As the month celebrating both Disability Awareness and Developmental Disabilities Awareness, we say good-bye to March—but not to KRA’s dedication to community-based, workforce-services programs that support our jobseeker-customers with disabilities, including those of a developmental origin.
However, communities differ widely in their needs, as well as their resources to address those needs. Thus, KRA programs customize service-delivery systems to provide the highest possible quality of service to persons with any type of disability that presents an obstacle to gainful employment.
All WIOA American Job Centers (AJC) and TANF Employment Programs (TEP), operated by KRA, develop collaborative relationships with local disability-services agencies, e.g. Departments of Rehabilitation Services, Disability Services (DDS), and Vocational Rehabilitation Services (DVRS), as well as Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) offices of the Social Security Administration (SSA).
In some locales, KRA staff and representatives of WIOA-mandated agencies are co-located, as in the Las Vegas-based Comprehensive AJC, operated for Workforce Connections, where service providers share space at more than a dozen Public Library sites, providing maximum community accessibility for all jobseekers.
Another example, a District of Columbia TEP, operated for the DC Department of Human Resources, maintains a Memorandum of Agreement, which co-locates a DDS/DVRS representative with KRA staff, providing a single point-of service for case management; job-readiness, skills straining, and job placement; and rehabilitation counseling.
At the KRA Westside AJC, the funding partner—Chicago Cook Workforce Partnership—employs a Disability Resource Coordinator, who provides training and technical assistance for KRA staff; manages the SSA Ticket-to-Work Program for customers who are blind, have a disability, and/or receive SSI or SSDI benefits; and develops integrated-services resource teams.
Our last selected-program example is the KRA San Diego Metro Career Centers, operated for the San Diego Workforce Partnership, which oversees several cooperative agreements and grants benefitting jobseekers with developmental or other disabilities. One such grant, a Disability Employment Initiative, provides education, training, and employment opportunities for those who are unemployed, underemployed, and/or receiving SSDI benefits. In addition, a Ticket-to-Work component further expands DEI resources and services.
Another program, Breaking Barriers San Diego, assists individuals with mental illness; substance-abuse disorders; visual impairment; and/or developmental, emotional, orthopedic, and physical disabilities to obtain sustainable employment.
KRA remains committed to providing Innovative, Exceptional, and Trusted workforce-development services for individuals with disability-related challenges to employment, assisting them to identify, develop and utilize their abilities in realizing their full potential.
As Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month, we say good-bye to March, but not to KRA’s continuing dedication to community-based, workforce-services programs that support the career goals and objectives of our jobseeker-customers with disabilities, including those of a developmental origin.
However, communities differ widely in their needs—and the resources available to address those needs. Thus, KRA programs customize service-delivery systems to provide the highest possible quality of service to persons with any type of disability that presents an obstacle to gainful employment.
KRA ensures that all its WIOA American Job Centers (AJC) and TANF Employment Programs develop collaborative relationships with local disability-oriented agencies. These include Departments of Rehabilitation Services, Disability Services (DDS), and Vocational Rehabilitation Services (DVRS), as well as Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) offices of the Social Security Administration (SSA).
In some locales, KRA staff and WIOA-mandated agency representatives are co-located. For instance, staff from our Las Vegas-based Comprehensive AJC, operated for Workforce Connections, share space at more than a dozen Public Library sites, providing maximum community accessibility for jobseeker-customers.
Another example, a District of Columbia TEP operation, maintains a Memorandum of Agreement , co-locating a DDS/DVRS representative on-site, to provide a single point-of service for case management; job-readiness, skills straining, and job placement; and rehabilitation counseling for customers with disabilities.
At the KRA Westside AJC, the funding partner—Chicago Cook Workforce Partnership— employs a Disability Resource Coordinator, who provides training and technical assistance for KRA staff; manages the SSA Ticket-to-Work Program for customers who are blind, have a disability, and/or receive SSI or SSDI benefits; and develops integrated-services resource teams.
Our last selected-program example is the KRA San Diego Metro Career Centers, operated for the San Diego Workforce Partnership, which oversees several cooperative agreements and grants that benefit jobseekers with developmental or other disabilities.
One such grant, a Disability Employment Initiative, provides education, training, and employment opportunities for those with disabilities who are unemployed, underemployed, and/or receiving SSDI benefits. In addition, a Ticket-to-Work component further expands DEI resources and services.
Another program, Breaking Barriers San Diego, assists individuals with mental illness; substance-abuse disorders; visual impairment; and/or developmental, emotional, orthopedic, and physical disabilities to obtain sustainable employment.
KRA is committed to providing Innovative, Exceptional, and Trusted workforce-development services to individuals with disability-related challenges, assisting them to identify, develop and utilize their abilities in realizing their full potential.
Dr. Boone’s 20+ years’ experience in the industry is extensive and her expertise in private-, public-, and non-profit sector workforce-services organizations is unparalleled, particularly in the Baltimore–Washington Metropolitan area.
