Podcasts about massachusetts commission

This Manager Minute episode spotlights how the Massachusetts Commission for the Blind and MassAbility are leveraging AI to improve service delivery. Host Carol Pankow discusses innovative AI applications with guests Lola Akinlapa, Nathan Skrocki, and John Oliveira. They explore an AI-assisted intake platform designed to streamline processes, enhance multilingual support, and enable faster access to services. The conversation also highlights AI-powered tools like policy lookup systems and data visualization platforms like Tableau. Emphasizing accessibility and transparency, the episode showcases AI's potential to alleviate administrative bottlenecks, support staff, and empower consumers while preserving the human touch in service delivery.   Listen Here   Full Transcript:   {Music} John: We were looking for items that might be helpful to our staff. As many of our veteran counselors move on to retirement, it became imperative that we find a way that the newer counselors could find access to information quickly.   Lola: We're not looking to reduce workforce. We're not looking to reduce your day to day operations, right. We're looking to streamline and to make the consumer's journey at MassAbility more accessible to them.   Nate: What we're doing is just enhancing and streamlining the process to better understand and strengthen their policy knowledge, to make their jobs a little bit easier.   Intro Voice: Manager Minute brought to you by the VRTAC for Quality Management, Conversations powered by VR, one manager at a time, one minute at a time. Here is your host Carol Pankow.   Carol: Well, welcome to the manager minute. Today joining me in the studio is Lola Akinlapa, director of strategic initiatives in Massachusetts. Nathan Skrocki, Policy director at the Massachusetts Commission for the blind. And John Oliveira, Commissioner for the Mass Commission for the blind. So how goes it, Lola?   Lola: Oh, everything is good. Thank you for having me, Carol. I think this is a really great forum to kind of spread the word on what we've been doing at the state of Massachusetts.   Carol: Excellent. How about you, Nate? How are you doing today?   Nate: Happy new year. Doing well. Glad to be here. Thank you.   Carol: Excellent. And last but not least, John, how is it? How are things? You got a new role.   John: Everything is great. A very cold day today, but we'll get through it. Uh, it's close to zero wind chill. So very cold day here.   Carol: Ah, it's like you guys are in Minnesota...   John: Yeah, I think so.   Carol:  Joining Jeff and I...   John: I think so.   Carol: Yeah. We were three below today. It was fabulous. Well I'm super excited about our topic. So artificial intelligence, although it's really not a new concept, it's gained significant attention in the recent years and the field of AI research was officially established during a workshop at Dartmouth College in 1956, where researchers optimistically predicted that human level intelligence machines would be achieved within a generation. However, it became clear the challenge was really greater than anticipated. But today, you know, we have AI everywhere seamlessly integrated into our life. You know, we've got Siri and Alexa. I rely on them all the time to your biometric scanning at the airports and the list goes on. And I had the good fortune to find out that Massachusetts is really standing out as a state that has embraced the broad implementation of AI and incorporating it extensively across various aspects of daily life and governance. So I want to dig in and learn some more from you guys. So I'd like to start out because our listeners like to get a little insight into all of you. If you could tell us about yourself and your role. And for our my two friends from the Blind agency a little bit. How you got into VR? And Lola, I'm going to start with you first.   Lola: Thank you, Carol. So a little bit about myself, as you mentioned, Lola Akinlapa, I am Director of Strategic Initiatives at now, formerly what used to be the Mass Rehab Commission and now known as MassAbility. I came into the agency back in 2014. I actually started in research and development, doing a lot of the analytic work. I actually was voluntold, I would say, to assist in a new project that we were implementing. It was a statewide case management system for our different divisions at MassAbility. Through that process, I was able to kind of take a step back to say, well, what do we need at this agency to push us toward the future?   Carol: Yeah, Lola, it is great being voluntold, because that leads to some of the best things when you're working on different things. So, Nate, how about you? How did you land at Mass Commission for the Blind?   Nate: I landed at MCB about eight years ago. At this point. I've been a manager within state government for many years and ended up at MCB. Hopefully this is where I'll be staying for many more years. I really like the mission of MCB and the work that we do as an agency to provide services to residents of Massachusetts.   Carol: Good stuff, good stuff. And John, you've switched roles, so I've known you for a while. But tell our listeners a little bit about yourself.   John: All right. Carol, I've been with the agency for, wow, 37 years.   Carol: Oh my gosh.   John: And started out in services and worked with the senior staff, senior consumers, and was in vocational rehab for a while, worked as director of staff development and training for a while. I headed up the assistive technology program for a while. I was deputy commissioner for something like 12 years, oversaw the programs, and I've been commissioner now for a year and a half.   Carol: Good for you. Well, sure good to see you again. So in the fall, I had the had the chance to attend an AI convening with Tony Wolf, who is the MassAbility Commissioner. And Tony was mentioning she kept talking about all these really cool things happening in Massachusetts. And I just I needed to learn more. So now, Lola, like, how is MassAbility moving in this AI space? And I know you're doing some things that are helping the consumer experience be quicker and easier. What's that look like?   Lola: Oh my God. It's been quite a journey to say the least. At our agency, we as many other agencies identified bottlenecks, identified issues with maybe the bureaucratic side of things where it takes longer to get someone from point A to point B. It was through, actually, our centralized intake unit where we discovered there's area for improvement here. And that area of improvement could be resolved through an assisted intake form. So at MassAbility, we're developing an AI assisted intake platform that's meant to support our staff at MassAbility, who are doing the intakes to allow them to have more leeway on doing what's more important to the work, which is getting our folks to the services they need. Through this intake form, we're actually removing the repetitive task. We're looking at some speech to text technology and then also some guided workflows. And we're also able to get multilingual support. And through the intake, it's meant to guide a lot of our consumers to feel a little bit more empowered to get from I'm stuck here, how do I get services that I need, whether I'm going to work or looking to live or transition into the community, instead of waiting months before someone can speak to you to get you through the process.   In this platform, we're actually able to allow our staff to have more time to be dedicated to more personalized interactions with our clients. So it's been a journey to kind of develop what that roadmap looks like. But we are super excited about this. We actually will be going live early this year through our MassAbility site, through our consumer portal, where it will be housed, and individuals will be able to go in, log in and fill out the form, and the form would guide them through the entire process without human interaction. And for us, I think it's really important to take a step back and really understand the purpose of this. Right. It's not to remove the individual from their work, right. It's to make some processes a little bit more streamlined, but then have our staff, our counselors, our case managers be able to focus on more of the human interaction. It's been quite a journey for us, to say the least.   Carol: So, Lola, are you working on that with your own state IT folk or who kind of is helping you mastermind all this?   Lola: So this is in collaboration with our IT folks at Executive Office of Technology. Also, we're working with a contractor who's been helping us build this platform out. They've been super great. It's been a very collaborative effort across the board. I would even have to throw in Microsoft because there's some work that they're assisting us doing, and it's been a team effort to get it to where it is today. And we're actually very proud of what we've done in such a short period of time.   Carol: Very cool, I like it. I know Lola, you had talked to me too, you were interested in doing something kind of in this data realm because I know data isn't cool always. But you were trying to do some stuff with Tableau and AI. So what does that look like?   Lola: Tableau. For folks that don't know, it's a visual data tool that we've been using at MassAbility for a little bit over four years now. The really cool thing about technology is as the years go on, the tools get better. Tableau was another way that we were using to kind of drive our data decision making at the agency. You know, things that are really core to the MassAbility beliefs in our missions. With Tableau, we're able to have a chatbot, and the chatbot would be utilized something similar like ChatGPT, where you could say, show me how many individuals are getting X services, or show me how many individuals are served in certain parts of the region. Right?   Carol: Yeah.   Lola: very cool things like that where you don't have to be a data analyst or a data science...   Carol: right.   Lola: to use Tableau. It kind of makes it more user friendly and at your fingertips. I think of it like on demand data. So that's something that we've been looking at that is in collaboration with an initiative that we have over at Northeastern. And we've submitted a proposal for that. So we haven't started, but we're looking forward to some of the cool and innovative things, because I think many state agencies will agree. Data is really, really interesting to look at, especially when you're looking to tell a story, when you're looking to improve just the overall outcomes of your agency, depending on what you're looking to achieve. So it's really been something great that we're looking forward to getting started. And then also on the back end, kind of showing and empowering our own staff as to what this data means, right? Because not everyone is a data scientist. Not everyone enjoys. It's a very dry subject, but I think this is a way to keep folks engaged in terms of what's really going on at the agency, and it kind of tells a story without having to truly understand the data to tell the story.   Carol: I love that. I think you'll find if you guys can make that all happen, there's going to be a lot of folks across the country that are going to be super interested in that piece because data has been so critical, especially as WIOA passed, and we're looking at so much more of the data and what really is happening for individuals with disabilities and getting into employment. And so I feel like sometimes we're data rich, but we're analysis poor. And people are like, I don't know what all this means. You get a little bit overwhelmed by the data. So I think that would be great for people to be able to do the old ChatGPT kind of thing and just ask a question and get the answer.   Lola: Absolutely.   Carol: I love that, that's very cool. So when you look at AI, there really has been considerable impact, too, for individuals who are blind and visually impaired. And Nathan and John, I mean, what are you guys seeing with the customers you serve? Just in general, when you think about AI and the work you're doing now?   John: Well, obviously in the assistive technology field, there's always been a lot of talk about incorporating AI to serve consumers. And over the past 4 or 5 years, many of the wearables have become very popular. And every year when you see these items, they get better and better. And that's benefiting a lot of our consumers tremendously. I'm sure that you've all heard about the meta glasses. Tremendous assistance for our consumers. You put on this pair of glasses, you can take pictures of the environment you're walking through. You can use it with description services such as Aira and Be My Eyes. And it works great for someone who doesn't know the area. For someone who's trying to do some work and needs to access print immediately, a great way to do this. Many other things are coming down the pipeline, but we were looking for items that might be helpful to our staff. As many of our veteran counselors move on to retirement, it became imperative that we find a way that the newer counselors could find access to information quickly. We do the trainings the usual way, but that takes quite a bit of time. And if you have questions and you want answers right away, we were looking for a solution and we came across this solution in Outlook Insight. I read about it somewhere, I called them, I spoke to an individual at the company and we agreed that we would meet at the NCSAB Conference. And I turned them on to Nate and his policy team. And he can give you more of the story about that journey going forward here.   Carol: So what do you know, Nate?   Nate: Thanks, John.   Carol: John is the idea guy and he's like, Nate, go do the thing.   Nate: And it works out great. So what we did was we connected with Outlook Insight, and we wanted a tool that would allow kind of a quick reference lookup for our case managers. So it could be that they have questions themselves and the policy or procedures. And making sure a case is executed properly or consumer may have a question and they want a quick reference for that. So what we did with Outlook Insight is develop a tool that takes all of our internal policies and all of the other policies that govern us, and kind of housed it all in one place and very similar to ChatGPT or some of these other AIs out there. You can ask it a question and it will provide a response. And when it provides a response, we have the ability to really take a look at where it's coming from. So it will include all the resources that it's pulling from with the response. So it will cite the documentation. So it might be some direction from RSA or some of our internal policies or another piece of policy that is out there, another piece of guidance that is out there. And it will cite that particular piece of policy where it's coming from. You can click on it. When you click on it, it will bring that policy up and you can read further, but it will also provide that response. So if you ask it what form is needed at this step of a case procedure, it will bring up what form is needed. Bring up the form and you can go from there.   Carol: Nice. So where are you at in the process with this rolling out?   Nate: We have rolled it out to some staff. It's not officially rolled out yet as an agency. It's something we're still testing. But we did roll it out to some staff to test to really kind of understand what they're using it for. Another piece of it is we're allowed to add tiles to this particular system. We can create these buttons or tiles above the search bar that will have preloaded questions. So say a consumer is going to college and we you know we might have a button that has the question on it. What is college reimbursement for a student at MCB. You can click on that and we'll bring up all the information about what's appropriate for college reimbursement, how much that college investment can be, so on and so forth. We wanted to get an idea of what people were asking it. We wanted to get an idea of what they're using it for, so we can kind of load in those different tiles on the top as well. And as we go through certain cycles in case management, those will change over the year, in the future when we do roll this out. And we also just were curious on what people were looking up for quick reference. And people are using it. It is a very good tool. It's been helpful for us in the policy unit. We're not getting as many questions for people that are using it, because they're going to that first to see if they can look up the policies on their own and get a response on their own. We do caution people though, because it is AI, so sometimes it does not provide the full picture. I guess is the best way to put it. It might give a partial answer. We haven't seen where it's giving any wrong answers yet, but sometimes it doesn't fill in the whole picture. So that's why we include the policies with the response, because people can go in and search further within that policy if they need to formulate a decision a little bit better.   Carol: Yeah, you bring up a really good point. You always have to trust but verify, even ChatGPT you throw something in there. And I use it a lot because it's super helpful and it'll be going along. It's really great. It gives this response and then you have some kind of wacky line comes in there and you go, I don't really know where that came from, but that isn't right. So you can't just turn it all over to the bot. You still have to use your own kind of critical thinking skills and take a look to apply it.   Nate: For sure. The advantage that we have, as opposed to like an open source AI, is we control what goes in and out of where it's pulling from. So we're the ones putting the policies in. Or as Lola had mentioned before, if you want statistics or something like that, you can put it in a document with certain statistics and it can pull from that. But we control everything in there. So it's not pulling from this open source where it might recognize something as helpful, but it really isn't. It's everything in there. We've kind of vetted and we understand it's something that is needed by the agency.   Lola: Absolutely. And just to Nathan's point, open source, we're talking about like Google, you know, you can get millions of results back and very true at MassAibility. Similarly, we obviously have regulations that we're following with RSA. And there are things that we have to control just to make sure the language is correct. So we're putting in what needs to be said at the bot kind of just follows that logic. So that's kind of the nice thing where you can still have that control, even if it is kind of AI, but it's still guarded. It's not as loose as just an open source would be.   Carol: Yeah, absolutely. It's a great point, Lola. And I know for the both of you, you know you're doing things that are impacting the staff. So staff can definitely have a reaction to this. Sometimes positive, sometimes not. Like we're all super excited. I see your smiling faces like, yay, we're doing the thing. And then they're like, you know, people feel like back what I was saying in the beginning, like, we're going to replace everybody with robots or something. And so staff can get concerned. So I'm going to kick this to you first, Lola, what's been kind of the response from staff about the things that you guys are trying to do?   Lola: Well, I'm very fortunate to work at an agency where folks are very open minded. Change is a little different, but we're very open minded at MassAbility. I think it's all about the messaging and the purpose on why we're doing certain things right. For sure. There are people that are going to have, you know, pros and cons about it, but I think how we message it is we're not looking to reduce workforce...   Carol: right.   Lola: We're not looking to reduce your day to day operations, right? We're looking to streamline and to make the consumer's Consumers journey at MassAbility more accessible to them. The option that we have right now and how we've messaged it to staff is it's an option, right? We're not removing the human aspect of it, but it's an option for individuals who are in certain circumstances that need to get something done a little bit faster, right? It takes a little bit longer to talk to individuals, but if it's something that they feel like, you know, I'm just going in and I'm looking for a job, I know everything I need to have. This is another outlet that they can use where the system itself is like, I'm not a person, but I can guide you like an individual, right? At the end of it, you will be meeting with a person. You will have that personalized experience, that interaction, but mostly for the admin and the data entry, right? We can repurpose that. We can shift that burden to some of the tools that we have available to us, like the AI assisted intake form. So that's really the messaging behind it, right? The messaging is not to impact staff. It's not to scare staff.   Carol: Right.   Lola: But it's more to help think of allowing people to have different options to come into the agency that aren't so impactful or don't feel like a bottleneck.   Carol: Yeah, I love that. I love that point. How about you guys, Nate or John? Have you seen any initial responses from staff, maybe different than you thought or how has it been going?   Nate: I think for us it's a little bit different too, because we're providing human services, so we're not replacing that in any way with an AI tool. We're not going to be replacing us, going out and sitting with a consumer and meeting them where they're at and providing the services that they need to be successful. What we're doing is really just enhancing and, like Lola said, streamlining the process to better understand and strengthen their policy knowledge to make their jobs a little bit easier. We haven't really explored any type of AI that would help with case management work or anything like that, and it's really tough because like I said, in the human service field and in Lola can probably also agree with this. Every consumer is so different. We're meeting with them a lot of times in person, especially at our agency, and providing the services that they need. A lot of it's hands on services, something that we're not going to be able to do with AI. What we're really looking at is how do we enhance their ability to provide and streamline services and make the experience better for the consumers and for our workers. And that's what we've done with this first policy tool. And I think it's been successful. I don't know if you have anything to add there, John.   John: Yeah, we're supporting the staff at this point. So it's not that we're trying to take staff out of the process. We're making it easier for you to do your job and for you to answer questions that you may have about the process of moving the client through the system, or even questions that a consumer may ask you, and you can explain to them. And if you're missing any of that data, you can pull it up on your laptop. And that tool is always with you. You can ask it at that point, or you can refer to other resources we have on that machine. So you could certainly help them get the information they need faster and help yourself process the information they've given you faster.   Carol: Well, having done technical assistance for years with state agencies, and I see the hundreds of pages in all your policy manuals and all this craziness, I'm sure staff will greatly appreciate anything that streamlines some of that work that they have to do, and all the things they have to retain. And you've got your policy and your procedure and your desk and your 14 other directions. It's a lot. I mean, it's a lot to keep track of, as well as just paying attention to the individual that's sitting before you. And so I think anything you can do to streamline that is great. I'm wondering if you all have other ideas. I know Lola, when I talked to you before, you are full of lots of thoughts. Do you have any next steps for accessibility that you're thinking about?   Lola: I have a couple of next steps right now. I have to rein myself in. We're for sure right now really focused on getting our automated intake form out. We're at the tail end of testing and everything has been looking great on the up and up. So we've been really trying to get our messaging around what that looks like, especially to our constituents that are looking for services. So folks just understand the purpose, the why and how we're trying to make this a little bit better. I'm hoping eventually one day I can take this to phase two where the eligibility pieces may come into play, but we're not there yet. Right. We're taking baby steps.   Carol: Yeah.   Lola: I'm really excited we've gotten this far. I know Nathan and I have had conversations a few months back about looking at something similar to what they're doing with the policy, because we have our own policies, right, that are kind of everywhere. They need to be updated and staff need to reference them or individuals are looking for them. So I think definitely what MCB has been doing has been in the back of our minds a little bit. But like we said, we're taking baby steps and hopefully we can get there. But I think across the board, these are all great initiatives.   Carol: Yeah, absolutely. How about you Nate and John are you guys looking at, you thinking a 2.0 on anything or some other areas you'd like to dabble in with AI?   Nate: I think it's rolling this out first and kind of once we get this completely rolled out to staff and kind of understand how well it's working, I think we can take those next steps. We're always keeping our finger on the pulse of technology and how it's advancing, and if it can assist us in any way, and we'll continue to do that. I think an interesting, it kind of fits in with AI is, you know, one of the biggest barriers for our consumers is transportation. And as far as AI goes, one of the big conversations in that community is automated cars and those type of things. And we have in the past provided some input about automation. And when they're creating those type of things for transportation, how to think about how it would benefit people with disabilities and those type of things. It's a long way off, but it's something interesting and something I personally get asked about a lot when I'm out speaking in different areas is, where is that? You know how close that is?   Carol: Yeah.   Nate: That's nothing we'll ever do as an agency. We're never going to be providing, you know, services. But we have provided some just some input in the past on that. But as far as like case management and service to consumers and those type of things, like Lola says, eligibility is something that's very interesting. If there's something that can help with that, it's for different programs within our agency. You know, when you're coming to MCB, we're a little bit different than MassAbility. By law, you have to be registered with us if you reach the threshold of legal blindness in Massachusetts. So you're registered with us. It's the law. But depending on what services you're receiving and what programs you're in and those type of things and maybe something interesting to look at in the future.   Carol: Yeah, definitely. Blind agencies have a lot of moving parts and pieces. So how about any advice you all might have for states that are starting to think about this? Because states are in all different, you know, places and people are kind of, their administrations. Some are very proactive, some are not. Do you have any advice, as you've been working through these projects that might help other people that are starting to dabble? Lola, I'll kick that to you first.   Lola: Yeah, I think that's all dependent just on where you are as a state agency, right? It's taken us a while to come to the realization, like, maybe there's something more we can do to kind of help the process that we're in. And it just so happened some of the things that we've identified as pain points, it looks like AI and technology would really help alleviate. And I'm not going to say remove because we're always going to have issues, but it would help alleviate some of those pain points. I think one of the things that would be insightful for folks to know, and just because the disability community loves the community, it's just when it comes to technology, we have to be very careful, right? We need to be mindful of some of the biases that come along with that. We need to make sure that the accessibility is actually accessible. It's usable, right? To Nathan's point, we serve various consumers ranging from different types of disability. And I think sometimes that gets lost in the conversation because we're so much let's get it to the next level and let's make it work for us and automate it. And I think we forget to take a step back and remember who we're doing it for, right? We're doing it for the folks that maybe don't have mobility, the folks that can't always read or have low vision, or the deaf or hard of hearing individuals. We really try to make this form all about the people. So I think as agencies are probably trying to embark on technology, those are some of the things that they might want to keep in mind. And it depends just where you are in the process. Just it was great timing for us, and I'm sure Nathan would agree. It was probably great timing for his agency to start some of the discovery process around how we can utilize AI.   Carol: Good advice. John, do you have anything you want to add?   John: Yeah. When you're going down this road, be prepared that you understand the process that your state has, because there's many other departments that come in and want to take a look at what you're doing and ask for a lot of different documentation. And so that all has to be done before any product can be deployed. And depending how bureaucratic the state is, it can be different. A large state might have a whole bunch of departments Moving in and wanting to take a look in a smaller state may not be as complicated or as cumbersome process as it can be. So just be aware. Once you understand the idea and you think of a potential product, make sure that you've understood all the steps you have to do at the state level to be able to deploy that product and not have it pulled when you're halfway through, or you've spent money on development so that it gets scrapped in the development stage. So just be very aware of how to get that process through the state.   Carol: Yeah, that's  very good advice. Nate you get the last word on this.   Nate: Patience. For a lot of reasons and pointing at both what Lola and Commissioner Olivera talked about here. You got to have patience to go through the process. But you also have to have patience to make sure that it is accessible. Here at MCB, we obviously have a myriad of different folks using it and with different abilities and ways that they approach the system. We got to make sure it works for all those different ways. And that wasn't easy either, but more so for the process. It's a long process. We're still in the middle of that process, but it's worth it. I do want to say that have the patience, but it is definitely worth it. AI is extraordinarily able to just provide a way to save time. You know, a question that may come up to us where we research a question, decide on what the answer is, reach back out to a worker, give them the answer and they go to a consumer. Give them the answer. It could be days. This is seconds. The time that it saves. And maybe even if you, depending on how it's deployed, the cost it could save in the long run. It's extraordinary and worth the time put in.   Carol: I love that you would mention that. There used to be something that I compared every year that came out from RSA, and I'd compare to the previous year, and so I'd always look at, you know, I'd do this side by side, kind of mark up what all change, what language changed. And it used to take me hours, you know, just to look through the document. Now I send it through a tool and literally in a minute it highlights everything that changed from one year to the next. I'm like, boom, done. You have it. People always are asking us questions as a TA provider, and I'm like able to immediately tell them what change they're like. How'd you do that analysis so fast? Well, I used my friend, you know, an AI tool that was able to do it. It really is an amazing Time saver. So how can our listeners find you guys? Could you leave us with like, an email address or something? Lola, would you mind saying your email address for the listeners in case somebody wants to reach out to what you're doing there?   Lola: Yeah, absolutely. I can be reached at Oluwafunke.Akinlapa@mass.gov. The spelling is o l u w a f u n k e dot a k I n l a p a at mass.gov.   Carol: Oh that's great. And then Nate or  John, do you both want to give your email or who's the contact there.   Nate: It's Nathan.w. Skrocki@mass.gov and I'll spell that out. It's n a t h a n dot w dot s k r o c k I at mass.gov.   Carol: Oh, that is awesome you guys! I really am looking forward to seeing your stuff roll out. You need to give me an update. I am super happy about this. In fact, we were having an AI conversation the other day on our GW team and I said, hey, I'm doing a podcast this week and they're like, you got to give us the names of the people, because some folks are working on something, they like, they're gathering up information from across the country. So I said I'd be happy to share. So thanks so much. And please do keep in touch. I wish you the very best with your projects.   Lola: Awesome. Thank you Carol.   John: Thank you Carol.   Nate: Thanks.   {Music} Outro Voice: Conversations powered by VR, one manager at a time, one minute at a time, brought to you by the VR TAC for Quality Management. Catch all of our podcast episodes by subscribing on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts. Thanks for listening!

