Professional Development Opportunities
Online Resources for Preparing People for Work
Online Resources for Matching People with Work
Resources for Working with Employers
Employees and Job seekers with Autism Spectrum Disorder
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Professional Development Opportunities
ADA Audio Conference Series provides in-depth information on the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). This program is designed to enhance an individual’s existing knowledge base or facilitate continued learning regarding regulations and trends under the ADA. View archived presentations here.
Association of People Supporting EmploymentFirst (APSE) are a great source of low cost professional information and support. Check out their webinars.
TACE is a great resource for many archived free webinars.
Asset Development Exchange (ADX) and webinar series designed to help improve employment and retention outcomes through financial self-sufficiency and enhance vocational rehabilitation’s capacity to help jobseekers achieve financial stability and meaningful, sustainable employment outcomes.
College of Employment Services (CES). CES is a series of online classes for employment professionals. The lessons cover best practices around creating job accommodations, disclosing disabilities, building personal and professional networks, and many other topics. This accessible, practical curriculum equips employment professionals to meet and surpass national and agency standards for their field. College of Employment Services course content is created by the Institute for Community Inclusion at the University of Massachusetts Boston.
Disabilities At Work Internet radio. Connect to all previous shows or Download previous shows FREE on iTunes
“Disability Equality Index,” a national disability benchmarking tool from the U.S. Business Leadership Network (USBLN) and the American Association of People with Disabilities coming in 2013.
Effective Training for Employment Consultants: Job Development and Support Strategies from ICI [PDF] See a web based version developed for self-advocacy online.
Employment and Individuals who use AAC
Get the Marketing Edge! A Job Developer’s Toolkit for People with Disabilities 2.0
The premise is to utilize effective marketing in a respectful way, especially in the portrayal of job seekers with disabilities. Language, image, and marketing tools are presented with the idea of representing an individual who is, first of all, a person with skills and abilities that can benefit a business. $32.95
This glossary of terms related to the employment of people with disabilities is specific to Wisconsin, but may be helpful anyway.
Job Accommodation Network maintains an archive of recent webinars, including Accommodating Individuals with Limited Dexterity – Common Workplace Situations and Solutions and Understanding and Accommodating Autism Spectrum Disorders in the Workplace.
Job Development Exchange for Vocational Rehabilitation Counselors and Community Rehabilitation Providers. Focused on what a counselor needs to know, it launched with an Online Toolkit for Job Placement and Employment Professionals and a series of webinars, and a menu of timely resources, tools and interactive learning opportunities.
Knowledge and Application of Evidence-Based Practice by State Vocational Rehabilitation Agency Staff [PDF] or Word format from the Knowledge Translation for Employment Research (KTER) website. Technical Briefs provide brief summaries of relevant employment research.
The National Reentry Resource Center (NRRC) provides education, training, and technical assistance on prisoner reentry into employment. The NRRC’s mission is to advance the reentry field through knowledge transfer and dissemination and to promote evidence-based best practices. View their Archived webcasts.
National Rehabilitation Information Center (NARIC)’s online gateway to information organized in a variety of formats designed to make it easy for users to find and use.
- Organizations, agencies, and Internet resources.
- Magazines, newsletters, and academic journals.
- Directories available in print or online.
- Online and offline databases
Professional Development Resources
Tennessee AgrAbility Project: Helping Tennesseans Live Independently & Farm Profitably
Thought Sauce! Hot Ideas for Cool Employment June 2012 Griffin-Hammis Associates and it’s not-for-profit arm, The Center for Social Capital, compiled a number of our most requested informational articles on Customized Employment into a downloadable manual they agreed we could share.
TRN Disability Update a monthly newsletter for employment professionals from the Training Resource Network. They also sell training opportunities and information in multiple ways and host TRN’s Blog: Ending Disability Segregation.
