Workforce Innovation Opportunity Act

Maine VR has tried different approaches to strengthening the capacity of its Community Rehabilitation Provider (CRP) system with the primary goal of providing consistent statewide access to quality employment services for VR clients. When outcomes fell short of expectations, Maine worked with the JD-VRTAC to analyze its data and explore options that other states have tried with CRPs. In this webinar, Christine Robinson and Libby Stone-Sterling will discuss Maine’s efforts and lessons learned from their JD-VRTAC project.

This webinar is free and worth 1 CRC Credit. It will be live captioned and hosted on the Zoom webinar platform. To access the captions during this event, please follow this streamtext link. The powerpoint presentation will be posted here before the webinar, and the caption transcript will be posted after the webinar is over. To request additional accessibility requests, please contact explorevr@umb.edu . 

Download the powerpoint presentation. 

Download the webinar transcript. 

The JD-VRTAC is a national center housed at the Institute for Community Inclusion (ICI) at the University of Massachusetts Boston. The center and its webinars are funded by the Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) within the US Department of Education under grant #H264A140002

Colorado Department of Vocational Rehabilitation is aligning and enhancing collaborations with our core WIOA partners, including our Workforce Center business services teams and sector initiatives, to leverage opportunities with businesses and create better opportunities for our clients.  Along with this initiative, we are systematically and sustainably training all staff in the use of labor market information and the Career Index Plus. This will allow our agency to tie IPE goals more directly to LMI, to help clients and counselors understand current employment opportunities and future business needs. VR clients represent a talent pipeline for business, and our goal is to bring business and clients closer together. 

This webinar is free and worth 1 CRC Credit. It will be live captioned and hosted on the Zoom webinar platform. To access the captions during this event, please follow this streamtext link. The powerpoint presentation will be posted here before the webinar, and the caption transcript will be posted after the webinar is over. To request additional accessibility requests, please contact explorevr@umb.edu . 

Download the presentation slides. 

Additional materials for download.

The JD-VRTAC is a national center housed at the Institute for Community Inclusion (ICI) at the University of Massachusetts Boston. The center and its webinars are funded by the Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) within the US Department of Education under grant #H264A140002

This engaging, practical webinar provides staff at state VR agencies with an overview of key first steps they can take to begin exploring partnerships with registered apprenticeship programs.

An expert on this topic from Jobs for the Future, and staff from the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation of the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry, will lay out the steps that state VR agencies can take to identify registered apprenticeship programs in their area. The presenters will also give recommendations for conducting outreach to those programs, explain the specific components of registered apprenticeship to explore in these initial conversations, and clarify the role that state VR agencies can play in these programs. 

Download the Powerpoint slides 

Download the Transcript 

The JD-VRTAC is a national center housed at the Institute for Community Inclusion (ICI) at the University of Massachusetts Boston. The center and its webinars are funded by the Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) within the US Department of Education under grant #H264A140002

Pre-apprenticeship programs are being implemented in states across the nation, helping individuals enhance their skills and secure employment in a range of industries. This webinar will:

• provide an overview of pre-apprenticeship programs, from the types of skills on which they focus to their connection with Registered Apprenticeship programs, and
• offer tips for partnering with and participating in these programs.

The webinar will feature a Deborah Kobes, a national subject matter expert in work-based learning models from Jobs for the Future, as well as Jonathan Bibb, Director of the Arkansas Career and Training Institute (ACTI), from Arkansas Rehabilitation Services describing his successes and lessons learned with pre-apprenticeships. 

Download the Powerpoint slides: Jobs for the Future (PPT) and Arkansas Career Technical Institute (PPT)

Download the Webinar Transcript

Identifying Pre-Apprenticeship and Registered Apprenticeship Partners (doc)

Pre-Apprenticeship Action Plan (xlsx)

The JD-VRTAC is a national center housed at the Institute for Community Inclusion (ICI) at the University of Massachusetts Boston. The center and its webinars are funded by the Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) within the US Department of Education under grant #H264A140002

Massachusetts Commission for the Blind (MCB), with assistance and support from the JD-VRTAC, worked to strengthen and formalize its partnership with two well regarded non-profit organizations, the Carroll Center for the Blind and Perkins School for the Blind, to develop a mechanism to share employer relationships to market their shared consumers.

In this webinar, representatives from the three organizations will discuss the process they carried out to form the Vision Works Consortium, from sharing ideas and signing a memorandum of understanding to devising a mission statement and marketing strategy, and ultimately building a shared database of employer partners.

Download the PowerPoint Slides (PPT)

Download the Transcript 

The JD-VRTAC is a national center housed at the Institute for Community Inclusion (ICI) at the University of Massachusetts Boston. The center and its webinars are funded by the Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) within the US Department of Education under grant #H264A140002

Connecticut Bureau of Education and Services for the Blind (BESB), in collaboration with JD-VRTAC, improved client employment outcomes by training vocational rehabilitation counselors to use Labor Market Information (LMI) to enhance clients’ educational and career pathways. During the past year and a half, VR leadership researched and identified LMI tools, provided staff professional development on LMI data, and created a Career Index Plus training system to help clients independently research potential careers and employment opportunities. This webinar will discuss Connecticut BESB's JD-VRTAC project assessment, implementation, accomplishments, and the planned next steps to sustain program improvements. As a result of this project, Connecticut BESB has increased business confidence in hiring clients.

Download the Connecticut BESB client Career Index Plus letter

Download the Connecticut BESB LMI Survey (PDF)

Download the Connecticut BESB PowerPoint Slides (PPT) 

Download the webinar transcript (TXT) 

The JD-VRTAC is a national center housed at the Institute for Community Inclusion (ICI) at the University of Massachusetts Boston. The center and its webinars are funded by the Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) within the US Department of Education under grant #H264A140002