Morgan White Jr. filled in on NightSide:The National Federation of the Blind is hosting their annual convention featuring training, support, and information for the visually impaired. Morgan talked with John Oliveira, Commissioner of the Massachusetts Commission for the Blind, about new gadgets and gizmos for those with low vision.Ask Alexa to play WBZ NewsRadio on #iHeartRadio!

The Herald News reports that John Oliviera didn't let being visually impaired keep him from fulfilling his American Dream and living independently. Now John's helping others do the same. He has a new role as the Massachusetts Commission for the Blind's appointed Commissioner. John's here to tell us all about his accomplishments and how he is speaking out.   For more info related to this week's show, go to: https://speakingoutfortheblind.weebly.com/list-of-episodes-and-show-news/for-more-information-episode-337-john-oliviera   Ways to Connect to Speaking Out for the Blind Amazon Alexa enabled device (RECOMMENDED) “Alexa, Ask ACB Media to play Media 1”. (1 = stream number).   PC / browser access (RECOMMENDED): Visit acbmedia.org at http://www.acbmedia.org/1 (1 = stream number). The site has a built-in media player and there is no need to install or use a media player on your device. Hit the play button and the stream will begin playing immediately. Smart device Access (RECOMMENDED): Download “ACB Link” from your app store. Find “Radio” along the bottom of the screen, then “Menu” in the top left corner. Select “Live Streams” and then choose “ACB Media 1 - Mainstream.” Double tap the play button. Victor Reader Stream Access: Navigate to “Internet radio library” in the “online bookshelf”. Locate the Humanware playlist. From the playlist, select ACB Media 1 (1 = stream number) and hit play. Alternate Dial-In access Dial 1 (518) 906-1820. Listen to the menu prompts and press 1. IMPORTANT NOTE The ACB Radio Tuner is no longer supported. If you used the tuner in the past, you may access all ACB Media streams from acbmedia.org (see above) If you are using alternate ways to access ACB Media streams than those above (such as Tune In or Winamp using acbradio.org URL's, we kindly ask that you use one of the methods above.    Facebook page is at Speaking Out for the Blind and X (formerly Twitter) page is at SpeakOutfortheBlind (you may also access this at SpeakOutBlind).

Listen to a person who embodies our podcast tagline - Success is a Journey. David D'arcangelo, Managing Director of Arc Angel Communications, former Commissioner for the Massachusetts Commission of the Blind, candidate for Republican Secretary of State, and and former Malden City Councilor at Large talks about his career journey. Here about how he started working in government, moved to the private sector and then returned to his calling in public sector service. In this interview, you will hear how the number one reason for workplace discrimination for individuals with disabilities, how two-thirds of all working age people with disabilities are not in the labor force. Take Aways: - strategies for entering the new workforce - perseverance and how it pays off - secret sauce to identifying the right job/career fit - how to use your natural skills to take you to the next level For more information or to get in touch with my guest: David D'arcangelo at Arc Angel Communications, visit his website - www.arcangelcommunications.com Free personality testing information - www.truity.com (Myers Briggs, Big Five Personality Test, etc. Disc Personality Test - www.discpersonalitytesting.com SELF ASSESSMENTS/PERSONALITY/STRENGTHS* Clifton/Gallup Strengths Finder – Free High Five;  https://high5test.com/ VIA Institute on Character  https://www.viacharacter.org/survey/account/register Enneagram – Enneagram Institute  https://tests.enneagraminstitute.com/  Positive Intelligence – Why only 20% of Teams/Individuals Achieve Their True Potential https://www.positiveintelligence.com/science/   *Sourced from the Online Networking Group for 50+ Job Seekers - http://tinyurl.com/50plusjobseekers Free Business Clothing for your Job Search Are you in need of business clothing or interview coaching for an upcoming interview? Visit the Tailored for Success website to join our community - www.tailoredforsuccess.org

Please donate to the show!This week in activism!Wednesday, May 31st - Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women's advocacy day at the State House Thursday June 1st, 10am Lobby Day for Homes for All including rent control and foreclosure preventionJune 6, 11am, Local Option for Housing Affordability - Day of action at the state house room 428June 7th 2pm, Citizens for Juvenile Justice Youth Justice Lobby Day, State House room 428ClimateGila River Indian Community project addresses Colorado River drought…the new Reclaimed Water Pipeline Project will help the Gila River Indian Community maintain water resources for many years and will also conserve more water in Lake Mead.Delta Air Lines is facing a lawsuit over its $1bn carbon neutrality claim which plaintiffs say is “false and misleading” as it relies on carbon offsets that do little to mitigate global warming. Rare and “very aggressive” spring wildfires in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia have destroyed buildings and forced thousands from their homes; officials have declared a local state of emergency.Hedgerows in England, which are a vital habitat providing food and shelter for mammals, birds and pollinators, are under threat because of post-Brexit legal and funding changes.New research shows that Rock “flour” produced by the grinding under Greenland's glaciers can trap climate-heating carbon dioxide when spread on farm fields.InternationalDrone attack on Moscow, which Russia blames on Ukraine, while Russia continues drone attacks on Ukraine's capital Kyiv Ugandan president signed an anti-LGBTQ+ law with death penalty for same-sex acts; the US is considering sanctions against the country as well as restricting visas for Ugandan officialsPressure is building on Japan's government to legalise same-sex unions after a court ruled that a ban on them was unconstitutional.Sudan's rival factions agree to extend shaky ceasefire. The conflict has forced nearly 1.4 million people to flee their homes so far.Erdoğan Wins Reelection in Presidential Runoff in TurkeyNationalSouth Carolina Court puts temporary hold on their new near-total abortion banDebt ceiling deal includes: 2-year debt ceiling suspension; spending limits: defense budget of $886B, non-defense spending $704B; natural gas pipeline approval; fully fund medical care for veterans; some extra funding for IRS but not as much as Biden had proposed; new work requirements for SNAP recipients, but not for Medicaid; resume student loan payments paused under COVID; Biden's $10K cancellation of student debt has not been changed. Still has to pass through House and Senate.The prices of oil, transportation, food ingredients and other raw materials have fallen in recent months as the shocks stemming from the pandemic and the war in Ukraine have faded. Yet large corporations have continued raising prices rapidly in order to increase profits, with profit becoming the largest driver of inflation.StateBoston City councilors voted 10-2 on Wednesday on new district lines.Cambridge will launch free public preschool for all 4yoOn the state budget: Senate version budget may differ from House budget on: funding to Dept Public Health for the creation of birthing centers; online lottery; in-state public-school tuition for certain undocumented immigrants, permanent funding for free school meals, drug-testing kits to nightlife venues, and a floating hospital for mental health and substance abuse recoveryFive months into the year, Massachusetts lawmakers have had the least productive start to a legislative session in at least 40 years, passing only 10 laws so far.

20230520-1 Morning Session Welcome and BSCB President's Update o David Kingsbury Overview of Massachusetts Commission for the Blind Activities o John Oliveira , Acting Commissioner, MCB Advocacy Update o Nona Haroyan o Kim Charlson o Jim Badger o Myra Ross o David Kingsbury First Reading of Proposed BSCB Resolutions o Brian Charlson Election of BSCB Directors o Brian Charlson (to explain voting procedures) o Cindy Wentz (to announce slate of nominees recommended by the Nominations Committee) o David Kingsbury (to chair elections Find out more at https://acb-events.pinecast.co

