Summary

Devion James, C and E Farm’s top mechanic trained for his job through vocational rehabilitation

Episode 124 VR Workforce Studio

Cool Beans and Vocational Rehabilitation

Devion James, C and E Farm’s top mechanic trained for his job through vocational rehabilitation

National Clearinghouse of Rehabilitation Training Materials

Episode 124 NCRTM Show Notes

  • NCRTM Business Engagement Page (NCRTM) This page provides employers with essential resources and information on hiring individuals with disabilities, showcasing the diverse and skilled talent pool available. It covers all employment phases, from hiring to retention and advancement, and offers insights on creating inclusive and accessible workplaces. Vocational rehabilitation (VR) counselors can use this page to link employers with valuable resources, while individuals with disabilities can learn about business practices that facilitate successful employment and career growth.
  • Business Engagement Toolkit (ICI) This toolkit contains a collection of useful information and tools to be used by VR agencies and technical assistance providers including training modules, information briefs, and a business engagement compendium.
  • Engaging the Private Sector Strategies for Achieving Better Employment Outcomes (CIT-VR) This training delves into enhancing engagement with the private sector to boost employment for persons with disabilities. Key topics include identifying and addressing business “pain points” with State VR solutions, recognizing the impact of identity in business interactions, and adopting strength-based approaches that align VR participants’ talents with employer needs. The training also provides actionable steps to foster business relations for improved employment outcomes. The training offers 1.5 CRC credits.
  • Inclusion@Work: A Framework for Building a Disability-Inclusive Organization (EARN) Developed with input from a range of employers with exemplary track records in disability employment, this Inclusion@Work Framework outlines seven core components of a disability-inclusive workplace, along with a menu of strategies for achieving them.
  • Small Business Series: Local and State Disability Inclusion Incentives and Resources for Small Businesses (EARN) This webinar provides an in-depth look at innovative state and local programs that assist small businesses in hiring and retaining talent with disabilities. Participants will explore successful initiatives from around the nation. Experts share how to develop and implement similar programs, highlighting the benefits of tax incentives and financial support for workplace accommodations. The webinar also covers strategies for fostering partnerships between small businesses, community organizations, and government entities to promote workforce inclusivity.

Transcript

VR Workforce Studio Singers:  Singing VR Workforce Studio.

Mike Eiker: We process over 3,300 acres of green beans to bring in over 84 million servings.

Jake Hart:  Four, three, two, one. VR Workforce Studio, podcasting the sparks that ignite vocational rehabilitation through the inspiring stories of people with disabilities who have gone to work.

Flora Frazier:  Working in a field that I understand.

Jake Hart:  As well as the professionals who have helped them.

James Hall:  A job and a career, you got to look at how life-changing this is.

Jake Hart:  And the businesses who have filled their talent pipelines with workers that happen to have disabilities.

Debby Hopkins:  To help expand registered apprenticeship.

Jake Hart:  These are their stories.

Megan Healy:  Because there’s such a great story to tell about people with disabilities.

Jake Hart:  Now, here are the hosts of the VR Workforce Studio, Rick Sizemore and Betsy Civilette.

Rick Sizemore:  Welcome to episode 124 of the VR Workforce Studio podcast. Cool Beans and Vocational Rehabilitation.

Betsy Civilette:  Well, that’s hydro cooled green beans, Rick.

Rick Sizemore:  Yes. As our show opened, you heard 84 million servings of cool beans annually.

Betsy Civilette:  That’s a lot of beans.

Rick Sizemore: That’s a lot of beans.

Betsy Civilette:  And C and E Farms is partnering with Vocational Rehabilitation to bring people with disabilities onto their team. And we have the entire story for you today as we welcome Robin Sexauer, a counselor from DARS. Welcome, Robin.

Robin Sexauer:  Thank you very much.

Rick Sizemore:  And Devion James, or DJ, who Robin has supported on his journey to becoming an auto mechanic. Welcome, DJ.

DJ James:  Thank you.

Rick Sizemore:  They join us from Yuk Yuk & Joe’s restaurant in Eastville on Virginia’s eastern shore, where Robin is an essential part of the community as a VR counselor and DJ works as an auto mechanic at C and E Farms.

