Rhode Island Pathways to Self Employment

Small Businesses Offer a Great Opportunity for Employment

Here's a chart showing the number of businesses across the United States by number of employees. The smallest group, those with more than 500 employees, while they employ tons of people, is the smallest set, and have the most rigorous methods of screening applicants. Job Developers should consider going down the path of least resistance and most opportunity for folks to learn new skills in an artisanal setting...the smallest businesses.

2010 Invitation to Participate as a Pathways to Self-Employment Site

 

Rhode Island Pathways to Self-Employment Project

Notice of Opportunity to Apply to Participate as a Pathways to Self-Employment Site

Round Two:  January 1, 2010 – December 31, 2010 

 

Download 2010 Application and Abstract under "Self-Employment Resources" in the right hand column of this page

 

Note: Completed Applications are Due by December 30, 2009

 

This announcement and application is being sent statewide to encourage your application to participate in the Rhode Island Pathways to Self- Employment Project, funded by Rhodes to Independence through a grant from the Center for Medicaid and Medicare Services.  The Pathways to Self-Employment Project is operated by The Center for Social Capital (CSC). Eligible applicants must:

1.    commit to learning and applying new approaches to customizing self- employment for people with disabilities.

2.    be current vocational services providers  in the state of Rhode Island ]

As you know, Self Employment is a growing option for many individuals with disabilities and The Center for Social Capital staff are leaders, both nationally and internationally, in assisting organizations to build capacity for improving self-employment outcomes and increasing financial independence for all prospective business owners. Starting with the Discovery process for each unique prospective business owner, Pathways to Self-Employment offers the greatest potential for the widest array of individualized self-employment opportunities.   By applying for this project, your agency has an opportunity to leverage generic community resources, utilize multiple funding sources, develop cooperative relationships, and facilitate inventive service delivery through the demonstration and stabilization of self-employment. A project abstract is attached that provides a project overview.

If your agency is selected as a pathways to self-employment site, you will receive:

  A $15,000 fund (to be used across the 12 months of the project)

This fund is used to “quick launch” Customized Employment and Self-Employment for prospective business owners participating in the project, provide flexible money that may be used to fund the feasibility testing of a business idea, demonstrate consumer buy-in to VR when starting a business, utilize a Resource Ownership strategy, leverage other resources, including up to 50% of the fund for underwriting staff salaries supporting the project.

  5 two-day on-site visits for training, technical assistance, and mentoring.

Each visit will consist of a mix of classroom training followed by individualized consultation with the prospective business owners and their person-centered teams as well as with other local intermediaries. The training is also designed to attract local intermediaries by providing a forum for them to attend and showcase their work.

  Training with the curriculum tailored to the site.

The training content will be based on local need of the Community Rehabilitation Programs (CRPs), families, consumers, and intermediaries, but will use a foundation of Customized Self Employment essentials including: Introduction to CE and Discovery; Systematic Instruction, SSA Work Incentives; Business Feasibility and Plans, Support Strategies; etc.

  Support and mentoring of staff/teams through a minimum of 4 customized outcomes

During the 12-month period, we will support your staff and team through the self-employment process starting with Discovery and exploration,  through business feasibility, financing, marketing, sales, business planning, social security work incentives & self-employment, resources ownership,  etc. as needed to reach a self-employment outcome for each. 

  Community Resource Mapping

Additionally, we will support your agency/team to document potential community resources; establish ongoing, collaborative relationships with key local intermediaries; and to identify and utilize all possible funding streams available. 

RTI News Release: [1/30/2009]

Contact Name: Jean DiPippo
Phone Number: 401.462.6163
Release Number: 09-0130-RTI

Rhodes to Independence (RTI) Awards 3 Pathways to Self-Employment Grants to Advance Customized Self Employment Opportunities for Individuals with Disabilities in Rhode Island

Elaina Goldstein, Rhodes to Independence Executive Director, today announced the award of three 2009 grants designed to increase self-employment opportunities for individuals with disabilities in Rhode Island.

The 3 Pathways to Self-Employment 2009 grants are awarded to:

       The Groden Network of Programs, http://www.grodencenter.org

        J. Arthur Trudeau Memorial Center, http://www.trudeaucenter.org

        NRI Community Services, http://www.nricommunityservices.org

The grants include a cooperative agreement with The Center for Social Capital (CSC) to coordinate the Rhode Island Pathways to Self-Employment initiative; implement a comprehensive strategy for increasing the capacity of existing systems for providing customized self-employment services to people with disabilities through training and technical assistance; support local analysis by local grantees of self-employment resources currently available to persons with disabilities; and support grantees to analyze structures currently in place that either promote or impede the expansion of business ownership in the Rhode Island disability community.

Rhodes to Independence

Rhodes to Independence (RTI) was created through the award in 2000 of a federal Medicaid Infrastructure Grant (MIG). The MIG goal is to support people with disabilities in securing and sustaining competitive employment in an integrated setting.

