PETS Webinar Series SelfAdvocacy Instruction PETS Webinar Series

PETS Webinar Series: Self-Advocacy Instruction PETS Webinar Series: Part 2 Thursday, October 24, 2019, 10 am-11 am Melissa Wert-Thrush Central Region Transition Specialist 1

Overview: Mission Statement To assist Pennsylvanians with disabilities to secure and maintain employment and independence. 2

Objectives Participants will be able to: • Define Self-Advocacy and describe potential outcomes. • Explain the service format. • Provide examples of Self-Advocacy. • Explain how to document Self-Advocacy and what PETS forms to use. • Provide resources and tools for Self-Advocacy. 3

WIOA • The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) amends the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and now requires vocational rehabilitation (VR) agencies to set aside at least 15% of their federal funds to provide “pre-employment transition services” to “Students with Disabilities who are eligible or potentially eligible for VR services. ” • Under section 113(b) of the Act and final § 361. 48(a)(2), each State must make all "required" pre-employment transition services available to students with disabilities who need such services. 4

5 Required PETS What are Pre-Employment Transition Services? Self-Advocacy Instruction Counseling On Postsecondary Options Job Exploration Counseling Work Based Learning Workplace Readiness Training 5

Review of PETS and VR Services • PETS provides a generalized early start to job exploration. • PETS assist students with disabilities in identifying career interests that may be further explored through individualized Vocational Rehabilitation services. • PETS must be provided or arranged in collaboration with a Local Education Agency (LEA). • The goal of both PETS and individualized Vocational Rehabilitation services is assisting individuals with disabilities to prepare for and achieve competitive integrated employment. 6

Self-Advocacy Instruction Service definition, intended outcomes, and service format 7

Definition Self-Advocacy Instruction helps students with disabilities build skills to solve problems and communicate their own needs and interests. 8

3 Steps for Self-Advocacy 3 Steps for a student to become an effective Self. Advocate : • Knowing themselves • Knowing their needs • Knowing how to get what they need 9

Topics and Outcomes • To ensure the quality of our services and accurately record PETS data for RSA reporting, we have also developed a list of topics and potential outcomes. • These topics and outcomes should be documented in CPNs or in the “Notes” section of PETS rosters. 10

Self-Advocacy Topics • Accommodations and Assistive Technology • Disability Awareness/ Disclosure • Disclosure and Advocating Across Environments • Entitlement versus Eligibility • Resiliency and Self-Care • Self-Determination • Setting Goals • Understanding IEPs, Special Education, and 504 plans 11

Accommodations and Assistive Technology Potential Outcomes: • Identify and discuss how their disability impacts them and the coping strategies that may assist them at school, work and socially • Identify natural and formal supports and services (including but not limited to auxiliary aids, services, community agency support, and accommodations) that may be necessary for training or employment • Students will identify and learn how to use assistive technology in the workplace 12

Disability Awareness/ Disclosure Potential Outcomes: • Learn the definition of “disability” and types of disabilities • Know their disability • Learn the concept of disability disclosure 13

Disclosure and Advocating Across Environments Potential Outcomes: • Learn basic components of becoming an effective self-advocate • Discuss how their disability impacts them (in school, work, home, community) • Identify rights and responsibilities regarding receiving accommodations in high school, postsecondary training, and employment. 14

Entitlement versus Eligibility Potential Outcomes: • Learn the difference between an IEP (or 504 plan) and school or workplace accommodations • Identify rights and responsibilities regarding receiving accommodations in high school, post-secondary training, and employment. • Learn the difference between various disability programs like special education, ODP, and OVR and what they can expect from each program. 15

Resiliency and Self-Care Potential Outcomes: • Identify healthy habits, coping strategies, and wellness activities for managing stress that may assist them at school, work and community life. • Identify appropriate boundaries for time, relationships and emotions. • Learn how to maintain healthy relationships with coworkers 16

