Disabilities


US Labor Department Awards More than $21 Million in Disability Employment Initiative Cooperative Agreements to 9 States


ployment Initiative to improve education, training, and employment opportunities and outcomes of youth and adults who are unemployed and/or receiving Social Se- curity disability benefits. The Disability Employment Initiative is jointly funded and administered by the department’s Em- ployment and Training Administration and its Office of Disability Employment Policy.


T “During these difficult economic times,


we want to make it possible for all work- ers, especially those with disabilities, to benefit from the Labor Department’s em- ployment and retraining services that have a proven success rate,” said Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis. “Through this new grant, individuals with disabilities will be able to utilize the necessary tools to obtain permanent and secure jobs.” The Labor Department has entered into


cooperative agreements with the follow- ing states to implement strategic ap- proaches to support exemplary employ-


he U.S. Department of Labor today announced an award of $21,276,575 to nine states under the Disability Em-


ment services for individuals with disabilities in the public workforce sys- tem: Alaska, Arkansas, Delaware, Illinois, Kansas, Maine, New Jersey, New York and Virginia. These projects build upon the department’s Disability Program Nav- igator Initiative by hiring staff with exper- tise in disability and workforce issues. The grants also will support extensive partnerships, collaboration and services provided across multiple workforce and disability systems in each state. These in- volve state vocational rehabilitation ser- vices, mental health and developmental disability agencies, Medicaid Infrastruc- ture Grant-supported activities, indepen- dent living centers, business leadership networks, and other community and non- profit provider organizations. Another critical component of the Dis-


ability Employment Initiative is expand- ing the workforce system’s involvement with the Social Security Administration’s Ticket to Work program. The Disability Employment Initiative requires a state workforce agency or local workforce in- vestment boards participating in a coop-


Grant Recipients


Disability Employment Initiative Grants ..........................................................Amount State of Alaska, Department of Labor and Workforce Development ............. $2,727,000 State of Arkansas Department of Workforce Services ................................... $1,500,000 Delaware Department of Labor, Division of Vocational Rehabilitation ........... $1,490,409 Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity ....................... $1,839,588 Kansas Department of Commerce ................................................................. $1,879,459 State of Maine Department of Labor .............................................................. $1,500,000 New Jersey Department of Labor, Workforce Division ................................... $2,479,280 New York State Department of Labor............................................................. $4,945,060 Virginia Community College System .............................................................. $2,915,779


26 www.blackeoejournal.com The Black E.O.E. Journal


erative agreement to become employment networks under the Ticket to Work Pro- gram. The department recognizes that many Supplemental Security Income and Social Security Disability Insurance ben- eficiaries utilize the mainstream work- force system to seek employment oppor- tunities, as shown in the May 2010 Mathematica Policy Research Inc. report “Use of One-Stops by Social Security Disability Beneficiaries in Four States Implementing Disability Program Navi- gator Initiatives,” which is available at http://www.doleta.gov/disability/ whatsnew.cfm. The department considers individuals


with the most significant disabilities to be a major priority, with grant resources fo- cused on their entry or return to work. States will be working closely with the Social Security Administration’s Work In- centive Planning and Assistance Program and its Community Work Incentive Coor- dinators to conduct outreach and coordi- nation to expand services to beneficiaries.


Source: disability.gov


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