Since its inception, RTI - which operates under the aegis of the University of Rhode Island's College of Pharmacy - has worked toward systems' change in support of this goal. Though the initial scope of the federal MIG has been to successfully modify states' health care delivery systems to meet the needs of people with disabilities who want to work (primarily focused on Medicaid eligibility), Rhodes to Independence's scope is much broader as it was clear that barriers to employment, self-sufficiency and independence crossed beyond health care to transportation, housing, lack of information regarding benefits and supports, and deep-seated attitudes (employers, providers, the general public, as well as individuals with disabilities themselves). In fact, the RTI project has expanded its role far beyond the scope of the original grant to become involved in initiatives and special projects as they arise or as issues need to be addressed in a real-time fashion.

In the past eight years, RTI has built partnerships that previously did not exist in the state and has measurably improved employment and health care supports for Rhode Islanders with disabilities. The success of Rhodes to Independence is the result of an established process in which consumers and other stakeholder input is used by the RTI Steering Committee and - since 2007 – now the Advisory Board - to structure activities to help address the employment needs of - and maximize supports for - people with disabilities. The myriad partnerships which include state agencies, advocacy organizations, employers and others have resulted in a strategic collaboration which leverages resources and community involvement to produce positive employment and enhanced quality of life outcomes.

Brookes Publishing

 Making Self-Employment Work

Self-employment is a viable option for adults with significant disabilities — and now there’s a book that gives you the guidance you need to help individuals start and maintain their own small businesses. Whether you’re a counselor, an employment specialist, or a transition professional, you’ll benefit from

- an in-depth discussion of person-centered business planning and its primary components

- a step-by-step guide to building a business plan, complete with illuminating case studies and examples

- a thorough overview of marketing tactics, including aspects like defining customers, conducting research, positioning the product, and advertising in a variety of media

- chapters on finances and social security

- a spotlight on the supportive roles of rehabilitation personnel, vocational counselors, school transition staff, and community programs like Ticket to Work and Plans for Achieving Self Support

- photocopiable worksheets that help individuals pinpoint their interests, strengths, and goals

- a list of more than 50 web sites, including links to SSA and other government sites

Perfect for sharing with individuals with disabilities and their families, this guidebook shows how self-employment can work and offers the realistic, practical advice needed to get a small business off to a strong start.

StartUp-USA

http://www.start-up-usa.biz

Self-Employment Technical Assistance, Resources, & Training (START-UP / USA) is a partnership between Virginia Commonwealth University and Griffin-Hammis and Associates, LLC. START-UP / USA is funded by a cooperative agreement #E-9-4-6-011 from the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP). Congress designated the cooperative agreement funds to ODEP for the further development of self-employment as an employment outcome for individuals with disabilities. ODEP's mission is to provide national leadership by developing and influencing disability-related employment policy and practice affecting the employment of people with disabilities.

START-UP / USA provides technical assistance and disseminates resources nationally to individuals interested in pursuing self-employment. This includes the live web cast series with successful entrepreneurs who share their secrets for success.

START-UP / USA also provides assistance to three sub-national projects, START-UP / Alaska, START-UP / Florida, and START-UP / New York. These projects generate data and information to validate systems capacity-building strategies and systems change models for successfully increasing self-employment opportunities for individuals with disabilities. The information generated through these model programs are disseminated nationally for replication through technical assistance and support.

Individuals can contact us for more information. Or, submit your questions online through our technical assistance database. Staff members are committed to responding to requests within 48 hours of submission.

VCU 1314 West Main Street Richmond,
Virginia 23284-2011

V: (804) 828-1851
F: (804) 828-2193
TTY: (804) 828-2494

Welcome to the Rhode Island Pathways to Self Employment Project

Rhodes to Independence and The Center for Social Capital

The Rhode Island Pathways to Self-Employment Sustainability Project builds lasting capacity throughout the state by creating capacity for leveraging generic community resources, multiple funding braids, cooperative relationships, and inventive service delivery through the demonstration and stabilization of customized self-employment in 6 communities during 2009 and 2010.

The most effective means of propelling systems change is by demonstrating what is possible; historically in fact, it is about the only means. Pathways to Self-Employment will illustrate what is possible on several levels by improving and regenerating existing infrastructure (e.g. Medicaid Waiver services, self-employment development approaches, VR assessment and self employment policy, Small Business Development Center parameters). The project will accomplish this by:

Selecting three self-employment development sites per year for two years, six total, through a competitive request for proposals over the two-year term of this project; Incentivising participation by partially providing for a “Quick-Launch” fund for leveraging resources used in business financing and resource ownership;

Supporting Resource Mapping in each community to identify key resources and begin the process of building intermediary alliances;

Convening stakeholder groups/Social Capital Conclaves in each site that foment partnerships across systems to create communities of economic cooperation;

Recruiting 4 individuals with significant disabilities per site 12 individuals per year) with 24 people receiving Customized Self-Employment after 2 years;

Training a cadre of rehabilitation personnel, self-advocates, and families in the key Customized Self-Employment functions and processes;

Providing on-site and distance technical consultation in collaboration with existing Rhode Island resources regarding public benefits (SSA, PASS, PESS, IDAs, et al.), assessment (Discovery), multiple funding sources, customized business development and planning, transition from school to adulthood, etc.;

Providing TA and Mentoring to local teams supporting change in practice across agencies, partners, intermediaries, and communities.