This Center also brings together nationally recognized researchers from multiple disciplines, including economics, psychology, law, public policy, business management, and health.

Over five years, the anticipated outcomes of the Center are new evidence-based options for disability employment policy including:

  • Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) and workforce development professionals will have increased strategies to support job seekers with disabilities and businesses.
  • Human resource (HR) professionals will have new evidence-based practices to enhance worker retention and quality of work experience.
  • Employment service providers will have new evidence-based strategies to improve employment, re-engagement and job retention.
  • People with disabilities will have access to explore new alternative paths to employment and career advancement.
  • Researchers and students will have new data and evidence to support existing and next-generation research ideas.
  • Across targeted audiences, there will be a next-generation disability policy framework to advance employment and economic self-sufficiency for working-age adults with disabilities.

For more information on the RRTC Disability Inclusive Employment Policy project, contact Peter Blanck, PhD. J.D, Principal Investigator (pblanck@law.syr.edu).

Recording (October 21, 2020)

Transcript

Presentation

Post Test

Part 2: Post Test (link opens in new window)
Link: bit.ly/ndeam2020-test-2

Evaluation

Your feedback is important to help determine the effectiveness of this webinar in meeting your needs and to guide planning for future webinars.

Part 2: Evaluation Form (link opens in new window)
Link: bit.ly/ndeam2020-eval-2

Webinar 3 of 3: Future Images of the Face of Vocational Rehabilitation

Wednesday, October 28, 2020

Presenters

Allison Flanagan

Host: Allison Flanagan
Director, Florida Division of Vocational Rehabilitation
President, Council of State Administrators of Vocational Rehabilitation

Cora McNabb

Guest: Cora McNabb
Executive Director, Kentucky Office of Vocational Rehabilitation

Joe Xavier

Guest: Joe Xavier
Director, Department of Rehabilitation (DOR)
California Office of Vocational Rehabilitation

Felicia Johnson

Guest: Felicia Johnson
Commissioner
South Carolina Vocational Rehabilitation Department

David Doukas

Guest: David Doukas
Director, Connecticut Bureau of Rehabilitation Services

Description

In a final tribute to National Disability Employment Awareness Month and the first 100 years of Vocational Rehabilitation (VR), a panel of VR innovative leaders will discuss issues around racial equity, service delivery design, employer engagement and reasonable accommodations, technology, transition services and statewide workforce system integration. This webinar will also cover future emerging issues, challenges and trends for public Vocational Rehabilitation.

Recording (October 28, 2020)

Transcript

Presentation

Post Test

Part 3: Post Test (link opens in new window)
Link: bit.ly/ndeam2020-test-3

Evaluation

Your feedback is important to help determine the effectiveness of this webinar in meeting your needs and to guide planning for future webinars.

Part 3: Evaluation Form (link opens in new window)
Link: bit.ly/ndeam2020-eval-3