Betsy Civilette:  DJ, let’s start with you. I understand you feel right at home at Yuk Yuk & Joe’s. Your first job was in the kitchen there.

DJ James:  Yuks was just a job to just make money so I can get out to school, but I do like cooking, but I always wanted to be a mechanic, so I wanted to change up a little bit. I always wanted to do mechanics because, growing up, I got my license at 18 and then my dad was trying to teach me the little stuff about the car since decided to have a car, I decided I might want to take that up as a trade.

Rick Sizemore:  So you needed some skills as a mechanic and went out to Wilson Workforce and Rehabilitation Center to get started in the mechanic’s field.

DJ James:  They do mostly tires and lube there. Changing oil, checking your fluids and changing tires and brakes.

Rick Sizemore:  And so with those basic skills then you were able to work with Robin to get the job at C and E Farms.

DJ James:  I found a job out here. They wanted to train me on the job. Told me everything they know, and then they told me if I ever want to branch out to do something more, if I’m willing they would let me go. But I told them that I’d be there for a while.

Rick Sizemore:  Well, DJ and Robin, before we continue the interview, and quite frankly to do this story justice, we need to bring in the employer to talk about the extensive size and scope of the operation where DJ is employed. We welcome operations manager Mike Eiker, who joins us now from C and E Family Farms. Mike, tell us about C and E.

Mike Eiker:  Well, first of all, we are the largest green bean processing facility on the East Coast. We have two facilities, one here in Virginia and one down in Florida. We process over 3,300 acres of green beans to bring in over 84 million servings for the public.

Rick Sizemore:  That is truly amazing. The size and the scope is pretty significant. DJ started working there after he went through vocational rehabilitation training and developed some skills and you’ve helped him into the workforce. What was it like bringing someone with a disability onto your team, and to the extent you can, maybe tell us a little bit of how that has gone since he’s joined the workforce there at C and E Family Farms.

Mike Eiker:  So, DJ came to us through DARS. Robin Sexauer came to us at a job fair here locally in response to an assistant mechanics program that we had put out feelers for. Robin had DJ on her list after having gone through that program with her. So, at first we were kind of skeptical. Robin said, “Okay, well maybe we can pay half of his salary for a month or two.” And so, we took the risk and really it hasn’t been a risk at all. DJ is less disabled and more abled than you can imagine. We use his abilities, those that he got through the program and those that just him being a regular dude, and it’s just been really good and he’s excelled at learning new skills here and we’ve just been able to work with him real well.

Rick Sizemore:  What would you say to another business that was saying, “Well, I just don’t know.” Would you encourage them to give people with disabilities a try?

Mike Eiker:  Absolutely. What I would say to those folks is, “If you can find someone who has the skills that you’re looking for, then they are able to do it. And this disability is typically easily worked around.” We here at C and E, we focus on the individual’s abilities. He services over a hundred pieces of equipment here with his senior mechanic.

Rick Sizemore:  So he came in with a number of the basic skills, but what are some of the things the senior mechanic at C and E helped him evolve into?

Mike Eiker:  So, he came into our program with the basic skills of a mechanic. This is a wrench, this is how you work it. He can change a tire, he can change the oil in a vehicle. Like you said, the basic skills. But Eddie, his direct supervisor, has been able to teach him how to change the brakes on a tractor trailer. He’s been able to teach him how to operate hydraulics and electronics and just anything DJ gets his hands on, he’s able to work through and we’ve been able to help him excel in this job.

Rick Sizemore:  That’s wonderful. We thank you for taking time out of your busy day at C and E to give us some of your insights into disability employment. Any closing thoughts about disability and the workforce?

Mike Eiker:  Disability in the workforce, I think really what I’d like to focus on is the abilities. And regardless whether somebody has a special license plate on their vehicle, they are worth something. And here at C and E, we’re using DJ to his fullest capability.

Rick Sizemore:  Thank you for what you are doing within the workforce for people with disabilities, and best of luck to you and the team at C and E. Thank you so much for joining us.

Mike Eiker:  All right, Rick. Thanks for having me.

