[nfbmi-talk] look at both issues with service delivery andcapresponsiveness in this public meeting
joe harcz Comcast
joeharcz at comcast.net
Sun Aug 29 23:11:51 UTC 2010
Yes, they do that but that is also why I get the recordings as well as the
minutes.
I have this meeting recording as well.
Keep on the truth Joe!
Peace,
Joe Harcz
----- Original Message -----
From: "Joe Sontag" <suncat0 at gmail.com>
To: "NFB of Michigan Internet Mailing List" <nfbmi-talk at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Sunday, August 29, 2010 6:58 PM
Subject: Re: [nfbmi-talk] look at both issues with service delivery
andcapresponsiveness in this public meeting
What they didn't include in my remarks was that Zanger tried systematically
to exclude Hazell Brooks from participating in the most
recent BEP staff meeting and that Zanger had not yet followed the Board's
order to pay Ms. Brooks for facility cleaning expenses per
the ALJ's recommendation. They feel a need to edit my stuff, even the
Peterson administration did this, and I only speak the truth.
And the beating goes on.
----- Original Message -----
From: "joe harcz Comcast" <joeharcz at comcast.net>
To: <nfbmi-talk at nfbnet.org>
Cc: "TOM MASSEAU MPAS" <TMASSEA at mpas.org>; "Jeanette Brown MI CAP"
<JBROWN at mpas.org>
Sent: Saturday, August 28, 2010 16:54
Subject: [nfbmi-talk] look at both issues with service delivery and
capresponsiveness in this public meeting
http://www.michigan.gov/dleg/0,1607,7-154-28077_28313_28319_28324_32052-200519--,00.html
June 20 2008 Minutes Meeting of the MCB Board
.
APPROVED
MICHIGAN COMMISSION FOR THE BLIND
JUNE 20, 2008
VICTOR BUILDING
LANSING, MICHIGAN
MINUTES
COMMISSIONERS PRESENT
Ms. Jo Ann Pilarski, Chair (Via teleconference)
Ms. Velma Allen, Co-Chair
Ms. Geri Taeckens
Ms. Margaret Wolfe
Mr. Mark Eagle
COMMISSIONERS ABSENT
None
MICHIGAN COMMISSION FOR THE BLIND (MCB) STAFF PRESENT
Mr. Patrick Cannon
Ms. Sue Luzenski
Mr. Leamon Jones
Ms. Sherri Heibeck
Mr. Bob Robertson
Ms. Christine Boone
Ms. Susan Turney
Ms. Constance Zanger
Ms. Diamalyn Gaston
Ms. Lisa Kamkondo
Ms. Nicole Wright
GUESTS/ATTENDEES
Mr. Phil Kosachik
Ms. Andrea Rizor
Ms. Jeanette Brown
Mr. Marcus Simmons
Ms. Karen Simmons
Mr. Larry Posont
Ms. Dessie Johnson
Ms. Elham Jahshan
Ms. Kimberly Mohnke
Ms. Diana Mohnke
Mr. Geer Wilcox
Mr. Larry Ball
Ms. Melinda Latham
Mr. Fred Wurtzel
Ms. Mary Wurtzel
Mr. Terry Eagle
Mr. Raymond Roberson
Mr. Joe Sontag
Mr. Bill Myers
Mr. Mike Ellis
Mr. George Wurtzel
Ms. Kim Walsh
Mr. Tom Masseau
Mr. Robert Essenberg
Ms. Gail Jones
Ms. Kimberly Bowe
Mr. William Singleton
Ms. Angela Harris
Shaka Tettah
Ms. Carrie Bradley
Mr. Darryl Goldsmith
Mr. Robert Bradley
Mr. Kevin Robertson
Mr. Devonne Robertson
Ms. Willa Justice
Mr. David Markowitz
Ms. Madison Marty
Mr. Richard Clay
Ms. Hazell Brooks
COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE
The Committee of the Whole was opened by Chair Jo Ann Pilarski at
9:10 a.m.
COMMISSIONER ACTIVITIES
Ms. Geri Taeckens reported on attending the BEP Operators
conference in April. The conference was very exciting and
included a practical workshop
regarding retirement and very good food was enjoyed by all.
Ms. Taeckens attended the CIC meeting which was a very informative
meeting. Pat Cannon gave an overview on the history of
the CIC and explanations
regarding procedures and protocol for consumers when services are requested
and when concerns arise.
