The Comprehensive statewide needs assessment . . .provided an unprecedented opportunity for the SRC, especially its newly appointed members, to discover first hand the opinions of consumers, rehabilitation staff and employment professionals regarding the delivery of VR services in Georgia. The knowledge gained from the needs assessment will directly affect the organization's ability to help people with disabilities obtain and keep suitable employment. This knowledge is also clearly important for strategic planning and developing goals for the next few years, which is a primary focus area for the new council.

In SFY 2007 the SRC supported the VR Program in contracting with an independent consultant, Christine Lewis, to conduct a comprehensive statewide assessment of the rehabilitation needs of individuals with disabilities in Georgia.

Federal regulations at § 361.29 (a) (1) require the VR 110 Program State Plan to include the results of a comprehensive statewide needs assessment, jointly conducted by the designated State unit and the SRC every three years. The SRC and VR Program administrators and staff worked with Ms. Lewis to develop assessment

instruments resulting in a report of the rehabilitation needs of Georgia residents with disabilities, specifically in the following areas required by federal regulations:

• An assessment of the vocational rehabilitation needs

  • Individuals with the most significant disabilities, including their need for supported employment services;

  • Individuals with disabilities who are minorities and individuals with disabilities who have been unserved or underserved by the vocational rehabilitation program; and

  • Individuals with disabilities served through other components of the statewide workforce investment system as identified by those individuals and personnel assisting those individual through the components of the system; and  

• An assessment of the need to establish, develop, or improve community rehabilitation programs (CRP's) within the state.

The needs assessment included individual, accessible, confidential surveys of VR clients, VR counselors, and Georgia Department of Labor One Stop and Career Center managers. There were links to web-based surveys, as well as telephone and personal surveys when desired by the survey participant. The comprehensive needs assessment was conducted in two phases resulting in separate lengthy reports. The SRC and VR leaders and staff reviewed the reports and incorporated key points into the State Plan goals, objectives and strategies, particularly in the areas of enhanced services for people who are Blind, Deaf and Deaf-Blind, transition services for students with disabilities, and for more community based supported employment and job coaching services. The comprehensive needs assessment report was included as part of the VR 110 Program FY 2008 State Plan that was approved by the Rehabilitation Services Administration.

Seven conclusions were noted in the analysis of the client survey; four bear mentioning:

• There is a high level of demand for core services such as counseling and job seeking skills;

• There is also a high level of unmet demand for services, which links directly to concerns about counselor vacancy rate and noncompetitive salary.

• Transportation is a major barrier to employment for persons with disabilities, affecting nearly half of all consumers.

• Health insurance is a significant unmet need for nearly a third of the sample.

The comprehensive needs assessment confirmed that individuals with severe disabilities need vocational rehabilitation services with the greatest needs being for job seeking skills, job training and transportation. More than a quarter of the consumers expressed a need for job support services, counseling, education and benefit planning.

The research also found that approximately 7.6% of the working age population has an employment disability and may qualify for VR services, which far exceeds the program's capacity. The VR program appears to be serving a greater proportion of minority applicants with an employment disability than exists in the general population of Georgia. Also, the research found that 96% of VR counselors participating in the survey referred clients to CRP's and that most services seem to be available but that capacity is often inadequate. The most severe supply gap was reported to be in employment skills training.