A161 Education and training tools for those working with people with a learning disability in the US

1. Presented by
Chrisann Schiro-Geist
Eric Suedmeyer
Maurice Williams
Shondolyn Sanders
Earning Our Stripes

2.  What if I told you...
◦ 14-16% employment rate1 in USA
◦ 26% receiving employment within 2 years after high
school
◦ Regularly work for less than minimum wage2
◦ Regularly work fewer than 20 hours a week
 History of
◦ Isolation3
◦ Marginalization
◦ Disenfranchisement
◦ Abuse4

3.  American Psychological Association6
◦ Guidelines for Assessment and Intervention for People with
Disabilities
 Vocational Rehabilitation7
◦ Provides services to promote employment and access to
accommodations for disabilities
◦ Varies state to state with a total of nearly $12 billion from
federal government
 Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement
Act (2004)8
◦ Provided guidelines for state services including vocational
education, post-secondary education, and integrated
employment
 Higher Education Opportunity Act (2008)9
◦ Allowed for students with mild to severe disabilities to
apply for Pell Grants

4.  Memphis current unemployment rate – 7.9%11
 National unemployment rate – 5.5%
 Marginalized even within Tennessee
◦ Fewer resources provided to Individuals with
Disabilities in Shelby County than other parts of
Tennessee
 Memphis
◦ Approximately 7-8 thousand young adults (18-29)
with intellectual and developmental disabilities

5.  The mission of the TigerLIFE program is to
use a systematic approach to assess each
student’s academic, career, technical,
independent living, and social skills in order
to help the client devise the best plan that
match their aspired goals for transition
into gainful employment and living a more
meaningful life.

6.  Started 2013
◦ 8 students – 3 staff
 Currently serving 103 students with 37 staff
 Largest in the state of Tennessee
 Largest Minority Majority serving program at
a 4 year university in the nation.
 Uses the System’s Approach to Placement

7.  Trained professionals include:
◦ instructors
◦ job coaches
◦ behavioral analysts
◦ paraprofessionals
◦ record keepers
◦ psychologists
◦ administrators
◦ public relations coordinators
◦ curriculum developers
◦ educational coaches

8.  Started with a $19,800 DIDD Pilot grant
 Current budget over $1 million
 Sources of Funding
◦ Vocational Rehabilitation
◦ TPSID grant
◦ Federal Pell grant
◦ TSAC – Step-up Scholarship
◦ Tuition (approximately $275 per credit hour)
◦ Private donations

9.  Inclusion
 Dignity
 Self-esteem
 Community
 Citizenship
 Advocacy
 Social Justice

10.  1: Wagner, M., Newman, L., Cameto, R., & Levine, P. (2005). Changes over time in the early post school outcomes of youth with disabilities. Menlo Park, CA:
SRI International. Retrieved August 28, from http://www.nlts2.org/reports/2005_06/nlts2_report_2005_06_execsum.pdf
 2: Cimera, R. E. (2010). National cost efficiency of supported employees with intellectual disabilities: 2002 to 2007.American Journal On Intellectual And
Developmental Disabilities, 115(1), 19-29. doi:10.1352/1944-7558-115.1.19
 3: Cimera, R. E. (2011). Does being in sheltered workshops improve the employment outcomes of supported employees with intellectual
disabilities? Journal Of Vocational Rehabilitation, 35(1), 21-27.
 4: Euser, S., Alink, L. R., Tharner, A., IJzendoorn, M. H., & Bakermans‐Kranenburg, M. J. (2015). The prevalence of child sexual abuse in out‐of‐home care:
Increased risk for children with a mild intellectual disability. Journal Of Applied Research In Intellectual Disabilities, doi:10.1111/jar.12160
 5: Balcazar, F. E., Oberoi, A., & Keel, J. (2013). Predictors of employment and college attendance outcomes for youth in transition: Implications for policy
and practice. Journal Of Applied Rehabilitation Counseling, 44(1), 38-45.
 6: APA, (2012). Guidelines for assessment of and intervention with persons with disabilities. American Psychologist, 67(1), 43-62. doi:10.1037/a0025892
 7: StatsRRTC (2011). 2011 Disability Compendium. Retrieved February 7, 2012, from StatsRRTC, University of New Hampshire
http://disabilitycompendium.org/
 8: Individuals With Disabilities Education Act, 20 U.S.C. §1400 (2004). 9:Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA) of 2008, Pub. L. No. 110-315 §122
STAT. 3078 (2008).
 10:NCD. (2008). The Rehabilitation Act: Outcomes for transition-age youth. Washington, DC. Retrieved December 2, from
http://www.ncd.gov/publications/2008/10282008
 11:Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2015). Economy at a Glance: Memphis. Retrieved from www.bls.gov/eag/eag.t_memphis_msa.htm
 12: APA (1999). Archival description of counseling psychology. The Counseling Psychologist, 27(4), 589-592.
 13: APA. (2010). American Psychological Association ethical principles of psychologists and code of conduct. Retrieved November 9, 2012, from
http://www.apa.org/ethics/code/index.aspx