Adopting strategies for making national and community service programs disability-friendly
Abstract
Inclusion of people with disabilities in service programs is a boon for a variety of reasons, but sometimes program managers have little or no experience in recruiting and retaining this population. This effective practice from the National Service Inclusion Project outlines proven techniques for programs to follow. Elesheva Soloff submitted this effective practice in March 2006.Issue
Recruiting and retaining individuals with disabilities isn't difficult; but sometimes lack of experience with this population can be a stumbling block.Action
According to the U.S. Department of Labor, effective practices in successfully recruiting and retaining individuals with disabilities in national and community service programs include the following:
Make a management commitment to include persons with disabilities among your stakeholders. Management commitment involves senior leadership embracing the disability policies and will ensure that the organization will “talk the talk and walk the walk.”
Ask yourself the following questions:
Are the commissioners, executive directors, and program managers dedicated to promoting disability-friendly service environments?
Are written statements provided to all staff, members, and volunteers expressing these commitments?
Do policies, procedures, and practices specifically mention the inclusion of people with disabilities in the programs?
Do persons with disabilities serve as commissioners or advisory council members? Are service members and volunteers with disabilities included in annual or other progress reports?
Are program and grantee staff members with disabilities employed at all levels, including senior management positions? Are your products or services marketed to individuals with disabilities?
Educate all staff, members, and volunteers on disability inclusion. Providing disability education dispels myths and enables all staff, members and volunteers to make sound disability recruitment decisions.
Ask yourself:
Do orientations involving new staff, members, and volunteers include disability awareness and sensitivity training? Are training materials available in alternate formats such as large print, Braille, and captioning?
Do employees, members, and volunteers with disabilities serve as mentors for those who do not have disabilities?
Provide ongoing information on disability inclusion. Continued educational opportunities enable staff, members, and volunteers to utilize pertinent disability information to resolve everyday family and work situations.
Ask yourself:
Are staff, members, and volunteers familiar with legal responsibilities pertaining to disability?
Is disability information provided routinely in the service program’s newsletter or on the Intranet site?
Are resources on disability issues readily available to help staff, members, and volunteers participate in service and volunteer projects?
Form a disability inclusion support group. Disability perspectives enable all staff, members, and volunteers to contribute their full potential to corporate success.
Ask yourself:
Do staff, members, and volunteers with and without disabilities meet to discuss disability service and volunteering issues?
Does this group have authority to make recommendations to management?
Are all staff, members, and volunteers aware of this group and the contributions it makes to overall program success?
Ensure accessible facilities and services at programs and service sites. Accessible facilities and services are more useful for everybody.
Ask yourself:
Are buildings, parking areas, public spaces, and communication systems accessible to persons with disabilities?
Accommodate applicants, members and volunteers with disabilities. An open policy on accommodations allows candidates, staff, members, and volunteers with disabilities to demonstrate what they can do.
Ask yourself:
Is there a line item for accommodation expenses in the program budget?
Are applicants, staff, members, and volunteers informed that accommodations are available if necessary?
Is the process to request accommodations readily known by applicants, staff, members, and volunteers?
With permission, are member and volunteer success stories demonstrating improved productivity based on provided accommodations shared with staff, members, and volunteers?
Do program staff members routinely stay abreast of new developments in universal design and assistive technology?
Project a disability-friendly image to attract potential staff, members, and volunteers with disabilities. If necessary, approach a disability organization, such as the local independent living center, for assistance with advertising to people with disabilities.
Ask yourself: Are people with disabilities portrayed as positive and active members and volunteers? Do service recruiters target students with disabilities when making campus visit?
Do recruiters search for resumes on disability-related websites? Are disability focus publications targeted for service program’s advertising? Are recruiters and other personnel responsible for establishing working relationships with community agencies serving applicants with disabilities?
Recruit individuals with disabilities!
Ask yourself:
Do recruiters regularly attend employment-related fairs for candidates with disabilities or target higher institutions of education with known populations of students with disabilities, such as Gallaudet University and the National Technical Institute for the Deaf?
Get out in your community!
Ask yourself:
Are staff members encouraged to build relationships with disability community service organizations?
Do staff members make regular visits to high schools and community-based organizations to inform administrators, teachers, community leaders, and students with and without disabilities about volunteer and service opportunities?
Context
The National Service Inclusion Project is a part of the Institute for Community Inclusion, a University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities Education, Research, and Service (UCED). UCEDs work to accomplish a shared vision that foresees a nation in which all Americans, regardless of their abilities, participate fully in their communities. Independence, productivity, and community inclusion are key components of this vision. There are 67 UCEDs located throughout the United States. They work with people with disabilities, members of their families, state and local government agencies, and community providers on projects that provide training, technical assistance, service, research, and information-sharing, with a focus on building the capacity of communities to sustain all of their citizens.
The National Service Inclusion Project awards mini-grants to UCEDs to cultivate working relationships among disability organizations, CNCS grantees, and CNCS state offices and state commissions. UCEDs provide national service program sites with information on how to better engage persons with disabilities as active service members and volunteers. In many states, UCEDs serve as a gateway to disability organizations, consumer advocacy groups, service providers, and public agencies on state and local levels.
Citation
Adapted by Paula Sotnik and Mat McCullough from the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Disability Employment Policy, July 2000. This information was prepared in cooperation with the Business Leadership Network (BLN), an employer-led endeavor of the Office of Disability Employment Policy supported by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.Outcome
Recruiting and retaining individuals with disabilities in service programs can lead to:- Exposure and acceptance of diverse backgrounds and experiences
- Personal development and growth of all members
- Different leadership styles
- The ability to cast a wider recruiting net
Posted On
March 14, 2006For More Information
Resources
To locate a UCED in your state, go online to http://www.aucd.org/directory/directory.cfm.Related Practices
Related sites
American Association of People with Disabilities