New
Innovative Service Fight Employment Barriers
by
Lance H. Hegland
Rise, Inc., along
with funding support from AmeriCorps, has launched an innovative
service assisting participants experiencing disabilities overcome
employment barriers. This isn't a traditional rehabilitation service,
but their desired outcome is the same: good paying jobs at no cost
to the participant or the employer. The service, referred to as "The I-Team,” draws
its name from four typical obstacles: impossibility, invisibility,
inaccessibility, and inactivity.
The I-Team points
out that, due to the perception that people with significant disabilities
face such major challenges, they are unable to efficiently work.
Therefore, their employment goals are dismissed as too challenging
or "impossible.”
Employers may
lack recruiting and retention strategies targeting individuals
with disabilities. Employers may be unaware of accommodations assisting
this population during hiring, training, and employment processes.
Consequently, employers may also fear legal liability under the
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). These factors could cause
such individuals "invisibility" from
employers.
Some individuals
may not qualify for adequate services, funding, expertise, or other
supportive resources under federal, state, and local vocational
rehabilitation systems. For that reason, these individuals' efforts
to search, secure, and retain suitable employment may be difficult,
or worse, unsuccessful. Essentially, they suffer "inaccessibility" to
adequate supports, causing "inaccessibility" to suitable
employment.
Even if individuals
are granted access to the supportive resources, they may be placed
on long waiting lists, thereby encountering "inactivity.”
The self-directed
I-Team was assembled to break down those barriers through flexible,
courteous, and respectful services. They hope to assist participants
lacking access to, or success with, more traditional funding or
job placement programs. Participants typically have a disability
or other barrier to employment, are unemployed, desire to work,
and want to actively participate with the I-Team to achieve their
goals. Each participant is essential member of the team; demonstrating
alignment with the "not for us without us" and
independent living philosophies. Some of those concepts are as
follows:
* Freedom
to dream and plan employment with necessary support rather than
a preplanned program;
* Support of resources and personnel, both formal and informal,
assisting in employment;
* Authority to direct, with a social or support network if necessary,
the planning and application of resources; and,
* Responsibility to be a valuable component in the community through
competitive employment as well as accountability for using resources
in ways that are life-enhancing.
After meeting the team, I was pleasantly surprised for two reasons.
First, the service has very few eligibility criteria and operating
guidelines, rules, policies, or procedures. Instead, the I-Team staff
have the freedom, authority, and management support to do whatever
they think is reasonable and necessary to assist participants achieve
employment. Second, the I-Team did not intentionally develop their
service based on the concepts mentioned above. The service was designed
solely around a passionate goal, recognition that everyone is unique,
and belief that individuals desiring employment must be actively
involved in the employment process. The flexible, common-sense, and
active-participant framework that emerged naturally reflected these
core independence concepts.
Service participants can expect regular meetings with the I-Team
to do the following:
* perform person-centered
career planning;
* engage in creative
problem-solving;
* consult with
disability and employment experts;
* develop customized
employment solutions;
* connect with
job and community supports;
* obtain job-training
and coaching;
* receive mentor
support;
* resolve disability
benefit issues;
* and, communicate
with employers.
The I-Team points
out that, as with any successful planning process, patience and
determination are essential. It takes time and hard work to get
to know each participant, build a plan, and work through the steps.
To aid the process, the team is developing networks with other
social service experts, employers, and business leaders so they
can share ideas regarding hiring and employment practices as well
as education concerning disabilities and accommodations.For more
information about this program, please feel free to contact I-Team
members Nancy Sager, Bethany Campbell, or Jeffrey Nurick via telephone
at 612-781-3114.
The I-Team is another Work In Progress (WIP) AmeriCorps Program.
The focus of the WIP program is community integration and job placement.
Funding for the program ultimately comes through ServeMinnesota,
a nonprofit organization that cultivates private partnerships and
funding support for Minnesota AmeriCorps and other service programs
in education, public safety, human needs, environment and homeland
security. WIP is a partnership between five organizations: Rise,
Inc., Opportunity Partners, Consumer Survivor Network, AccessAbility,
and Lifetrack Resources. Rise, Inc. serves as the legal host of the
program.
Rise, Inc. is a private nonprofit corporation dedicated to building
a community which is more accepting of all of its citizens. To meet
their objectives, they support the development of the creative partnerships
with businesses, government agencies, and the general public. Their
mission includes helping people with disabilities and other challenges
increase their vocational self-sufficiency and productivity in addition
to finding safe affordable housing. The organization offers a variety
of programs focused on person-centered career planning, vocational
training, job placement, supported employment, and housing support
services so that people can work in the community, earn competitive
wages, live safely and comfortably, and make a productive contribution
to our society. The organization has assisted more than 13,000 Minnesotans
since 1971. For more information about Rise, visit www.rise.org.
AmeriCorps is
a National Service program for adults of all ages, backgrounds,
and abilities. It is sometimes referred to as the "domestic
Peace Corps." AmeriCorps members help solve community problems
related to education, public safety, the environment, human needs,
and homeland security by serving within non-profit and faith-based
organizations throughout the country. For more information on the
AmeriCorps program, visit www.americorps.org.
