Transition Career Exploration Workshop

Disabilities and Accommodations

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Acknowledging Disabilities

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Disabilities – What’s Missing?

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Invisible and Acquired Disabilities• Invisible Disabilities– Learning Disabilities – Intellectual (Developmental) Disabilities– Mental Health Disabilities – Depression, Bipolar– Brain Injury

• Acquired/Accidental Disabilities– Debilitating Diseases – MD, MS, Heart Disease– Heart Attack/Stroke– Spinal Cord Injuries

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We focus on the Ability in Dis-ability!

• In Vocational Rehabilitation:– We acknowledge people’s disabilities and the

barriers they present to training & employment.– Through self-assessment in this workshop, we are

helping you look at your abilities & strengths and how to use those in the classroom & workplace.

– We will also help you explore accommodations for your disabilities in the classroom & workplace.

• Our long-term mutual goal is Employment!

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People with Disabilities:Who are They?

• You may have wondered, “Am I the only person who struggles with a disability?”

• How many people have disabilities? • Do they have successful careers?• Let’s take a look at others with disabilities,

some of whom you may know.

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Matching Name Game

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Guess Who?

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How About You?

• Can you find other individuals that had conditions which caused them to be labeled as “disabled”, but who are now successful and working with their strengths?

• How about you? Maybe you might just need an accommodation.

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What is Disclosure?

• Disclosure means talking about your disability.

• Use informed choice to decide who you want to talk to about your disability.

• Choice is reflecting on and talking about your strengths and needs.

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When and Why to Disclose• One of the most important decisions you will make

as a person with a disability is whether or not to tell someone about your disability.

• Effective disclosure occurs when you are knowledgeable about your disability and are able to clearly describe both your disability-related needs and your

skills and abilities.

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Disclose for A Specific Purpose• Some personal

information such as your Social Security number, banking records or medical information are important to keep confidential.

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Remember -

• It is NOT essential to reveal specific personal information about your disability.

• Disclosure is only importantif it affects yourability to perform work tasks successfully.

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Provide Information About:• How your disability affects your capacity to

learn and perform effectively.• The environment, supports and services you

will need in order to access, participate in, and excel in your job, studies and community.

You decide what and how much of this sensitive information is necessary to reveal in order to obtain the needed accommodations.

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Cross the Line

• Red equals No• Yellow equals Sometimes• Green equals Yes.

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Accommodations

What is an accommodation?

• An accommodation is essentially any strategy that gets rid of or lessens the effect of a barrier to performingthe job-related task.

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Accommodations are NOT:

• Accommodations are NOT intended to justify or compensate for a lack of knowledge, skills or abilities necessary to succeed.

• Accommodations are based on the need to perform a task and for further development of existing skills and capabilities.

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Know Your Strengths• It is very important to know your strengths

and how these strengths will match the requirements of the job, school and/or community setting.

• To understand the requirements of the job or task at hand.

• Then, to understand if an accommodation will be needed to perform the job-related tasks.

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Know Your Strengths (cont.)• For example, if you struggle with math, you

probably will want to avoid becoming a bookkeeper or an accountant.

• On the other hand, if a cash register tells you the amount of change you need to give and you are able to count money, then you might consider applying for a cashier position.

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ADA Definition of DisabilityA person qualifies as having a disability under theAmericans with Disabilities Act (ADA) if they have atleast one of the following three conditions:1. A physical or mental impairment that substantially limits

one or more major life activities (such as walking, talking, seeing, reading, learning, working);

2. A record of such impairment (for example, people with a history of cancer or mental illness); or

3. A perception by others as having an impairment (such as a person with a disfiguring facial scar or a person rumored to be HIV positive).

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ADA Prohibits Discrimination• Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) covers:–Private sector employment (Community

Living Associates, Fraser Paper)–Activities of state and local governments

(colleges, city offices, Career Centers)–Places of public accommodation (Stores,

Malls, Movie Theaters, Restaurants)– Transportation (planes, trains, buses)– Telecommunication services (TTY)

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Section 504 • Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973

is a law designed to protect the rights of individuals with disabilities who participate in programs that receive Federal Financial assistance.

• The law requires these programs and services to be accessible to persons with disabilities.

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Section 504 in schools • According to the provisions of the ADA and

Section 504, a plan is created that outlines the specific accommodations a student needs to have equal access to education.

• Each plan is designed around the specific needs of the individual.

• Colleges and Universities are also required to make reasonable accommodations under this law.

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Reasonable AccommodationsAccommodations could include: • Changes to facilities and equipment (putting in

ramps and parking spaces, making materials in large print, providing low/high-tech assistive technology);

• The provision of special services (such as sign language interpreters or qualified readers); and

• Creative thinking and problem solving!

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Bingo Game

We will be playing a Bingo Game around the topic of disability and disclosure.

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Self-Reflection

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Putting together with

• Let’s make sure that we have documented everything that we have discovered about ourselves in our workbooks, so we can use this information to start thinking about - and planning - our future!

Participant Workbook: Review all of your entries on the “S” page of your packet.

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