Southeast TACE Region IV
OVERVIEW
The mission of the Technical Assistance and Continuing Education (TACE) Center Region IV (Southeast TACE) is to provide technical assistance (TA) and continuing education (CE) activities that meet the strategic goals and program performance needs of state Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) agencies and their community partners.
This is accomplished through the creation of and partnership with a resource network of subject matter experts within and outside the southeast region. The resource network is comprised of nationally recognized consultants, private and non-profit entities, and educators and researchers from universities such as University of Tennessee, Mississippi State University, University of South Florida, University of North Carolina, South Carolina State University, Hofstra University, and Syracuse University. Assistance is provided by means of a variety of modalities customized to the needs of the southeast VR community, including on-site training and facilitation, webinars and learning communities, interactive networks and conference presentations.
The areas of emphasis for the Southeast TACE are: employment outcomes for individuals whose disabilities are considered most significant; transition from school to work; executive leadership development; and core capacity building for VR agencies and their community partners.
The Southeast Region TACE Center is funded by the Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA), of the U.S. Department of Education.
KEY STRATEGIES
Innovation Projects – Pilot projects in states to introduce or integrate effective practices. TACE provides project management, training, evaluation project summaries, and dissemination of findings. In addition, Southeast TACE works with state agencies to build strategies to sustain these programs over time. Examples include:
- Customized Employment for a Transition population
- Customized Employment integration into an agencies service delivery system
- Developing a person-centered assessment in a residential setting
- Self-Employment
- Customized Employment in a rural area
Networks – Facilitated regional networks of state agency representatives interacting on a regular basis via conference calls, newsletters and webinars or learning series, with the purpose of:
- Determining technical assistance and continuing education needs
- Determining modalities to meet needs
- Leveraging regional and national resources
- Sharing information on effective and emerging practices
TACE facilitates regional networks in the following areas:
- Serving Individuals with Most Significant Disability (MSD)
- Transition of youth with disabilities from high school (Transition)
- Serving individuals who are Blind or Visually Impaired (BVI)
- Fiscal Administrators (Fiscal)
Learning Series – A topical series of webinars followed by small-group activities to support sustained learning, interaction and application of learnings. Webinars are open registration available to all regional customers. The follow-along activities (conference calls, discussion groups, web dialogues, group projects) are designed for a smaller selected group. Interested individuals apply to participate in the follow-along activities and are selected based upon the anticipated impact of their participation. Examples of learning series topics include:
- Autism
- Psychiatric Disabilities
- Traumatic Brain Injury
Webinar Series – A series of webinars around a single topic that allow for a more in-depth presentation of topics. Examples include:
- Serving individuals with disabilities who are Ex-Offenders
- Asset Development
Topical Webinars – Single webinars focusing on topics related to regional needs. The objectives of these webinars are to provide an overview, present effective practices and provide resources for further information.
Business Series – Topical webinars in which the audience is comprised of employers and VR and community rehabilitation providers (CRP) staff who engage them. Examples include:
- Online Employment Applications and Website Accessibility
- Approaches to Access and Accommodations
- Creating a Model with Businesses
Job Development Exchange (JDX) is designed to provide VR counselors (VRCs) and CRPs with the information and tools they need to successfully engage both large and small employers. It addresses barriers to employment and effective practices for overcoming them. The primary function of the JDX is to connect the community of practitioners with each other. Its participants are able to tap into the rich expertise of colleagues, businesses, jobseekers and national authorities via multimedia platforms and networking tools.
Executive Leadership Development – Customized technical assistance delivered on site to state VR agencies and partners. The objective is to build the capacity of key leaders and leadership teams to strategically plan, and manage change.
Technical Assistance – Customized technical assistance to VR agencies and their partners. Examples include:
- Strategic Planning
- Resource Alignment
- Supported Employment
- Curriculum Development
Continuing Education – Customized training delivered onsite or via distance modalities. Examples include:
- Comprehensive Assessment
- Caseload Management
- Ethics
MyTACE – Allows participants to register for webinar and Learning Series as well as track their participation in Southeast TACE events and manage CRCC and CEU credits.
Products
- The Online Job Placement & Employment Toolkit is a web-based resource for professionals providing employment services for individuals with disabilities. The intent of the toolkit is to offer quick yet constructive solutions to the questions that professionals have about job placement and postemployment services.
- Web-blasts – newsletters issued monthly via email to network members and other subscribers.
- Resource Materials – All powerpoints, handouts and reference documents from webinars, workshops and other presentations are available on the Southeast TACE website.
Conferences – Southeast TACE utilizes conferences to present progress, interim outcomes and longer term outcomes of projects to regional and national audiences.
CONTACT INFORMATION
Email: tacesoutheast@law.syr.edu
Phone: (404) 541-9001 [voice/tty]
Fax: (404) 541-9002
Web: TACESoutheast.org
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