In the studio, today is David D'Arcangelo, Commissioner of the Massachusetts Commission for the Blind. David has focused on making MCB the best it can be. Learn about the concept of disability as a qualification, the Accessibility Technology Survey, the entrepreneurial program developed with NIB, and dig into the 32 reallotment projects MCB has done over the past few years.   David is the Idea Guy and shares a lot of information in this brief 30-minute conversation.   Find out more about what is happening at MCB:     MCB Home Page 2020 Reallotment Project Summary 2021 Reallotment Project Summary   Listen Here   Full Transcript {Music} Speaker1: Manager Minute brought to you by the VRTAC for Quality Management, Conversations powered by VR, one manager at a time, one minute at a time. Here is your host Carol Pankow.   Carol: Well welcome to the Manager Minute. Joining me in the studio today is David D'Arcangelo, Commissioner of the Massachusetts Commission for the Blind. Thanks for joining me today, David. How are things going in Massachusetts?   David: Going very well. Looking forward to a great 2023. And thanks for having me again.   Carol: You bet. Me too. I love this 2023. I have my little resolutions for this year. You know, I really want to be intentional. That's one of my things. So I know I had you on the show over a year ago and we were talking about some of your great employment strategies during National Disability Employment Awareness Month. And you have had so many cool initiatives going on in your state that I think of you as the Idea Guy. I put you and Joe Xavier from California up there as two bold leaders in VR that we can all learn something from. Now, I know you've been keeping your head down and really looking forward focused on making your agency the very best it can be. And it also seemed like you were having some just really amazing employment successes for customers during COVID. So now more than ever, we need to take some serious steps to address the problem of spending VR dollars and improving outcomes. And you started looking at the problem when you first started at MCB and you hit the ground running. So let's dig in. I know we have lots to talk about. So David, can you remind our listeners about yourself? Where did you come from and how long have you been at MCB?   David: Sure. Well, I'm a consumer of MCB also, and being legally blind from a young age. I remember getting VR services back when I was in junior high school and high school. So that's really my first impression with MCB was as a consumer, as a young man. But since joining MCB in 2018, I came over from the Office on Disability, where I was the director of the Massachusetts Office on Disability. So when the MCB position opened up and got an opportunity to serve. And, making great strides for these past five years and looking forward to hopefully more time to be able to get our people employed and help lead our people to more independence and self determination.   Carol: That's awesome. So can you tell us a little bit about MCB? Like, how many staff do you guys have and how many customers are you serving currently?   David: Sure. So we're one of the first blindness agencies in the country. We often argue with Connecticut, if they were first, we were first, but we were established in 1906 with one of our first commissioners being Helen Keller. So we have a long history and track record of providing services for people with blindness throughout Massachusetts. We currently serve approximately 24,000 people in Massachusetts with all types of services. Massachusetts is a little bit different than many of the other states. We don't provide just for VR services, and that's not to diminish VR services, but we also provide what we call our services or social rehabilitation services and deafblind extended support services. So we serve people who are blind and deafblind and people with blindness and then additional significant disabilities. So that adds up. Our 24,000 people and our range of blindness really is the whole spectrum. So everybody from hi partial and legally blind like me all the way to somebody who has no light perception at all. And we know from the data that we've collected that actually there's probably more people at MCB as consumers who have visions closer to me than vision, closer to somebody who has no light perception at all. So we've got some data that's going to be coming out that I would encourage everybody to look at. We did an assistive technology survey recently with all of our consumers that really reveals information that I think people will take notice of because many times people were thinking that, oh, well, your consumers, they can't see, so they're not on the Internet or they're not taking part with this technology. And our survey really sheds new light on that. So stay tuned for that. You can check that out on our website, Mass.gov/MCB. It's really going to be an important survey when we reveal these results. It's going to be eye opening for people.   Carol: Well, cool. Yeah. Shoot me a note when that comes out. I'm really interested in seeing that. Do you also serve individuals like starting as babies? Like because some programs I know do that. We did not in Minnesota but I know some start very young with kids.   David: Yeah in Massachusetts we serve people from birth to death. So cradle to grave with all of our services and the social rehabilitation services that we provide are really geared around independence and self determination. So we will start providing services as soon as somebody gets that mandatory report of legal blindness and they're declared, which we are the keeper of, that we register somebody as legally blind after their doctor, their eye care provider, has provided us with that record. And then we get the services flowing, whether it's teaching Braille or providing assistive technology, orientation and mobility, training, all of these core services, we really believe getting those in place first.   Carol: Yeah   David: That's really going to help in terms of VR. It's setting the bedrock so people are already independent and self determined and then can focus on their career goals.   Carol: Yes. So smart. You've got the foundational pieces in place and early, you know, you're getting at the students early, which is incredible. That is great. That is great. So I really liked your getting grounded in that three part framework. You talk about it and I was reading it again on your website about the Path to Prosperity is Paved with Perseverance. Can you tell me more about that?   David: Sure. Carol, thanks. Really. I first said that publicly during the commencement address that I gave for Lesley University's Threshold Program. Lesley University has a great program for people with intellectual disabilities where they provide a college like experience. And back in 2017, when I was director of the state's Office on Disability, I had the great opportunity to be able to provide the commencement address there. And that's really where I first laid out that I believe the path to prosperity is paved by perseverance. Or what does that mean? I think that becoming employed is not a one step thing. There are many steps on that path on your career journey. So we really try to instill in to our consumers here at MCB that there is no get rich quick scheme. This is not a one click approach like so many of us are conditioned today through these devices and through technology. Just one click in your in. Getting a career, getting employed, getting your job, getting on that path to prosperity takes many steps. You got to hang in there because it's not easy. If it was easy, it would be done easily and everybody would do it. Everybody would be a multimillionaire. It takes many steps and depending upon your disability or in mass commission for the blind on your blindness, there's such a spectrum. And really we have to work with everybody individually because everybody is in a different stage in life. And some people are aging into blindness. Some people, it comes upon them quickly. Some people have it from a young age, some people come to it at mid age. It's so different for everybody. And we really just want to make sure that people are clear what the expectations that we're going to be with them through their journey along this path and that it does take time. All good things come in time. So that's really what the path to prosperity is paved with. Perseverance is about that you've got to persevere. These are challenging things. The very essence of being a person with a disability. Disability comes with challenge, It does. And so we try to get people to accept their disability, accept that challenge and then help them work through it. And so I believe in people and I believe anybody can become employed. I think work matters. I think it goes to the identity of a person. If I were to see you in the grocery store and we would have strike up a conversation, invariably one of the first questions that you or I would ask each other is, Well, so what do you do? And if you're employed, you're going to tell me about your job because it goes to the identity, it goes to who you are and what you're accomplishing. So work matters. Our consumers matter, and that's why we want to try to get them employed, because there's so many contributions in our community that we're trying to bring out for the benefit of our consumers, but also for the benefit of society. I really believe that our people have a lot to give and you've got to hang in there. That's part of being on the path to prosperity.   Carol: I think that is one of the cool things with blind services. It's very foundational. All the things that you have to learn. And I remember being at Minnesota blind and just seeing that, especially with people that came in that were new to their vision loss and it happened abruptly. Something happened, an illness or something overnight almost, and you wake up and you can't see and everything changes. How you read, how you get around in the world, how you get around in your home and your clothes and like how you do everything and having to learn all those foundational pieces first and getting that acceptance and then working on work skills because you can't just launch right into that when somebody goes, I don't even know if I'm wearing the orange socks with the black suit. I don't know what I have on.   David: One of the initiatives we've been working on and we keep advancing is something that I came up with about ten years ago that I've been trying to encourage people in VR to embrace, and that is the concept of disability as a qualification. I really believe that the lived experience that our people have to learn to problem solve around is a qualification in and of itself. Let me give you an example. If I were to take somebody with good vision and ask them to cross a busy intersection, they probably wouldn't think twice of it. Right?   Carol: Right.   David:  But to take one of our consumers who can't see and ask them to cross an intersection, the skills involved and the intestinal fortitude involved with crossing that intersection. You know what? I want that person on my team, if they're going to be able to go out and have the intestinal fortitude to be able to do that and then the demonstrated skill to be able to do it, because that takes sophistication, if that life experience does not qualify you for some type of role that deals with problem solving. How many employment opportunities are there out there for people who are good problem solvers, for people that have a solid backbone and won't just roll over? Right?   Carol: Right. I love that you say that.   David: Those are qualifications, those matter.   Carol: They do matter. So I'm just going to say a little thing about me. When we were in Minnesota at the blind agency, all of the leadership team and the VR counselors, the staff, you had to go through six weeks of sleep shade training, so you were under sleep shades for six weeks. And so doing that as a new director myself, having that experience, it's just a taste, but we did go to one of our Adjustment to Blindness Training Centers. We had the experience of the classes all day under sleep shades. I still remember at the end of the day, walking out. I had my cane. I was still had my sleep shades on. I'd taken them off and I got in my car. I scared a lady that was across the street. She's like, That blind lady is driving now, but getting that very firsthand experience about that problem solving that goes into everything you do during the day that is so interesting and very applicable to the world of work, for sure.   David: Yeah. So that's why we're pushing disability as a qualification. We believe that those lived experiences are going to help employers and a really good qualifications for employees.   Carol: Yeah, that's very cool. Very interesting thought. So I want to take you back to 2020. You asked for reallotment dollars, but you had some very specific initiatives you wanted to accomplish and in fact, you were dealing with the pandemic and you wanted to figure out your role in pioneering a path forward in a post-COVID recovery. So talk to me about what went into that 2020 that ask for reallotment dollars and kind of how you framed up all of those initiatives.   David: Sure. Well, we wanted to make the best use of our time knowing that we were not going to have the community interactions and be able to travel freely like we had been doing. So we said, let's study this and let's come up with some things now, some of the things we had put in motion, some of the plans that we had put in motion were prior to COVID. So it seemed that we were prescient on some of them, like our ad campaign we did, What's Your Vision? So now we've been on Massachusetts television with our announcements, not just public service announcements, but paid ads to be able to get the message out to employers, Hey, we've got candidates for you and get the message out to our consumers that, hey, we'll work with you to get on this path to employment. So there's campaigns like that. But then we followed it up. Once we knew COVID was in there and we did our Quest for Independence, which is a graphic novel which is aimed at not only the consumer, but people in the consumer's sphere of influence, their brothers, their sisters, their fathers and mothers and guidance counselors and people there so that those people can understand the path to employment that we lay out in the process that we do. So it starts at pre training and goes through all of the steps along the way and we make it like a questing journey. We made it like kind of cool and try to put it in a format that people of Pre-ETS age would be more apt to buy into. So many of the VR documents are black and white text only small print, like who's reading that? Who's consuming that? Certainly not a 15 or 18 year old person that we're trying to get interested in the workforce. So whether it's things like that or whether it's studying Disability as a Qualification that we just talked about or trying to do some of the other surveys that we put together, we really tried to make the best use of our time. I think in all total now we're up to 32 or 34 reallotment projects that we've done over the past three or four years.   Carol: Oh my gosh!   David: Yeah. We've really tried to make good use of our time and build the catalog of information. And all of this is available to VR people if they want to visit our website again, Mass.gov/MCB. All of the re allotment projects are out there. We have studies on the Built Environment in the Workplace. We have studies on Disability as a Qualification on Assistive Technology. So many different topics we have data on as well as these ad campaigns. We did one with Sleep Machine recently. We worked up 16 different types of consumers and interactions that it's not a one size fits all approach. We really got it into 16 different approaches, so it tries to suit all of the different demographic areas, and that's a VR approach that we took so many different projects that we encourage people to find out more on our website.   Carol: I know you did a lot of data analysis. There were a lot of projects around different data analysis, so maybe talk about one or two of those and how you used that data to now kind of inform your programming or whatever you're doing now at the agency.   David: Well, the assistive technology one is a perfect example like. When I came to MCB and I said, I want to do a survey, they kind of like chuckled and I'm like, Why do you want to do? And I said, Well, how many of our people have email or how many of them use the Internet? I remember distinctly without naming names, but some really veteran VR people saying, none of our people use the Internet Commissioner or they don't do this. Well, come to find out that 70% use it daily. That right there was like informing our programming because no longer was I going to allow this myth to be put forward that our people don't use the Internet. That's just not so. Now we've got to make sure that we're making these sites accessible. So a recent proposal that I've been working on is a registered apprenticeship program for our consumers who are blind. Who better to make these websites accessible than people who are already using screen reader technology? So we're trying to get two registered apprenticeships, one in making web pages accessible, and then the other for making other online things accessible apps and forms and documents online and things like in the electronic space. So we're working right now with the Department of Labor, but we're also seeking other states. You need five states to be able to make a cohort to do it. So if people are interested in joining our cohort, please contact us and let us know if you want to join in this registered apprenticeship program that we're going to be launching soon.   Carol: That's super cool and very smart and needed. I mean, there's a lot of sites, a lot of websites in a lot of trouble because they are not accessible. I love that you did the Assistive Technology survey. I've thought for years, like the invention of Apple and the iPhone and all of that single handedly changed just information for people who are blind, visually impaired because that device is accessible and it was built-in. There's so many cool apps now and things out there that our folks are using now. I know you also contracted out for your comprehensive Statewide Needs Assessment and that that isn't necessarily new. A lot of states do that because it's much easier to contract with someone than do it yourself. But what was different about that particular assessment and how do you use the information that you got from that?   David: Yeah, again, I think that was the one where we put it out there and the awarded bidder I think was the public consulting group. So they're a pretty big firm. They had worked in other states before. I think one of the things that they had worked in was like Indiana. And so we work with them. Obviously our sister agency, MRC, we wanted to make sure that we were kind of on the same page as well. So I think that helped and really it helped strengthen the things that we already knew we were doing well. They really came in and were able to look at that and say, Yeah, you know what, you should probably keep doing that. Did identify some areas and we've made some adjustments as well. And I think now in this post COVID world, we were prescient that we were trying to already get our people to be able to work remotely, whether it be our staff, who a significant amount of our staff are actually our consumers also, which were very prideful in that they'd been remote prior to COVID. And so now the trends in employment with less and less people in an office environment, we really were again, a little bit ahead of the curve in trying to predict that We think that's where the workforce is going. There's going to be more and more opportunities that are away from an office environment. So if you can work online effectively, that's just going to increase opportunities for our consumers.   Carol: Oh, I agree 100%. So how has all of this helped your numbers? Like where are you at today? Do you feel like have things moved up or are you getting customers back? How about people getting into employment, all these different initiatives? Has it led to some success and outcomes?   David: Yes, it has led to success and outcomes. Our numbers are up generally across the board. There's a couple of exceptions, but things we really like to talk about is the nature of the jobs that we're able to help our people navigate into. And just to be clear, we are very up front with our people. People like, get me a job, get me a job. We're very upfront with them and say, we can't get you a job. We can help you get you a job. We don't get anybody jobs. Our consumers get themselves jobs. We're there to help and build value and work within whether it be any of the networks that we develop with stakeholders or using the existing public systems or education, whatever the case may be. It's consumer driven, it's consumer informed, and it's consumer driven. We make that clear that really we're just a partner in this, and it's up to the consumer to be able to make the final decision. One of the things that I think is very successful is that there's more choice than ever before. I think our consumers were faced with maybe one opportunity, and if they didn't take it, it was like, all right, let's start all over again. Or, you know, now let's go on another six month search. Now our consumers are being presented with multiple offers, multiple opportunities. That's a really good sign. Another really good sign is the nature of the jobs that they're getting. We're now going past just the entry level job or the base job, and we're into more management. Some of our placements are six figure placements. These are consumers that many of them have been with us for a while, but some are fairly new. So like before, this is where I think our ad campaign is really helped us because consumers who maybe hadn't approach MCB before are now approaching MCB. So we're doing our best to reduce the stigma of what it means to join MCB. So many people before who were low vision, high, partial, legally blind...   Carol: Yes...   David: ...didn't really feel that they were. Well, I can see I'm not really blind. Well, if you're legally blind, then you're entitled to the services. And so people with existing track records of employment that they've been in the workforce for 20 years and now they've lost their vision. Before, many of them were just leaving. And then we would find out five years later, well, I left because I was depressed or I left because I couldn't do the job. Now we get to them more quickly and actually work with them and the employer to let them know, Hey, we're there for you. We're there to provide these reasonable accommodations. We're there to emphasize the great skills that you have. So many of these things can be remediated now with technology. So we're seeing six figure placements. We're seeing management level placements. These are all very encouraging signs. But again, they didn't just happen overnight. It's the culmination of all of these programs working together. And most importantly, let me just give a great shout out to our counselors, our VR counselors develop these relationships and work with these consumers. And really, they're part of the secret sauce here, sitting at their kitchen table with them and their families and letting them know that we're going to be there with them. I think that's irreplaceable. And you can create whatever program you want and fund it however you want. At the end of the day, that needs to happen. Without that, I don't think we'd be having the success that we're having.   Carol: I love that. I know your PSA campaign was really clever because I had looked at the ads. Very cool. Are you still continuing to do that? Is that still going on?   David: Yeah. So we're looking at another reallotment project to fund another ad buy. We're going to have a dialogue with RSA about it. I think we can show that we got results from it and if we can, I'm hoping that they'll say that that's a good use of the money. You know, right now we've gone through some change. We've had a significant aging of our MCB workforce. We've had retirements of people that have been at the agency for 40 years, 38 years, 39 years. So I think COVID really helped in a way where it gave people a pause to be able to adjust. And that's not only our consumers and our counselors, but really like the whole workforce. And as a result, many people are saying, you know what, it's now time I've put my time in and it's time to give it up to the next generation, which is good. But it's a challenge because now we spent a significant amount of time trying to backfill these positions and like something with orientation and mobility. I think one of our O & M people we got from California, another one from Michigan. So hunting around trying to find talent can be challenging and we're certainly not trying to raid other agencies or muscle other competition out because Massachusetts is the state where the cost of living is quite high. We want to make sure if we're getting people here, that they're positioned for long term success. So we've definitely been trying to navigate some of that, as I think many of my colleagues can probably resonate with on at their state level.   Carol: Oh yeah, that is the hot topic of the day. The mass retirement and kind of exodus of people out of VR. I know when I was at Minnesota, this is, you know, ten years ago I walked in the door in HR hands me a list saying I think it was over 50% of the staff were eligible to retire in the next three years. I just went, what? And they did, you know, people did because people have been with the agency. They all started together. They'd been there 30, 40 years together. And they all went. And then that just got exacerbated by the pandemic. People going out the door for sure. If people are wanting to find your PSA information, is that also on your website still?   David: It sure is. And it's on our YouTube channel as well. When I came to MCB, we had no social media. Now we've got Instagram and Facebook and Twitter and our own YouTube channel and all of these avenues that we've gotten such great input from our consumers and their families because, yeah, it's about serving the consumer, but it's also about serving their families because that's oftentimes the people that are working with the consumers just as much, if not more than our counselors. So it's about empowering the whole consumer. And what I mean, the whole consumer, I mean, it's their extended family. It's their spouse or their son or their daughter or their niece or their nephew. They're aunt, their uncle or their friend or neighbor. It takes a village. And we've had good success with that approach.   Carol: Great. It absolutely does take a village. Can you give that website address one more time?   David: Yeah, sure. It's. Mass.gov/MCB. So, its Mass dot gov. Forward slash m c b.   Carol: Excellent! Yeah. Because I know you have a lot of really good stuff out on the website, so I know you are always thinking you don't ever stop. You're on to the next thing. So what's up on deck next for MCB?   David: Yeah, I think we just need to continue to now emerge from the pandemic and continue to assimilate so many new staff that we've got. I mean, I think of our 130 staff, about 40 of them are new within the past couple of years. So there's a big assimilation going on, number one, but really making sure that our community feels safe to get back out there and independent and self determined, ready to go. That's job one.  Is getting that adjustment to blindness, that acceptance of blindness, continuing to find new consumers to be able to provide the services to. Then once we do that, then at the tried and true, it's wash, rinse, repeat on what our counselors and what VR has established so well. It's mentoring and then interning and then interviewing and then getting a job and then staying upwardly mobile in that job and trying to move up into management or entrepreneurial. And one of the new things we're working on that we piloted last year successfully with National Industries for the Blind is this entrepreneurial program. We really believe that that is the future for many of our consumers that are interested in a small business opportunity, and that is establishing an e-commerce presence online where you own your own thing and you're really an entrepreneur at that point, selling products and services online through their accessible platform. For years, we tried to get our consumers interested in selling on Amazon or eBay or these other e commerce platforms. But the platform itself, the app, the technology itself was not accessible to screen readers working with the national industries of the blind and tremendous credit to them for investing a significant amount of their time and resources into making an e commerce platform that is accessible for screen reader technology. This is a huge opportunity for people with blindness who are interested in being their own business owner online in the e commerce space. Like I said, we piloted last year. We proved the proof of concept. We have another class now going in. I would encourage anybody who thinks they have a consumer interested in this space to contact national industries of the Blind. Mention the pilot with Massachusetts that we've done. They'll know what you're talking about and get your consumers enrolled because this really is the future and it's a great opportunity.   Carol: Yeah, I thought that was a super smart idea when I was reading because that was one of your re allotment projects was to study it and to look at it and to figure that out so that can actually be a viable option for your customers.   David: That's right. We didn't just rush in horns first. We studied it, we spent time, looked around, conferred with NIB, and NIB has done a great job. Like I said, they've really made a major investment here and using their Ability One shops that they've had, they have such a tremendous network of providers and vendors that many of the products, I think it's about half of the products are actually made by blind people also. So it's almost like a double win when you really get down to it. To be able to sell these products online. We're very optimistic about it. Good things start humbly and that's where we started. We started with the first class. I think we started with 12 people. Then it went to 6 because some people didn't have the screen reader skills necessary that you would need. Then from the 6,, 3 of them dropped out because they didn't want to own the lemonade stand. They just wanted to work the lemonade stand right there from the 3. It went to 2 and then 1 ended up actually seeing it all the way through and becoming profitable. So we've proved the proof of concept. We just now need more consumers. So if you've got consumers in your area, let's get them going.   Carol: Well, it always starts with 1. You need one, you know, and then there's 2 and then there's 3 and it keeps moving up. That's great. At least it gives another opportunity. And it really is the gift that keeps on giving. You know, when you look at using those reeallotment dollars, it doesn't just benefit you. In Massachusetts, the work that you're doing can benefit the whole country.   David: Yeah, I really think that, Carol. And if people again go to Mass.gov/MCB, look at the, again now, I think it's either up to 30 or 32 different real allotment projects that we've done. There's quite a bit of information in there from studies to these campaigns to the Quest for Independence guide that we did, all of these different things. they're there for everybody else to be able to use. If we've had success, you can just kind of repurpose it and have success in your area with it.   Carol: Well, and your quest to  independence. Guide You've been being very modest about it, but that is hilarious because it's a comic book and you're the superhero. In it. It is the coolest thing. I thought that was the most clever thing I had seen in that Pre-ETS space.   David: Well, thanks, Carol. If it leads to one more employment, then we'll be pleased.   Carol: Yeah, that's cool. So, David, I know there's a lot of new directors across the country like you were a few years ago. What kind of advice would you give them as they're wrestling with ways to effectively spend their funds?   David: Yeah, it would really be, Don't just settle for what has been done previously. I've found the people at RSA to be very supportive, to be willing to listen, and just because it hasn't been done doesn't mean it can't be done. Find out what your consumers need and then figure out how to backtrack that to these federal dollars to be able to get them the resources that they need to be successful, whether it's a small business enterprise or Randolph Shepherd or they want to go to kind of a more traditional route of getting employed, whatever the case may be. There's a program that can be crafted to individualize everybody so that they feel like the job they're getting is the job for them, because that's what we want you to spend so much time getting somebody in the workforce. We want to make sure these people are staying in the workforce, staying gainfully employed, because again, we really believe that independence and self determination, that's the thing that you've got to get through so that people can long term stay viable on their own.   Carol: Well, well said. Thanks so much for being on the show today. I've been a big fan of yours for a long time and I just really wanted to get your message out to our listeners and have folks look at your website and the very cool things you can do. I know there's a synopsis of all of your projects so people can get a really good sense of what you did and what you learned. I think it was brilliant, so I wish you the very best of luck in 2023 and thanks for joining me today.   David: Carol, Thanks so much. You do such a great job. I appreciate you. Thanks for everybody for listening. And please contact us if we could be a support in any way.   Carol: Thank you.   {Music} Speaker1: Conversations powered by VR, one manager at a time, one minute at a time, brought to you by the VR TAC for Quality Management. Catch all of our podcast episodes by subscribing on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts. Thanks for listening!

