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Comparing State Vocational Rehabilitation Agencies With High Verses Low Rates Of Competitive Employment For Blind Consumers: Defining Quality Employment And Describing Effective Service Patterns, Edward Bell

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

State vocational rehabilitation (VR) agencies were rank ordered by their rate of competitive employment for consumers who are legally blind. Based on each state's competitive closure rate (CCR), the top six- and bottom six-ranked agencies were identified and formed two groups of high- and low-performing states. Top- versus bottom-ranked agencies were compared by quality of jobs obtained, services offered, consumer characteristics, and geographic/economic differences. The quality of jobs obtained was assessed via three indices: average wage, medical insurance, and selfsupport. Six services were hypothesized to explain differences between high- and lowranked states: cost of case services, adjustment training, college education, …