Also, Ms. Taeckens will be providing a new Braille class which
will be available at Camp Tuhsmeheta. This class is
promoting the notion of Braille
literacy for students with visual impairments who are print readers,
providing them with alternative reading tools and stressing how
Braille literacy can
lead to employment.
Ms. Velma Allen reported that she joined Director Cannon in
Bethesda, Maryland for the NCSAB conference in the spring.
Ms. Allen felt the training
module segment at the conference was very informative and would be very
beneficial for MCB Commissioners to participate in that
program.
Ms. Margaret Wolfe reported that she participated by telephone
in the Diversity Committee meeting in April.
Visions 2008 was held in May and was a great success. MCB and
the Washtenaw County Library for the Blind and Physically
Disabled collaborated
on this program with the assistance of many organizations and there was a
record turnout of nearly 1,000 people. BEP operators sold
refreshments to attendees.
The next Visions will be held May 12, 2010.
Ms. Wolfe also reported that Director Cannon and Lisa Marchione
joined her in a presentation to 30 employees at the
Washtenaw County Public
Health Department as part of a Public Health Department professional
workshop series. The subject of this presentation was "Blind
Culture". The focus
was blindness awareness and resources available to the blind including the
Commission for the Blind and the library for the blind
and physically disabled.
Lastly, the Washtenaw County Library has been collaborating with
University of Michigan School of Art and Design on a
project entitled "Many
Ways of Seeing". University of Michigan Professor Sadashi Inuzuka, a blind
artist and students of the University paired with
library consumers, meeting
once a week at the library to create art work in clay. This activity
resulted in a beautiful, inspirational book of pictures and
experiences with a Braille
overlay. Copies will be distributed widely including being provided to
Commissioners and the commission staff to be shared among
the offices.
Mr. Mark Eagle attended the Service Delivery Design Team (SDDT)
in April and June. Review of the small business policy
was the highlight of
those meetings. The College Policy Review Committee was another committee
meeting Mr. Eagle attended and progress is being made by
the group. Also Mr.
Eagle attended the NFB-M meeting to get to know the consumer groups and
extended an offer to MCBVI to attend their meeting also.
Mr. Eagle said there was concern that the College Policy Review
Committee was not an open meeting and he believed that
it was subject to the
Open Meetings Act (OMA) and should have been open to all that wanted to
attend.
Chair Pilarski asked Director Cannon to address the question of
the OMA. Director Cannon responded that most of the
internal groups within
the Commission are open to all to attend and participate in, but there are
committees that have designated representatives to
participate and speak for
each of their groups. Ms. Pilarski indicated that each of the
representatives should be going back to their respective groups and
filling them in on the
meeting. Director Cannon noted that meetings of the MCB Board are subject
to the OMA since the Board is a public body under the
law. He added that other
committees and groups within the Commission, including its Consumer
Involvement Council (CIC) are not considered public bodies and
not required to be open
meetings under the law. Sue Luzenski read a statement by Judge Andres
Friedlis, the State Office of Administrative Hearings and
Rules in response to an
inquiry about the statute " . none of these groups would be considered
public bodies subject to the OMA. They are all formed to
provide advice; none have
decision making functions. And their formation was not required by statute
or rule. They consist of people having knowledge or an
interest in the Commission's
ultimate decision but none of the groups have any ability to decide these
questions. If these groups are only advisory they are not
'Public Bodies.'
Also they must be created by resolution, statute, ordinance, etc. to be
considered Public Bodies."
Ms. Taeckens stated she served on ad hoc committee for the Training Center
which consisted of 21 people and it was hard to get
input from all of the participants.
A bigger group would make it even more difficult to get the job done and
can impede the function and goal of the group. There are
times when meetings
should be closed as long as there is peer representation. Several consumers
attending the meeting expressed their views on consumer
participation, open
meetings and dialogue opportunities.
Ms. Pilarski suggested that suggestions or comments could be put
in writing either on the listserve or on the website.
ISSUES FROM LAST MEETING
Ms. Luzenski reported that the question of contact information
available on the website was left up to the individual
Commissioners. Commissioner
contact information became available on the MCB website in April.
The second issue was a request by Commissioners for a copy of
the current action plan. Commissioners received the
action plan on CD at the
meeting with a copy being mailed to Velma Allen.