Self-Determination is a combination of attitudes and abilities that lead people to set goals for themselves and take the initiative to reach these goals. Potential Outcomes: • Learn the definition of “self-determination and “self-advocacy” • Identify steps to problem solving • Develop communication skills that allow them to have the freedom to plan their own lives, pursue things that are important to them and experience the same life opportunities as other people in their communities 17

Setting Goals Potential Outcomes: • Setting at least one personal goal and identifying the necessary steps to reach that goal • Identify steps to problem solving • Develop decision-making skills to make informed choices in all aspects of training and employment including selection of goals 18

Understanding IEPs, Special Education, and 504 plans Potential Outcomes: • Discuss specific behaviors (positive and negative) and their effect on academic classes and/or employment. • Learn what an IEP (or 504 plan) is and what’s in their IEP (or 504 plan) • Identify rights and responsibilities regarding receiving accommodations in high school, post-secondary training, and employment. • Identify natural and formal supports and services (including but not limited to auxiliary aids, services, community agency support, and accommodations) that may be necessary for training or employment. 19

Service Format-Individual Counseling OVR staff may provide individual Self. Advocacy Instruction to eligible and potentially eligible students. • Individual counseling may occur in-person, over the phone, or through other means like Skype • It may occur once or be a series of meetings 20

Service Format-Group Presentations OVR staff may provide Self-Advocacy Instruction to groups of eligible and potentially eligible students. • Group presentations may occur in-person, over the phone, or through other means like Skype • It may occur once or be a series of meetings 21

Service Format-Purchased services OVR staff may purchase Self-Advocacy Instruction for eligible and potentially eligible students. • Group presentations must occur in-person at a school or community location • It may occur once or be a series of meetings *Some administrative memos or other OVR programs may also contain parts of Self-Advocacy Instruction. 22

How to Authorize Service authorizations and forms for providers 23

Group Service Authorization for Providers • Use the electronic authorization system in CWDS (service code 59206). • $7. 50 per half-hour per student. • 2 – 25 students per group. • Service authorizations over $3, 000 require special approval from the Local District Administrator/Assistant District Administrator. • Service authorizations over $10, 000 require approval from the Regional Transition Specialist. 24

Billing Group Service • Providers invoice in CWDS electronically. • Student information is entered in CWDS as “student attendee” if not already inputted. • Only need to create “student attendee” per student once; it doesn’t matter what group service they received first. • Providers need to submit the OVR-273 Self-Advocacy Progress Report every time they bill (attached in training materials for today’s webinar) for each student. 25

Location of Progress Report • OVR staff can locate the OVR-273 Self-Advocacy Progress Report on the T-drive at T: PETS General GuidancePETS Forms. • Also, staff can access the form in CWDS under Help OVR Forms Bank. • Providers can obtain the progress report in CWDS under Help Center List of Miscellaneous Documents OVR Pre-Employment Transition Services. 26

Examples Ways to provide Self-Advocacy Instruction 27

Engaging Students • Complete worksheets on Self-Advocacy topics • Watch videos and ask self-reflection questions • Role play different scenarios where a student might need to advocate for themselves • Ask student to lead their own IEP meeting • Utilize apps like the Planning for the Future Checklist and other technology 28

Videos • I’m Determined • 10 Self-Advocacy Tips for Young People with Disabilities • Self-Advocacy: A State of Mind - Abby Edwards • Student Success: Self-Advocacy for Students with Learning Difficulties 29

Worksheets • The 411 on Disability Disclosure Workbook for Youth • The 411 on Disability Disclosure for Professionals • Virginia Department of Education Self. Determination Toolbox 30

Example from the Field Example worksheets from ERC Laura Taylor from the Williamsport DO: • I Am…. Able To Meet My Personal Needs • Self-Advocacy & Self-Determination Story Completion • Self-Advocacy & Self-Determination During an IEP Note: These worksheets are attached in the training materials for today’s webinar. 31

Documentation Review of how to document Self-Advocacy Instruction and related forms 32