Jaclyn Corriveau is an activist and member of the Massachusetts Republican Party. Jaclyn was a 2016 Republican special election candidate for the Twelfth Essex District of the Massachusetts House of Representatives. She was also a member of the Massachusetts Commission for Refugees and Immigrants and the Commission on the Status of Asian Americans. Jaclyn graduated with a degree in Political Science from Simmons University. Jaclyn joins me today to explain how to engage young voters in right-leaning politics. She shares the lessons she learned from running for public office at a young age and the legacy she wants to leave in the Republican party. She also highlights the importance of educating yourself on social, political, and economic issues and underscores what Democrats and Republicans have in common. “We have the same priorities. We want low gas prices; we want safe schools; we want every child to feel loved and accepted—the only disagreement is how to get there.” - Jaclyn Corriveau This week on Political Contessa: Jaclyn's dream to be elected into public office and her pivot to campaign work and strategy Engaging millennials in right-sided politics Supporting candidates and the demographics of Republican voters The importance of educating yourself on issues The rise of women's voices in political discourse Why many women feel discouraged from running in politics The value of having a support network Engaging people on the other side of the political spectrum Connect with Jaclyn Corriveau: Jaclyn Corriveau on Facebook Jaclyn Corriveau on Twitter Email: jaclynnancy@gmail.com Awaken Your Inner Political Contessa Thanks for tuning into this week's episode of Political Contessa. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and leave a review wherever you get your podcasts. Spotify I Stitcher I Apple Podcasts I iHeart Radio I TuneIn I Google Podcasts Be sure to share your favorite episodes on social media. And if you've ever considered running for office – or know a woman who should – head over to politicalcontessa.com to grab my quick guide, Secrets from the Campaign Trail. It will show you five signs to tell you you're ready to enter the political arena.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

WICKED GOOD MOMCAST | EPISODE 5 Supporting Moms with Transgender Kids Guest: Mimi Lemay The mission of Boston Moms is to prove that while motherhood is hard, it doesn't have to be lonely. We have to imagine that being the parent to a transgender child can be isolating. Boston Moms is a platform for ALL moms, so we want to know, how can we best support moms in our transgender community? In this episode, we interview local author and mom, Mimi Lemay. In her memoir, “What We Will Become,” Mimi shares her transgender child's odyssey, and her journey outside the boundaries of the faith and culture that shaped her. This conversation is a must-listen as we continually strive to support ALL moms and be inclusive of all families.  About Our Guest MIMI LEMAY is an author, advocate for transgender rights and a member of Human Rights Campaign's Parents for Transgender Equality Council. She began advocating for her son Jacob in 2015 with the viral essay, A Letter to My Son Jacob on His 5th Birthday, followed by the NBC Nightly News segment titled: Jacob's Journey: Life as a Transgender 5-Year-Old.   Mimi and her family continue to fight for passage of equality laws in Massachusetts and nationwide, and she meets regularly with legislators, business leaders, educators, and clergy to share her vision of a more equitable world. Her critically acclaimed memoir, What We Will Become: A Mother, A Son and A Journey of Transformation, which follows the dual stories of her own upbringing in ultra-orthodox Judaism and her son's transition, was a finalist for the 2020 Massachusetts Book Awards. Also in 2020, Mimi received an Unsung Heroine Award granted by the Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women. She holds a Masters in Law & Diplomacy from the Fletcher School at Tufts University.  Resources  Follow Mimi on Instagram What is the Wicked Good Momcast? Welcome to the Wicked Good Momcast! A podcast FOR Boston Moms, BY Boston Moms. A space to hear stories from real moms, to celebrate the beauty of motherhood, and to normalize its challenges. Tune in while you fold laundry, commute to work or school, or get cozy after a long day in the trenches. Motherhood is hard, but it doesn't have to be lonely! Boston Moms was launched in 2015 with a heart to connect Boston-area moms to each other through meaningful discussion, shared stories, and connection both on and offline. With over 5 million website pageviews since our founding and a reach of over 100k parents per month, Boston Moms is rapidly growing and scaling. We've been asked many times to bring our stories and resources to the podcast world, so we are taking the plunge! We could not be more excited to formally welcome you to follow the Boston Moms Wicked Good Momcast!  Who | The Wicked Good Momcast will be hosted by Meghan Block + Shannon Gibson, two local moms with a heart for community and with an undeniable connection that we hope you'll hear through our voices.  What | In each episode, you'll hear from Boston Moms Contributing Writers who are putting a voice to the stories and perspectives they've shared on BostonMoms.com, local + national experts in various spheres relevant to parenting, local moms and business owners who you should know about, and special guests! Where | You can listen wherever you listen to other podcasts! Please subscribe so you never miss an update! APPLE PODCASTS | iHeart PODCASTS  

Also, a look at new biodegradable plastics. Plus, we speak with state Rep. Tackey Chan and one of the recipients of a grant given to Asian American Pacific Islander organizations.

Lisa Zarcone is an author of her memoir “The Unspoken Truth”.  She is a Child & Mental Health Advocate and a Blogger on her website – www.lisazarcone.net. As the Massachusetts National Ambassador NAASCA (National Association of Adult Survivors of Child Abuse) she uses her title and personal story as a platform to speak about child abuse and mental health and suicide prevention.  Lisa has conducted many workshops geared toward these strong subjects and she shares positive ways to work towards healing, forgiveness and overall well being.    Being mentally healthy is so important in all aspects of your life – professional & personal.Lisa is a voice for the voiceless.  Her vigorous career includes countless podcast interviews, TV Appearances, Radio Interviews & DJ Spotlights, and multiple Newspaper Articles. You can also find Lisa on NAASCA Blog Talk Radio “Stop Child Abuse Now” as a panel host.In June 2021 Lisa received The Heroine Award from the Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women (MCSW) --  This award is in recognition of all the work she does out in the community.  The Unsung Heroines of MA.

20220430 Bay State Council of the Blind 20220430 Morning Session Welcome and Conference Logistics - David Kingsbury BSCB President's Update - David Kingsbury Participant Introductions Overview of Massachusetts Commission for the Blind (MCB) Activities - David D'Arcangelo, MCB Commissioner BSCB Participation in Rehabilitation Council and Statutory Advisory Board o Jennifer Harnish o DeAnn Elliott, Rehabilitation Council chairperson o Kim Charlson, Statutory Advisory Board member o David Kingsbury First Reading of Proposed BSCB Constitutional Amendments - Chris Devin First Reading of Proposed BSCB Resolutions - Brian Charlson Election of BSCB Officers o Nona Haroyan (to announce slate of nominees recommended by the Nominations Committee) o Frank Ventura (to chair election of President) o David Kingsbury (to chair election of other officers) Find out more at https://acb-events.pinecast.co

Joe Weisse is co-coordinator for the Low Vision Support Group of Natick for the Massachusetts Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired. Now retired, for 33 years Weisse was Public Information Officer for the Massachusetts Commission for the Blind. Using his communications background, Weisse is a longtime Amateur (ham) Radio operator making contacts with stations […] The post Communicating When Vision is a Concern (HLOL #221) appeared first on Health Literacy Out Loud Podcast.