The question of timelines for counselor/consumer responses is
being addressed by Leamon Jones. This information is
available in the Consumer
Services section of the MCB report and will be reported on at this meeting.
Lastly, the Commissioners came up with a rotating schedule for
participation on the CIC committee and asked that all
Commissioners be notified
of upcoming CIC meetings. Ms. Luzenski made this request of MCB staff and
all Commissioners were notified of the next CIC meeting,
which occurred in June.
CONSUMER DIALOGUE
Ms. Pilarski stated the dialogue question as how can we, as
blind people, impact our communities and get involved.
Mary Wurtzel, NFB-M indicated that at some point we need to
dialogue about dialoguing.
Mike Geno, MCBVI felt this was a great dialogue question and
stated that he tries to set an example for the community
and especially the newly
blind. We encourage people to attend local council meetings and
transportation meetings.
Mary Wurtzel, NFB- M established a task force to work with
issues of the MCB. She also stated her preference for
dialogue sessions which are
open rather than responding to a specific question. Also she suggested the
Commission meet more often than quarterly.
Ms. Taeckens stated that the dialogue question was introduced to
initiate conversation not control the conversation.
The question being dropped
is fine.
Mr. Larry Ball, President of National Association of Blind
Merchants of Michigan, introduced his group.
Mr. Larry Posont spoke to congratulate the Commission for having
Friday meetings because it brings out more consumers.
He asserted that four
meetings a year is not reasonable and the Commission is not being
responsive.
Mr. John Scott, President National Federation of the Blind -
Detroit Chapter, stated he had contacted the Client
Assistance Program numerous
times but CAP has not been responsive.
Mr. Marcus Simmons expressed his concern that commission staff
are not following policy and appear incompetent.
CALL TO ORDER, ROLL CALL AND DETERMINATION OF QUORUM
The regular meeting was called to order by Chair Jo Ann Pilarski
at 10:12 a.m. Roll call was taken and a quorum was
present.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
MS. ALLEN MOVED, SUPPORTED BY MS WOLFE TO ACCEPT THE MINUTES OF THE MARCH
14, 2008 MEETING; MS. TAECKENS REQUESTED THE WORD
"COMPLAIN" BE CHANGED TO "COMPLAINT";
THE MINUTES, AS AMENDED, WERE APPROVED UNANIMOUSLY.
MS. WOLFE MOVED, SUPPORTED BY MS. ALLEN TO ACCEPT THE MINUTES OF THE APRIL
17, 2008 SPECIAL MEETING; THE MINUTES WERE APPROVED WITH
TWO ABSTENSIONS.
BOARD CORRESPONDENCE
There was no board correspondence.
ACCESSIBLE CURRENCY INITIATIVE
Mr. Michael Geno, President of the Michigan Council of the Blind
and Visually Impaired (MCBVI) spoke regarding the
barriers that the blind and
visually impaired encounter with money in its paper form and what the future
holds for changes in paper money.
The American Council of the Blind was a party in a lawsuit filed
against the United States Department of Treasury for
producing currency which
is not independently accessible for people who are blind and visually
impaired. U.S. bank notes can not be identified tactilely in
its current design;
180 other countries have identified the currency issues in relation to blind
and visually impaired individuals and made appropriate
changes.
In May, 2008 two out of three appellate judges upheld a ruling
supporting that The Department of Treasury had not
satisfied the burden of proof
on why the issue of inaccessible paper money has not been addressed.
The lawsuit is not dictating how money should be made accessible
but is pushing to make changes in paper currency to
allow the blind and visually
impaired to be independent and have the ability to have the same job skills
and opportunities as sighted counterparts.
Ms. Pilarski invited meeting guests to share their views on the
subject and discussion revolved around different options
for currency changes
including the positive and negative benefits of graduated currency sizes;
using the KNFB Mobile unit to read denominations; cutting
various corners of
bills to make them identifiable and Brailling bills. Not all were
supportive of making changes in paper currency.
VOTING IS FOR EVERYONE
Tom Masseau, Director, Government & Media Relations, Michigan
Protection and Advocacy Services (MPAS) became involved in
the voting process
as a result of the Help America Vote Act that was passed in 2002 as a result
of voting issues experienced throughout the country.
