[nfbmi-talk] betcha this wasn't brought up at staff meeting

Wed Jun 23 15:08:53 UTC 2010

Hey Joe,

Could you change the subject when you send out a different topic?  This
Blizzard subject is to do with the college policy, so it is more difficult
to file things that have the same subject line and a different topic.

Thanks.

Warmest Regards,

Fred
-----Original Message-----
From: nfbmi-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nfbmi-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org]
On Behalf Of joe harcz Comcast
Sent: Wednesday, June 23, 2010 10:41 AM
To: nfbmi-talk at nfbnet.org
Subject: [nfbmi-talk] betcha this wasn't brought up at staff meeting

Sec. 361.18  Comprehensive system of personnel development.

    The State plan must describe the procedures and activities the 

State agency will undertake to establish and maintain a comprehensive 

system of personnel development designed to ensure an adequate supply 

of qualified rehabilitation personnel, including professionals and 

paraprofessionals, for the designated State unit. If the State agency 

has a State Rehabilitation Council, this description must, at a 

minimum, specify that the Council has an opportunity to review and 

comment on the development of plans, policies, and procedures necessary 

to meet the requirements of paragraphs (b) through (d) of this section. 

This description must also conform with the following requirements:

    (a) Data system on personnel and personnel development. The State 

plan must describe the development and maintenance of a system by the 

State agency for collecting and analyzing on an annual basis data on 

qualified personnel needs and personnel development, in accordance with 

the following requirements:

    (1) Data on qualified personnel needs must include--

    (i) The number of personnel who are employed by the State agency in 

the provision of vocational rehabilitation services in relation to the 

number of individuals served, broken down by personnel category;

    (ii) The number of personnel currently needed by the State agency 

to provide vocational rehabilitation services, broken down by personnel 

category; and

    (iii) Projections of the number of personnel, broken down by 

personnel category, who will be needed by the State agency to provide 

vocational rehabilitation services in the State in 5 years based on 

projections of the number of individuals to be served, including 

individuals with significant disabilities, the number of personnel 

expected to retire or leave the field, and other relevant factors.

    (2) Data on personnel development must include--

    (i) A list of the institutions of higher education in the State 

that are preparing vocational rehabilitation professionals, by type of 

program;

    (ii) The number of students enrolled at each of those institutions, 

broken down by type of program; and

    (iii) The number of students who graduated during the prior year 

from each of those institutions with certification or licensure, or 

with the credentials for certification or licensure, broken down by the 

personnel category for which they have received, or have the 

credentials to receive, certification or licensure.

    (b) Plan for recruitment, preparation, and retention of qualified 

personnel. The State plan must describe the development, updating, and 

implementation of a plan to address the current and projected needs for 

personnel who are qualified in accordance with paragraph (c) of this 

section. The plan must identify the personnel needs based on the data 

collection and analysis system described in paragraph (a) of this 

section and must provide for the coordination and facilitation of 

efforts between the designated State unit and institutions of higher 

education and professional associations to recruit, prepare, and retain 

personnel who are qualified in accordance with paragraph (c) of this 

section, including personnel from minority backgrounds and personnel 

who are individuals with disabilities.

    (c) Personnel standards.

    (1) The State plan must include the State agency's policies and 

describe the procedures the State agency will undertake to establish 

and maintain standards to ensure that all professional and 

paraprofessional personnel needed within the designated State unit to 

carry out this part are appropriately and adequately prepared and 

trained, including--

    (i) Standards that are consistent with any national or State-

approved or -recognized certification, licensing, or registration 

requirements, or, in the absence of these requirements, other 

comparable requirements (including State personnel requirements) that 

apply to the profession or discipline in which that category of 

personnel is providing vocational rehabilitation services; and

    (ii) To the extent that existing standards are not based on the 

highest requirements in the State, the steps the State is currently 

taking and the steps the State plans to take to retrain or hire 

personnel to meet standards that are based on the highest requirements 

in the State, including measures to notify State unit personnel, the 

institutions of higher education identified under paragraph (a)(2)(i) 

of this section, and other public agencies of these steps and the 

timelines for taking each step. The steps taken by the State unit under 

this paragraph must be described in a written plan that includes--

    (A) Specific strategies for retraining, recruiting, and hiring 

personnel;

    (B) The specific time period by which all State unit personnel will 

meet the standards described in paragraph (c)(1)(i) of this section;

    (C) Procedures for evaluating the State unit's progress in hiring 

or retraining personnel to meet applicable personnel standards within 

the time period established under paragraph (c)(1)(ii)(B) of this 

section; and

    (D) In instances in which the State unit is unable to immediately 

hire new personnel who meet the requirements in paragraph (c)(1)(i) of 

this section, the initial minimum qualifications that the designated 

State unit will require of newly hired personnel and a plan for 

training those individuals to meet applicable requirements within the 

time period established under paragraph (c)(1)(ii)(B) of this section.