Full Transcript Joining Carol Pankow in the VRTAC-QM Studio we have Chanda Hermanson, Administrator of the Disability Employment and Transition Programs in Montana, and Allison Flannagan,   VR Director at Florida General. Chanda and Allison share their experience and challenges while navigating the World of VR finances. Learn how networking and team building improve understanding and develop solutions to VR's biggest financial challenges. The VRTAC for Quality Management has a number of fiscal resources meant to help you and your staff navigate the enormous fiscal responsibilities of managing this complex Federal program.  Go to VRTAC-QM.org, Fiscal and Resource Quality Management. You will find the regulations, topical information, best practices, and some tools we have developed.  There are more are coming all the time and we have a long list in development. Please feel free to reach out to us with any ideas you have for tools that can be of help to you.  Let's help each other navigate the world of VR finances. One Manager at a time. One Minute at a time.   Full Transcript   VRTAC-QM Manager Minute: Is Your Fiscal Management Managed? Building a Solid Foundation for Financial Fitness.   Speaker: Manager Minute brought to you by the VRTAC for Quality Management. conversations powered by VR, one manager at a time, one minute at a time. Here is your host, Carol Pankow.   Carol: Well, welcome to the Manager Minute, I am so fortunate to have these two brilliant ladies in the studio today for our discussion, we have Chanda Hermanson, administrator of the Disability Employment and Transition Programs in Montana, and Allison Flanagan, VR Director at Florida General. So welcome to you both. So Chanda, it certainly has been a crazy past 18 months. How are things in Montana?   Chanda: It has been a crazy 18 months, things that we've had to manage that we don't think we would have ever even thought about before. But we are coming back. Things are going well and we've learned new techniques and strategies and are coming up better.   Carol: Good for you. Good for you. And Allison, in Florida also has certainly had its challenges over the past year or two. So how are you hanging in there?   Allison: Well, I'm hanging. Sometimes it's hanging by a thread some days, but you could say it's been an extraordinary 20 months, for sure. I mean, everybody knows we've had challenges both personally and professionally, obviously. But I think the pandemic has brought us some good opportunities that we're going to see forever down the road. So I'm thankful for that part, honestly.   Carol: Well, I'm glad to hear that. So today we're going to talk about the VR fiscal situation, and I know that many people have gravitated to working in VR because they love working with people. However, we're not always as familiar as prepared for the business aspect of this work. Yeah, VR is a multibillion dollar industry that is truly a business with a social service focus. Both of you have a long history with VR holding many different roles. Now, I personally didn't grow up in VR, but did have a long history in employment services for people with disabilities. I was also fortunate enough to participate in an RSA sponsored master's program and got my degree in the management of rehabilitation services all the way back in nineteen ninety four from DePaul University in Chicago. And that really helped to prepare me for the business end of this work, and I applied everything that I learned in every job I ever held. And even with all of that, I still remember coming to Minnesota Blind and waiting through the fiscal rules of engagement for VR and thinking, Holy smokes. I mean, this is a bunch. You add on to those new requirements, like the 15 percent minimum reservation of funds, you've got match maintenance of effort, reallotment and then COVID hit. I know that really impacted your ability to expend funds you couldn't find. The students providers were trying to gear up for virtual service delivery, and some of the existing consumers pull back. And I know it was tough finding staff to fill vacancies. There was just a whole lot going on, so I consider you both such straight shooters, and I'm really interested to dig in and find out about your approach for navigating the fiscal picture of VR today. So I want to start by getting a little flavor for the overall setup of your agencies. So, Allison, I'm going to direct this to you first. What's the organizational structure of your fiscal resources in your state? Are they centralized at the DSA? Are they within your division? Can you paint us a little picture?   Allison: Sure. So Florida VR is within the Florida Department of Education, so that's our designated state agency. And even though we have like a grant management and a budget director that those services, the fiscal piece is still centralized within our DSA. We pay for those critical positions, but they're technically the answer to the DSA, folks. So not all states are organized that way, but our grants manager is actually housed within the DSA controller office, so they're still benefits there, whether they're centralized or decentralized, you can get that connection that you need.   Carol: All right. How about you, Chanda? How are you guys organized?   Chanda: Our vocational rehabilitation program has an internal budget analysts in the VOC Rehab Program that works closely with our business and finance division at the DSA, which is the Department of Public Health and Human Services in Montana. Our internal budget analyst works closely with myself and the program bureau chiefs to develop projections and identify errors in the work intimately with the numbers, and then also works closely with the DSA fiscal staff to do all of our federal reporting.   Carol: Sounds good. Yeah, there's definitely a lot of variety in how agencies are organized, for sure. So I think many times we think of fiscal activities being something that the accounting folks have to worry about and everybody else sort of shies away from the subject. But clearly, there's a great deal of value in the non-accounting folks like all of us to speak, you know, understanding the numbers. So I think this is especially true for executive leadership as ultimately the success of the agency is largely contingent on your vision in your direction. So tell us a little bit about your start as a director in the background. You have in working with the finances. And how did you start and dig in to get a handle on the requirements? And Chanda, I'm going to kick that to you first.   Chanda: All righty. When I became the director of the V.R. agency about two years ago, the agency was in Order of Selection with all categories closed and we're in the midst of an interesting financial situation due to two years of significant over enrollment of participants. At the time, there was not any staff with a lot of historical knowledge. About to be our grant, our rules, allowances, etc. Nothing. We were fortunate in 2017 to be selected for RSA monitoring, which might be surprising to hear that that was a fortunate thing, but it was what we needed it and it was a fantastic experience. The RSA monitoring team came to Montana and were on site for one week and we had the opportunity to work and learn really closely with our RSA fiscal partner. That week, she went above and beyond and out of her way to learn about our state systems and our state rules, and then partnered with us to strategize ways to manage forward through our upcoming maintenance of effort, penalties and ways that we needed to manage our budget differently. Our partnership was invaluable to ensure Montana VOC Rehab could persevere through the myriad of obstacles we were in, and we've made sure to spread that knowledge through every level of staff, so every staff member knows their role and the rules which drive our business. As you said, it takes everybody to understand how this impacts their role and where their decision making impacts the budget as a whole.   Carol: I really liked when you've talked about this in the past and you've been really forthright about that fortunate monitoring from twenty seventeen and how it kind of really puts you on that different path. I appreciate that. And the tact that you've taken in your agency to really get all the levels understanding the fiscal sword. It Isn't this mystery over here somewhere to the side? So, Allison, tell us a little bit about your start as director in the background you have working with the finances.   Allison: Well, let me start with the background part of it. As it relates to finances, I'm going to go way back. So in high school, math was like my best subject, and I had a goal of being a certified public accountant someday. So my first year in college, I was actually an accounting major that only lasted one year before I changed my major. But I still always had that internal skill, I guess a math type of things. So that really honestly is like the total background of my finance piece. So any of the directors out there that really don't have that finance background, it's OK. Hopefully, by the time we finish this, you're going to have a little bit of assurance that you're OK if you don't have that finance background. So in the administrative roles with VR, though, I really quickly had to learn more about the fiscal side of the VR part. When you're out in the field doing direct services counselor, you have a budget that you work within, or at least I did as a counselor, but that was really the extent of it. And then when you get to an administrative role, it's wholly different. It's a different perspective, it's a different  approach. So I really had to research for those resources back then. Of course, you're talking about 10, 12 years ago when I first started in that administrative role and I had to ask lots of questions of staff, and I went even a step further than just them giving me an answer. I went further and said, OK, tell me where you got that answer. Where is that answer located? That helped me start connecting with what existing staff's knowledge or understanding is, where it actually is stated in the law regulations, you know, some regulatory guidance, whatever it is, it was almost like a puzzle back then. I started putting those pieces together. But honestly, I don't think any person in VR is going to understand all the fiscal aspects fully and wholly. It's very complicated. It's very complex. The first thing I know is you as a director have to really understand the laws and regulations and all the guidance that's out there. And there is a plethora of resources now versus 10, 15 years ago, and I'm very thankful for all those resources. So they're out there, but you have to take the time to read them and not just read them, but understand them and comprehend them. And I think we all know that if you read any kind of law or regulation, any kind of regulatory guidance, everybody can read the same sentence and we all can come out with a different interpretation. So not only reading it and understanding it, but also discussing it with your leaders so that we all get on the same page. We all have that same perception of what it means. Experience, I think, has probably brought me more fiscal knowledge. But knowing where those resources are and where it says that piece, you may not even know the whole piece of that law. But if you remember that word that stood out like reasonable, applicable, allowable, you know, the cost principles that we hear all the time, you may forget one, but you know where to go. Get it. That's what I had to do as a director, and I think it's helped me in the long run.   Carol : I love that you said that I had to learn that same way because I would find myself getting in trouble it over something. And then I go in and I'm like, Well, What's it say in the regulation? And I go in and look that up? And then that's how things begin to cement in my mind, because stuff was so uniquely different in VR, you know, even the words you use, your kind of like, there strange. And so, to get that in your head, I just think that's a great approach. So, Allison, I don't know if you know this, but you know you were a huge resource to me in the early days when I was navigating Order of Selection and what went into developing this priority for services. I just wondered, was there any particular tool or resource that was helpful to you as you started in this leadership role? Is there something you can point to?   Allison: People. Honestly, people were the best tool. Resource for me, and it's identifying the correct people, the ones that have the greater knowledge and skills than you do connecting  with that RSA liaison, the programmatic or the fiscal liaisons is critical because when you have those one off questions that are not quite addressed completely, you've got to have those folks who go to and say help. This is what we think, but we're not sure. So people to me is the biggest resource today. It's very different than it was back when I first started. But the TA centers that RSA has funded has amazing resources out there. They develop tons of trainings. Any kind of guidance that you need is out there on those different TA centers, and I'm very thankful for that. I do think we have a lot better onboarding for directors now. I guess that's the best way to say it because there's not really a required onboarding, but definitely a lot of good things out there. Our state's website. That's where you're going to make sure that you're getting that legal guidance, all the laws, regulations. And to me, that's kind of that top tier. You know, you go to RSA first, you look at all of their guidance if you need to, you talk to your liaisons, you go to those TA centers that are supported by RSA. You look at all that information. You still are not sure. You hopefully have a really strong leadership team that you have developed as a director that all have that different perspective that they bring to your team. And you're able to say, this is what I read. Is this what you all understand? There's a lot of resources out there. It can be overwhelming. There's so many. So honestly, as a director, it's really finding the style to your learning. Are you a reader or are you a visual? Are you a tactile? Do you need to sit down with your budget guy and actually go through it with your folks? But it's really understanding what your style is and finding the people that you can trust?   Carol: Yeah, I like to call it finding a buddy, You were my buddy and different people connected folks. So definitely anybody listening. You can contact us at the VRTAC-QM and we can help link you up because we understand other directors going through similar situations. And so sometimes it's nice to just have that buddy to talk to and talk through it. So Chanda, how about you? Is there any particular tool or resource that was helpful to you as you started in your leadership role?   Chanda: Yeah, I was fortunate enough prior to getting this position, my previous position, I got to attend and be a participant of the National Rehabilitation Leadership Institute at San Diego State. Through that program as a yearlong program. I learned a ton of things that at the time weren't applicable to me, but when I got this job, I had resources now, materials. They rang a bell at least, and I could go back and refer to those things. But most valuable out of that experience is developing A network of peers that I got to work with throughout that year on projects and experiences and people from all over the country, all different types of agencies. Because of the relationships that we built through that experience, be able to call somebody I knew pretty well and ask the dumb questions, ask maybe embarrassing questions, you know, depending on the circumstances, especially where we were at at the time. So that networking, that experience, was invaluable to me as I got promoted through the agency just along those lines too,, through CSAVR and other opportunities again, relationships, I think the key to all of this is building relationships and finding that mentor, know who to call for what and ask the questions and have honest conversations and point you in the right direction. Also, the CSAVR leadership forums have been really valuable. I have not passed up one opportunity to get attendance. They've always hit the nail on the head talking about things that are important and critical during that time, whatever the time is. So I've always appreciated the thoughtfulness that are put into those forums because they really do influence our work and are great opportunities. And then, of course, the Technical Assistance Centers throughout the years, another great network of people to ask questions, to have hard conversations, get the answers you might not want to hear, but you know it's the right answer. Yeah, networking and relationships through all those avenues has been invaluable.   Carol: Well, you both did a great job plugging all kinds of things and our allies CSAVR, the TACs. We appreciate all of that. That is super awesome. But definitely, yeah, it's the people part of this. The relationships are just invaluable. So now we're going to switch a little bit to dig in a little bit on the state of your finances in your respective state agencies. You know, are you both able to get the match you need to fully access your federal grant? And if you aren't able to, what kind of strategies have you used to work on that? And so Chanda, I'm going to kick that to you first.   Chanda: Thanks. This one's kind of tricky. So historically, getting our match at a traditional grant level funding has not been challenging. Now we did have two years of significant overspend, as I mentioned previously, and that was not able to be matched because it was so situational. But historically, that's not been a problem to us. Our legislative body really sees the value in the work that we do and supporting Montana's workforce needs. We've always been really lucky in that area.   Carol: That's awesome. You are very fortunate. That is not the case across the country in all places, and Allison may be able to speak to that next.   Allison: So Florida Legislature has not increased our state dollars in oh, my goodness. A lot of years, but we've been OK, we've been able to meet our match, but we are at a point because, you know, your federal award is increased through the cost of living and based on the per capita and stuff every year. So your state match has to go up every year. Well, we're at a point that we're starting to see the shift where we won't have enough match. So we saw this in our forecasting and the fiscal tools that we utilize to prepare for this and we tapped into. There are funding that the legislators do. They fund specific programs is called adults with disabilities grants is what they call it. Some folks might call it legislative pet projects. That's another term for it. So we have recurring ones and we have non-recurring ones and it changes every legislative cycle, so we never know exactly what we're going to get. But the purpose of these programs was some kind of service for adults with disabilities. Not all of them were focused on employment, some were recreational, some was more like a day treatment t type facilities. But what we did was we recognized that we needed those additional state dollars or we were not going to have enough to match. We switch the way we work with those grants and now they're required to work with us, meaning all the customers they work with had to be referred to us. Of course, we had to make sure that we were only focused on those programs that would help employment outcomes. So no matter what the service was, making sure that we could connect that to employment, but it allowed us to take all of those dollars and match it. So that increased our match ability. We did the same thing with our high school, high tech funding that the legislator specifically awards to them and also our assistive technology partners the dollars they get from the state. So we have tapped into that. We still know that down the road, we're either going to have to ask for additional money through the legislators or we have to get a little more creative. And I like to have a plan, a Plan B, Plan C and so forth. So third party cooperative agreements is still in my back pocket. I had TCPAs when I first came here, they were a little bit of a mess. They were audited literally like six months before I started my position, so I missed the audit of twenty seventeen. But I didn't miss the report that came following and part of that was the TCPA findings. It's very administratively heavy for VR to do TCPAs, so we actually backed out of the TCPA because of all the findings with it. But it's still an option and we know that is down the road if we want to do it again. But I will say our TCPA was with our school districts when we pulled that out and only approach them to start as a provider for the school. We have so many more school districts that jumped on board with that approach instead of the third party cooperative agreement because they now don't have to have that percentage. And I think that's what was hurting some of that relationship with the schools. They didn't have that additional dollars. So it actually ended up being a good thing, even though we got rid of the TCPA. But any director that's looking at match challenges, you really have to try to forecast several years out down the road. You can't go to that legislator say, Oops, we need the money right now. You've got a plan out and then who could plan for a pandemic when states were holding money tightly go, no, no, no. We don't know what the next year or two years are going to look like. So always make sure you have plan a, b, c and maybe all the way down to Z.   