VCU-RRTC: Providing evidence-based supported employment. April 26, 2012 Webcast presented by: Alissa Molinelli, Holly Collins, and Stephanie Lau VCU Employment Specialists
Online Resources for Preparing People for Work
From the Southeast TACE web site:
Customized Employment: Practical Solutions for Employment Success [PDF]
Customized Employment Flyer [PDF]
Customized Employment: Applying Practical Solutions for Employment Success [PDF]
Using Alternatives to Traditional Vocational Assessment [PDF]
Documenting Discovery: Developing a Descriptive a Profile to Guide Employment Plans [PDF]
The Customized Plan for Employment – Developing a Blueprint for Job Development [PDF]
Using a Visual Resume for Job Development [PDF]
Employer Negotiation Strategies for Job Developers in Customized Employment [PDF]
Supported Employment/Customized Employment Matrix [PDF]
Natural Supports: A Delicate Balancing Act [PDF]
Dartmouth IPS Supported Employment Center provides information that is particularly applicable to working with jobseekers with disabilities related to mental health. Read about what works: Individual Placement and Support (IPS) Evidenced Based Practice. Rate how well you are serving people: Individual Placement and Support/Supported Employment Fidelity scale
Group Discovery: A Cost-Effective Strategy for Guiding Employment Services, Mike Callahan and Abby Cooper provide an overview of Customized Employment and the Discovery process. They then describe how Group Discovery can be used to improve employment outcomes for job seekers with disabilities and other complexities while making efficient use of staff resources.
HR strategies workbook: Including veterans with disabilities in your workforce. [PDF] a quick assessment employers can use to consider the readiness of their business/organization to include veterans with disabilities in the workplace. Five actual cases of veterans with disabilities in the workplace are presented for human resources (HR) professionals to consider what strategies need to be utilized to address the barriers face by each veteran. This handout also contains a list of resources for business or employers on hiring, accommodating and retaining qualified veterans with disabilities.
Impact: Feature Issue on Supporting New Career Paths for People with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities [PDF] Text only version
SAMHSA’s Supported Employment Evidenced Based Practice Kit. Rate your program using SAMHSA’s Supported Employment Evaluation Guide [PDF] (Fidelity scale on pages 31-33).
Promising and Proven Practices in Employment. (April 2011). Download PDF file (157kb) Download Accessible WORD file (53kb)
Recovery and Employment A step-by step overview of the role of work in recovery for people with a mental illness. This guide provides an overview of laws, funding, working with assertive community treatment teams, career assessment and planning, ways to conduct job development, and strategies for successful on-the job support. $19
Supported Employment & Supported Volunteerism Training Manual [PDF] This manual
from Alpine Learning Group was made possible by a grant from The Daniel Jordan Fiddle Foundation.
Supported Employment Evidence-Based Practices (EBP) KIT: Provides practice principles about supported employment, an approach to vocational rehabilitation for people with serious mental illnesses. Promotes the belief that everyone with a serious mental illness is capable of working competitively in the community. From SAMSHA in CD-ROM/DVD Version or PDFs.
Supporting Successful Transitions for Individuals who use AAC.
Washington Initiative on Supported Employment: On-demand learning–
When to Contact a Benefits Planner [PDF] chart assists you in advising your clients on when to contact a Community Work Incentive Coordinator (CWIC) or Benefits Planner.
Online Resources for Matching People with Work
The Accessible Employment website for posting job opportunities to include disabled people in your workforce. People with disabilities represent the single largest minority group seeking employment in today’s market.
Person-Centered Planning: Pathways to Your Future – 
A toolkit for anyone interested in Person-Centered Planning, English PDF and en formato PDF en español was developed to create a sustainable community program that will allow other individuals, organizations and agencies to explore Person-Centered Planning and adapt the tools to fit the needs and circumstance of the person(s) for whom they are planning. The toolkit includes an exploration of the PCP principles of person-centered thinking, transitions, resources, what to expect during the planning process, and tips on choosing the right facilitator, as well as information on the roles and responsibilities of facilitators, the focus person and their families. It also includes example plans and tools created by the UCEDD, such as the Family Caregiver Assessment Tool and consumer preference tool, My Interests, Hopes, and Dreams: An Exploration Tool and Guide to My Personal Preferences.
Resources for Working with Employers
Supporting the Education Pipeline: A Business Engagement Toolkit for Community-Based Organizations is designed to help community-based organizations recruit, engage, and develop ongoing relationships with businesses in their communities. The toolkit includes case studies, reports, examples and samples of tools and protocols.
Tax Incentives for Employers JAN also offers a fact sheet on tax incentives.
Think Beyond the Label is a public-private partnership that works to increase employment for people with disabilities. Their website offers tips, fact sheets and tools, including a “Hire Gauge” that allows employers to estimate financial and workplace cultural benefits to their business by hiring an individual with a disability. An online jobs portal that connects job seekers with disabilities to employers that are actively seeking to hire them is also available on the site.