MPAS has spent 6 years
educating residents and others regarding accessible voting issues and
advocating for rights of all people with disabilities. The
result of this is the
availability of the Automark, an accessible voting machine available at the
polls.
Current projects that MPAS is working on include an accessible
30 minute DVD covering voting rights, how to vote and a
background on the disability
communities and the story of the ADA. This DVD will be distributed to a
variety of organizations and will be available to all
individuals free of charge.
Another project includes a polling accessibility survey to
provide feedback to the clerks and Bureau of Elections. This
will help to identify
issues and make positive changes in the goal of making all polling places
fully accessible. The survey will be available in
Braille, Spanish & Arabic.
Future MPAS projects include a newsletter covering all voting
issues, and the civic engagement project which includes
going out into the community
and encouraging people to vote. Election Protection will provide a 800#
during the voting period that can be called to address any
polling problems or
issues during the polling process.
Consumer discussion centered around past Automark issues,
accessibility of the survey and training clerks offices and
poll workers on how to
interact with people with disabilities.
CLIENT ASSISTANCE PROGRAM OVERVIEW
Jeanette Brown, Director, Employment Advocacy, Client Assistance
Program (CAP), Michigan Protection & Advocacy Services
is a federally mandated
program formed by a grant through the Rehabilitation Services
Administration. CAP provides advocacy services for people with
disabilities under the Rehab
Act.
She outlined the process CAP utilizes to respond to individual
complaints. CAP also provides specific training to all
vocational rehabilitation
counselors and management on what services they are required to provide.
Discussion centered on issues of full mailboxes, non-return of
calls and consumers not able to leave a message. CAP has
sat in on the various
MCB committees to ensure guidelines are being followed.
CAP serves multiple agencies including MCB and MRS and serves
other agencies under other grants.
DLEG UPDATE AND OVERVIEW OF "NO WORKER LEFT BEHIND",
Mr. Andy Levin, Deputy Director, Department of Labor and
Economic Growth started his talk expressing the Attorney
General's office appreciation
with working with the Commission.
The latest headlines put Michigan's unemployment rate at 8 ½%,
the 26th consecutive week of the Nation's highest
unemployment rate. The Governor
created a program that focuses on helping the unemployed and underemployed;
the program is entitled "No Worker Left Behind" (NWLB).
Twelve percent of
the workforce are either unemployed and have given up looking or working
part-time but need a full-time job.
The NWLB assists people who have no adequate resources for
tuition, childcare and transportation. This program launched
August 1, 2007 has
put over 31,000 people into training toward in-demand jobs.
The Governor has a goal of training 100,000 people over a 3 year
period. This program could benefit MRS & MCB clients.
Mr. Levin stated the
Governor has asked for $40 million to expand the NWLB program and the Senate
did not pass this funding. The Senate Fiscal Director
is working on putting
money for this program into the budget.
Mr. Levin stated his concern with inadequate funding with adult
education and inadequate collaboration with community
colleges. A committee
has been formed to get these two organizations to work together to come up
with a new vision for adult learning.
In responding to Mr. Levin's presentation, attendees raised
concerns about the high unemployment rate for individuals
who are blind, the relationship
between NWLB and state VR agencies, how BEP rent issues are calculated and
an assertion that MCB must return federal dollars due to
inadequate matching
funds. Director Cannon clarified, in fact, the Commission has not
surrendered any federal dollars due to inadequate match.
PUBLIC COMMENT
Richard Clay, President, Advocates for the Blind, commented on
serious issues that their organization has had with the
Detroit office of the
Commission for the Blind, stating that these issues were raised with the
Board in December and again in writing in February and that
there has been no
response. Mr. Clay stated that the Commission chair has denied their
request to be on the Commission agenda and has denied that any
changes are needed
on phone policy, counselor changes, job placement policies or large
territories that are covered by management.
Mr. Cannon responded that although many of the ideas raised by
Mr. Clay were worthwhile, adequate funding was not
available to implement every
request initiated by his organization. MCB did address all of Mr. Clay's
concerns in a letter. Members of the organization have
been invited to participate
in various MCB committees and Director Levin has also offered to spend time
speaking with this organization.
Chair Pilarski stated that she received one letter, the request
to be on the agenda had been received too late as the
agenda had already been
set. She also said that the board was not aware there were new
organizations that had been formed.