Carol: Joe Xavier likes to say, You need the microscope. You're looking at the current but the telescope to looking down the road. So yeah, I like that. Good advice.   Allison: I know the Community Reinvestment Act that the VRTAC-QM is going to pile it with a couple of states. Florida is very interested in that because that's a partnership relationship and Florida is very supportive of those relationships. So that's something we're also going to be watching very closely.   Carol: Oh, good. Yeah, we'll definitely be talking about that on another podcast down the road. So since you mentioned the pandemic and we know a lot's happened over the last couple of years, the pandemic has definitely changed. The face of VR in many states have had to adjust to this new normal just by flying by the seat of your pants. So what unique things have happened in your state in the past two years that have impacted the finances? And Allison, I'll have you start with that.   Allison: Well, I know a lot of states have had a lot of difficulty spending their 15 percent reserve for the Pre Employment Transition Services. And I'll say one thing unique with Florida is our governor made sure that our schools stayed open. The Brick-and-Mortars had to be opened last year. There was hybrid options, obviously, to students with health concerns or COVID symptoms. But the Brick-and-Mortar had to stay open for all the school districts, and I think that is why Florida was able to spend our 15 percent PreETS funding. I mean, we were right down to the wire, but we saw our expenditures really go up this last year, that school was in place. So I do think that was a huge benefit for Florida.   Carol: Good for you. Yeah, that has not been the case across the country, for sure.   Allison: Flip side of that, though, the telework option that so many states have implemented for the Department of Education or DSA has fully implemented telework, and that has allowed us just in this most recent fiscal year 2020 one. We reduced our physical footprint across the state, have arranged our lease agreements, put in hoteling spaces, but just this first year, we have saved one million dollars in leases that go back to our customer services.   Carol: Wow, that's big. Holy smokes. So how about you, Chanda? What unique things have happened in your state in the past two years that have impacted the finances?   Chanda: Well, previous to the pandemic, we've been managing things really cautiously. Like I said, we are in Order of Selection, all categories closed. We were starting to invite people in Category one, our most significant disability population and slowly while managing the budget judiciously. And what COVID did is because obviously the spending levels dropped so significantly, so quickly because of school closures, public transit closures, business closures, that was really a silver lining for us, and we were able to pick up the pace of our Order of Selection invites. And we actually got to open Category one this past June after being closed for over three years. So that was a big win, something we're proud of. The pandemic brought a lot of challenges and difficulties, but that was definitely a silver lining for our program and the people of disabilities in our state. They've been waiting a long time to get prepared for and back to work in regard to the pre employment transition services. We're really viewing things as what are the silver linings that came from this? We also were able to expend those funds. Just a really great opportunity to analyze our current service delivery methods and figuring out differently. So we invested in virtual job shadow. We worked with our youth leadership forum and made that platform go totally virtual, which the youth were so engaged and very participatory. Traditionally, that group of students comes together one week each summer. Now they're meeting throughout the year, developing those relationships that are so important, as we talked about previously, and get to work on other Pre-Employment Transition Services outside of the school. But with this group of youth that they've worked with during the summer, so that was really cool. And I think the other silver lining through all of the shift, especially for our students to the virtual world, is we're giving them an opportunity to grow new transferable skills. How do you function in the virtual space? How do you set things up, things that we probably might not have touched on or addressed before, which can all be added to a resume now and be more competitive in the labor market? So I think that's pretty cool because I think some of these youth we might not have ever thought about, let's get on the computer and see what kind of skills we can build here.   Carol: Very cool. Glad you were able to open up that first category, too. That's super cool. Yes. So, Chanda, what do you think is your biggest fiscal challenge right now? And how are you mitigating or addressing that?   Chanda: Well, at this very moment, our biggest challenge is the state of the executive budget and the continuing resolution. We believe this to be our final maintenance effort penalty here. We have not received our penalty letter yet. Last time we received that in June. So it's really concerning November. We have not received that yet. On top of, we don't know what our grand award is actually going to look like because nobody's able to give us that information yet. So we're really managing in the dark of what actuals are going to look like. We have managed forward with that telescope, so we do have some carryover. So we know it's going to be fine, but we're really waiting for those letters and awards to come through. So we know that we're going to be fine. Just the reassurance that what we've done and what we've prepared for is going to be effective.   Carol: Well, fingers crossed this isn't like one of those years where we had like six CRs. You know, where you kept getting, is no good. Yeah. So, Allison, how about you? What's your biggest fiscal challenge right now and how are you mitigating or addressing that?   Allison: I think my budget director will tell you our biggest challenge will be our match, but it is a concern, most definitely. And I know we're going to have to go to legislators eventually, but I'm honestly going to say that my biggest concern is the decrease in expenditures. You know, with Florida being one of the big four states, we have a very large federal award that we have to spend every year. So with the pandemic and the decrease in the customers decrease in expenditures, our carry forward is extremely high. It's the highest that anyone knows it has ever been in Florida VR. So that really adds to that challenge of spending those dollars. I mean, it's typical for state to have a carry forward. Obviously, it's been in that second year, but that percentage that we typically carry forward is almost double right now. So that's just adds a whole lot of dollars when our customer count is still not up to where it was pre-pandemic. So it's all kind of connected because of those customers and spending that money on them. But we know that the VR process takes time. It's not like these folks are going to come in the door tomorrow and we could spend that money tomorrow. So it's really a strategic effort to make sure you're getting the customer in while also spending those carry forward dollars. To me, there are several ideas within my leadership team that we're all pondering. And of course, the first thing is that outreach, that marketing effort rebranding so that the individual disabilities know about the VR resource. Staff augmentation, that's something else that we are talking about here. Florida is. A private public partnership, so we have a staff augmentation through service source, we have about one hundred direct positions that are out in the field that are actually funded through that contract through a private entity. So we are actually thinking about expanding that, hiring more staff through that contract so that we can serve more people and serve them more efficiently is the key. We have a great study that we're getting ready to start. So hopefully that's going to give us additional information about any adjustments we need to make with our rates and knowing that inflation has hit. I think the latest I saw was about 15 percent up from last year on groceries. But knowing that inflation, does that mean as an agency, we need to make some adjustments to our rates or our providers and all of our vendors out there? And then because we have all this big carry forward, it's a great time for us to make sure that we are addressing any of our technology needs or updates there so that staff have the resources that they need. So there's a lot of things obviously that are tangent within this. But my big concern right now is this large carry forward and be able to spin that within that two years or the one year program year.   Carol: Yeah, I think you're not alone in that. In fact, I just wanted to mention to folks. So David D'Arcangelo, he is the commissioner for the Massachusetts Commission for the Blind. He was on last month, but he was also talking about these projects they had done, and he was using it with real allotment dollars. But it would apply to carry forward. And if you went to his website, they have like 20 different projects they did that were really cool, like including the Rate study. But there are a lot of very interesting ideas on ways you could spend the money, but that it would be tangible for VR. So I just did want to mention that. So as cliché as it can be, knowledge is power, and I think it is especially true for fiscal matters. You really got to know your money. So how are you building your own knowledge around fiscal matters and also the knowledge of more of your team? And Allison, I'm going to throw that one to you.   Allison: I can sum it all up with one word, “Read”. how many of us have the best intentions to read the information coming out, but then you can never find the time to read it, not just read it, but find the time to read it. To me, that's a critical part is we have to stay on top of the information coming out from RSA, coming out from all of our partners, which is numerous and all the Technical Assistance Centers. But sometimes, that my reading list,, it gets off my priority list and actually during this virtual world, I don't know if you ladies have felt the same way with the last 18 20 months to me has been in a fast paced environment. Virtual is very fast and you don't have time to prepare for meetings. You just jump on these video meetings and you're like, What are we meeting about? So I recently incorporated with my leadership, Field leadership and headquarters leadership, is to designate one to two hours a week to block off your calendar to do nothing but catch up on the reading of those guidance's policies. Go to a TA website. Find those resources as a group. My leadership team is participating in the several of the resources that the VRTAC-QM has posted, like the Twenty For…   Carol: The top 20 tips. Yeah.   Allison: We recently did that the last couple of weeks and we had a really good conversation about it because I have 11 people on my executive leadership team. Every one of them came out of that learning something none of them knew at all. And it was amazing to hear the conversation. But it solidifies what you read and how you interpret it, and then you expand that into how it works in Florida. And then you start seeing these ideas come up this creativity. So to me, there was a real benefit in making sure that your leaders have an opportunity to do that, then you have an opportunity to discuss it.   Carol: I love that you said that about reading. I still remember when those first grant award notice came probably the first time I got one and there's like 40 pages and I'm like, you know, we put it over to the side. And sure enough, there was some like big announcement in there. So I learned really quickly like, you need to read your grant award attachments because those are important, as are all those FAQs that come out. That's good advice. So Chanda, how about you? How are you building your own knowledge around fiscal matters and also the knowledge and more of your team?   Chanda: Well, funny because I also put read as number one, I put read your grant award notification, and I think I actually heard that first from you, Carol. When I heard that I went back to our fiscal folks as like, Have you read these things? Actually? No. So that was wise words from Carol that I brought and read your technical system circulars and read the Green Book. That's definitely these things are piloted right by my desk and flipped through daily. Also, Allison mentioned the VR Technical Assistance Center for Quality Management has helped us problem solve throughout this past year, navigate things and questions that come up again. We're pretty rookie status in regard to our fiscal management and learning a lot, so they've been a great resource to lean into. And also, as we talked about earlier, really making sure that every role of the agency understands that they are fiscal agents and what their decision making and rules are within their role as important. So the TAC has worked with us and we've already done one., Training with just the supervisors, as to, what that means to the supervisor role, so they understand and can accept and embrace their fiscal agent role because we've never referred to anybody that way, obviously, but I think it's important to change that identity a little bit in our next step will be reaching out and training all staff, counselors and administrative support staff. So they understand that they are also fiscal agents and play a role and need to know their roles for the healthy budget for the entire program.   Carol: Here, here, You've been listening to our Sara Clardy. Sara does some really great training around the whole issue of being a fiscal agent. I love that. So, Chanda, when you look at the bigger picture in the long haul for VR, what thoughts do you have on changes or approaches that could overall help the VR program?   Chanda: Well, I think since the passage of the Workforce Innovation Opportunity Act, that VR counselor role is significantly evolved. As you noted earlier, people gravitate to work in VR because they love working with people, and we're continually looking for ways to ease the data, entry and management from the VR counseling role so the counselors can focus on the transformational guidance and counseling experience that they truly want to do, rather than the transactional data and fiscal management. The data is really meaningful, and I think it's really starting to tell a good story of what VR does, just the breadth of all the work we do. But ensuring that data is collected and rendered accurately has significantly impacted the identity of the VR counselors and the counseling relationship and has customer retention issues. So I don't know what the change would be, but that is definitely something that is happening an impact.   Carol: Yeah, you're probably hearing claps across the country. Other people are saying that very same thing. So how about you, Allison? If you were looking at the whole long haul for VR, what thoughts do you have on changes or approaches that could help the VR program?   Allison: Well, let me flip the question on you a little different, Carol. Let's say you went to your boxing class and something tragic happened, and you all of a sudden found yourself with a significant disability. And tomorrow you have no job, no income. I don't think our decisions don't put our customers first sometimes. And maybe it's because I came as a counselor, but that's where my decisions always try to lie with that customer. And the one thing about VR is we take a long time. If you did not have money coming in, Carol, you would probably be like worried about your house, worried about your food, worry about, you know, so many things that we're not even thinking about that's impacting that customer. Federal law says we got 60 days to do eligibility, 90 days to do a plan. Well, that's five months right there. If you don't have an agreed upon extension, five months of no income, no job, these customers VR is being viewed as, well. It's just too complicated. It takes too long to get where I want to be. I need a job now. So in my opinion, we really need to look at the efficiency and the process of the VR. I mean, how can we get these folks into employment quicker? I know careers definitely are going to take longer because a lot of times that takes training and we know that. But a lot of folks have got to get in and get that money coming in. And there's that workforce need on the business side that we've got to address as well. But I really feel like efficiency. We need to focus on that efficiency and making sure our customers are able to find that employment outcome at a good wage in a timely way, not two, three or four years. To me, that's… that's unacceptable.   Carol: Well said Allison, Well said. And I remember telling councilors at the Blind agency, you know, when they'd be frustrated with people coming in and they're kind of crabby and it's like, think about all the places they've been, you know, just trying to get here and get on the public transit and all the things that they went through just to get into this appointment. And how can we get engaged more quickly? And even though you can take that amount of time, do you want to take that amount of time? Like, can we streamline that? So I agree with you wholeheartedly. So Allison, what advice would you give to new directors and leaders to get their feet on the ground around finances? If you had a couple of good parting thoughts on that?   Allison: I would say find a fellow director kind of like me and you hear all the way we connected, but find someone that can be a mentor to you that's available and willing to do that for you. Because I know not all directors have that time commitment there, but find someone utilize the RSA, the technical centers. One thing we haven't mentioned is CSAVR, the Council of State Administrators for Vocational Rehabilitation. They have great resources and always there to support the directors as well, really finding that person that you can lead on. Like I say, find your tribe no matter where they're at. I have folks in so many states that I would not hesitate to call email, Hey, I have a question, do you have a minute and find out how they're doing that in their state and talk through it to see if it's possible in my state? So finding that person you trust and can lean on, I think, is critical for any director.   Carol: Well said. So Chanda, over to you for our last parting words of wisdom, what advice would you give new directors and leaders to get their feet on the ground around the finances?   Chanda: I'll echo again, what Allison said. Use your peers. Use your network at RSA, use CSAVR and the Technical Assistance Centers, there's so many experts out there you just got to find them. Don't be shy. But I've learned is people really love to share their expertise and people love VR. They want to make sure that your program is thriving and meeting the needs of people with disabilities in your states. So don't be shy. People really want to help to make sure that your programs are doing the best it can.   Carol: Well said, I do want to mention to our listeners that the VRTAC for Quality Management has a number of fiscal resources meant to help you and your staff navigate the enormous fiscal responsibilities of managing this complex federal program. You can go to VRTAC-QM.org Fiscal and Resource Quality Management. You're going to find regulations, topical information, best practices and some tools that we've developed. More coming all the time. And we have a list a mile long. Also feel free to reach out to us with any ideas you have for tools that can be of help to you. So thank you both for joining me today and for helping us to navigate the world of VR finances.   Allison: Thank you for having us.   Chanda: Thank you.   Speaker: Conversations powered by VR, one manager at a time, one minute at a time. brought to you by the VRTAC for Quality Management. Catch all of our podcast episodes by subscribing on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts. Thanks for listening!  

