• How does WIOA leadership in your state/local region proactively promote equal opportunity and access for customers with disabilities?
  • Do all WIOA Core partners and other programs that use, refer to, and access AJCs in your state/local region understand their role and responsibilities in implementing Section 188’s equal opportunity and non-discrimination regulations?
  • Do all WIOA Core partners know how to implement Section 188 in conjunction with the Americans with Disabilities Act, embedding it in policies and procedures, including reasonable accommodations and assistive technology?
  • Do all WIOA Core partners collaborate with Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) and other disability partners (i.e., Commissions for the Blind, Programs for Deaf, etc.) to support AJC Certification surveying and continuous improvement?
  • Are there WIOA cross-title and cross-partner collaborations that focus on accessibility using Section 188 as the framework?

Actions (to take individually or as a team)

  • Learn about existing state/local level cross-partner workgroups on equal opportunity and/or accessibility, if WIOA leadership participates or leads, and if there is a focus on the inclusion of people with disabilities.
  • Explore the customer flow in AJCs and learn how customers with disabilities experience services from intake, assessment, resource coordination to employment, including how disclosure and reasonable accommodations are handled.
  • Explore how WIOA leadership communicates to program staff about operationalizing policies in areas of physical, programmatic, and communication accessibility and what training efforts have been deployed, including training on Assistive Technology (AT).
  • Connect with your state/local Equal Opportunity Officer to learn about training opportunities on Section 188’s equal opportunity and non-discrimination regulations.
  • Connect with state/local CILs and/or a regional ADA Center to learn about how the ADA applies in the workforce system and employment.
  • Do all WIOA Core partners collaborate with Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) and other disability partners (i.e., Centers for Independent Living, Commissions for the Blind, Programs for Deaf,, etc.) to support AJC Certification and continuous improvement?
  • Research national resources and promising practices that may be replicated in your region and organizations that may offer training on the responsibilities of all partners in ensuring accessibility and equal opportunity.
  • Explore how your region handles the AJC Certification process and if VR and/or any other disability partners serve as subject matter experts on Assistive Technology (AT), accommodations and more, to better ensure that accessibility is reflected in policie

Examples

Resources