2010 Pubilc Hearings

public hearings:

The State Rehabilitation Council (SRC) and the Statewide Independent Living Council, Inc (SILC), in collaboration with the Georgia Department of Labor Vocational Rehabilitation Program, will held a series of joint public hearings statewide to obtain input on the needs for vocational rehabilitation (VR) and independent living (IL) services leading to greater independence and employment for people with disabilities. 

The Georgia VR and IL programs are required to submit plans to the Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) of how Georgia will use federal and state funds to provide a wide array of rehabilitation services to achieve priority goals and objectives in FY 2011-2013. The public hearings are opportunities for citizens to provide valuable input for those plans.

RSA is the federal agency responsible for administrative and fiduciary oversight for VR and IL funding disbursed by the United States Congress. 

The Georgia SRC and the Georgia SILC held hearings in four separate locations soliciting comments from a representative and diverse population. 

public hearing schedule:

Tuesday, January 12:  Roosevelt Warm Springs Institute for Rehabilitation, from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m., Roosevelt Auditorium, 6135 Roosevelt Highway, Warm Springs, GA.        Contact for directions:  706-655-5000

Wednesday, January 13:  Rome, from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., Etowah-Oostanaula Room, Rome-Floyd County Library, 205 Riverside Parkway, NE.  Contact for directions: 706-295-6407

Thursday, January 14:  Atlanta, from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m., Westin Atlanta Airport Hotel,  Atlanta Room 3 & 4, 4736 Best Road, Atlanta.  Contact for directions: 404-762-7676

Friday, January 15:  Athens, from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m., Georgia Department of Labor Career Center, Oglethorpe-Oconee Room, 150 Evelyn C. Neely Drive.  Contact for directions: 706-354-3900

2007 Pubilc Hearings

The SRC held ten public hearings across the state designed to elicit thoughtful responses to the FY 2008 State Plan for the 110 Vocational Rehabilitation Program; cities were selected to reflect the largest geographic representation from Georgia's diverse regions and populations. Nearly 350 participants attended the various hearings; additional written statements were received, and close to 150 individuals responded to a web-based survey about the state plan.

Georgia Department of Labor Assistant Commissioner for Rehabilitation Peggy Rosser and VR Program Director Carl McRae were present at the majority of hearings, which were facilitated by Linda Shepard, SRC chair, and Joe Tedesco, SRC vice chair. RSA staff was represented via teleconference at the meeting in Savannah, Georgia.

Participants represented various governmental agencies, school districts, VR professionals, disability providers, disability organizations and advocacy groups, students, parents, and VR clients from community rehabilitation programs (CRPs), the Roosevelt Warm Springs Institute for Rehabilitation (RWSIR) and the Cave Spring Rehabilitation Center (CSRC). Attendees with disabilities included people with visual impairments, learning disabilities, physical disorders, and deaf and hard of hearing disabilities. Accommodations and alternate format materials, including large print, CD, floppy disc and Braille copies, were available, as were ASL and Spanish language interpreters.

All audiences seemed to agree that "VR is Georgia's best kept secret," and gave credence to the observation that increased statewide marketing and awareness is essential. There was considerable discussion about the misinformation, myths and misconceptions about VR, and the supports and services available. The need for training and cross training in all areas for all stakeholders ­ VR professionals, business and education partners, consumers and their families and advocates -- was emphasized.

The state's goals and priorities for the 110 program as stated in the 2008 State Plan helped to focus specific attention on four key areas: 1.) How to improve services to increase employment outcomes for clients with sensory disabilities (deaf, blind and deaf-blind); 2.) How to enhance services at Georgia's two residential VR programs (RWSIR and CSRC) to increase employment opportunities for their student populations; 3.) How to improve transition services to increase the number of students with disabilities who become successfully employed; and 4.) How to enhance relationships with the business community to increase the number of employers who hire VR clients for the first time.

Repeatedly stated concerns regarding these four key areas formed the basis of the SRC's input and recommendations to the 2008 State Plan. They included:

• The lack of certified rehabilitation counselors (17% vacancy rate), the noncompetitive salary and the length of time it takes to fill positions adversely affects the quality of VR services.

• The lack of funding for VR's two residential programs hampers critically-needed facilities improvement, and inhibits hiring adequate specialized staff.

• There is a need for a dedicated funding stream for transition programs and a closer relationship between school transition specialists and VR counselors so that students could be reached in the ninth grade or earlier.

• Little knowledge in the business community about the supports and services available from VR reinforces myths and misconceptions about hiring people with disabilities.