Program to help Kansans with disabilities find employment

The Kansas Department for Children and Families announced a new program Monday that is expected to help some Kansans with disabilities find jobs.

End-Dependence Kansas is a five-year, $25 million investment that utilizes five state agencies: the Department for Children and Families, the Kansas Department for Aging and Disability, the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, the Kansas Department of Corrections and the Kansas Department of Commerce.

“We think it is an appropriate time to launch our End-Dependence Kansas,” said Kathe Decker, deputy secretary at the DCF. “It is not only a clever play on words, but it has significant meaning. One of the major goals of the project is to increase the quantity and quality of employment. We know that when people with disabilities become self-sufficient, their lifestyle improves – that they have greater economic freedom, improved self-esteem and healthier lifestyles. That’s what the American dream is about.”

The goal of the program is to help 2,000 Kansans find employment, according to a news release issued Monday by Theresa Freed, director of communications for the DCF.

During a news conference Monday at the Via Christi Rehabilitation Hospital cafeteria on North Rock Road, Mike Donnelly told a group that there are 106,000 Kansans who get Supplemental Security Income. The typical monthly check is approximately $500.

“For most of us, we would not aspire our children to live on $6,000 a year. If we are not willing to do it, why would we be willing to expect them to?” said Donnelly, rehabilitation services director for the DCF. “Eighty-two percent of those with disabilities are not employed. We need to change that, even if by a few percent. We are going to reach out to them, assist our partners in new ways of doing things. We are targeting these folks, and rather than having them be dependent and living in places that aren’t always so good and being isolated, to having the opportunities to enjoy the economic life the rest of us do. We want to make that possible for them.”

The End-Dependence Kansas program will expand existing programs, Donnelly said. Funding will come from the vocational rehabilitation annual formula grant funds through Title 1 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.

The program not only will help potential workers with job coaches and workplace technology, it can subsidize their wages as they try out for jobs or after they are hired.

According to the news release, community partners could apply for funding to help implement or expand services with contracts being issued in 2015. Contracts will be awarded for training and technical assistance. The program will serve people with all disabilities but will especially target youths with disabilities, people interested in employment as an alternative to Social Security or other benefit programs and people currently being served through Home and Community-based Services Medicaid waivers. And each of the five state agencies will participate in an oversight panel to ensure accountability.

This story was originally published October 6, 2014 at 7:58 PM with the headline "Program to help Kansans with disabilities find employment."