Rick Sizemore:  DJ, let’s get back to you. It’s got to feel good to hear these kinds of glowing comments from your new boss, especially when you started out just wanting to work on cars but transitioned into the agricultural equipment and trucking industry. What’s that like for you?

DJ James:  A lot of things on a truck and a trailer is different than mostly cars and trucks out here. It’s mostly electrical work and air.

Betsy Civilette:  Well, you have quite a list of accomplishments and awards including the Virginia Division on Career Development and Transition Student of the Year. How have these accomplishments changed how you feel about yourself and your perspective on people with disabilities in the workforce?

DJ James:  It never changed me because I always thought about myself higher than my disability. If I look at a kid with disability, I think that he could do possibly more than me one day if he has the right person to help him out or train him.

Rick Sizemore:  Well, Robin, you’ve said more than once, it takes a village and you’re very proud of what the Eastern Shore community does. What makes your job as a VR counselor so significant in helping people with disabilities get the skills they need to go to work, the credentials, and puts them in a place where they can earn a living wage? And the last part of this long question is how do you engage the businesses that hire people with disabilities?

Robin Sexauer:  I’m proud of being able to offer opportunities to people with disabilities as well as the community, as partners. We live on the eastern shore, which is a very rural area with limited resources. However, because of the collaboration that takes place between community partners, agencies, and employers, that reduces those barriers. Often it’s difficult for a rehabilitation counselor like myself to get the students engaged as well as the parents. So it takes a lot of marketing on our part to explain to people what we really do. Because what we do for one person we might not necessarily do for another.

So for successes like Devion’s, DJ’s, he sells our story for us because you see firsthand, in the community, what he’s done from starting at Yuk and Joe’s as a dishwasher and food service, graduating high school, taking the opportunity at Wilson and then coming home, he got his job. We were at a job fair, we discussed this before, and the employer was willing to provide the additional training that DJ needed to become not only an auto mechanic, but a diesel mechanic.

So, really, teaching people what we do and educating people on a daily basis down to the referral resources, the financial resources, the families, and everybody, that’s why I said it takes a village. This isn’t a one man team here. This is everybody pulling together to make sure that people like DJ have every opportunity they can.

And especially with DARS. We’ve got this new program that’s been out for a while. It’s very important. I call it the Planting the Seed Program, allowing these students to grow and learn what’s out there and what really is available. Because one thing you’ll hear on the eastern shore a lot is, “Oh, there’s no jobs on the eastern shore.” Well, DJ learned firsthand. That’s not true. And he smudged that myth right into the ground.

So, being able to provide the opportunities and teach the consumers, teach the families, teach the businesses and engage them in the process is a huge part of the voc-rehab process. And utilizing resources such as Wilson Workforce Center and every resource that we possibly can to give anybody an opportunity, especially with a disability, and like DJ stressed, we don’t emphasize a disability. We emphasize the ability. And that’s a win-win situation for everyone.

Rick Sizemore:  Well, certainly living proof of the success that’s possible through kick-starting your career in vocational rehabilitation. It’s certainly been a pleasure to have you both on the podcast today. Thanks for joining us from the eastern shore.

Robin Sexauer:  Thank you for having us.

Betsy Civilette:  Thanks, Robin and DJ.

DJ James:  Thank you.

Rick Sizemore:  On today’s podcast, we welcome Dr. Victor Gray, who’s the executive director of the Manufacturing Skills Institute. You’ll hear that called MSI. MSI and their partners provide education and skills training for careers in advanced manufacturing.

Betsy Civilette:  Victor, welcome to our podcast.

Victor Gray:  Hi, Betsy and Rick, and thank you guys for having me here on the podcast. I’ve heard you guys before and I love what you do.

Rick Sizemore:  We are so excited to have you on the show. Let’s start with an overview of MSI.

Victor Gray:  Okay, sure. So, the Manufacturing Skills Institute is actually the workforce development affiliate, or we call them verticals here, of the Virginia Manufacturers Association. The Virginia Manufacturers Association is part of the National Association for Manufacturers nationwide. So we connect in with all of the other manufacturing associations across the country. And then MSI, its main job is to provide relevant education, skills, workforce support and training in advanced manufacturing for primarily the members of the VMA and manufacturers in general in Virginia, but we have expanded that program a little bit and our primary proprietary best credential is probably the manufacturing technician level one or the MT one certificate program.

