Date: February 15, 2000

To: BARC Committee Members

RE: An update on the status of Commission for the Blind bill and recent

meeting of BARC representatives with Dr. Cathrine Campisi

BARC representatives, Jim Willows, Cathy Skivers, Gil Johnson, Anita

Baldwin, Bob Ralls, LaDonna Ringering, Brian Bashin, and Dan Kysor, met

with Dr. Catherine Campisi on February 9th in her Sacramento office.

Melinda Wilson, Assistant Deputy for Special Projects, and Manuel Enriquez,

Assistant Deputy for Field Operations, were also in attendance. Jim

Willows introduced the BARC agenda to address the very poor job placement

record of the Department of Rehabilitation and explained that we had met

with Tal Finney of Governor Davis office, and Grantland Johnson, who had

recommended that we discuss our concerns with the CDR Director as soon as

possible after the Governor's appointment. Cathy Skivers then stated

BARC's position and the mandate of CCB to move toward a separate Commission

for the Blind in order to change the infrastructure of service delivery to

be more responsive to the needs of people who are visually impaired. She

added that the BARC committee was pleased with her appointment and willing

to support her efforts to improve the placement rate, but would still be

moving ahead with the Commission agenda. Gil Johnson shared his experience

in Illinois under a separate agency for the blind and recommended its

effectiveness.

Dr. Campisi reported her plans for reorganization of the department. Her

target date is April 1, 2000. She is developing minimum qualifications

for RCBs, planning a nation-wide search for additional personnel, and

will hold regional training meetings. Gil Johnson recommended she

investigate an eight-day training program developed by AFB and MSU. She

suggested we contact the Bureau of State Audits for the results of and

evaluation of the department ( (916) 445-0255, or www.bsa.ca.gov).

Dr. Campisi reviewed her memo, included below, that outlines her priorities

for the department and that she believes will address BARC's concerns:

Subject: Improvement of Rehab Services to Blind Clients

Dear Mr. Willows:

As you may be aware, I have been studying the issues and concerns regarding

the programs and services of California Department of Rehabilitation (CDR)

as they affect clients with visual impairments raised by members of Blind

Alliance for Rehab Change (BARC). I appreciate the BARC's willingness to

meet with me to discuss these concerns in detail.

As the newly appointed Director of the California Department of

Rehabilitation, I pledge to work with the members of BARC, and other

members of the blind and visually impaired community, to improve the

quality and quantity of services provided to applicants and clients. My

professional career in various aspects of disability policy, program

development, and service delivery for persons with disabilities, as well as

my personal experiences with persons who are visually impaired, has made me

very aware of the need for specialized services for persons with visual

impairments.

I am very aware of the need for CDR to make changes in how it delivers

services to blind clients. First, I agree that generic services will not

meet the unique service needs of the blind and visually impaired community.

Clearly,CDR must continue to use individualized and specialized services to

maximize opportunities for individuals who are blind and visually impaired

to achieve independence and employment in their communities.

Please be assured that I have no intention of ending or decreasing

specialized services for the blind provided through any CDR program. On the

contrary, I intend to do all I can to improve the specialized programs and

services CDR provides to increase the independent living and vocational op.

tions' available to persons who are blind or visually impaired. I believe

that, with the support of the blind .community, there is much we can

accomplish toward this end.

I believe that there are many actions needed to improve services and

employment outcomes for visually impaired clients. I have thought a great

deal about these issues and believe that we share many common .concerns. I

want to take this opportunity to present my initial ideas for improving

service delivery in these areas, explain the steps we have already taken,

and solicit your involvement in shaping our future plans.

Support of Specialized Services:

As indicated, I recognize the need for CDR to provide effective and timely

specialized services for visually impaired persons. I believe that there

needs to be a greater degree of coordination and integration of the various

specialized services for persons with visual impairments within CDR. I have

taken this need into account in my plans for re-organization of the

department. In addition, in the near future, I will be seeking individuals'

with experience in specialized services for persons with disabilities to

apply for leadership positions with CDR to direct this area of the

department.

Strenqthening the Rehabilitation Counselor for the Blind (RCB):

I agree that the RCB needs to have specialized training and awareness of

the rehabilitation' needs of visually impaired clients. To assure that this

is the case, I have directed my Executive level staff to re-establish a

separate classification and examination process for the RCB. A work group

is in the process, of being formed to develop the minimum qualifications

for this classification and we hope to give an examination for the RCB

shortly thereafter. I believe that this is an essential step that we must

take if we are to secure the staff with the qualifications needed to

effectively assist visually impaired clients to achieve economic self

sufficiency. Assistance of the blind community will be greatly needed to

publicize the examination offering so that we can obtain an adequate pool

of candidates to fill the available RCB vacancies.

Obtaining Quality Employment Outcomes

As you may be aware, the department has received consider.able

criticism-from various sectors regarding the decline in employment outcomes

for all clients. We are very concerned about this fact and are undertaking

numerous actions to turn this trend around. Achieving successful employment

outcomes for individuals who are blind and visually 'impaired is the

primary objective of the RCBs. CDR is in the process of implementing.

several initiatives to support all counselors in improving their capacity

for successful rehabilitation outcomes. Among these are:

1 ) Efforts to identify best practices in counseling, job development and

placement and disseminate information about them to all service delivery

staff.