Full Transcript In episode 6 of Manager Minute, employment and VR take center stage during October's National Disability Awareness Month. David D'Arcangelo, Commissioner of the Massachusetts Commission for the Blind (MCB), and Natasha Jerde, Director of State Services for the Blind of Minnesota (SSB), join Carol Pankow to talk about the state of employment, today's challenges, and the initiatives and practices they implemented to improve employment for individuals with disabilities.   Learn how David and his team at MCB increased their customer base by 25% over the last year and how partnerships and creativity in Minnesota are helping to increase the number of people with disabilities being employed.   Find out more about VRTAC-QM at https://www.vrtac-qm.org/.                                                                       Stay up to date by following VRTAC-QM on Facebook and follow us on Twitter @VRTAC_QM.   About VRTAC-QM Partnering with State Vocational Rehabilitation Agencies (SVRAs) to enhance service delivery and maximize outcomes through quality program and resource management.  The purpose of the VRTAC-QM is to provide training and technical assistance that will enable State VR agency personnel to manage available resources, improve effective service delivery, and increase the number and quality of employment outcomes for individuals with disabilities. The VRTAC-QM provides TA and training in VR program and performance quality management, fiscal and resource quality management of the VR program, and general quality management of organizations. You can request technical assistance from the VRTAC-QM by contacting your TA Liaison directly, contacting any member of the Center you wish, or by filling out the information on our main website and clicking on submit. While on the main website, join our mailing list to receive updates on training and new activities occurring within the center.    Full Transcript:   Speaker1: Manager Minute brought to you by the VRTAC for Quality Management conversations powered by VR, 1manager at a time, 1 minute at a time. Here is your host Carol Pankow.   Carol: So welcome to the manager minute, I am so excited to have David D'Arcangelo, Commissioner of the Massachusetts Commission for the Blind, and Natasha Jerde, Director of State Services for the Blind in Minnesota. Thank you both for joining me today. Natasha, you've been in your position for two years now. So how's it going in Minnesota?   Natasha: Well, first, thanks for having me, Carol. And for others, I'm actually filling in for detail magazine with Minnesota General, so I am representing both. So I will speak globally and with Minnesota. We are definitely going through a state of evolution because not only are we going through COVID, we are also one of the states that really are going through the racial reckoning that's been happening when George Floyd was murdered. So we are having a lot of diversity and inclusion efforts in addition to trying to figure out what VR is going to look like in this new era. So it's been a challenge, but it's also been an opportunity as well.   Carol: Yeah, it definitely has been a heavy load and thank you for pinch hitting for Dee, too. I knew you could represent both, so that's great. And David, I saw you just had your three year anniversary in August. So how are things in Massachusetts?   David: Thanks for having me on. Things in Massachusetts are going well. I'm excited to talk about all of the various programs that we have. We haven't let COVID stop us at all. We continue to move forward. We're doing realignment projects. We've done a bunch of those that we'll talk about. Hiring is up good things happening in Massachusetts. I know we're going to go into more detail.   Carol: Good to hear it. Well, October is designated as a National Disability Employment Awareness Month, and when I was thinking about an October topic, well, it just made perfect sense to talk about employment and VR. David, I remember last year when we were on a call with RSA and they were highlighting VR's 100th anniversary. You presented what was happening at the Mass Commission and you really had some exciting things happening for customers during the pandemic. And I love following all the work that you do on your social media and I saw y'all have a podcast as well. And Natasha, I know your team well, and they're always creating some wonderful ways to build partnerships with employers and create interesting and lasting relationships that have helped to improve employment opportunities. And you're also a really good partner with Minnesota General. I know two years ago we held the roundtable and recognition of employers in Minnesota during this very month to celebrate National Disability Employment Awareness Month. I just wanted to talk for a second about some Bureau of Labor Statistics and as I was looking things up as of August 2021, the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed that unemployment rates for persons with disabilities are 11.5 percent, compared to five point one percent for persons without disabilities. And the labor force participation rate for people with disabilities is 35.6 percent, compared to 75.8 percent for working age people without disabilities. Now, the labor force participation of people with disabilities is higher than it was prior to the pandemic, and John O'Neill, he's the director of the Center for Employment and Disability Research at the Kessler Foundation. He said that this actually has been a bright spot during the pandemic as people with disabilities, and he thought maybe out of economic necessity remained engaged in the labor market. He says the last time that we saw labor force participation at this level was July of 2009. But even given all of that, you know, that bright spot, much work needs to be done to increase the number of people with disabilities in the labor force, which really ties directly to the mission of VR. So I know these past 18 months have definitely been a challenge for you both pivoting to remote work for your staff, figuring out new ways to provide services to your customers and figuring out the reality of this new world of work. And in some ways, I'm really hopeful that the pandemic has proven there are new ways in which work can be done that's going to benefit our consumers in the end. So let's dig in. So, Natasha, can you paint us a picture of your agency? Like, how many people are you serving right now? Do you currently have a waiting list and how are your employment numbers looking?   Natasha: I have both Minnesota blind and general here at Minnesota Blind. We're at about 650 individuals we're currently surveying. And if you look at 2, 3, 4 years ago, we were usually in the 700's. So our applications are still down, but they are trending upwards. We haven't had a waiting list for a few years. All categories are open. Our employment numbers are slowly trending upwards. 2021 brought much higher well, not much higher, 3 higher than 2020. But we are looking to get back our 2019 numbers slowly but surely. And as for Minnesota General, they've had a downward trend. There are about 2000 fewer applications and serving 11 percent fewer applicants than they did in the previous year. Our numbers are pretty on par with the national trends. Minnesota General has been offering services to all people on the waiting list. They reopened their final 2 priority for service categories, which had been closed since the fall of 2014. They have effectively eliminated the waiting list. They are seeing rates of employment at the time of exit decrease overall about 13 percent decrease, which is very identical to the national trends.   Carol: That's big news, though on the waiting list, that's good stuff. That is really good stuff for both of you. So, David, paint us a little picture of your agency.   David: Basically, everything I'm going to talk about is on our website. So let me just start with that. If people hear something that resonates with them, please use us as a resource. We want to collaborate with you. Go to Mass.Gov/MCB Mass.Gov/MCB and find out all that's going on with the Massachusetts Commission for the Blind. We've seen a 25 percent increase over our previous year in terms of VR despite the pandemic, so that's really a testament to our team, our counselors, and most especially though, the consumers we work with who have persevered and there's just a lot of opportunity in Massachusetts. Some of that might be related to the pandemic, actually. You know, COVID has put real strain on the health care system. We've seen hiring there. But even other service industry things, we've seen hiring there to go back to John O'Neill's data point, which I believe in John very much and Andrew out Anvil that does the entire program first Friday of the month at noon, I faithfully listen to the number come out and they do a great job since the data has been collected in 2008. Yeah, I mean, we made a great amount of progress that COVID happened. We slid all the way back and now we've slowly regained. So at least we're back to where we were, which I think is a good thing for people with disabilities. Specifically to Massachusetts, though, we've seen that, we've seen our VR program increase and consumers typically we have, you know, somewhere between 850 and 950. Now we're at about 1050, 1038 consumers. Exactly, actually that we served as of June 30 at the end of the fiscal year. And of that, we had 155successful closures, and many of those were six figure closures. We had a significant amount of people that got a high level job, so that's very encouraging to us and we've had some good results. I know we're going to talk about some of the specific programs we're looking at pre X, we're looking at the mid-career professional and even older adults who want to reenter the workforce or continue to work beyond retirement age.   Carol: That is super exciting news. It really is. I love it. That's what I remember you talking about with RSA when we were doing that. Other call it like a year ago, like these six figure positions, that's that's incredible. So now that we've gotten this kind of picture of what's going on in general with your agencies, let's just look a little bit at the overall employment picture in each of your states. So what's your employment rate kind of look like and what are your hot employment markets and sectors? And David, I'll go to you first. I know you started a little bit on this. I'll let you expand.   David: Yeah, as I indicated, health care remains strong. In Massachusetts, we're hovering right around five percent for the general unemployment number. Our labor participation rate among the general population remains strong. Unfortunately, among people with disabilities, we're still looking at around two thirds of all working age people with disabilities who are not in the labor force. To me, that's job one, right? That's job one for our agency, for our counselors, is engaging our consumers and trying to get them resolved to want to work. That, I think, is because before you can get the job, we know how to get them the job once they're resolved, but they've got to be resolved to want to work. So that's job one. Then the second part is getting them a job, which is it's not easy, but it's easier, right? I think we're doing well. We've put together public awareness campaigns to really try to get out there. We use actually real allotment dollars from RSA to launch our What's Your Vision campaign, which we're out on TV with 30 second ads. We've been in print or on social media again, go to mass dot gov food slash MQB to check out the full campaign. I know there was a plethora of real dollars coming from RSA, so if you're looking for something to do with those dollars, we've proved the proof of concept that you can do it and it can be effective because we're having more people come to MQB.   Carol: Very cool. Yeah, I'm looking forward to looking at that link. So Natasha, how about you? What's going on with the employment overall? The picture in Minnesota?   Natasha: Minnesota is looking great. Our unemployment rate is at 3.8percent, which is well below the national average. Our labor force participation rate is 67.8 percent for all individuals and about 48 percent of Minnesotans with a disability are employed, and that's compared to about 38.8 percent nationally. So the numbers are looking great. And when you're asking about hot jobs across the board, everything is hot right now. Job vacancies are at a record number. Employers across the state are reporting difficulty finding workers. The demand is especially high in health care and social assistance. But those other areas that really were hit hard during the recession, including food service, hospitality, those are soaring right back.   Carol: Wow, thank you for that. So it's no secret that the pandemic had a huge impact on employment and the economy as a whole. But can you tell us how the pandemic has affected employment for the customers you serve in particular? And are there any lessons you learned during these past 18 months you're putting into place for the long term and attached? I'm going to punt that one to you first.   Natasha: We actually had a lot more opportunity than challenge when COVID hit, so we did have a number of individuals with disabilities who were laid off primarily because they were in the service and hospitality industry, and that was hit especially hard. But with COVID, it really showed that teleworking is completely and utterly doable, and all of these job postings we're seeing now are for remote workers. And when you're working with people who have transportation barriers who also live in very rural settings, this has been incredible and they're getting jobs and we're able to accommodate those jobs. The biggest struggle, though, is because we are so remote and virtual is accessibility issues, and we've been doing a lot of education of employers, of our own employer, the state of Minnesota, how to make sure everything is accessible so that if someone is working virtually, they can still do their job. And how we implement accommodations in a virtual world look very different. I think our biggest lesson learned is you just need to roll with it. You have to be flexible and you can't get locked into the way you used to do things. So we did things we didn't think was actually possible. We've done virtual adjustment to blindness training. We've even done virtual job site accommodations where they would walk us around on their phone or their laptop showing us the worksite, and we had been able to give suggestions and ideas how to accommodate without ever leaving our house. You just have to throw the book out the window is what we learned.   Carol: I bet your team has been super busy. I bet those guys are just like, Wow, but it's got to make the work super interesting.   Natasha: It's so much fun. I have never seen such creativity as I have these past 18 months. We have tried anything and everything, and it's been incredible. We're going to use a lot of those things from here on out.   Carol: Oh, very cool. So, David, I know you guys are always super innovative at the mask commission. So what about you? Tell us about how these last 18 months have impacted you and employment for your customers and kind of any lessons you've learned?   David: Yeah, really. Just a big credit goes out to our team and our consumers, one for being resilient. And we closed Friday, March 13 at five o'clock and we were open for business Monday morning, 9:00 a.m. Our counselors were already equipped with mobile laptops. Aware, which is our case management system, is all in the cloud, so we were positioned well to be able to work in this remote environment. So that's helped our counselors and our team. But additionally, I got to agree in Natasha's right, and I think you all listening to this podcast will agree the amelioration of transportation as a barrier or at least the significant amount of that as a barrier has been a game changer. It's really a paradigm shift and is unlocked. So many potentials for not only blind people, but all people with disabilities. I think that the permanence of that opportunity is a huge takeaway, a silver lining. Covid is a very serious situation. A lot of people have suffered, so I don't want to say it's a great thing because we wouldn't want to trade that right. But this is really help people with disabilities. And I think in the long term, it's going to continue to help them. I think that's the top of the full thing. And how can we leverage that even further? Is there are things we can collectively go to RSA for or I think, you know, Carol, I also sit on the National Council on Disability. Although I'm here as commissioner today, I'm trying to influence people on the federal level to think outside the box. And let's consider if there are other ways that we can leverage, whether it's being online or any technology that we can use to bring to bear for the benefit of people with disabilities to work.   David: I think more and more of that is coming, and that's a good thing. We're getting some of the other things we've been doing, though we just want an award. I'm pleased to say for our graphic novel that we put together our Patriots Best Practices guide. That's a good thing. We're trying to engage those students and their families who traditionally you know how some of these RSA guidelines go. They're very dry. They're on an eight and a half by 11 piece of paper typed print. This is engaging. We find once you put it in the kids hands, they can't put it down and they're learning about all the steps of VR and the families are learning about that. That's a good thing because we really believe it takes a village and back to the other thing we were talking about where you've got to get the person with the disability resolved to want to work. And yes, they come about that ultimately on their own. But if their families are in on it, their friends are in on it, the community is on it and telling them, Hey, this is a good thing. Work brings independence, self-determination and it really, you're going to be contributing to something. I mean, I would assert somebody's self-identity really work is intertwined with that. So we think that things, whether it's the what? Your Vision ad campaign, this Preets practices guide, all of the other work that we're doing, trying to get out into the broader community. We think that rising tide will lift all ships.   Carol: So is that price guide also on your website, David?   David: It sure is Mass.Gov/MCB. Additionally, we have a companion website that goes with it that shows you the graphic novel and is audio described at the same time. And I think that's quest for independence. It's the UWW, AMC B Dash quest for independence. Again, go toMass.Gov/MCB. You'll get the link to it.   Carol: Awesome. No, I'm sure there's some people going to be interested in that as well. That's a bonus tip all listeners for the price guide. That's great. So it might be a little early on seeing this yet, but have you either have you seen any kind of the signs of the long COVID starting to impact customers? David, I'll ask you that first, have you started to see that?   David: Yeah. So in Massachusetts, we haven't seen too much of that, but we have seen hesitancy getting back out into the community a little bit. And on the consumer side, you know, so we're only going to do that when people are comfortable because it's really it's safety first, it's safety first for our team, for our counselors and then additionally for the consumers. We haven't seen too many breakthroughs, fortunately or too much spread in our community in Massachusetts, which we're grateful for. We have a high vaccination rate. I think Massachusetts leads the nation in the percentage of our people who are vaccinated. I think that's contributed and helped really open things up in Massachusetts here. I wouldn't say it's back to what it was pre-COVID, but I think we're trending in the right direction and hopefully sometimes we'll be able to put this behind us.   Carol: Good. Good, Natasha, what about in Minnesota? Are you seeing any signs of like the long COVID in customers?   Natasha: We have not. Between both general and blind. We haven't seen a single applicant or customer who is dealing with long COVID. Part of me is, yes, it might be too soon, and the other part of me is thinking, I don't know if individuals really are realizing that those long term effects are going to have a disabling impact on them, and they may not even realize what VR is or what disability is. They were living and working just as anyone does. And then this happened. So I think there might need to be some awareness out there in the future.   Carol: I can see a campaign coming. I can see David like launching a campaign around this, how we going to serve the long COVID folks. So back in the day, I used to have this personal philosophy. I like to tag to start with, you know, about employment, and I always felt that I wanted our customers to achieve and obtain or maintain family sustaining wages. And I don't focus used to be like, what? Like, what is that? But I didn't want people to just get a job. I wanted them to give more than a job. I was hoping it could lend itself to a career and moving up and having a ladder and buying a house and doing all of that. So what is your personal philosophy around employment and people with disabilities and Natasha, I'll ask you first.   Natasha: My first philosophy is I agree with you, Carol. Any old job does not mean a good job, and family sustaining wage is essential. My other philosophy is I don't believe there should have to be a philosophy around employment of people with disabilities. I mean, frankly, VR is a long term goal needs to be that we aren't needed, that the only factor in any employment situation should be that the individual can do the job and it should not matter if they have a disability or not. And employers need to recognize that every single person brings value and strength to the organization. And we are doing a family sustaining wage study in Minnesota, and 93 percent of individuals with disabilities who are part of the data did not receive a family sustaining wage. 93 percent, there should not be a gap and they should not be relegated to entry level employment, minimum wage employment if they want and need to do more. My philosophy is there shouldn't have to be one.   Carol: I love that here here, Mic-drop on that boom. So David, how about you? Even though we shouldn't have to have one? Do you have a personal philosophy?   David: I certainly do as a consumer myself, having been completely blind multiple times in my life and now being legally blind right on 20-200, there is a significant amount of suffering that occurs with people with blindness, people with disabilities in general. Coming to that acceptance, that disability is going to be part of the natural human condition, I think is the first thing. So once you can come to terms with that, then it becomes the greatest secret right, which is we become what we think about. So if you focus and your resolve that you want to work, you will achieve that and then move up. And so it starts with goal setting and a plan and all the things we talk about in VR, the tried and true methods of sitting down with your family, with your extended circle and drawing up that plan and sticking to it, the path to prosperity is paved by perseverance. You got to hang in there for everyone hundred you ask you. I get 99 no's, and you can't give up until you get that one, yes, even if it's at the hundredth time, so you've got to hang in there, that is. The number one thing is that perseverance, because people with disabilities are naturally inclined to solve problems to hang in there. Whether it's the Accenture study that we know that people with disabilities outperformed in terms of being on time in terms of having less absenteeism, in terms of being productive in many ways. Those are all good traits, but it starts with overcoming the inherent challenges that come with disability. And then once you do that, then come into VR. We've got programs and services, and we've got great professionals who know how to provide opportunities for you.   Carol: I love that. Oh my gosh, I'm glad you said it. That Accenture study as well. It's back to the basics. I always think we used to talk about that. Going back to the basics. I know sometimes it's like, Oh, here's a flashy new program that's going on, but really, it is back to the basics. I am going to ask you, though, have you had any other types of initiatives or practices that you put into place around employment that you're hoping are going to help to move the needle forward? And David, I'm going to kick that to you.   David: So let's talk about some of the realignment projects that we do. I think year one realignment projects that we did. Twenty four separate realignment projects, we follow that up with another six this year. I think we're doing another 6. So we're talking everything from the graphic novel that we talked about to we launched an employer challenge during the pandemic. We get great response on that from the business community, where we challenge the business community to, hey, do one more thing. That's the name of the campaign. Do one more thing. Everybody can be a mentor. You can offer one more internship. How about interviewing and then hiring and then promoting and retaining all of those things? So that's what that campaign is centered around. We launched our Career View podcast. We've got twenty one episodes there on all types of VR topics. We have special guests and staff and counselors sharing their insight, by the way that's available on our website Mass.Gov/MCB. You can also find it on SoundCloud, Apple and Google. So we have our nationally recognized summer internship program. This year, we had nearly 70 individuals participate that joins more than a group of 700 that we've had over the years. In October, we had our job fair. We do that annually at Radcliffe and with partners like Perkins School for the Blind, Carroll Center for the Blind and other community stakeholders. This year we had 40 career ready candidates who pitch themselves. We did reverse pitches, which seem to be a very effective model in the 20 personnel executives that we have loved it and we're getting placements out of that job fair. We did the 60 second elevator pitch, so if you want more information, contact me, be pleased to share it. We did a reach for the stars, which was in that event where we gave out gifts to the people that had the best pitches. And then for Nadeem, we created blogs and worked with our sister agencies, MRC and Match Commission for the death of Hard of Hearing to get it out through their communities to make sure that people know that, yeah, it's about blindness, but it's also about people with deaf blindness and people with blindness and other disabilities as well. So whether it's the virtual town halls that we're doing, I came day celebrations. I mean, we've got a lot of events going on. My team has worked so hard and I think we have the advantage, though, of such institutional knowledge and just great human resources here in Massachusetts with our team at MCB and the consumers. I mean, you just got to have a willing consumer group that wants to take part.   Carol: Well, I think you need to have a session at NCSAB or CSr CSAvR and all the things that you're doing because I could just see, like my old director, wheels are turning. I am sure colleagues from across the country would be like, What are you doing? I want to know more about that.   David: Sign us up. I mean, there is a number of other studies that we did realignment projects. I think in total, Carla and I, who's our communications director, Carla Cathy, does a terrific job. I think we stopped at 52 different projects that we've done over the past 24 months or something like that. So we've got a lot going on. Check us out. Mass.Gov/MCB to find out more.   Carol: Holy smokes. Thanks for sharing that. So Natasha, I know you're representing you and Dee, so are there any other initiatives or practices that you all are doing around employment to move the needle forward?   Natasha: I got sent a whole list that Minnesota General has been doing, but I think the biggest thing I wanted to share first is that we are doing most of these things together. I think Minnesota General and Minnesota Blind had had a long history of being very isolated from one another and siloed. That is no more. We do almost everything together and as one voice, and so a lot of the things I'll be talking about, we are doing this as a team, but with employment, I think pre-employment is the first place we start is when you build that. Relationship between a student and work, so a couple of things that we're doing at SSB is bring your a game where students are meeting monthly and they get information about an Alexa game and then they play that game with their family and friends, and then they come back together with their peers to talk about the game and how it relates to jobs and job skills. And then we also did an open mic night so that we can encourage the artistic side of our students. And they came, Well, they're going to be coming on the 28th. They're singers and bands and poets and comedians and storytellers, so they'll be able to share their talent. We're also expanding our pre-employment transition services programs. We're adding another work opportunity navigator who's going to be focused on providing work experiences in the northern region since we have a ton of students up there and a lot of need. We're also entering into a contract with the third party to host liability insurance so that we can get more students out there for work experiences. That's been our biggest barrier, so we figured let's get over that so we can get students paid work experiences. We have a program in Minnesota called the Connect seven hundred program, which is great but could be better. But Connect seven hundred is like Schedule A, where a person with a disability can come in and have a noncompetitive interview. And the Connect 700 program has just soared this last year. And the stats are that someone who applies for Connect 700 with the state are nearly twice as likely to get hired than someone from the general public firsthand. SSB has had a number of vacancies in every single vacancy, has had to connect 700 applicant and almost every single vacancy has been hired from a Connect 700. So that's been a really great experience. Another huge project, and I'm going to say it's 2 projects. The first is the elimination of subminimum wage. Legislature created a task force to eliminate it by 2025 and going hand in hand with that is our collaboration with the Department of Human Services to help people who are on waivers and receiving vocational rehabilitation to get jobs. We're doing something called service provider alignment, so if someone's on a waiver and getting vocational rehabilitation services, they can have the same provider from start to finish. We have a new framework called Engage Plan, Find and Keep so that it helps people move through that process without any delays so that they can get into employment. And there's no back and forth of who's paying for what. So it's a seamless experience. And then I could go on and on with 50 more things, but for sake of time, I won't. But the final thing is we have increased our collaboration with our WIO partners tenfold because they have connections. We don't we know disability, but they have connections with the business community we often can't replicate. So we've been doing a lot with our title 1 and title 3 partners. And so with that, I'll turn it back to you, Carol.   Carol: Well, I know that's been on your heart for a long time. You've always talked about that partnership with the WIO partners, and that is so critical. You both have so much happening. And so I want to lead us into our National Disability Employment Awareness Month, little part of our discussion and how each of your agencies is drawing attention to this month. So, Natasha, I know that I was following on social media as well and saw that there was an employer event earlier in the month. So can you tell us a little bit about how that went?   Natasha: Yeah, we had over 400 attendees. We invited the creators of the windmill training. If you're familiar with windmills, Milt Wright is the company, and the two owners of that corporation actually came and presented. And the topic was music within disability inclusion in a business world, and that recording is available on YouTube. And if you go to our Career Force website, it's available on there. We also unveiled something called disability inclusion bite-size learning modules for employers, and they are 20 minute modules and there are five of them that employers can go in and learn about disability inclusion, and there's tip sheets and tip cards and how they can incorporate it into their business. We've also done a number of blog posts and of course, we celebrated White Cane Day and we posted three videos regarding White Cane Day and what it means for people with vision loss. And fortunately, our governor is very much in support and issue two proclamations one for NDI and one for White Cane Day.   Carol: Yeah, that was awesome and I loved it. I saw your video too, promoting White Cane Day. I thought that was really well done. Both of you are good at the old social media and David, I follow the mask commission all the time on social media and I saw you were part of a panel a couple of weeks ago for National Disability Employment Awareness Month.   David: Yeah.   Carol: and also I saw there was a podcast dropped and you had a couple of other tweets out and some really cool things with customers. I just wondered if there's any things you want to highlight about the special month.   David: Again, just a shout out to our team for doing such a great job with all of the social. Media, Caller Kath is doing a great job, but did a VR panel with the state exchange for employment for people with disabilities, a seed project which counts on state governments, has an affiliate. It's the National Association of State Personnel executives. So NASPE they had their conference in Boston, so they wanted to hear from me. So we were able to present there about hiring people with disabilities. So we're a model employer state. We talked a little bit about that and how they could do things in their state. So that was good. But we kicked off the month with our vlog and our ad campaign that I mentioned previously. What's your vision, which is on TV and it's in print and it's really getting a lot of traction. We had our job fair. We had our employer of the year and then our Reach for the Stars contest, which we talked about. We had our virtual town hall with our transportation authority, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, about barriers and making sure that people with disabilities have their free or reduced Charlie card in Massachusetts. If you're blind, you have a free travel pass to be able to travel throughout the public transit system. So we talked about that we had a white pain awareness day and celebration where we had some mobility awards within that program. That was fun, but we had a provider's council presentation with the disability commissioners all throughout Massachusetts about human services and things like that. We presented to higher education professionals at Lesley University. We did an event for parents of children with blindness and visual impairments for the Boston Public Schools and New England College of Optometry. Again, just more of the reallotment project. So it's very busy at MCB, but it's a good thing. And I think that's one of the reasons why you're seeing the amount of consumers coming in for VR is up. The amount of closures is up. So it's a good thing. I think it's working.   Carol: I'd say so, David, I think you need to train your peers. I have never seen anyone quite like you and how you've promoted and really gotten traction in Massachusetts and have made some really cool things happen. I think it's amazing. And Natasha, I just wanted to say so that if people wanted to follow what you were talking about with the mini modules for the employers, I looked it up and it's CareerForceMN.com. So if anybody wants to listen to that, definitely. David's promoted his website to a number of times, but folks should definitely go to both because I think that you will get a lot of rich information that is applicable in any state. It doesn't have to be that it was developed for Massachusetts or Minnesota. What's being said are things that are pertinent anywhere. So I know we need to close up here shortly and I just want to ask you each. So if you had a shiny VR crystal ball and you could forecast what is happening with VR 5 years from now and how would employment for VR look? And what do you think needs to be done to just overall improve employment for individuals with disabilities? Natasha, I'm going to go to you first and then I'll go to David   Natasha: O if only I had that crystal ball. You know, I think we can't have VR look the same in 5 years from now as it does 5 years ago. I think we have hung our hats on the old way of doing VR for so long, and we really, really need to reimagine across the board how we work with our customers and everything that David says. This is what I hope that all VR agencies embrace. We need to connect people to not just any old job. We need to be focusing on advancement. We want people to never have to come back to VR. But yeah, that's the majority of our cases. Are people returning. That's why we need to invest people for the long haul and we need to make sure that they have everything that they need so that they do not come back. And the way that we approach businesses, I think, has been kind of archaic and has been from this. Well, we're going to convince you to hire people with disabilities, but we need to be driving home that the expectation is if employers want talented, loyal staff, a strong business model that embraces diversity and inclusion and a workforce that actually reflects their stakeholders and customers, then they cannot disregard the disability community. And VR needs to be the leader in that message. And it cannot be. Just please hire someone with a disability that's not going to work, and that's not our approach anymore.   Carol: Well said. Well said. So, David, how about you? Do you have a crystal ball?   David: Wish I did. But the great poet Santayana said those who forget the past are condemned to repeat it, so I think we need to look back. Let's look back at starting with like Smith's best act and all of that and see how much progress we have made. And even it just contemporarily when we're talking about we did away with homemakers, that was a big VR thing. Right now, it's imminent that we're going to get rid of. 14C, that's another step. You know, I look at programs like the SBA8A program. Let's get included in that. I look at Randolph Sheppard as we've seen the pandemic just crushed so many of those vendors there. What can we do now to expand that program or to get that program into other sectors or industries to keep that alive and keep people entrepreneurial? So I. I think the future's bright for VR, I believe in incremental change. These are long standing challenges that are profound. And so to me, it's like, what can we do to look at the existing program, incorporate all of the good things that we've talked about, all of the things that we've been hyper accelerated to learn as a result of COVID. It's the transportation piece that we talked about, the technology piece that we talked about. Let's keep that going so we can provide our people with access to the opportunities. And I'm just very confident that we're trending in the right direction. I want to keep it going.   Carol: Well, thank you, David, for those positive words at the end. I really appreciate that. I think you two are both such a visionary and just talented leaders, and I'm really looking forward to the work you all do over these next five years. Very excited. Thank you for being on the show. I appreciate your time. I know you're both busy.   David: Thank you, Carol.   Natasha: Thanks to you all.   Speaker1: Conversations powered by VR. 1 manager at a time, 1 minute at a time brought to you by the VRtAC for Quality Management. Catch all of our podcast episodes by subscribing on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts. Thanks for listening!