    (2) As used in this section--

    (i) Highest requirements in the State applicable to that profession 

or discipline means the highest entry-level academic degree needed for 

any national or State-approved or -recognized certification, licensing, 

registration, or, in the absence of these requirements, other 

comparable requirements that apply to that profession or discipline. 

The current requirements of all State statutes and regulations of other 

agencies in the State applicable to that profession or discipline must 

be considered and must be kept on file by the designated State unit and 

available to the public.

    (ii) Profession or discipline means a specific occupational 

category, including any paraprofessional occupational category, that--

    (A) Provides rehabilitation services to individuals with 

disabilities;

    (B) Has been established or designated by the State unit; and

    (C) Has a specified scope of responsibility.

    (d) Staff development.

    (1) The State plan must include the State agency's policies and 

describe the procedures and activities the State agency will undertake 

to ensure that all personnel employed by the State unit receive 

appropriate and adequate training, including a description of--

    (i) A system of staff development for rehabilitation professionals 

and paraprofessionals within the State unit, particularly with respect 

to assessment, vocational counseling, job placement, and rehabilitation 

technology; and

    (ii) Procedures for acquiring and disseminating to rehabilitation 

professionals and paraprofessionals within the designated State unit 

significant knowledge from research and other sources.

    (2) The specific training areas for staff development must be based 

on the

[[Page 4395]]

needs of each State unit and may include, but are not limited to--

    (i) Training regarding the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 and the 

amendments to the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 made by the Rehabilitation 

Act Amendments of 1998;

    (ii) Training with respect to the requirements of the Americans 

with Disabilities Act, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, 

and Social Security work incentive programs, including programs under 

the Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Improvement Act of 1999, 

training to facilitate informed choice under this program, and training 

to improve the provision of services to culturally diverse populations; 

and

    (iii) Activities related to--

    (A) Recruitment and retention of qualified rehabilitation 

personnel;

    (B) Succession planning; and

    (C) Leadership development and capacity building.

    (e) Personnel to address individual communication needs. The State 

plan must describe how the State unit--

    (1) Includes among its personnel, or obtains the services of, 

individuals able to communicate in the native languages of applicants 

and eligible individuals who have limited English speaking ability; and

    (2) Includes among its personnel, or obtains the services of, 

individuals able to communicate with applicants and eligible 

individuals in appropriate modes of communication.

    (f) Coordination with personnel development under the Individuals 

with Disabilities Education Act. The State plan must describe the 

procedures and activities the State agency will undertake to coordinate 

its comprehensive system of personnel development under the Act with 

personnel development under the Individuals with Disabilities Education 

Act.

(Authority: Section 101(a)(7) of the Act; 29 U.S.C. 721(a)(7))

Sec. 361.19  Affirmative action for individuals with disabilities.

    The State plan must assure that the State agency takes affirmative 

action to employ and advance in employment qualified individuals with 

disabilities covered under and on the same terms and conditions as 

stated in section 503 of the Act.

(Authority: Section 101(a)(6)(B) of the Act; 29 U.S.C. 721(a)(6)(B))

Sec. 361.20  Public participation requirements.

    (a) Conduct of public meetings. The State plan must assure that 

prior to the adoption of any substantive policies or procedures 

governing the provision of vocational rehabilitation services under the 

State plan, including making any substantive amendments to the policies 

and procedures, the designated State agency conducts public meetings 

throughout the State to provide the public, including individuals with 

disabilities, an opportunity to comment on the policies or procedures.

    (b) Notice requirements. The State plan must assure that the 

designated State agency, prior to conducting the public meetings, 

provides appropriate and sufficient notice throughout the State of the 

meetings in accordance with--

    (1) State law governing public meetings; or

    (2) In the absence of State law governing public meetings, 

procedures developed by the designated State agency in consultation 

with the State Rehabilitation Council.
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