Rob Essenberg commented on his own experience with the Automark
and how he had to train the workers and use his own
headphones. Mr. Essenberg
also related how he has hired 18 people at his Metroplex BEP operation and
is doing his part to help the Michigan economy. He
stated he had approached
the Board asking for support for OUB to take over Camp T on a more permanent
basis to provide more programs and allow the building
of new structures.
Mr. Essenberg asked Gail Jones to read a letter from Executive Director,
George Wurtzel which included a history of the creation of
Camp Tuhsmeheta and
the subsequent formation of OUB to administer the trust fund expenditures.
OUB is asking for support from the Board in selling Camp
T to OUB therefore
giving them access to the funds to upgrade and build the camp.
Raymond Roberson, Michigan Committee on Blindness said that he
was around in 1978 when the Commission was formed. He
feels that now it is the
Commission against the blind. Phil Peterson listened to the board as well
as the consumers and he said the current administration
does not.
Numerous email messages were received regarding the audio
streaming not working. The audio streaming was not available
for the whole meeting
and was unable to be corrected during the Commission meeting.
Bill Myers, a BEP operator commented by email on the BEP
retirement calculation and stated his feelings that retirement
benefits should be based
on net proceeds.
Sharon Burton sent an email sharing the history of Camp
Tuhsmeheta, the benefits Camp T has provided to numerous blind
children over the years
and the belief that more funding will allow Camp T to offer more
recreational programs to adults and children throughout Michigan.
Kim Walsh, Detroit Radio Information Service (DRIS) thanked the
Commission for a support letter that assisted DRIS in
getting a grant. International
Association of Audio Information Services (IAAIS) is spearheading accessible
electronics including accessible radio, accessible
television and digital
radio.
Mike Geno would like to encourage a future board presentation on
all of the radio information programs that are operating
in the state and consider
a future partnership. Mr. Geno thanked the board for offering the
opportunity to make public comment.
Joe Sontag spoke about using the Automark and what a positive
experience it was. He also spoke regarding the BEP
operators and helping BEP
operators with their grievances. Mr. Sontag concluded by saying there needs
to be better communication between the EOC and BEP staff
in order to more fully
integrate the committee in staff functions.
Just before the Commission recessed for lunch, Mr. Cannon
reiterated the Commission's ongoing willingness to meet with
consumers and consumer
organizations and suggested the meeting could commence during the lunch
break. He offered to meet individually or collectively and
asked Richard Clay,
Carrie Bradley, Raymond Roberson and Terry Eagle if they would be willing to
meet during the recess and each declined to do so.
Recessed for lunch at 12:35 p.m.
The meeting was reconvened at 1:22 p.m.
LOW VISION SPECIALIST REGISTRY PROCESS
Dr. Bernard Miller, a low vision specialist and former Director
of Optemetric Institute and Center of Detroit spoke of
his issues with locating
low vision specialists in the state of Michigan. Dr. Miller spoke about the
MCB website listings of the certified low vision
specialists and non-certified
low vision specialists. He asked the Commission to cease steering people to
the MOA website to select a low vision specialist and
have MCB establish its
own listing, retrain rehabilitation counselors, teachers and Youth Low
Vision consultants, and make statistics available to low
vision providers. Mr.
Cannon offered to meet with Dr. Miller directly.
BUSINESS ENTERPRISE PROGRAM REPORT
Ms. Constance Zanger reported that the Annual BEP workshop held
in April was a great success. Hazell Brooks was elected
the new chair of the
Elected Operators Committee at this meeting. The 2009 workshop committee
has already met and is getting started on next year's
program.
The Summer Work Opportunity Program (SWOP) for youths is
underway with 11 operators participating. The BEP program is
hoping that this initiative
sparks the interest of the youth participants and they go on to become BEP
operators of the future. The intent of the program is to
give individuals an
opportunity for work experience which may help them launch careers of their
choice and one need not have BEP as their goal to
participate in the SWOP program.
The BEP Operator from Ypsilanti provided catering for the
Visions 2008 program, the popular technology fair in Ann Arbor
which attracted nearly
1,000 participants. This was a new and different opportunity and proved to
be a successful venture for the operator, Brad Dula.
Ms. Zanger presented two motions from the Elected Operators
Committee requiring Board action. The first is the motion
to change to a graduated
penalty for late set-aside payments having one point deducted for the first
late set-aside payment, three for the second and five
points deducted for the
third late set-aside. Penalty points are only applied when an operator bids
on another facility and is subject to an evaluation of
their payment history.
