110 Programs

Programs, Initiatives and Partnerships

Many 110-funded initiatives and programs focus on specific populations, extending
the impact of the Georgia VR program and helping to empower consumers to achieve their
employment, education and independent living goals. Significant highlights of the efforts of
both VR staff and Council members to assist people with disabilities to employment and
independence include:

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)

The GDOL/VR Program continued its contract with the Georgia Department of Human Resources, Division of Family and Children Services (DFCS) to provide assessments to Georgia TANF recipients. In FFY 2009, VR offered assessment services for 47 new TANF recipients with 10 referrals carried over from FFY 2008. Of the total 57 recipients receiving assessment services, 14 were referred to the VR Program and 23 were referred back to DFCS with recommendations for services; of the remaining individuals, six referrals discontinued their assessments and 14 referrals were carried into FFY 2010.

Social Security Administration (SSA) Initiatives

The SSA’s Ticket to Work (TTW) program provides beneficiaries of SSI and SSDI greater choices in receiving employment, vocational, and other services they need to go to work and/or increase their earnings from work, thus reducing their dependency on cash benefits programs.

Georgia VR received 848 ticket assignments in SFY 2009. Since the TTW program began in
2002, more than 5,500 tickets were assigned to Georgia VR; 820 tickets were assigned to the other 29 Employment Networks in Georgia.

The VR program's federally funded Work Incentives Planning and Assistance (WIPA) project provided direct benefits advisement and guidance to over 565 Social Security beneficiaries with disabilities in SFY 2009.

Assistive Technology (AT)

During SFY 2009, the VR Assistive Technology unit received 1,434 client referrals from counselors, and provided 7,038 individualized AT services (devices, home and vehicle modifications, work site accommodations) in support of work goals.

Business Enterprise Program (BEP)

Business Enterprise Program (BEP) -- The Georgia BEP provides work opportunities to
persons who are blind and who want to manage small businesses, primarily in establishments in the food-service industry.

In SFY 2009, there were 136 BEP sites operated by 99 licensed BEP vendors, who also
employed 117 other individuals. Total sales equaled $9,900,875 and generated $678,125 in sales tax revenue.

Excluding the BEP contracted vendors who manage the military and Department of Defense food service operations, the standard, average annual earnings of a licensed BEP vendor was $35,922. The lowest BEP vendor salary was $6,327; the highest was $294,538.

Including all operating sites, BEP vendors employ more than 200 people with disabilities
at their various work sites.

 Roosevelt Warm Springs Institute

Vocational Rehabilitation Unit (VRU) -- Two hundred eighty-two (282) VRU students completed academic education classes in SFY 2009, and received such services as academic remediation, GED prep and testing, tech school preparation, keyboarding, and Georgia High School Graduation Testing. It is important to note that VRU academic education services remained consistent with the number of services offered to students this fiscal year, and the VRU maintained its certification from the Georgia Accreditation Commission.

There are three certificate-training programs aligned with the VRU. In SFY 2009, fourteen
students participated in the new RWSIR Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) on-campus
training program that was approved as a State Testing Site in SFY09. While the Basic
Printing Assistant Program is no longer a certificate program with West Georgia Technical
College, 21 students studied in the RWSIR Basic Printing training program; 23 students
worked in the Forklift & Heavy Machinery category. The Lawn Care & Maintenance
Certificate Program was also discontinued by West Georgia Technical College; however,
during SFY 2009 RWSIR began the development of two new training programs,
Cosmetology and Car Detailing, which are scheduled to begin during SFY 2010.

Of the 316 students served in SFY 2009, 299 participated in paid Community Work
Adjustment Services and 134 VRU students graduated work ready. The Average Length Stay for students who graduated work/school ready was 9.79 months

The VRU offers students a 24/7 dorm life experience coupled with job skills training,
independent living and academic education classes. VRU students experience vocational, but also personal, social, spiritual and recreational growth during their enrollment at VRU.
Attending the VRU as a student is oftentimes the first instance that many of these young men and women have been away from home. VRU programs and services are designed to be as close to college life as possible. Because of this environment, the students complete their programs as well-rounded young men and women. One current student stated it best when he said, “RWSIR is a place where magic happens.”

During SFY 2009, repairs and renovations on three Transitional Living Cottages were
completed and referrals were accepted. These cottages provide the opportunity for nine
RWSIR/VRU students to experience transitional living at any given time.

Additionally, RWSIR/VRU collaborated with the Georgia VR program to provide improved
services to Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing students. For example, hearing screenings are now
done on all VRU admissions to determine the need for additional specialized services.

 The Cave Spring Rehabilitation Center (CSRC)

This residential rehabilitation program serves VR clients who are primarily ages 18-24, and who need targeted skills building and focused assistance regarding job readiness and employment training. While it is a comprehensive residential facility for a variety of disability populations, services to people who are Deaf or Hard-of-Hearing are the primary emphasis.

