A Review of Recent Evaluation Efforts Associated with Programs and Policies Designed to Promote...

"[This] review is intended to provide policymakers, researchers, and others interested in efforts designed to promote the employment of people with disabilities a single source for information on the nature of the initiatives and the evaluation efforts that have been recently completed or are currently under way and the findings to date related to the effectiveness of these initiatives. This broad review is also intended to provide some evidence of the progress we are making. The report also suggests avenues where further efforts and progress might be warranted”. (p.1). (Abstractor: Author)

 Full Publication Title: A Review of Recent Evaluation Efforts Associated with Programs and Policies Designed to Promote the Employment of Adults with Disabilities

CONCLUSIONS: " - The employment rate of people with disabilities remains low, few of the initiatives reviewed were able to rigorously demonstrate positive impacts on employment, and many of the initiatives were not sustained after the special funding for them ceased. - It does appear that system change is occurring. Greater attention is being paid to the incentives and issues surrounding employment for people with disabilities, including how the currently fragmented system of programs and supports can both hinder and help individuals, and how services from multiple sources might be coordinated to achieve better outcomes. - Though there is evidence of progress, transformation is occurring slowly, and the many federal programs serving people with disabilities continue to operate without a coordinated strategy or centralized mechanism for ensuring that programs and policies are aligned. - Two complementary strategies are suggested based on the findings of this review: undertake bolder initiatives and generate better evidence on the impacts of the initiatives undertaken. Significant progress is not likely to occur unless we can move beyond incremental changes to a system that, according to many, is in dire need of modernization and transformation" (p.18-19). (Abstractor: Author and Website Staff)

• Last Updated:
• Created:
• Resource Publication Date: 2009
• Author(s): Livermore, Gina A.; Goodman, Nanette
• Organizational Author(s): Mathematica Policy Research and Cornell University, The Employment & Disability Institute
• Funding Source: U.S. Department of Education
• Resource Availability: Publicly available
• Posted by: Wesley Peterson
• Posted in: Workforce System Strategies