EMERGING PRACTICES JENNIFER KAUT M.ED., BCBA, LBA STATE - PDF document

11/19/2018 AUTISM AND VOCATIONAL REHABILITATION SERVICES: EMERGING PRACTICES JENNIFER KAUT M.ED., BCBA, LBA STATE NEURODEVELOPMENTAL DISORDERS SPECIALIST VOCATIONAL REHABILITATION | TEXAS WORKFORCE COMMISSION PURPOSE OF VOCATIONAL REHABILITATION  Remove a barrier to obtaining and/or maintaining employment for an individual with a disability. 1

11/19/2018 TEXAS VR FAST FACTS  2 years ago moved to T exas Workforce Commission (formally under Health and Human Services- Division for Rehabilitation Services) and combined with Blind Services  Over 700 VR Counselors  Over 120 offices (but moving to integrate with our workforce boards)  Served almost 75,000 people last year  36,000 had a neurodevelopmental disorder (IDD, AD/HD, Autism, Learning Disabilities) VOCATIONAL REHABILITATION(VR) 101  Starts serving at 14 years old  Transition aged students (14-22 yrs.) are the largest age population  Neurodevelopmental disorders is our the largest disability population  Autism is the fastest growing disability population  Time limited service  Eligibility criteria  Can be accessed throughout the individual’s lifetime VR PROCESS: ELIGIBILITY A physical or mental impairment 1. 2. The impairment must constitute a substantial impediment to employment ; The individual must require VR services to prepare for, enter, engage in or retain 3. gainful employment consistent with the individual’s strengths, resources, priorities, concerns, abilities, capabilities, interests and informed choice and 4. The individual must be capable of achieving an employment Note: Oklahoma is in a OOS (Order of Selection) OOS means you serve the most significant disabilities and availability of services are determined by this. 2

11/19/2018 VR PROCESS: INDIVIDUAL PLAN OF EMPLOYMENT • Identifies barriers present and the plan on how to remove them • Plan that outlines how to help the customer achieve their employment goal • Will list services needed to achieve this IN 2011, A COMPREHENSIVE ANALYSIS SHOWED THESE RESULTS FOR AUTISM  Referrals to VR occurred AFTER graduation , creating the “black hole” effect  Overall lack of training for counselors and employment specialists,  Counselors utilizing assessments that did not accurately assess capabilities, therefore being found ineligible was pervasive  Existing services did not meet needs , as a result, the individual would become disengaged and eventually drop out of services Texas VR Autism Numbers Approximant numbers as reported by Department of Operational Insight (DOI) 7,800 6,000 5,000 4,200 3,600 3,000 2,600 2,300 1,900 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 3

11/19/2018 Number of ASD in Schools Numbers as reported by T exas Education Agency (TEA) 66,740 43,200 2014 2018 EMERGING PRACTICES WIOA: Changing VR and Autism WIOA WORKFORCE INNOVATION AND OPPORTUNITY ACT: Federal Law passed in 2014, rules published in 2016. Congress found that many students with disabilities are leaving secondary school without competitive integrated employment or being enrolled in postsecondary education, and there is a need to support such students as they transition from school to postsecondary life . Key Points:  Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) provides guidance and monitors VR programs  RSA is housed under the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitation Services(OSER)  WIOA requires all state VR programs spent 15% of their funding on pre-employment services 4

11/19/2018 WHAT WIOA DOES • Establishes transition as a priority • Provides Pre-Employment Services opportunities that had not existed (ex. paid work experiences, internships, summer employment) Creates the opportunity to bridge the gap between transitioning from • school to post secondary options (working with them younger & in the schools) SERVICES UNDER WIOA FALL IN 1 OF 5 CATEGORIES Job Exploration Counseling, which may include Academic Assessments and Vocational Counseling 1. and Guidance. 2. Work-Based Learning Experiences, On-the-Job Trainings, Apprenticeships, Internships, Summer Work Experiences, Work-Based Trainings, Job Search Assistance, Job Placement Assistance, On-the-Job Supports and Customized Employment. Counseling on Post-Secondary Opportunities , which may include Vocational Counseling and 3. Guidance and Academic Assessments. Workplace Readiness Training for the development of social skills and independent living skills. 4. This may include Job Readiness Training and Life Skills Training. ABA falls under here 5. Training on Self-Advocacy , which may also include Peer Mentoring, Self-Determination Training and Life Skills Training. EMERGING PRACTICES Rethink Assessments: Gather relevant information 5

