1. New Jersey Division of Vocational Rehabilitation Services
DVRS
New Jersey Division of Vocational Rehabilitation Services
New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development

2. We Are V. R.
The Division of Vocational Rehabilitation Services within the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development –
Helps individuals with disabilities prepare for, obtain, and maintain competitive employment.
Employs master level counselors that are highly trained in the field of vocational rehabilitation.
Has 18 local offices located throughout the state, many co-located with the One-Stop offices.
Slide 2: My name is Alice Hunnicutt, and I am the state director of the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation Services in the Department of Labor and Workforce Development. The mission of the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation Services (DVRS) is to enable individuals with disabilities to achieve employment outcomes consistent with their strengths, priorities, needs, abilities and capabilities.
DVRS is the designated New Jersey State Agency dedicated to provide vocational rehabilitation services to individuals with disabilities as provided under the Federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended by the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act in July DVRS is administered at the federal level through the Rehabilitation Services Administration which is housed in the US Department of Education.
I oversee the administration of services that help individuals find, get, and keep employment, so if you have a disability that keeps you from being successful in the workplace I encourage you to apply to your local DVRS program located within the one-stop career centers throughout New Jersey. Please note that if you are an individual with a vision loss the appropriate agency to contact is the Commission for the Blind and Visually Impaired in the Department of Human Services.

3. Services to Individuals with Disabilities Goals for presentation
Vision and opportunities for New Jersey
DVRS process
Major impacts of the changes in W.I.O.A. for Vocational Rehabilitation
Next Steps
Slide 3: The goals for today’s presentation include the following: (read slide)

4. Vision and Opportunities for NJ
Reemployment
Meeting Jobseekers Where They Are
Opportunity
Equipping the Workforce for Employment
Accountability
Increasing System Accountability
Alignment
Driving Investments Based on Industry Needs
Vision and Opportunities for NJ
LWD Priorities
Reemployment
Reducing the amount of time that people are unemployed
Opportunity
Increasing the number of individuals who are on a path to economic opportunity
Alignment
Increasing the number of individuals with an industry-valued post-secondary degree or credential
Accountability
Slide 4: The Department of Labor has identified four major priorities in connection with the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act. The first is Re-employment. We will strengthen services to jobseekers and businesses through a renewed one stop career system, the development of a 21st century career planning model, which includes expanding partnerships with organizations engaged in workforce development, and using technology, including assistive technology applications for individuals with disabilities.
The second major priority focuses on opportunity. We will implement innovative strategies to help people, including individuals with disabilities achieve economic self-sufficiency by investing in programs that integrate strong foundational skills, workforce readiness skills, and occupational skills that lead to a career pathway.
The third major priority focuses on alignment. We will invest in high quality business education partnerships that fill skills gaps in New Jersey’s key industries, and help individuals obtain employer-valued credentials.
The fourth major priority focuses on accountability. We will ensure that all of our workforce investments are efficient and effective by using performance metrics and outcomes to make program and policy decisions, and by providing customers, including individuals with disabilities, with information on the quality of training programs and workforce services.
I will now discuss DVRS process

5. Who should be referred to DVRS?
Individuals who have expressed a desire to work in competitive integrated employment
Students with disabilities in transition
Individuals who have a significant disability (physical, intellectual, and/or mental impairment) as documented in medical records and evaluations or school records.
Slide 5: Read slide
For individuals with vision loss, the Commission for the Blind and Visually Impaired in the Department of Human Services is the designated agency that provides vocational rehabilitation.

6. Step One: The Referral Steps in the DVRS Participant process
State or County Agencies, hospitals, mental health facilities and others can make the referral – or the adult individual can refer themselves to DVRS.
There are confidential referral forms that can be used to make the referral or it can be taken over the phone.
The Referral form is not an application.
Slide 7: What are the steps in getting started with DVRS? The first step is the referral. Read 2nd through 3rd bullets.
Please know that being referred to DVRS does not mean that the individual has officially applied to DVRS.

