Date of Conferral
6-29-2024
Date of Award
June 2024
Degree
Ph.D.
School
Public Policy and Administration
Advisor
Raj Singh
Abstract
Despite public policies intended to achieve employment equity for students with disabilities, compared to students without disabilities, transition-age students with disabilities are less likely to be in the workforce even after receiving public vocational rehabilitation (VR) services. The purpose of this qualitative, multicase study was to explore implementation of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) by VR programs through collaboration with state education officials to deliver pre-employment transition services (pre-ETS) to students with disabilities. The Integration Continuum was used to conceptually frame this study because the model provides a hierarchical scale with definitions about how organizations work together at each level. The research question explored how VR programs collaborated with state education officials to implement WIOA and provide pre-ETS to students with disabilities. Two overarching themes emerged from the data analysis and informed the Effort-Impact Matrix. Local level coordination between VR and education agency staff was the most frequent way VR agencies collaborated with education officials to provide pre-ETS to students with disabilities. In contrast, a coordinated community response, the highest and most aspirational level of collaboration, rarely occurred. The current state of coordination will continue to manage the disparity in employment outcomes between students with and without disabilities. The positive social change implication is to achieve the intent of WIOA by moving from coordination to collaboration and ending the disparity in employment outcomes by moving from collaboration to a coordinated community response to achieve systems change for students with disabilities.
Recommended Citation
Luke, Elyse Leinani, "Exploration of the Implementation of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act by Vocational Rehabilitation Programs Through Collaboration with Education Officials" (2024). Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies. 15993.
https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations/15993