MS. TAECKENS MOVED, SUPPORTED BY MS. WOLFE TO APPROVE THE MOTION FOR A
GRADUATED PENALTY FOR LATE SET-ASIDE PAYMENTS; THE MOTION
CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.
Ms. Pilarski asked for clarification between the two motions
being presented. Ms. Zanger indicated that the BEP
operators previous 12 months
of payment history is the information used to determine the point penalty.
Ms. Brooks clarified that points drop off after 12
months.
The second motion presented says that once the five-point
deduction level is reached, it would remain the penalty for the
remainder of the operator's
career for late payments when late penalties are assessed as part of the bid
process.
MS. TAECKENS MOVED, SUPPORTED BY MS. WOLFE TO APPROVE THE MOTION THAT ONCE
THE FIVE-POINT DEDUCTION LEVEL IS REACHED IT WOULD REMAIN
THE PENALTY FOR THE
REMAINDER OF THE OPERATOR'S CAREER; THIS MOTION PASSED WITH 4 YEAS AND 1
NAY.
Mr. Eagle explained his no vote indicating that these points would
remain with the operator for the rest of their BEP
career.
Ms. Zanger reported that there were two newly established BEP
facilities. Rutherford Beard is operator of the Michigan
National Guard Joint
Reserve Training Center and while currently serving breakfast and lunch, Mr.
Beard is hoping to provide catering to on-site meeting
and training sessions.
The second establishment, the Pontiac Area Metroplex is being run by Rob
Essenberg. This BEP site runs 24 hours a day, 7 days a
week. Currently the site
is operating vending and catering some lunches. The cafeteria will begin
operation upon receipt of approval by the local health
department.
Ms. Zanger also noted that the postal service contract is in the
final stages of being complete. The contract is
currently in Washington D.C.
waiting for final signature. Also the BEP customer satisfaction survey will
be conducted by telephone by the Michigan Commission on
Disability Concerns,
results will be available in a future BEP report. Lastly, regarding the
retirement issue and calculation of retirement monies the
office of retirement
services should have an answer on the calculation process by the end of June
and BEP will have information for the Board by the end
of the summer.
Ms. Zanger attended the BLAST conference which provided
excellent training programs and a chance to interact with other
BEP managers and get
insight into other states programs. The outstanding efforts by the BEP
operators is recognized yearly at the Operators workshop and
this year four operators
have been selected by their peers for Operator of the Year. These operators
are Deborah Bell of southeast Michigan, Bill Younce of
the northeast Lower
Peninsula and Upper Peninsula, Richard Heisser of Central Michigan and Mike
Goudeseune of West Michigan.
MR. EAGLE MOVED, SUPPORTED BY MS. WOLFE TO ACCEPT THE BUSINESS ENTERPRISE
PROGRAM REPORT; THE MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.
ELECTED OPERATORS COMMITTEE (EOC)
Ms. Hazell Brooks, chair of the Elected Operators Committee
commented on the EOC subcommittees, having had 6 meetings,
one special one with
five more to go. Future discussion will include when clients transition
from the vocational rehabilitation program to BEP. Two
Ad-Hoc committees were
created; one to look at possible ways to raise revenue for the BEP program
and the other, the Resolution Committee, to educate the
operators on issues
they are having in locations and how to navigate through the grievance
process.
The EOC and the MCB are putting the final touches on the Vending
Stand Training guidelines for out of state operators.
This will be going before
the EOC for a vote shortly.
Operators are still having issues with Public Act 260 and Public
Act 431 in regards to outside agencies bringing food
into establishments for
sale. Mr. Joe Pelle is drafting a position paper on this issue and the
rough draft will be brought before the EOC in the near
future.
MS. TAECKENS MOVED, SUPPORTED BY MS. WOLFE TO ACCEPT THE ELECTED OPERATORS
COMMITTEE REPORT; THE MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.
CONSUMER SERVICES REPORT
Leamon Jones, Consumer Services Division Manager reported on the
anticipation of greater numbers of older blind in the
near future. This has
resulted in collaborated efforts between MCB and Area Agency on Aging to
create new programs and services to meet this future need.
The Consumer Services report had a large focus on timeliness of
services and meeting the demands of the Rehabilitation
Act as amended in 1998.