11/19/2018 RETHINK ASSESSMENTS: PSYCHOLOGICALS Results were used way too heavily to determine “work ready”. Does it “tell” us what we need to know about employment? Most results showcased the disability, not the abilities . Use a Psychological when: • a diagnosis is needed or unclear • prior evaluation records old, outdated and achievement scores are needed for post secondary education Created Autism Batteries instead: nonverbal/low verbal and verbal, utilizes the ADOS 2 for diagnosis- built in extra time for assessment per fee structure RETHINK ASSESSMENTS: VOCATIONAL EVALUATIONS Most traditional are conducted with pencil/paper tests in a contrived setting, therefore will not give you the true picture of interests, needs and environmental responses. Use Vocational Evaluations that: • that go beyond pencil paper • allow exploring through multiple learning modalities (i.e. visual, auditory) • put customer in real world work experiences • provide opportunities to test and teach skills in natural environment EMERGING PRACTICES Use Assessments: That require interest exploration 6

11/19/2018 RIGID INTERESTS: HOBBY OR CAREER? What do you Video game want to be? designer! Because it is Why? what I do…. START WITH “ BIG PICTURE ” ASSESSMENTS Use career interest assessments to get a starting point. Customers with Autism typically have the least exposure to work experiences . Interest rigidity can compound this. • Explore all job families • Be exposed to professional and non-professional jobs • Learn how to drill down from the broad families to specific jobs in their area BIRKMAN CAREER EXPLORATION 7

11/19/2018 CAREER EXPLORATION SITES ON TEXAS WORKFORCE WEBSITE JOBTIPS EMERGING PRACTICES Use Assessments: That identify how the Autism will manifest in a work environment 8

11/19/2018 ENVIRONMENTAL WORK ASSESSMENT • Assesses 40 social skills in 3 different work environments and; • Identifies environmental variables that increase or decrease a customer’s social skills abilities • The environment with the highest scores is considered the “best fit” work environment and those variables should be replicated when looking for employment • For T exas VR, evaluator is an Employment Specialist with the Autism Endorsement, however- the assessment is available for anyone to utilize Click here, then scroll down to VR1877B and download excel sheet 7 ENVIRONMENTAL VARIABLES ARE RATED BY THE CUSTOMER  Lighting  Noise  Odors  Climate  Work Pace  Social Interaction Required  Structure and Predictability DETERMINES HOW “ DEMANDING ” EACH VARIABLE IS TO THE CUSTOMER 9

11/19/2018 CUSTOMER TAKES THE SELF ASSESSMENT MEASURES THE PERCEPTION OF THEIR SOCIAL SKILLS CUSTOMER IS SCORED BASED ON THE LEVEL OF PROMPTING REQUIRED SOCIAL SKILLS TESTED DOMAIN 1: BASIC SOCIAL AND COMMUNICATION 10

11/19/2018 SOCIAL SKILLS TESTED DOMAIN 2 : PROBLEM SOLVING AND EXECUTIVE FUNCTIONING SOCIAL SKILLS TESTED DOMAIN 3: ADVANCED SOCIAL AND COMMUNICATION SOCIAL SKILLS TESTED DOMAIN 4: SELF REGULATION AND EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE 11

11/19/2018 SCORES ARE AUTOMATICALLY TALLIED INTO A TABLE AS SCORES ARE ENTERED ENVIRONMENTS PRODUCING THE MOST SKILL DEFICITS WILL BE RULED OUT ENVIRONMENT WILL BE SELECTED AS THE “ BEST FIT ” SUMMARY PAGE WILL AUTO POPULATE SPECIFIC STRENGTHS AND ANY SKILLS TO TARGET EMERGING PRACTICES Create Specialists: Training matters 12

11/19/2018 SPECIALLY TRAINED VR COUNSELORS & EMPLOYMENT SPECIALISTS • Over 85 state VR Counselors on an intensively trained team • Counselors serving the highest caseload are targeted • Over 230 Employment Specialists have the Autism Endorsement earned through University of North Texas UNTWISE 9 out of 10 are either unemployed or underemployed, regardless of their IQ or education level. (Autism Speaks, 2014) EMERGING PRACTICES Treat Social Skills: For all, but target students with the least opportunities WHO CAN BE THE HARDEST OF THE SPECTRUM TO EMPLOY? Level 2: Level 3: Level 1: Level 1: Requiring Requiring Requiring Requiring support support substantial very substantial support support 13

11/19/2018 Students with Autism graduating on a Regular Degree DID YOU Plan…are more at risk Focus was on academics, therefore less opportunity in KNOW? their degree plan for: • Social skills • Study skills • Vocational exploration/experiences Making it even harder, many go straight to college and graduate without experiencing their first job. EXAMPLES OF COMMON SOCIAL SKILL ISSUES 1. Cognitive inflexibility 2. Persist social anxiety 3. Inability to self regulate emotions & ineffective coping skills 4. Sexuality, relationships, private vs. public behaviors 5. Not identifying unspoken work rules due to nonverbal cues & pragmatics of language CUSTOMER EXAMPLE: TROUBLE AT WALGREENS THE WORLD NEEDS TO BE QUIET!! 14