2) Focus on job development'and placement activities in our staff

development activities so that staff receive state-of-the-art ongoing,

training in these areas.

3) Streamlining efforts supported by the administration and undertaken by

field staff so that the entire rehabilitation process is more outcome

oriented and the paperwork involved is minimized to the maximumextent

possible.

4) Research and planning to improve the field computer system so that it

supports quality rehabilitation counseling. Administrative Services staff

are studying systems utilized in other states and it is probable that CDR

will move to an entirely new system in the near future. Please be assured

that any new system will be required to be fully accessible to and usable

by ALL of our staff before it is adopted.

5) Maintaining a career focus. CDR has implemented the.1992 and 1998

Amendments to the Rehabilitation Act as aggressively as any other State in

the nation. CDR staff have been trained that the concept of"entry-level

employment" is no longer applicable to the vocational rehabilitation

process unless such employment reflects the client's capacities and

interests. We are very aware of the research that indicates a doubling of

the employment rate for persons with severe disabilities who have a college

degree. Thus, we know that while the initial investment may be more costly,

the long term return, is well worth the expenditure of funds. In addition,

linkages with secondary and higher education will be a priority of my

administration. I concur that we must work with the pub, lie postsecondary

systems to assure full access to these systems by students with visual

impairments. Further, I believe there are many exciting opportunities for

collaboration that should be explored with our employment preparation

partners.

Revising Order of Selection:

In addition to the decline in employment utcomes, the department has been

cited for the use of the most complex, cumbersome process for the

determination of severity of disability (SOD) in the nation. We have

already made significant revisions.to the SOD process, which should

streamline its use and reduce the amount of time and resources devoted to

it. In addition, the changes should assist CDR to more effectively make

fiscal projections. In the near future, we will be considering further

revisions to the SOD process. We will consult with all the major

stakeholder groups including the BAC in considering these changes. Finally,

we will be seeking to identify strategies for the cost effective use of our

resources while at the same time seeking the fiscal resources to serve the

maximum number of persons possible.

Increased Attention to Assistive Technology:

The timely and effective provision of assistiVe technology (AT) is a

critical need for persons with severe disabilities if they are to be

competitive in successfully completing training programs and searching for

and securing competitive employment, lam taking several actions to

strengthen the department's capacity in this area. First, we are forming an

AT Advisory Council. The Council will have two basic functions. It will

provide input and advice on the Assistive Technology Act, the federal grant

awarded to CDR to undertake a broad range of activities to increase the

availability of AT to all persons with disabilities. Through this project,

CDR is working closely with advocates to increase the availability of

accessible media and strongly advocating for the principle of Universal

Design. The second function of the AT Council will be to advise the

department on activities needed to improve the timely and effective

delivery of AT to CDR clients. In the near future, we will be soliciting

nominees for the committee from the blind community. Second, I have taken

into account the need to improve our delivery of AT in my re-organization

plan. Third, we have reinforced with the,DR districts the current policy on

the provision of AT. This policy clearly indicates that, while seeking' to

maximize its resources by working with employers on their respective

requirements for reasonable accommodation, CDR must provide the necessary

AT for a client to become successfully employed if it is part of their

Individual Plan for Employment (IPE).

Effective Uše of the Business Enterprise Program:

The Business Enterprise Program (BEP) is currently involved in the most

comprehensive internal assessment of its strengths and weaknesses in many

years. CDR is committed to improving the quality of this program and

increasing opportunities for blind and visually impaired individuals to

become involved in new and innovative food service and vending businesses.

CDR has opened many new options in correctional facilities, roadside rests

and military bases in recent years. New approaches are being considered to

streamline the program and to modernize its business opportunities.

Use of Braille and Orientation Traininq:

I am very aware of the benefit that Braille literacy provides to persons

with visual impairments as they enter the world of work. To this end, I

would encourage RCBs to inform their clients of this fact and provide them

with opportunities to hear directly from successful blind professionals

what advantages the use and knowledge of Braille has provided them. In

addition, I would like to explore opportunities to make the' instruction of

Braille more readily available to blind persons who are current or future

CDR clients. In regard to orientation training, CDR 'will continue to

provide specialized orientation training and recognizes the importance of

this training as a key ingredient of independence and full inclusion in the

community.

Summary:

I am very aware of the concerns of the blind community regarding the

effectiveness of CDR services for blind and visually impaired clients. In

many ways these concerns are similar to those of persons from. other

disability groups but in other ways they are unique. To address your

concerns as well as those of the entire disability community, we will need

to make general changes to the department as well as specific c, hanges to

services for the visually impaired. I fully recognize and support the need

for specialized services for persons with visual impairments. I believe

that with collective thought and commitment, we can make significant

improvements to these services in a reasonable amount of time. I look

forward to working with you toward this goal and welcome your participation

in this effort. Time is of the essence, so let us begin.

Update subsequent to the meeting with Dr. Campisi:

Bob Perez of Ellen Corbett's office, reports that she is still interested

in authoring the bill, but has not yet committed. Today, February 15th,

Cathy Skivers is sending a letter to Governor Davis and all legislators to

outline BARC's concerns. She is including as attachments the latest

version of "Why A Commission?" and a letter from Charlie Crawford that

outlines the benefits of a separate commission for service delivery and

effective outcomes for people who are visually impaired.

Back to Table of COntents

Home