Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Data Note: What Do Vocational Rehabilitation (Vr) Services Cost?, Institute For Community Inclusion, University Of Massachusetts Boston

Data Note Series, Institute for Community Inclusion

The VR system has the flexibility to purchase a wide array of services to support an employment outcome, including vocational evaluation, vocational training and postsecondary education, transportation, supported employment, interpreters, and adaptive equipment. VR services include core counseling and guidance provided by a VR counselor as well as services that are purchased based on an individual employment plan.

Case Studies Of Local Boards And One-Stop Centers: Levels Of Involvement Of State Vr Agencies With Other One-Stop Partners, Sheila Fesko, Doris Hamner

Case Studies Series, Institute for Community Inclusion

The Workforce Investment Act (WIA) emphasizes coordination and collaboration for better service delivery between state departments of Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) and other One-Stop partners. Although WIA's requirements for VR participation are clear, the parameters of this partnership are flexible and depend on a variety of factors within each state and local system. Defining the role of VR has had its challenges, as is the case for many partners in the WIA system. However, there are numerous examples of VR agencies working creatively to establish effective partnerships that positively influence services for job seekers with disabilities in the One-Stop system. The …

Case Studies Of Local Boards And One-Stop Centers: Underutilization Of One-Stops By People With Significant Disabilities, Doris Hamner, Jaimie Ciulla Timmons

Case Studies Series, Institute for Community Inclusion

The Workforce Investment Act (WIA) identifies individuals with disabilities as among the constituencies to be served by One-Stop Career Centers. Due to a variety of factors, including lack of an overall One-Stop data collection system, no clear way to identify disability in the system, and non-disclosure of disability by many customers, it is difficult to ascertain the exact level of One-Stop usage by people with disabilities. However, existing data sources and anecdotal evidence indicate that people with disabilities underutilize One-Stops. The number of people with disabilities that use One-Stops seems to be lower than what would be expected based on …

Beyond Gender Differences In U.S. Life Cycle Happiness, Enrico A. Macelli, Richard A. Easterlin

Economics Faculty Publication Series

We employ two decades of General Social Survey data consisting of 83 birth cohorts from 1893 to 1975 to estimate the influence of satisfaction in seven life domains (family, finances, work, health, friends, place of residence, and leisure time activity) on life-cycle happiness among men and women aged 18 to 89 years in the United States. The adult population is estimated to be happiest at age 51, and men are estimate to surpass women in happiness at age 48. Contrary to both genetic or personality (e.g., traditional gender role) and access to resources (“more is always better”) explanations of happiness, …

Why Equality? How Equality?: The Desirability Of A Focus On Income Distribution, Arthur Macewan

Economics Faculty Publication Series

Much of the discussion of economic development in low and middle income countries and of poverty reduction has either ignored the issue of income distribution or has tended to view income distribution only in terms of its impact on economic growth. In this paper I argue that such an approach is misguided. I will explain, first, why I believe that it is desirable to give a great deal of attention to income distribution in the analysis of economic development and poverty reduction. My argument includes conceptual, political and practical elements. Second, I will suggest some of the ways in which …

Now That We Do: Same-Sex Couples And Marriage In Massachusetts, A Demographic And Economic Perspective, Randy Albelda, Michael Ash, M.V. Lee Badgett

Economics Faculty Publication Series

Gay and lesbian couples can now legally marry in Massachusetts. This article examines the demographics of same-sex couples and concludes that gay marriage will have a relatively small but positive long-term aggregate economic impact on the Commonwealth.

Borrowing Trouble? V: Subprime Mortgage Lending In Greater Boston, 2000-2003, Jim Campen

Gastón Institute Publications

Four years ago, in response to numerous reports of the growth of predatory lending, both locally and nationwide, the Massachusetts Community & Banking Council (MCBC) – whose Board of Directors has an equal number of bank and community representatives – commissioned a study of subprime refinance lending in the city of Boston and surrounding communities. The resulting report, Borrowing Trouble? Subprime Mortgage Lending in Greater Boston, 1999, was the first detailed look at subprime lending in the city of Boston and in twenty-seven surrounding communities.