Workplace Accommodations: Low Cost, High Impact [PDF] study conducted by the Job Accommodation Network that consistently shows that the benefits employers receive from making workplace accommodations far outweigh the low cost. Employers reported that providing accommodations resulted in such benefits as retaining valuable employees, improving productivity and morale, reducing workers’ compensation and training costs, and improving company diversity. These benefits were obtained with little investment. The employers in the study reported that a high percentage (57%) of accommodations cost absolutely nothing to make, while the rest typically cost only $500.
Employees and Job seekers with Autism Spectrum Disorder
“Acting Out: Workplace Social Skills Book Set”by June Stride, ED.D. This material teaches skills that help with work-related problems. DVD, 150 page Teacher’s Guide, a PDF on Win/Mac CD with a Classroom License for printouts, and one 160 page Student Book. $89.95
Asperger Syndrome at Work: Success Strategies for Employees and Employers by Dan Coulter “This DVD is a guide to getting and keeping a job for people with Asperger Syndrome. It contains two programs, one for job seekers and one to show employers the advantages of hiring individuals with Asperger Syndrome. In both programs, employees with Asperger Syndrome and their supervisors, coworkers and job coaches describe how they work together for mutual success.”$40. Email to “check out” from the VKC’s media library.
Adult Autism & Employment A guide for vocational rehabilitation professionals, including a synthesis of existing literature, promising practices, and previously unpublished insights and suggestions from a national expert on autism & employment. Download PDF here.
Advanced Topics in VR Services to Clients with ASD: In August / September 2011, Region 7 TACE hosted a series of 6 webcasts with noted experts on autism employment specifically for VR counselors and service providers already familiar with autism. Recordings and support documents are available here.
Autism Employment Fact Sheet 2012 Dr. Scott Standifer has collected background information on what we know and do not know about autism employment. It is available here.
Autism Q and A: Positive Behavior Support All behavior is functional; it serves a purpose for the person. If professionals, parents, and friends can understand why individuals demonstrate a specific challenging behavior and what causes or trigger it, then positive behavior supports can be used to help individuals participate at home, in school, and in the communities. Positive behavior supports can prevent a behavior from occurring or teach the individual a new functional skill to replace it.
The Autism Speaks Employment Tool Kit can help you with your employment search by giving you tools and tips while you look for a job. This Tool Kit was developed by a diverse group of stakeholders led by adults with an autism spectrum disorder, parents, business leaders, and academic experts.
Autism Spectrum Disorders & Employment Learning Community – Final Project Report. Essential outcomes of the learning community experience from the perspective of VR representatives who participated.
The Groden Network of Programs:Effectively supporting employees with autism spectrum disorders. Webcast Presented by: Mike Smith, Director of Vocational Services, The Groden Network and Rick Spencer, Vocational Supervisor, The Cove Center
Identifying Effective Components of a Collaborative Career Planning Model for Individuals with ASD in Postsecondary Education [PDF], a Research to Practice Brief from the Autism Disability Rehabilitation Research Project, highlights some of the results from structured interviews with college students on the autism spectrum. For example, when asked what career-related activities they thought would be most beneficial, informational interviews and career exploration were most often selected, followed by internships and work experience. Disclosure plans to use with employers and mentoring in their chosen career area were also identified as important.
iPod May Ease Transition For Those With Autism summarizes the promising results of a small case study published in the Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation. The study suggests that specially-programmed iPods may help individuals with autism perform their jobs more confidently and with less support from job coaches.
JobTIPS is a free program designed to help individuals with autism spectrum disorder and other learning differences explore career interests, seek and obtain employment, and successfully maintain employment. Though JobTIPS is designed for direct use by individuals with learning differences, this program (including all of the printables, assessments, and videos) is highly suitable for delivery by educators , family members, clinicians, mentors, and job coaches. Click here for helpful hints on how to use this website.
Perspective Taking in the Workplace This article, by Michelle Garcia Winner, MA, CCC-SLP, and Pamela Crooke, Ph.D., CCC-SLP, authors of Social Thinking at Work: Why Should I Care? was written for HR staff and workplace managers, psychologists and therapists.
Social Disabilities in the Workplace (CD) Social disabilities include the autism spectrum, AD(H)D, Learning Disabilities (including NLD), and psychiatric disorders. While affected individuals are often intelligent, dedicated, honest, educated, determined, hard working, and loyal, our society values emotional intelligence above competence, skill, or education. This puts people who don’t fit in and may not be as well liked at a distinct disadvantage.$28.00