The first step is eligibility which is determined by an eye doctor report
that indicates legal blindness. The next step is the
Comprehensive Assessment
of Rehabilitation Needs (CARN) that provides the additional information
needed to develop a proper Individualized Plan for
Employment (IPE) within 90 days.
The IPE provides timelines and specific time periods when these particular
objectives need to be reached.
Mr. Jones continued that staff training begins with a nine week
orientation process and continues on with individual
consultations with managers,
staff meetings which include local community partner participation and
random case reviews to ensure timeliness of services.
Training is provided on an
ongoing basis.
In the event that a commission client is not pleased with MCB
services in any way there are many steps that can be taken
to address their concerns.
The consumer can start the grievance process through the manager of the
office of the counselor they are working with. A client
can request an administrative
review. The next step is to contact the Client Assistance Program (CAP)
where the consumer goes through their process. The final
step, if there is still
no resolution, is to contact the State Office of Administrative Hearings and
Rules (SOAHR) where a hearing date may be set and the
case is presented to
an Administrative Law Judge.
Mr. Jones also reported other activities that MCB is involved in
include many summer programs that focus on independent
living skills and employment
skills. The BEP Summer Work Opportunity Program (SWOP) is entering its third
year and this summer is offering nine high school and
college age students
an opportunity to gain summer work experience.
A first time program that was very successful was a Transition Day
that was held in conjunction with the Saginaw Mini
Adjustment. Ten individuals
participated in this program, it was very well received and talk of
expansion has already begun.
MS. TAECKENS MOVED, SUPPORTED BY MS. WOLFE TO ACCEPT THE CONSUMER SERVICES
REPORT; THE MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.
MCB ACTION PLAN OVERVIEW
The action plan was developed several years ago as part of the
agencies strategic visioning and planning process. The
action plan is a management
tool to track progress on numerous objectives identified under 4 overall
goals for the Commission. Bob Robertson, Rehabilitation
Consultant for organizational
development, human resources, training and monitoring provided the overview
of the action plan with comments stated by himself, Mr.
Cannon, Ms. Boone,
Mr. Jones and Ms. Heibeck.
Objective
1.1 Create a questionnaire to gather information from various clients
including VR, IL, Training Center students and YLV students
and parents.
Status: The survey is in the final stages of being developed, and
information will be shared when it is complete.
1.2 MCB and the EOC will collaborate to collect and analyze training
quality satisfaction of the BEP operators and trainees.
Status: The survey was completed last year so the previous survey was
used as a benchmark and MCDC is one-quarter of the way
through calling all operators
with the latest survey.
1.3 Assess skill development and satisfaction of clients completing a
program at MCBTC.
Status: Gathered old survey questions, and the questions need to be
reviewed by staff. Training center students will be able
to take the survey and
it will be available in all accessible formats so the survey remains
anonymous.
1.4 Gather information regarding Information Packets, Training Center
tours and phone calls in each office to determine
effectiveness of service delivery
system and outreach.
Status: The field gathers data regarding incoming phone calls and the
Center gathers the information regarding tours. The
Training Center is scheduled
to give the information to Susan Turney on a monthly basis.
1.5 The Executive Management Team (EMT) is to develop assessment and
tracking tools to measure client satisfaction.
Status: The questions are almost done, second revisions were completed
and MCB is currently working with Dr. Brenda Cavanaugh
from Mississippi State
University to finalize the questions. This will be a phone survey
administered by MCDC that should commence in the next couple of
weeks.
1.6 Training Center Director and staff are to develop a data gathering
tool to track Braille statistics including textbooks used
by each student, the
instructor name and beginning and ending reading level.
Status: The data gathering survey is finished; the instructors have
had several meetings and the developed instrument tracks
the level of Braille
and the speed of reading contracted Braille.
1.7 Develop a Summer Youth Program that will operate at the Center for at
least six weeks during the summer; this program will be
targeted at students
in transition and assist them in gaining work experience.
Status: The outline was presented in April and the decision was made
to implement this program over the next two years. This
first year weekend and
evening programs are being added to the Training Center summer activities
when summer staff is approved to be hired.
1.8 Develop the Summer Work Opportunity Program (SWOP) for BEP that will
create guidelines for BEP operators employing clients
for the summer.