This is the fifth report in the annual series begun by that initial study. …

Economic Currents: The State Of The State Economy, Alan Clayton-Matthews

Public Policy and Public Affairs Faculty Publication Series

The Massachusetts economy is recovering, but at a relatively slow pace that is consistent with the state’s experience coming out of the last recession. Job creation continues to lag, and the Commonwealth faces continuing economic challenges, including strengthening the technology sector and addressing worker migration.

A Groundhog Day Economy In The Bay State, Alan Clayton-Matthews

Public Policy and Public Affairs Faculty Publication Series

The Bay State’s economic expansion peaked in December 2000, when the MassBenchmarks Current Economic Index, which is a proxy for gross state product, reached 150.2. But even before reaching that peak, warning signs were on the horizon. The MassBenchmarks Leading Economic Index, which forecasts changes in gross state product six months hence, turned negative in November 2000 and, except for one month, stayed negative for a year. The Current Index did not rise again until April 2003 and since then has risen at a stubbornly slow pace. While there have been eight successive quarters of growth in the Current Index, …

Massachusetts Recovery Stronger Than First Thought, Alan Clayton-Matthews

Public Policy and Public Affairs Faculty Publication Series

Massachusetts is still in the early stages of the recovery that began in the spring of 2003, but it may still be a couple of years more before it feels as if the recession is finally over. That “feel good” time will come only when unemployment is low enough for the state to achieve what economists call “full employment.” Currently, recent employment estimates from the payroll survey suggest that demand for the products and services supplied by Massachusetts producers is finally outstripping the ability of employers to meet that demand with existing employees. The result is that payroll employment is …

Sailing Into A Strong Future: The Massachusetts Marine Science And Technology Industry, Clyde Barrow, Rebecca Loveland, David Terkla

Economics Faculty Publication Series

With its focus on high-technology, value-added markets, the Bay State’s marine science and technology cluster and its diverse range of companies keeps expanding into high-end markets.

Recovery With Results, Not Rhetoric, Joseph Marrone, Heike Boeltzig

All Institute for Community Inclusion Publications

This report was undertaken by staff from the Institute for Community Inclusion at the University of Massachusetts Boston pursuant to a task order from the Office of Disability and Employment Policy within the U.S. Department of Labor. While the great majority of the funding was provided by ODEP with an additional small amount allocated by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the intent of this report was to provide guidance to both ODEP and the Employment Training Administration. This focus is meant to assist them in their respective roles …

Project Cobweb Report, Carlos Eduardo Siqueira

C. Eduardo Siqueira

Project COBWEB (Collaboration for a Better Work Environment for Brazilians) or Parceria in Portuguese began in 2003 with the combined efforts of the Work Environment Department at the University of Massachusetts Lowell (UMass Lowell), the Brazilian Immigrant Center (BIC) – a non-governmental organization (NGO) founded in 1995 for Brazilian immigrant workers in Boston – the Massachusetts Coalition for Occupational Safety and Health (MassCOSH), a NGO that fights for the rights of workers in the state, and from two health care centers: the Lowell Community Health Center and the Massachusetts General Chelsea Health Center. This last partner withdrew from the project …

Phase I Archaeological Intensive Survey Of Hassanamesitt Woods Property, Grafton, Massachusetts, Jack Gary, Stephen Mrozowski, David B. Landon

Andrew Fiske Memorial Center for Archaeological Research Publications

The Center for Cultural and Environmental History conducted a Phase I archaeological intensive survey of the Hassanamesitt Woods property in Grafton, Massachusetts from October 2004 through January 2005. Documentary evidence has suggested that the property may contain remains of the church for the Praying Indian village of Hassanamisco, established by John Eliot in 1660. Historical deed research has also placed several Nipmuc families on the property in the early 18th century, suggesting the area was resettled by the original inhabitants of Hassanimisco in the aftermath of King Philip's War. Throughout the course of the 18th and 19th centuries the property …