The CSRC served 103 clients in SFY 2009. Thirty-two (32) clients received a Learner’s
driving permit and 21 received a Driver’s License while at CSRC. Forty-one (41) clients
received training in Community Work Adjustment outside the Center. Clients are also
involved in Community Resources Skills Training. Over half of the clients participated in
volunteering at Habitat for Humanity and the Soup Kitchen in Polk County.

The Client Assistance Program (CAP)

The Client Assistance Program (CAP) The Client Assistance Program (CAP) provides
information, assistance, and advocacy to applicants and consumers with disabilities who are applying for and receiving services from the VR Program. The Law Offices of Martin and
Jones administer CAP in a manner that informs and empowers people with disabilities to fully understand and exercise their rights to services.

One of CAP's priorities is to resolve problems to the customer's satisfaction. As a result, very few issues have to be resolved through the formal appeals process. CAP's experiences with resolving disagreements through mediation and informal negotiations have been highly successful for VR consumers. During SFY 2009, CAP:

• Responded to 1,528 requests for information and referral.
• Provided a wide variety of extended services to 105 clients of the VR Program.
• Settled the vast majority of client problems through mutual agreement rather than fair
hearing decisions before an administrative law judge.
• Represented VR clients in two administrative hearings.

In addition, CAP furthered the goal of voluntary, efficient resolution of disputes and problems between VR and its clients by explaining in the context of presentations to VR counselors and others, how CAP could service as a resource not an adversary in each counselor's cases where client complaints had been made to CAP.

CAP also devoted time and resources to service on boards and agencies (e.g., SRC, SILC), to systemic advocacy, to underserved populations, and to providing training opportunities and information to both counselors and clients through presentations and otherwise.

The Statewide Independent Living Council of Georgia, Inc.  & Centers for Independent Living

The Statewide Independent Living Council of Georgia, Inc. (SILC) and eight Centers for
Independent Living (CIL) across the state comprise Georgia’s Independent Living Network.
People with disabilities govern and staff each organization.

The SILC works with the VR Program to develop the State Plan for Independent Living, and focuses on promoting policies and practices that enable independent living for all Georgians with disabilities. The CILs assist people with all types of disabilities to set and achieve personal goals toward independence.


In SFY 2009, Georgia CILs provided a wide range of services to an estimated 2,500 Georgians with significant disabilities, including but not limited to: information and referral, independent living skills training, nursing home transition, home modifications, advocacy, orientation and mobility skills training, assistive technology, and computer skills training.

 Muskogee Vocational Rehabilitation

Muskogee Vocational Rehabilitation (MVR) is the only Native American Vocational
Rehabilitation (Section 121) program in Georgia. There are 550 Native American Tribes in the United States, but only 77 American Indian VR Programs (AIVR). These 77 VR programs
comprise CANAR (Consortia of Administrators for Native American Rehabilitation); MVR
Director Christina P. Venable (Peggy) serves as Treasurer. Just as each tribe in the nation is different, there are many differences among CANAR-member tribes, and this diversity is
clearly reflected at conferences. GDOL/VR is also a CANAR member as are many other
national and state organizations and programs, and the Georgia program is typically well
represented at CANAR conferences, providing both presenters and attendees.

The state of Georgia works with Muskogee Vocational Rehabilitation as a partner in a
cooperative agreement and has greatly helped the program in its endeavors to reach Native American consumers in the state. The VR regional director and staff from Albany, Georgia have been particularly helpful to MVR and have provided considerable support for its program.

MVR provides several activities and planned initiatives that incorporate culturally appropriate services to American Indians with disabilities, allowing them to learn within their cultural setting, to build self-confidence with Tribal Elders as their mentors, and to receive VR services in a manner that reflects the diversity of tribal culture, and acknowledges and embraces that culture towards building a successful future.

In SFY 2009:

• MVR reported a 100% placement and served 25 consumers.
• MVR had eight consumers in postsecondary education, including two- and four-year
institutions of higher learning.
• Three additional consumers are in job training situations.
• Mekko Enterprises, which is owned by the Lower Muskogee Creek Tribe and
provides several different services in graphic arts manufacturing, hired four
persons with disabilities to work in their program.
• The Lower Muskogee Creek Tribe continued to work diligently with local and federal
agencies to further educate the public regarding Native Americans and the need for
education, medical services and employment in the rural counties of Georgia.
• In addition to hosting a Lunch and Learn for its annual Disability Awareness Day for
state and local VR staff, advisory board members and business partners, MVR served
on the planning committee for the 2009 mid-year CANAR conference in Anchorage,
Alaska, and coordinated the 2009 annual conference in Norman, Oklahoma.