We have about 30 credentials including pharmaceutical technician, chemical manufacturing technician, and safety programs for our manufacturers that we provide the resources for by developing them and then we basically sell them to the high schools through the CTE program or through the 23 community colleges in particular in Virginia that are under the VCCS program.

Betsy Civilette:  Victor, you mentioned the manufacturing technician credential or MT1. Tell us some more about this industry recognized credential and why that is kind of your focus.

Victor Gray:  Our manufacturers came to us and said, “We’re having trouble finding skilled, qualified people coming out, for instance, out of a high school. Is there something you guys can do to help us?” So we actually built this credential with their help. The MT One was the first big nationwide credential that we developed, and it was based on the growing demands of the manufacturing industry for skilled, a qualified pipeline of people coming to their facility.

And that MT1 encompasses three basic assessment areas, if you will. So math and measurement is one, and then spatial reasoning and manufacturing technology is the other one. And business acumen and quality, which is kind of different than most manufacturing credentials because most of them don’t include the process improvement approaches, statistics, and the business acumen part.

And then we have two levels to this certification. So our basic level is the MS, the manufacturing specialist credential, and then they can take a few more courses and finish out with the MT1. Most people go ahead and do the MT1, but the MS and MT1 both are stackable, portable credentials. They’re industry designed and endorsed. They’re all competency based and we have an LMS online so that we can access the material 24/7. When

Rick Sizemore:  When you go back to the origins of the work you were getting involved in with MT 1, others were just talking. You actually went into factories and asked them what they needed.

Victor Gray:  Yeah, so my background is manufacturing. I have a doctorate in education, but I love manufacturing. And when I was working in manufacturing, we had a horrible time getting our workforce trained. So we were developing our own training courses and when I came to the Virginia Manufacturers Association, knowing what manufacturers have to go through to find qualified people, and knowing myself, having taken a lot of those credentials and certificate programs over the years that just weren’t that great, we tried to put that together and come at this from a customer-oriented standpoint.

So we did task analysis, and we came up with 12 basic skills that 90% of our manufacturers agreed that if they had people walking in the door with those 12 skills, that they would hire them. Most manufacturers have their own training program internally anyway, so we needed to identify where do we plug in at? How much do the new employees need to know in order to be able to understand what they need to understand for your training program? But that includes safety. And as I pointed out, we added business acumen because our manufacturers, they said, “One of the things we want you to do is to make sure that your people understand that they’re here to help us make a product that we can sell for a profit and that’s how they keep their job. That’s how we all keep our jobs. That’s the job. This is not a place for them to come to look at their phone or to get away from somebody else. We expect them to help us make an awesome product that we can make a profit off of.”

So we added that whole section, that business acumen section, which our credential is the only one nationwide that actually has that. So, that flexibility and that broad application of the MT1 has allowed us to use the MT1 as the basis for several nationally recognized programs, one of which was the Career Pathways for Individuals with Disabilities. Rick, you remember that?

Rick Sizemore:  Oh, absolutely.

Victor Gray:  And with the collaboration of the Department for Aging and Rehabilitative Services and the Wilson Workforce Rehabilitation Center, we helped to design the manufacturing technology training program, which is basically about a three and a half month training program which includes the MT1, but it also goes beyond that, which is awesome. This is exactly what we wanted our partners to do, which was to take our credentials and then make it their own and make it work for their folks.

So they added the forklift operator training and OSHA 10, which made their students, when they were graduating with this MTT credential, made them very valuable to manufacturers. And I know for a fact that the manufacturers that I’ve talked to just love those graduates coming out of WWRC. Some of them even will hold positions open waiting for the next class to finish up. I think every single one of them have been offered jobs.

Rick Sizemore:  It’s a tremendous program with a great success. And, of course, what drives our vocational rehabilitation programming is that industry recognized credential through the Workforce Innovation and Opportunities Act, and MSI’s MT1 is so spot on in it’s overlap with our mission and our focus to have someone finish up with that industry recognized credential.

