Objective: The purpose of this study was to provide an overview of the current literature regarding the vocational rehabilitation services found effective in promoting employment among transition-age youth with disabilities as well as identifying factors affecting the effectiveness of those services. Methods: This study utilized the Preferred…

This study examined how desktop virtual reality environment training (DVRET) affected state anxiety and vocational identity of vocational rehabilitation services consumers during job placement/job readiness activities. It utilized a quantitative research model with a quasi-experimental pretest-posttest design plus some qualitative descriptive…

This report explores mentoring as a tool for supporting the successful reintegration of formerly incarcerated individuals within the context of a larger reentry strategy--in this case, the "Ready4Work" model. "Ready4Work" was a three-year national demonstration designed to address the needs of the growing ex-prisoner population and to test the…

This study sought to ascertain the magnitude of the problems of unemployment, underemployment, job training, and job placements of blind and visually impaired people with additional severe disabilities. A survey of 32 institutions and agencies and visits to 7 settings revealed that only about 15% of this population is either employed or currently…

This paper refutes criticism about industrial workshops for individuals with blindness and argues that they are a suitable vocational option that is often underutilized. The paper explores the role of the sheltered workshop as a continuum for multihandicapped blind persons, employment experience for teenagers, opportunity for older individuals,…

This paper describes the TEACCH (Teaching and Educating Autistic and related Communication Handicapped Children and Adults) program, which has provided supported employment services to over 100 clients with autism. Three models of supported employment used by the program are discussed, as are program demographics and long-term support mechanisms.…

Explored the similarity between training received and placement obtained for 141 clients served by a state-federal vocational rehabilitation program. Results indicated that approximately one-half of the clients were trained in occupational areas incongruent with their vocational outcome. (Author/LLL)

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)

The Disabled Veterans Outreach Program (DVOP) administered by the Department of Labor's Employment and Training Administration arranges training and placement for disabled veterans in local job service offices. These employees then assist in placing other disabled veterans on jobs. Some typical DVOP success stories are described. (MF)

Intended for persons establishing job development programs for developmentally disabled individuals, this training manual details the structure and procedures of Project PLANTWORK, a 21-month demonstration program which placed approximately 70 workers with developmental disabilities into employment in horticulture industry firms or into…

The manual describes the vocational rehabilitation program and services for handicapped individuals that are provided by Goodwill Industries of North Central Pennsylvania, Inc., which services an eight-county outreach area. An introductory section provides general background information regarding program objectives, philosophy, and organizational…

Describes the program of the Occupational Training Center in St. Paul, Minnesota. (SB)

The purpose of this document is to help vocational evaluators understand (1) how the concepts of learning and performance relate to vocational evaluation; (2) why learning assessment is important; and (3) how it may be incorporated into work sample testing. The text is divided into three parts. Part 1 defines the learning assessment process. Part…

Describes the job training programs at the Hampden District Regional Skills Center, Springfield, Massachusetts, financed under the Comprehensive Employment and Training Act of 1973. The center trains 650 persons at a time and places more than 800 trainees a year in jobs through involving industry in the planning and training. (MF)

Traditionally, disabled persons have received vocational training in sheltered workshops and after evaluation have been placed into work activity, extended sheltered employment, or transitional employment programs. Transition then to competitive employment is atypical for persons with severe disabilities. Their employment situation has improved…