In this episode Jethro and Fred talk with Quinton B. Dale, who investigates teachers who are applying for licensure in Massachussetts. Quinton B. Dale Is currently the Chief of Investigations for the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education Office of Professional Practices Investigations.  He previously served as Director of the Investigation Division, Deputy Director of the Investigation Division and as an Investigator for the Massachusetts Attorney General's Office. Mr. Dale also previously served as a Corrections Counselor for the Massachusetts Department of Corrections.  Mr. Dale has also served as a Commissioner for the Massachusetts Commission on Judicial Conduct and on the Board of Directors for St. Francis House.   Mr. Dale is a graduate of Northeastern University, where he received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Criminal Justice. What inspired Q to get in to education from Criminal Justice Slipperly slopes for new educators coming into the profession. Trouble with being the “cool teachder” We're not here to be your friend, we're here to be your teachers! How social media has impacted inappropriate student-teacher relationships. It's much more blatant than it was before. How to keep boundaries in tact. Set boundaries for time and what you talk about. Stay in your lane. Use school equipment in all communications. As long as it is good for the student, it's fine. As soon as it goes awry, they're going to use the information against you. How to maintain boundaries on social media with students. How to support teachers who have made some mistakes. Be sure to check out NASDTEC

Today I am joined by a co-host, Eleanor Mayes—and let me introduce Eleanor! Hi I'm Eleanor Mayes, I currently serve as a production assistant and transcription director for COVIDCalls. I recently completed my masters in materials science and engineering at the University of Minnesota this past semester, and previously attended the university of Chicago for my undergraduate degree. I will attend UC Berkeley this fall, in their new Master's of Design program.  In my spare time I enjoy reading about typography, disability studies, LGBTQ+ activism, and the history of science. You can hear COVIDCalls anytime recorded as podcasts on spotify, iTunes, podbean or anywhere you get podcasts. Stewart Landers, JD, MCP, is a Senior Consultant at John Snow, Inc. with over 30 years of experience working on public health systems and practice related to chronic disease, wellness, HIV/AIDS, mental health/substance abuse treatment, LGBTQ health, emergency preparedness, and immunization. Mr. Landers conducted two of the first large scale LGBTQ health needs assessments in Santa Clara County, CA and the state of Rhode Island. Mr. Landers is an associate editor for the American Journal of Public Health (AJPH) focused on LGBTQ health, including HIV and chronic disease prevention and control. He is currently curating a collection of articles on “COVID-19 and the LGBTQ Community.” He has published in a wide variety of journals including the New England Journal of Medicine, the Journal of the American Medical Association, as well as AJPH. Stewart served on the Massachusetts Commission on LGBTQ Youth from 2010-2018.

Nahara Caraballo chats with Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) Counselors Keri Davidson and Brianna Guimond from Massachusetts Commission for the Blind (MCB) for advice about the job search process. MCB Commissioner David D’Arcangelo also weighs in during the Commissioner’s Corner.

On This Episode Hosts Dawn Prall and Shawn Doyle begin the episode with a conversation about the right diet and foods to eat with MacD. They not only discuss how diet and healthy eating are critical to living with macular degeneration but also share a number of resources and tips on foods that are eye healthy.  Dawn explains why heart healthy living is eye healthy, including lifestyle choices, “eating the rainbow,” and taking in the right types of omegas and fish oil as examples. She elaborates on the importance of choosing a healthy lifestyle and diet—especially for the 80-85% of people with dry macular degeneration—since it is the only available treatment.  In the next segment, Shawn interviews none other than his co-host Dawn Prall as the episode's featured special guest. Dawn relates the story of how an unexpected phone call over a decade ago sparked a lifelong passion of supporting, educating and inspiring people with MacD and their families. She explains how she received the call from food magnate, philanthropist and Macula Vision Research Foundation founder, the late Herb Lottman, who asked her to serve as executive director of his foundation. After taking the job, she shares how it was a top priority for her to learn facts and the science behind macular degeneration from scientists, researchers and other MacD experts. She adds how the most profound and life-changing moment occurred once she started to meet people all over the country who lived with macular degeneration.  She goes on to tell how she founded The SupportSight Foundation as a non-profit organization singularly focus on macular degeneration, with a solid track record of effectively serving the MacD community—one that includes those who either have macular degeneration; have a loved one with it; or are in some way connected to the disease. Dawn concludes her interview by offering listeners hope with news about gene therapy-based research for future MacD treatments funded by the foundation. Actress, singer, voiceover artist and SiriusXM radio show host Christine Pedi stops by in the next segment from New York City to share inspired adventures, as she navigates life through diminished vision and transitions into the world of visual challenges. In this episode, Christine offers relatable anecdotes about how she discovered her visual impairment during an on-stage performance of Noises Off, as well as a subsequent detached retina surgery at age 28. She closes the segment with details of her medical visits surrounding Strabismus surgery for her eye turn years later, interjecting humor as she relates her story.  The podcast moves on to the regular featured segment from Vispero's Bill Kilroy, Senior Sales Director for the Northeast, and Mike Woods, Strategic Accounts Manager for Education. Vispero is the world's largest Assistive Technology for the visually impaired serving people who are blind or low vision. Throughout the podcast, they highlight Vispero products that can enhance people's lives. In this episode, Bill and Mike introduce the RUBY® Family handheld video magnifier line of products. The Vispero duo provide detailed overviews for each of the four individual portable rechargeable magnifiers. They also highlight key features, such as a range of magnification and contrast settings, designed to make simple tasks not so cumbersome. The show continues with a new guest interview segment featuring The SupportSight Foundation (TSSF) board members sharing their unique and inspiring stories about vision loss and impairment. In this episode, Dawn interviews TSSF board member John McInerney, who imparts his powerful firsthand story. He recounts how he was diagnosed at age 6 at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Institute in the 1950s, elaborating how his condition called retinitis pigmentosa is very similar to macular degeneration, in terms of the way it progresses and is also an inherited disease. He shares his experiences from playing sports in high school; to receiving funding from the Massachusetts Commission for the Blind to attend Notre Dame; to his first time out of New England on a plane to South Bend, Indiana at 17, knowing no one and being legally blind.  John shares uplifting milestones from undergraduate, to completing his masters, to his first job as an engineer designing material-handling systems working for the government in Ohio. Dawn then follows his career journey as a manager for Westinghouse Electric Company where John shares his on-the-job challenges with accessibility and how he navigated the workplace—until he couldn't. In a poignant moment, he also shares how he contacted the state's Office of Vocational Rehabilitation to enter an accelerated rehab program at the Greater Pittsburgh Guild for the Blind while he concurrently worked.  After finishing up his Westinghouse career as vice president, John went on to working in the blindness field, including a stint as interim CEO of the Pennsylvania Association for the Blind and serving as board member of BVRS in Pittsburgh and The SupportSight Foundation. John and Dawn wrap up the interview exchanging encouraging words and advice for anyone suffering from vision impairment or loss. Other episode highlights include short soundbite segments where Dawn and Shawn have fun sharing trivia, as well as offer additional tips for low and impaired vision on the more serious side. The co-hosts close out the episode with information on additional resources.   What We Discuss in this Episode This third episode covers the following featured topics: ◦ “I think people will get a lot out of your interview, talking about your story, how you founded The SupportSight Foundation.” (2:04) ◦ “Diet and healthy eating is really critical to living with macular degeneration—there are all kinds of foods that are eye healthy.” (3:08) ◦ “What are some things people should have more in their nutritional plan for eye health?” (3:27) ◦ “A question that I would immediately have is where do people go to find out about right kind of diet to follow for healthy vision?” (5:30) ◦ “Today I have the privilege, the pleasure, to interview my co-host, Dawn Prall, who is also the executive director and the founder of The SupportSight Foundation. ” (6:48) ◦ “And so we created a program, the SupportSight Patient Education Advocacy Program, which was already there when I took the job, but we changed the model.” (14:40) ◦ “We often talk on this program, MyMacDLife about hope—what kind of research are you currently involved with that might give people reason to have hope for either a treatment or a cure for MacD?” (17:22) ◦ “The latest project that The SupportSight Foundation funded—and we just announced and are really psyched about—is a genetic study… We're also looking at funding some low-vision research.” (17:55) ◦ “I do have some stories from my previous experiences with visual challenges, specifically some of the surgeries I've had.” (23:50) ◦ “Today, the assistive technology folks at Vispero are going to be talking about the RUBY® Family. ” (32:34)  ◦ “The RUBY® is a group of four different handheld video magnifiers.... that when it debuted, it was by far and away an industry changer.” (34:52) ◦ “Here's another practical tip for living with macular degeneration: decrease glare.” (39:53) ◦ “We'd like you to learn more about the people who really are dedicated and committed to the mission of the foundation.” (40:47) ◦ “It would be a good thing for folks who are listening to get to know your story. So powerful a story, and it's best told to others by you. So where I think would be great for you to start is explain to the listeners, you're visually impaired, and how your life has dramatically changed when you and your family got the news that you were diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa.” (42:13) Quotables “I started to meet people all over the country who live with macular degeneration. And that was profound.” – Dawn Prall “We have a constituency. By and large, the majority of them either have macular degeneration; have a loved one who had macular degeneration; or are in some way connected to the disease, because it is 1-in-4 people over the age of 65 have some degree of or some stage of macular degeneration. So it's that huge. And it's that real.” – Dawn Prall “There's a lot of buzz about gene replacement therapy, and also stem cell therapy.” – Dawn Prall  “I just hope that… we can move that needle. Because if we stay focused on it, like we are and we will, I know we can make a difference.” – Dawn Prall  “We're going to talk about all sorts of silly things, important things, emotional things, angry things, you name it. I'm feeling them all, as I transition into a life filled with many more visual challenges.” – Christine Pedi “The best thing I did was go to the rehab program and take advantage of the services that were available. And that helped me maintain my independence. It was, to be honest, really a mental thing to get over as much as a physical thing.” – John McInerney “You just put your head down and just did it. You didn't let your vision issues, no matter what age, get in your way. And I think that's really an important message that the audience—and people listening—needs to understand.” – Dawn Prall “It's important to advocate for yourself, so that you can maintain independence. And it's also important psychologically, to cross that boundary that says, ‘Okay, I have a visual impairment, I need to deal with it.' That was one of the most difficult mental boundaries that I had to cross. Once I crossed that line, then it was okay. ‘Watch out, don't get in my way, there's all kinds of technology out there, there's all kinds of opportunities, and the sky's the limit.'” – John McInerney “That's the one piece of advice I want to say to everyone that is, you know, make the decision and go for it because if you don't, you're going to end up sitting in a corner, probably for the rest of your life.” – John McInerney “And I think with the technology that's out there today, and organizations like The SupportSight Foundation, it's in everyone's best interest to maximize what they can do with their vision impairment in order to maintain independence, and to maintain a quality of life that that they use. There's just so many opportunities and so much technology out there today.” – John McInerney Recommended Resources - http://www.supportsight.org/ - https://www.nei.nih.gov/ - https://www.mvrf.org/ - http://www.mymacdlife.org/ - https://vispero.com/ - https://www.freedomscientific.com/ - https://www.freedomscientific.com/products/lowvision/ruby/ - https://www.enhancedvision.com/ - https://us.optelec.com/ - https://www.masseyeandear.org/ - https://www.mass.gov/orgs/massachusetts-commission-for-the-blind - https://www.evas.com/pdflinks/PVC.pdf.. - https://www.evas.com/cgi-bin/htmlos.exe/Main.htm - https://www.bvrspittsburgh.org/ - https://www.pablind.org/ Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/mymacdlife-macular-degeneration-podcast/donations

Employment Law Attorney Amanda Baer discusses what employers should do if they receive a discrimination claim filed with the MCAD and how the process typically works.

In the first episode of MCB Career Views, a podcast of the Massachusetts Commission for the Blind (MCB), Commissioner David D’Arcangelo gives an overview of MCB’s Vocational Rehabilitation services and highlights how he hopes the podcast will help guide MCB consumers in their career pathways.

This week, Jamie Dunbar joins Cayenne on 321 GO where they discuss the VP debate, and Halloween. Suzanne interviews David D'Arcangelo from Massachusetts Commission for the Blind. In Two Minutes with Tom, Tom and Cayenne catch up on the current events.

Shaitia Spruell is a proud young mom, born and raised in Springfield, Ma. She and I are fellow Commissioners on the Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women and she is a Senior Program Officer for the Office of Economic Empowerment. She is an inspiring advocate for women of color, youth empowerment, and rebuilding communities rattled by injustice. In this episode, Shaitia shares important information about the work her office is doing to support the financial wellbeing of vulnerable populations in Massachusetts. We also hear about her experience growing up as one of few black students attending a predominantly white school. I also ask her about what it's like to be a black mom in our country today. There has never been a more important time to ask tough questions.And then, on a lighter note, we also talk about food (we are both foodies) and a bit of pop culture including her current recommendation for some great TV.Enjoy!

In August of 2013, LaBreck was nominated and confirmed by the United States Senate as the Commissioner of Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA). RSA was established to provide leadership and resources to assist state and other agencies providing vocational rehabilitation services (VR) to individuals with disabilities to maximize their employment, independence and integration into the community and workforce. Under her leadership, LaBreck was responsible for promulgating the most substantive regulation changes to the Vocational Rehabilitation program in over 15 years. She began her 27-year career with the Massachusetts Commission for the Blind (MCB) where she served as Commissioner during the last six years of her appointment by Governor Patrick until her transition to Washington, D.C. She is also the recipient of numerous awards and honors including an Honorary Doctoral Degree from New England College of Optometry (NECO) for her innovative partnership which resulted in the establishment of a mobile eye care clinic for individuals with low vision conditions. In 2017, NECO dedicated the Janet L. LaBreck Center for Low Vision Rehabilitation clinic in her honor in recognition of her commitment and dedication to the field of blindness. Most recently, LaBreck has established Janet L. LaBreck Consulting LLC in addition to becoming the Founder of Synergy Consulting Partners.

Today's episode with Jill Ashton is about how the pandemic has shifted the conversation on and its surrounding issues on gender equality. As the Director of the Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women, Jill highlights some of the progress that they have made and also have yet to target due to the rising issues during this crisis, from domestic violence to maternity leave.   This episode is brought to you by WRBB's podcast department.

1. Terence Crawford vs Jose Benavidez/ Beef. Arum “if they don’t wanna discuss Crawford/Spence fuck off”2. Billy Joe vacates after the Massachusetts Commission denies license.  Andrade vs Kautondokwa for title 3 Whyte vs Ortiz Dec 1st?4. Pacquiao vs Broner?.Notes:WBSS- season 2 Tete vs Aloyan Tabiti vs Ruslan FayferShaker Stevenson Co-Main event 10 rounder in Omaha this weekend Lewis Ritson Back this Weekend Gervonta Davis accused in strip club attack.https://www.patreon.com/ThaboxingvoiceBUY THA BOXING VOICE T-SHIRT HERE http://thaboxingvoice.com/storePLEASE SUPPORT!!! SUBSCRIBE, SHARE & LIKEPlease check out our facebook page and hit the like button. https://www.facebook.com/Thaboxingvoiceradio GOOGLE PLUS https://plus.google.com/107960664507143008932/posts?tab=XXiWeb Sitehttp://thaboxingvoice.com/Radio show: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/thaboxingvoiceradioTwitter: @Thaboxingvoicehttps://twitter.com/thaboxingvoiceAudio only Podcast subscribe herehttps://itun.es/us/oY7JJ.c

Tahirah Amatul-Wadud knew that something was wrong in her community. As a civil rights and family lawyer, as a volunteer commissioner for the Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women. she saw that public policy - and the long-time elected representative - was not serving the constituents in the region. She decided to run for US Congress in the First Massachusetts District. because she knew she could make a difference. And she has spent every day in the last eight months listening and talking to voters throughout the 70-plus towns of her giant district. Listen to her talk about her reasons for running, the way she is running her campaign, and dealing with bigotry in the race.

Guests Jonathan O’Dell and Stefanie Farrell from the Massachusetts Commission for the Deaf & Hard of Hearing demonstrate various Assistive Technology devices designed to help individuals remain independent and safe in their homes.

Khepe-Ra Maat-Het Heru is one of the original members of The The E.S.H.U. Collective, a grassroots transformational leadership system based in Spiritual Warriorship established in 1997. Through her work with ESHU she has consulted with various programs such as The Marion Institute, The Massachusetts Commission for National and Community Service, YouthBuild USA, NeighborWorks America, Youth […] The post Elemental Freedom appeared first on Future Primitive Podcasts.