Employment Capacity

Building Cohort (ECBC)

Preparing Youth with Disabilities for Tomorrows Workforce

January 15, 2016

AGENDA
12:00 12:05 Welcome
12:05 12:40 Successful Project and District Updates
12:40 1:15 DB101: NEW Work and Benefits
Curriculum
1:15 2:15 Labor Market Information: Aligning
Students with Industry Demand
2:15 2:45 Small Group Work, and Report Out
2:45 3:00 Reflections and Evaluation

Learnings from the Competitive

Employment Grant
Funded by the Governors Council on
Developmental Disabilities

Carol Rydell
Minnesota Department of Education
January 15, 2016

Students need to have a

competitive, integrated job (one
person, one job) when they leave
school.

We need to presume
employability even if we cannot
envision a job for that person.

Assumptions about the

employability of a person are
the greatest barrier to
employment; they are a greater
barrier than the disability.

The job match is the key to success

and we can provide the best job
match with one person, one job.
People are successful in jobs that
are right for them and
unsuccessful in jobs that are not a
good fit.

When we use traditional

approaches like filling out job
applications for existing jobs, we
can inadvertently be fitting
people into jobs that are not a
good fit for them. Existing jobs
are more difficult to customize.
Its harder to get a good job
match.

Focus on elements of
customized employment.

Go broad and dont worry about

job descriptions or job types.
Identify interests, strengths and
skills and look for themes. Who
is this unique person?

School work experiences are

crucial but too limited to
determine a good job match.

Research businesses (and

particularly small businesses)
that are a fit for interests,
strengths and skills and set up
information interviews.

Information interviews are a

great way to learn more about
the world of work beyond what
we know. They are also a great
way to engage employers. They
are a great way to identify a
customized job (a job that is
tailored to a unique individual).

Use social networks.

Job development for customized

employment can be disturbingly
open-ended. Get comfortable
with uncertainty.

We need everybody in the

workforce for businesses to thrive
and communities to prosper.

District Updates
White Bear Lake
District 196
Minneapolis

Employment
Capacity Building
Cohort (ECBC)
White Bear Lake Area Schools

MILESTONE 1:
Using Data to Improve Outcomes
Ensure that at a minimum, 50% of your students with
developmental cognitive disabilities ages 19-21 will be in
competitive integrated employment
At this time we have 4 of 6 (67%) of the students with
competitive/paid employment
Dunn Brothers ($9.00/hr.)
TGIF ($10.00/hr.)
2 at ISD 624 ($7.25 for the 1st 90 days then $9.00)
The other 2 students have unpaid employment through
work based learning with WBL

MILESTONE 2:
Evidence-Based Strategies
Steps/strategies to support students in competitive, integrated
employment outcomes
DB Estimator with students (Students in Employment Seminar
Class that have not completed it previously)
Done end of 1st semester
Speakers at Conference Night including Benefits
Planner/Vocational Rehabilitation
Had 3 speakers with great turn out
WBL employment brochure given to families with the procedural
safeguards (At annual IEP meetings for students grade 9 and
above)
Ongoing (Attached them to the procedural safeguards)

 Job coordinator at IEP meetings as appropriate

Ongoing

Host a Transition Fair

Done on 12/01/15 at WBLAS- South Campus

Limited attendance
Ideas for next year:

How to Communicate to Families:

Put in the Bear Essentials
On ISD 624 Facebook
Voice drop to all secondary families
Suggestions for the CTIC:
Change from brochure to flyer or have both. Flyers are easier to attach
to a website or to print to send home to families
Have Transition Fair in Oct/early Nov to avoid bad weather
Invite areas of recreation and leisure to attend
Have WBL host an area Parent Advisory meeting at the Transition Fair

ISD 624 Ideas

Schedule the lead teachers meeting at WBLAS- SC prior
to the 1st speaker. Have a short meeting, have leads go
into the speaker and then release them to the transition
fair.
Schedule the PAC meeting at SC and have them start by
attending the 2nd speaker. Then have a short meeting,
before releasing them to the transition fair
Combine WBLs community resource fair with transition
fair
Add to the upcoming events section of the TEC website
Mail home flyers instead of asking teachers to send
them home with students

MILESTONE 3:
Local Capacity Building
Steps your Capacity Building Team and CTIC will take to
complete so that students, families and your allies have
information and resources
Approach CTIC about having speakers join a meeting
to discuss the MN Olmstead Plan
Scheduled speaker(s) to attend an upcoming CTIC
meeting
Provide information on the MN Olmstead Plan on the
district website
Information added to the website

 Host a Community Partner Event

Scheduled for 3/10/16
Research a business to be our community partner/sponsor
We have met a manager at with Rudys Redeye Grill. We have
also summarized what we are looking for in an email with the
manager and owner. They will get back to us on their ability to
be our partner. We are excited about Rudys due to it being a
business with a restaurant and a hotel and a wide variety of
jobs.
Sponsor options could be to:
Speak to the Employment Seminar Class
Provide students with an opportunity to job shadow or tour
Become a work site for our student(s)
Host a Transition Networking Group Meeting
Host a CTIC meeting

Rudys Redeye Grill Hosting the

Transition Networking Meeting

 Utilize the Its My Choice resource in our Transition Tracker

class
Started using this year
Use DB 101 curriculum in Employment Seminar
Ongoing
Secure speakers at parent/teacher conference night to
discuss benefit planning
Done on conferences 11/12/15
Estimator sessions
Ongoing
Host Transition Fair, Parent Advisory Council, CTIC events,
Access to Culture Liaison/Interpreter, Website
Transition Fair is done, Emily attends PAC and CTIC events,
Updated our website

MILESTONE 4:
Additional Activities
Identify two students to share their competitive, integrated
employment story?
Students are to be determined
At our community partner event in March, students will get up in
front of our community partners and state:

Name and age

Previous work experiences
Current work experience
Job duties
Important things they have learned on the job
What employment they would like to secure in the future

These students are also video taped and 2 of these students

will be selected to meet milestone 4

 Participate in three professional development

learning opportunities with the Employment
Capacity Building Cohort. (October 23, 2015;
January 15, 2016 and April 1, 2016)
Ongoing
Participate in three webinar trainings (November
and December, 2015 April, 2016)
Emily has participated in the first 2
Provide results at the CELEBRATION of RESULTS
Capacity Building meeting
We will also celebrate our employment success
at our Community Partner event on March 10th,
2016.

District 196

Minneapolis

DB101: NEW Work and Benefits

Curriculum
Beth Grube and Bekah Satre

Labor Market Information:

Aligning Students with Industry
Demand
Tim

Small Group Work, and

Report Out.

Employment Wall of Champions

Reflections and Evaluation

Next Meeting: February 19, 2016
MDE, Conference Center B, Room CC15
12:00 3:00 PM
Main Topic: Inform Choice Framework and Olmstead Pilot
Needs