7. Step Two: The Application
Slide 8: Step 2: After the referral has been made, the individual is assigned to a DVRS counselors for an Intake appt., what DVRS calls a “Survey Interview”

8. Step Three: Eligibility
In order to be eligible for DVRS services, individuals must have a documented physical, cognitive, or mental/emotional impairment that poses a substantial barrier to employment, and
Requires vocational rehabilitation services in order to prepare for, secure, maintain, or regain employment.
The individual’s school and medical records are reviewed as part of the eligibility determination.
There is an assessment of the specific barriers or impediments to employment that the individual may have as a result of his or her disability.

9. Step Four: Individualized Plan for Employment (IPE)
An IPE
is a written agreement between the consumer and the counselor; developed after a client is determined eligible
when there is a determination of the consumer’s vocational goal and specific services needed by consumer to obtain and maintain employment.
Similar to an ISS
The 4th step in the DVRS process is the development of the consumer’s Individualized Plan for Employment, what is called the “IPE.” Read the bullets.

10. Last Step: Case Closure
The consumer’s case is closed when the individual has been successfully employed for a minimum of 90 days.
Typically this means that the specific services provided through DVRS have ended.
Consumers may reapply to DVRS at any time in the future if their job situation changes.

11. What services can DVRS provide?
The primary or central service provided to DVRS consumers is Vocational Counseling & Guidance.
Evaluations or other services may be provided if it is needed to assist the individual in obtaining and or maintaining employment.
Provision of services is individualized based on the person’s work history, skill level & disability related limitations as well as the consumer’s interests, abilities and strengths.
Many services are of no cost to the individual including job coaching and vocational counseling & guidance. Other services may be based on a financial needs assessment.
Individuals may be referred for Diagnostic Evaluations prior to receiving services and/or at a later time if needed.

12. Vocational Counseling and Guidance is provided by the DVRS Counselor and could include:
Career Assessments
Resume and cover letter preparation
Mock interviews to practice interviewing skills
Tips on “Dressing for Success”
Job search strategies
Self-advocacy skills
Benefits Counseling
Education about work readiness skills
Information on “In-Demand” occupations

13. What are other types of services that may be provided?
Assistive technology, Auxiliary Aids
Funding for college, post-secondary training or vocational programs
Tools & Equipment needed for a job
Time limited funding for specific type of therapies
And more…

14. Significant changes in WIOA title IV
Employer engagement
Pre-employment transition strategies
Limitation on the use of subminimum wage

15. Significant changes in WIOA title IV Employer engagement
“increasing employment opportunities and employment outcomes for individuals with disabilities, including through encouraging meaningful input by employers and vocational rehabilitation services providers on successful and prospective employment and placement strategies.”
Title IV now allows the VR programs to provide services to employers who have or who are interested in hiring jobseekers with disabilities.

16. Significant changes in WIOA title IV Employer engagement
Recognition of dual customer in VR program
Measured outcomes on business outreach
Revises definition of competitive integrated employment
Work must be compensated at the same rate as for other similarly situated employees who do not have disabilities
Federal and state wage and hour laws must be followed
Individuals must have opportunities to interact with other employees who do not have disabilities

17. Significant changes in WIOA title IV Pre-employment transition services
Pre-employment transition services is a new section in title IV
Designated coordinator in each office
15% of federal VR funds must be used for pre- employment transition services
Services must be made available to every student with a disability
WIOA requires that 15% of the DVRS federal grant be used to provide pre-employment transition services (PETS) to students with disabilities. There are 5 required services that must be given to all students with disabilities:
Job exploration counseling
Work-based learning experiences.
Counseling related to post-secondary opportunities.
Workplace readiness training.
Self-advocacy training.
Please note: the funding for pre-employment transition services is not meant to supplant the services in I.D.E.A. that are part of a students individualized plan. In other words, DVRS is not responsible to pay for any service that should be identified in a student’s IEP. The transition IEP must address strategies for employment which should include services like community-based and structured learning experiences. The local school district is responsible for funding these services, and if the student needs a job coach in order to participate in a structured learning opportunity or have a job experience during the summer as part of their IEP the school should be paying for that.

