Roberta Stafford - The Shift to Supported Employment

Roberta Stafford - The Shift to Supported Employment

Indiana Vocational Rehabilitation Services

Employment

“We would get referrals from the workshops usually, and we would meet with the individuals to determine their eligibility.” Roberta Stafford worked as a vocational rehabilitation counselor for almost 24 years. Indiana Vocational Rehabilitation Services is a state and federally funded agency working with people with disabilities to assist in finding employment. Roberta describes the work evaluation people would go through to determine what help they might need to do a job. However, at the end of evaluation, people wound up working in the sheltered workshop. That all changed in the mid-1980s with the introduction of supported employment. The counselors were initially skeptical this new program would work. Instead of telling people what job they could have, counselors learned how to empower individuals. Roberta explains, "It's all individualized. So, you know, so we work with people to get them through that process so that they can figure out what kind of job they want." Roberta was interviewed in 2019.

Indiana Disability History Project

Center for Health Equity at the Indiana Institute on Disability and Community and Indiana Governor's Council for People with Disabilities

2019-06-16

Roberta Stafford - Interviewee

Jennie Todd - Interviewer

Peggy Holtz - Videographer/editor

Copyright © 2020 The Trustees of Indiana University

138-mi

138-do

video/mp4

English

Moving Image

138-mi-01

Open to all users

"Roberta Stafford - The Shift to Supported Employment" YouTube video, 00:05:14, interview excerpt 138-mi-01 by the Indiana Disability History Project, posted by "Indiana Disability History" on July 16, 2020 https://youtu.be/enM8_kU4dk4

Indiana

1985-2015