The sheltered workshop model for the retarded is being changed to a non-sheltered community and business model of vocational services in Detroit, Michigan. Methods used included creation of their own businesses by rehabilitation companies and provision of job training and placement within businesses by an on-site trainer. (DB)

Ethnographic methods were used to examine functions of a clique and informal leaders in a work group at a sheltered workshop for mentally retarded adults. Two leaders, an instrumental leader and a socioemotional leader, served to maintain group cohesion and allow members to act outside of direct staff influence. (Author/DB)

Ophthalmological screening was conducted on 113 clients in a work activity center for adults with mental retardation. Abnormalities that were neither refractive nor strabismic were found in 32 percent of clients. Findings suggest the value of conducting screenings in settings familiar to such clients. (Author/DB)

The project addressed the discrepancy between research (documenting the vocational potential of severely handicapped adults) and current services (which include an expanding national program of nonvocational day activity centers) with five coordinated components designed to improve, implement, and evaluate vocational services. The first component,…

The article describes the efforts of Project PATH (Progressive Approach to Training and Habilitation) to design a comprehensive training program for moderately and severely retarded adults in a sheltered workshop setting. (SBH)

A job training program in rural Wyoming is described in which 86 percent of the disabled clients served in a two-year period (N=57) were placed in employment after receiving sheltered workshop training in one of 10 vocational training modules. Among data reported are wages, success rates for training, and length of training. (JW)

In Nepal, the estimates of the prevalence of disabilities vary, and there is sparse information specifically about people with intellectual disabilities (ID). Existing data suggest higher rates of prevalence of ID in the more remote northern area due to use of non-iodized salt, lack of health facilities, and extreme poverty. Superstitious beliefs…

Ten mentally retarded clients in a small work activity center were effectively trained to use social amenities during work-related communications. Training consisted of prework review of the rules of social amenities, frequent reminders during work by supervisors, client repetition of the reminders, and focused practice. (Author/DB)

This fact sheet summarizes data on integrated employment (supported and competitive) and facility-based employment activities (sheltered workshops) from two national surveys of community rehabilitation providers (CRPs). The 1986 survey used a random sample of 952 CRPs from all states, while the 1991 survey used a stratified sample of 643 CRPs from…

The paper criticizes the practice of providing sheltered occupational environments to severely handicapped individuals and considers ways in which public school programs and adult service systems can be arranged to maximize vocational functioning. Following an operational definition of meaningful work, the chapter analyzes reasons for the…

This document is a report on a 12-day symposium on work for the disabled--vocational rehabilitation and employment creation--which was held in Poland and Sweden in 1979. The symposium was organized jointly by the government of Poland and Sweden in close cooperation with the International Labour Office (ILO), Geneva. The report is divided into five…

The monograph describes 11 exemplary programs selected in 1987 by the J. M. (Jeremiah Milbank) Foundation from 154 programs providing vocational services to persons with disabilities. Programs were selected in four categories: community-based work adjustment, consortium-based transition, supported work in small communities, and work services for…

The article describes the design and implementation of a community-based training program for mentally retarded adults. The program focuses on job preparation, training, and placement, with a secondary emphasis on functional independent living skills. (PHR)

The paper describes a system used in Nebraska in which vocational rehabilitation specialists determine who is a high need client and develop programs via a social-ecological or "person-environment" perspective. A high need client is defined as an individual who will require considerable staff support, intervention, and time. A three-phase study…

The special employment program in Yooralla Society of Victoria (Australia) began operation two decades ago with establishment of sheltered workshops. As part of an overall review of Yooralla's programs, a survey was conducted as a first stage in evaluation of the workshops--Ability Industries and Ability Press. The aim of the research project was…