18. Significant changes in WIOA title IV Pre-employment transition services
Student with a disability defined in title IV
Student between the ages of 14 and 21
Identified under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
Identified under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act
Provision of pre-employment transition services is not meant to supplant the entitlements in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
There is a specific distinction between student with a disability and youth with a disability.
A student with a disability is defined as someone who is still under the entitlement of I.D.E.A. or who has a specific 504 accommodation plan. Individuals who are not currently in school (drop outs) are not included in this definition, and therefore, do not qualify for pre-employment transition services.
In New Jersey transition begins at the beginning of the school year in which a student will turn 14, so student with a disability begins at that point as well.
Youth with a disability is defined under title IV to be any individual with a disability under the age of 24. This can include students who have dropped out.

19. Significant changes in WIOA title IV Limitation on subminimum wage
Restrictions for school districts
Prohibited from contracting with sheltered work providers for transition services for the purpose of engaging in subminimum wage activities
Does not apply to individuals currently employed by sheltered workshop
Applies to individuals 24 or younger
Furthermore, no public local school district can contract with a sheltered workshop for the purpose of operating a program for an individual who is 24 or younger and paying them a subminimum wage. This piece of the law takes place on July 1, 2016.
This law does not apply to individuals who are currently employed by a sheltered workshop nor does it apply to individuals older than 24 when they begin work in a sheltered workshop.
Schools can contract with providers holding 14(c) certificates for aspects of transition services that do not put a student in a segregated work environment making subminimum wage.

20. Significant changes in WIOA title IV Limitation on subminimum wage
Entity may not employ an individual under age 24 at a subminimum wage unless ALL criteria contained within 14(c) is met AND at least one of the following conditions is met:
Individual currently employed by entity that holds valid 14(c) certificate
Slide 24:
WIOA stipulates that facilities may not employ an individual under the age of 24 at a subminimum wage unless all the criteria contained within 14 (c) is met.
This section of the Fair Labor Standards Act authorizes employers, after receiving a certificate from the Wage and Hour Division, to pay subminimum wages - wages less than the Federal minimum wage - to workers who have disabilities for the work being performed. The certificate also allows the payment of wages that are less than the prevailing wage to workers who have disabilities for the work being performed on contracts (set-aside).
Section 14(c) does not apply unless the disability actually impairs the worker's earning or productive capacity for the work being performed. The fact that a worker may have a disability is not in and of itself sufficient to warrant the payment of a subminimum wage.
Subminimum wages must be commensurate wage rates - based on the worker's individual productivity, no matter how limited, in proportion to the wage and productivity of experienced workers who do not have disabilities performing essentially the same type, quality, and quantity of work in the geographic area from which the labor force of the community is drawn. The key elements in determining commensurate rates are:
Determining the standard for workers who do not have disabilities, the objective gauge against which the productivity of the worker with a disability is measured.
Determining the prevailing wage, the wage paid to experienced workers who do not have disabilities for the same or similar work and who are performing such work in the area.
Evaluating the quantity and quality of the productivity of the worker with the disability.

21. Significant changes in WIOA title IV Limitation on subminimum wage
Restrictions for Entities
Individual has completed, prior to beginning work at a subminimum wage, ALL of the following:
Receipt of pre-employment transition services
Application for vocational rehabilitation
Individual has received career counseling, understands and consents to work at subminimum wage, giving informed consent.
Individuals under the age of 24 must also have all of the following:
Receipt of pre-employment transition services. This is difficult since many of these individuals graduated/aged out of high school prior to the authorization of WOA.
Individuals must have applied for VR services and found ineligible or have otherwise been unsuccessful in achieving competitive integrated employment and their case closed.
It is important to note that WIOA has a very high presumption of eligibility for individuals, even individuals with the most significant disabilities, and the new law expects that there will be several opportunities in a variety of employment options explored with the supports needed before an individuals will have his/her case closed.
DVRS will be exploring many ways to provide these opportunities, including working with DDD to braid services needed for individuals with significant developmental disabilities in order to have clear and convincing evidence that an individual will not be able to achieve a competitive integrated employment outcome.
This new requirement puts VR counselors in a crucial role in providing the services necessary to our customers.

