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# Program Improvemen t P l an for for 2013 Initia l PIP - current status : Approved Introduction Federal vocationa l rehabilitation (VR) program regu l ations (34 CFR 361.82 thru 34 CFR 361.86) establish performance standards and indicato rs by which the U.S. Rehabi l itation Services Admin istration (U.S. Department of Education) measures the performance of the state VR agencies. Evaluation Standard 1 mea s ures employment outcomes using six indicators. To achieve successful performance on Standard 1, a VR agency must meet or exceed the performance levels for at least four of the s ix indicators. In addition , the agency must meet or exceed the performance level for two of the three primary indicators.

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### Agency FY 2013 Performance Because the
. . , did not achieve the required minimum performance levels for Standard 1 for fiscal year (FY) 2013, it is required to submit t h is Program Im p roveme nt Plan (Plan) p ur suant to 34 CFR 361.89 (a). Speci f ica ll y, did not meet the required minimum performance levels for Indicators 1.1 , 1.2, and 1.5, as shown below. 

### Indicator 1.1

Number with employment outcomes 2,649 Numb er with employment outcomes ( Prior two years*) 2,826 Chang e in employment outcomes: Indicator· 1.1 -1 77 Indicator 1.2

Number with employ ment outcomes 2,649 Number who received services 3,857 Percent with employment outcomes after serv ices: Indicator 1.2 68.7 Indica tor 1.5

Average hourl y wage for indiv i duals with competitive employment outcomes 13.79 Average annual state wage (Fiscal year wage) (weighted average) 50,501 Average hourly state wage (Fiscal year wage) (weighted average) 24.28 Ratio of average hourly VR wage to average state wage: Indicator 1.5 0.568

• Cu rre n t year d ata as of Ma rch 31, 2014. • Blind agency prior year data as of April 16, 2013 and April 24, 2012. Note that for Blind agencies prior year data averages data from two prior years.

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### Agency Goals and Strategies for Indicator 1.1

**ha~** estab l ished the following goals, including performance targets, and strategies that will enable tt to meet o r exceed the requ i red minimum performance levels for Indicator 1.1. 

### Performance Indicator 1.1 -Chang e in Employm e nt Outcomes

**Ind cator**  1.1 is the difference between the nu mbe r o f in d ivi du als exi tin g the V R prog ram w h o

**~c~ ~ved**  an
**e_~ployment** outcome during the current performance period and the number of tndtv t duals ex t tmg the VR program who achieved an employment outcome during the previous performance period. The performance level for indicator 1.1 is: • Gene ral and Combined Agenc i es: Equal or Exceed Previous Performan ce • Agencies for the Blind: Equa l o r Exceed Previous Performance Fact o rs af_ fect i ng pe rforma nce of th i s i nd i ca tor mig ht be the State economy, an i n cre ase or

**d_ecr_e~se** m the

**~um.~e**

**r** of

**~p~li~ants,** a change in the make up of the agency's caseload, e.g. the stg ntftcance of d t sabthty of mdtvtduals served, a change in the number of counselors, and others discu ssed in indica t o r 1.2. 

### Performan ce T a rg et s

Fisc a l Ye ar Go a l to p ass indi cato r Pe rform a nc e ta rge t A ct u a l p e rfo rm a nc e 

### 2013 0 

## - - 177 2014 0 2,582 2015 0 2,700 Stra tegies To enab l e to achi eve the esta bli shed performance targets fo r I ndi cato r 1.1 d uri n g FYs 2 0 14 and 2015, it will engage in t h e following strategies. Standard 1.1, which measures the n umber of successful cl osures achieved compared to the p rior ye a r's successfu l closu res, was not met in FY 2013. was at 93% of this goal by the end of FY 2013, achieving 1,232 successful c l osures. To meet this target and the targets for indicators 1.2 and 1.5, D BS ana lysis shows a need for heightened focus o n expandi n g consumer employme n t o pp ortuni ti es thro ugh stre n gth ened partne rsh i ps with bus i nesses, max i m i zin g cons u mer potentia l and capabil i ties based on their job readiness, and increasing the effectiveness of job placement vendors' effectiveness in matching consumers' ab i lities with employment oppo r tunities. • Work Matters-- began a new employment i nitiative in 2013 called Work Matters. A key goal of the Work Matte rs project is to i mpact consumer salaries by increasing weekly wages. A prog ram specia li st i s ass igned to foc u s on lead i ng Work Matters. This initiative ass i sts staff i n p repa r i n g co n sumers t o compete and obtain h igher wage jobs by focusing bus i ness development on areas of the labor market with higher wage jobs, primarily technology and skilled trades. In addition, DBS will more closely collabo r ate with community colleges and trade sch oo l s to deve l op additio n al

Q

/ I R /? 0 14Page 4 of9 training opportunities for consumers. The Work Matters initiative is designed to: • expand consumer emp loyment opportun ities by building and strengthening strategic business and partner relationships; • align the counseling critical thinking process around employment opportunities and data to engage consumers in defining their optimal vocational opportunities; • maximize consumer potential and capabilities based on their job readiness; • increase job placement vendors' effectiveness in matching consumers' abilities with employment opportunities and; • align internal metrics and performance indicators. • Cont inu ed outreach to veterans and other underserved populations - DBS will increase staff knowledge and skills with effective rehabilitation strategies for serving veterans and other underserved populations (for example individuals with mental health issues, development disabilities, autism and deafblindness). This will ensure that appropriate services from other entities are u sed when available. • Continuous Quality Improvement - will review and if necessary update training for existing and new VR counselors and VR support staff. The review will ensure courses focus on training new counse l ors and support staff in the core knowledge and skills necessary for all consumers to perform jobs successfully, including those consumers with multiple disabilities.

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### Modification and Approval Modification of Pl a n Pu rsuant to regulations at 34 CFR 361.89(c), RSA will review the progress of 5 toward meeting the goals estab li shed in this P l an. Should fa il to susta i n a satisfactory level of perfo rmance on Standard 1 over the next two consecutive fiscal years (FYs 2014 and 2015), it will request th at mod ify this Pl an to ac h ieve the required level of performance. 

### App r oval of Pl a n Approved on 09/10/2014 Approved by Edward West

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