What’s Required for Documentation? Potentially eligible students: • A Student Release form must be obtained if the student does not have an open VR case. • The PETS Roster is completed to document the service in CWDS. Students with open cases: • Staff should complete case progress notes in CWDS and use the drop-down menu to label the service appropriately. • Note Type = PETS Student Services Instruction in Self. Advocacy 33

HOW – PETS CPNs If a customer is labeled as a “Student” in CWDS, the CPN Note Type defaults to “PETS Student Services”. If staff provided any of the 5 required PETS services or attended an IEP meeting, they should select the relevant service under “PETS Student Services”. If an interaction focused on arranging services, such as scheduling an IEP meeting, or scheduling a meeting with a PETS provider, staff should select the “Arranging PETS” option. 34

CPN Standards (1 of 4) There are established quality standards and formats for case documentation. SOAP (Subjective, Objective, Assessment, Plan) is a commonly used format for rehabilitation case documentation. The SOAP format provides a means to: • Organize information • Promote critical thinking to analyze data and plan case progression • “Tells the story” of case development 35

CPN Standards (2 of 4) SOAP: Subjective and Objective Data Subjective data - Information told to the VRC from the customer or other non-professionals (family, friends, etc. ). • Example: Student reported he understands that his learning disability in reading makes it difficult for him to be able to comprehend auditory information. He obtains info better visually. When in the Self-Advocacy group he likes to participate in hands-on activities. Objective data - Professional, factual observations by VRC or other professionals (i. e. relevant records). • Example: Student required extra time to complete the Self-Advocacy worksheet today. No accommodations were needed to complete the task. 36

CPN Standards (3 of 4) SOAP: Assessment – your professional analysis of the situation. This does not mean giving a medical diagnosis, which must be done by someone qualified to provide one. Assessment for VR purposes includes: o Level of customer cooperation/insight/motivation o Behavior patterns that need to be addressed o Customer progress, lack of progress and related circumstances o Efficacy of any treatments, services or plans o Services the customer may benefit from Example: This is the 4 th Self-Advocacy session for the student. He pays attention to the directions and follows them accurately. He is motivated to improve his problem solving and listening skills. 37

CPN Standards (4 of 4) SOAP: Plans include: • Today’s topic and the student’s response • Next steps • Who does what and when will it be done • Plan for next contact (what type of contact, when, who will initiate scheduling) Example: VRC and student reviewed his current IEP. Then, they discussed the accommodations he receives in high school and whether he will be able to use those same accommodations in college next year. Student would like to work with his IEP team to transition to only using accommodations that are allowable in both the high school and college settings. VRC will work with student to develop a list of questions to ask at his next IEP meeting about accommodations. 38

Resources Potential tools and websites you might consider using 39

Resources • Planning for the Future Checklist (Attached in training materials for today’s webinar or available as an app for IOS or Android) • Self-Advocacy Info • Pacer Center • Autism Speaks Transition Toolkit • Penn State Diversity Activities • T-drive/Early Reach Coordinator Resources/Early Reach Webinar Series/Self-Advocacy 2 -6 -19 40

PETS Webinar Series Thursday, Oct 17 10 am-11 am Part 1: IEPs and Auxiliary Aids Thursday, Oct 24 10 am-11 am Part 2: Self-Advocacy Instruction Thursday, Oct 31 10 am-11 am Part 3: Job Exploration Counseling Thursday, Nov 7 10 am-11 am Part 4: Workplace Readiness Training (including Independent Living) Thursday, Nov 14 10 am-11 am Part 5: Counseling on Post-Secondary Options Thursday, Dec 5 10 am-11 am Part 6: Work Based Learning Experiences 41

Transition Specialists Kaitlin Salvati ksalvati@pa. gov Eastern Region: Allentown, Norristown, Philadelphia, Reading, Wilkes-Barre Melissa Wert-Thrush mwertthrus@pa. gov Central Region: Altoona, Harrisburg, Johnstown, Williamsport, York Beth Ann Fanning bfanning@pa. gov Western Region: Dubois, Erie, New Castle, Pittsburgh, Washington 42

Questions 43