22. Significant changes in WIOA title IV Limitation on subminimum wage
5/9/16
5/4/2018
Significant changes in WIOA title IV Limitation on subminimum wage
Individual has completed, prior to beginning work at a subminimum wage, ALL of the following actions –
Individual has received career counseling, and understands and consents to work for the employer at a subminimum wage, giving informed consent after receiving information and referrals to resources that include non-subminimum wage employment opportunities
Slide 26:
Counselors must provide career counseling to individuals and make sure they understand what it means to receive subminimum wage. They must provide information about services geared for employment in the community getting prevailing wages. The individual must understand and agree that his/her choice is to work in a setting for an employer at a subminimum wage.
This new requirement can be unsettling for family members who believe that placement in a sheltered environment is the best outcome for their family member.
We have to be careful to identify guardianship, and if an individuals does not have a formal guardian we have to make sure that the individual’s informed choice is identified and not just rely on family members.

23. Significant changes in WIOA title IV Limitation on subminimum wage
5/9/16
5/4/2018
Significant changes in WIOA title IV Limitation on subminimum wage
Requires employers to provide ongoing career counseling, information about self-advocacy and self-determination, peer mentoring, and guidance on how to provide informed consent in order for individuals to continue to be employed under a special wage certificate.
Ongoing counseling must occur every six months for the first year of employment at subminimum wage and annually thereafter for the duration of the individual’s employment.
Slide 27:
WIOA also requires employers to provide career counseling on a regular basis, information about self-advocacy, peer mentoring, and guidance about informed consent in order for individuals to continue to be employed under a special wage certificate.
Counseling must occur every six months for the first year an individual is placed in a workshop, and at least once a year after that, for the entire time an individual works at the facility.

24. Services to Individuals with Disabilities Next Steps
Employer Engagement
DVRS is developing a business outreach unit. We are one of 11 VR programs receiving intense TA from the Job-Driven VR Technical Assistance Center (ICI, Boston)
Slide 12: DVRS looks forward to implementing the changes in WIOA under title IV, and our next steps include the following (Read slide)

25. Services to Individuals with Disabilities Next Steps
Pre-employment transition services
Data identifying students in transition (students under I.D.E.A. or section 504 accommodation plans) be identified so all students participate in the required activities:
Job exploration counseling,
Work-based learning experiences,
Counseling on opportunities for enrollment in comprehensive transition or postsecondary educational programs,
Workplace readiness training to develop social skills and independent living, and
Instruction in self-advocacy.
Slide 13, 14, 15, 16: Read slide

26. Services to Individuals with Disabilities Next Steps
Limitations on use of subminimum wage
Develop procedures and processes that ensure youth with significant disabilities are referred to the appropriate VR agency and that several community work-based opportunities are tried to enable youth with significant disabilities to achieve successful employment in competitive integrated employment prior to placing them into sheltered work.
Slide 13, 14, 15, 16: Read slide

27. Services to Individuals with Disabilities Next Steps
Limitations on use of subminimum wage
Regional meetings with all sheltered workshop to discuss Career Pathways (invitation only)
February 29 – March 8
Identify regional meetings with families (public)
Engage other stakeholders as appropriate
Public forums
Slide 13, 14, 15, 16: Read slide

28. Services to Individuals with Disabilities Next Steps
Accessibility of one-stops
That all one-stops use an identified accessibility checklist and that minimum standards are developed to ensure a level of consistent application in the state.
That a best practices manual be developed that recognizes the efforts of one-stop delivery areas that provide a higher level of access to individuals with barriers to employment, including individuals with disabilities.
That the one-stops develop processes to ensure coordination and appropriate access to services, including DVRS/CBVI services, for individuals with disabilities.
Slide 13, 14, 15, 16: Read slide

29. We Are V. R. Summary Employer Engagement
Pre-employment transition services
Limitations on use of subminimum wage
Accessibility of one-stops
Slide 17: In summary