Status: Summer Work Opportunity Program (SWOP) had a goal of 9
operators and currently 11 are participating. The current
operators are praising the
4 students who have started; 5 more students are in the works and will be
starting shortly.
1.9 Create a BEP operator point report that will provide on demand
information at operator's request.
Status: The report was completed and run but bugs and data issues were
found. The bugs have been fixed and the data issues
are being fixed. The
ultimate goal is to have the data accurate and available so the operators
could call up at any time and find their points. This
should be up and operational
in the telephony system in the next two months.
1.10 Collaborate with MRS and the Department of Corrections to develop and
implement the Michigan Prisoner Re-Entry Program and
Veteran's MOU.
Status: Both programs have been signed and details are being worked
out. The MPRI is ready to be implemented and specific
details are being addressed
for implementation. The Veterans MOU is in the process of having some of
the details refined and will be ready at the beginning of
the next fiscal year.
1.11 Develop MCB's Business Services Initiative to educate employers
regarding MCB's job ready consumers and expand participation
in CSAVR's National
Employment Network.
Status: MCB continues to work with this program and continues to
provide job opportunities. We receive information and will
attend a conference on
how to become more integrated into CSAVR's program. One of the greatest
successes with the program has been Walgreens.
1.12 Complete four case reviews for 2008.
Status: Two case reviews have been completed. The other two will be
done by the end of the calendar year.
1.13 Conduct training needs assessment and develop creative, low-cost (or
no cost) means for in-service training for agency staff.
Status: An email was sent to all staff asking for training priorities,
the moratorium on training and budget restrictions have
cut back on staff travel.
Training priority will be MPRI, Veterans administration program and the
diversity committee which has scheduled training for all
staff to take place in
October.
1.14 Continue working with the Future Ad Hoc Committee to develop
strategies to address changing needs for VR services as the
number of blind persons increases.
Status: The Futuristic Ad Hoc Committee is continuing to look at those
objectives and have identified some processes to take
to meet those objectives
and have shared this information with the EMT as well as the Director. The
committee is taking a look at some of the technology
companies and is finding
ways to work with these companies. More seniors will be coming to MCB and
the Commission is working closely with the Area Agency on
Aging to develop programs
to meet those needs.
2.1 Develop a plan and timeline for use of federal government earmarked
funds for Technology Center.
Status: MCB's request for earmark funds has moved to DLEG, then to the
Governor's Washington office and at this point is
awaiting congressional action.
2.2 Partner with other agencies or groups for purposes of technology
training, financial help with training and grant writing.
Status: MCB is working with many of the rehab agencies to expand
training opportunities. MCB is also working with the
agencies who have received
grants to develop vocational opportunities for MCB consumers.
3.1 Write, produce, print and post online a DeafBlind brochure and a MCB
Training Center brochure.
Status: The DeafBlind services brochure is in process to being
finished. Ms. Turney is also working with Ms. Boone to produce
a new Training Center
brochure.
3.2 Produce an MCB Annual Report for both print and online format.
Status: Ms. Turney is compiling data throughout the year and will
produce the annual report at the end of the year.
3.3 Continue collaboration with professional organizations of eye
doctors.
Status: MCB continues working with optometrists and ophthalmologists
observing blindness services awareness month and pursuing
placement of brochures
in the offices of eyecare professionals. Ferris State University invites
commission staff to speak to their classes of optometry
students about commission
services.
3.4 Enhance the MCB website including adding audio files of agency
brochures, videos and archived quarterly Commission meetings.
Status: Future meetings will be archived when the space becomes
available through DMB. Three of MCB's brochures are currently
available on line.
4.1 Explore future collaboration with the Office of Aging and Area
Agencies on Aging to more effectively serve older individuals
with sight loss.
Status: This is ongoing and contact has been made with several offices
of Area Agencies on Agency so services can be obtained
in all communities.
Commissioners expressed appreciation for the action plan overview
and indicated that this was very helpful.
Mike Ellis advised Commissioners that there had not been audio
streaming because there was equipment failure. The
Commission will have audio that
has been captured.
MS. TAECKENS MOVED, SUPPORTED BY MR. EAGLE TO ADJOURN THE MEETING; THE
MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.
The meeting was adjourned at 3:02 p.m. The next meeting will be held on
Friday, September 19 at the Victor Center, Lansing. The
meeting will begin at
9:00 a.m.
Jo Ann Pilarski, Chairperson
Date
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