Betsy Civilette:  Well, how is MSI involved with apprenticeships in manufacturing?

Victor Gray:  MSI is a group sponsor. There are different ways to sponsor apprenticeship programs. We are a group sponsor, which means we can have multiple manufacturers using our apprenticeship program, and we will draw down the revenue for them. Sometimes we charge a fee, but if we make money off of it, we give the manufacturer the fee back. And we have the Advanced Manufacturer Machine Operator Registered Apprentice program, which is registered with the Va. Dept of Labor and Industry here in Virginia, and it’s also a nationwide program with the Department of Labor. This apprenticeship program is a one-year program. It takes 146 hours of related technical instruction and about 2000 hours of hands-on. So 2000 hours is about a year’s worth of work. And our MT1, as a matter of fact, we use the MTT model. So the MT1 and OSHA 10 are two of the big components of that. And then we have about 40 more hours of other coursework that goes into that.

So we have that program and then stacked on top of that, we also developed the Advanced Manufacturing Maintenance Technician Registered Apprentice program, and that is another year. So that’s a two-year program with 4,000 plus hours of OJT, about 300 hours of curriculum. And what we’ve added on top is some maintenance courses. A lot of these are online. And then also, because of the way apprenticeship works where you work while you learn and you earn while you learn to do your job, basically, it’s an awesome program and fits in with our idea of how training and learning how to work ought to be. A lot of that’s curriculum-based so that they don’t have to go to the school or anything to take the RTI, but they do have to be at the facility to do the hands-on stuff.

Rick Sizemore:  Victor, we have to finish up, but before we go, you have a new podcast, the Workforce Weekly Brief. Tell us all about your new podcast.

Victor Gray:  Oh yeah, this is awesome. It dawned on us that there wasn’t a podcast out there that was really focused on workforce. So, put together a model and in it we unravel the crucial workforce development news that’s come out lately. Ideas on training, hiring, industry credentials. We talk about labor trends, what’s going on, what are the new opportunities, and then, what are the manufacturing economic trends and what’s the latest in skills development? So we try to bring all that together. It’s tailored to meet both the needs of the industry leaders in advanced manufacturing, but also our education and agency partners, and it’s on Spotify.

Rick Sizemore:  Awesome. I’ve already subscribed to your podcast. Certainly a big fan of that. Will, again, put the links in the show notes. Betsy, it’s been an amazing interview with this great guest.

Betsy Civilette:  Yes. Victor, you’re a wealth of knowledge and wish you the best of luck with your new podcast.

Victor Gray:  Well, thank you.

Rick Sizemore:  Dr. Victor Gray leads the Manufacturing Skills Institute and joins us from Richmond, Virginia. Well, it’s time for our National Clearinghouse report with the always entertaining and informative Heather Servais. Welcome to the podcast, Heather.

Heather Servais:  Hey, Rick, it’s so good to be back with you.

Rick Sizemore:  Yeah, exciting story from C and E. We heard from DJ and Mike Eiker, the operations manager out at CNE Farms. What did you think of that incredible story?

Heather Servais:  I really loved hearing DJ’s story from his perspective and then also getting to hear the business side of it from C and E Farms. And so, today, I’m actually bringing you a lot of resources about business engagement because so much of employment is about how we engage these businesses.

The first resource I want to talk to you about is one I’ve talked to you about before, but I want to share it again because it’s such a great starting point, is the NCRTM Business Engagement page. This page provides employers with resources and information about hiring individuals with disabilities. So it shows the diverse and skilled talent pool that’s available, and it covers all employment phases from hiring all the way to retention and career advancement. And it offers a lot of insights on creating inclusive and accessible workplaces. And so, while we’re thinking about businesses, this is targeted towards businesses, but it’s also a great resource for VR counselors. You can use this page to link employers with these resources. You can also use it with your customers so that they can learn about business practices that facilitate successful employment and career growth.

Rick Sizemore:  That’s so important in the VR community right now as we build these programs based on the needs of business and that measure in WIOA to engage business and understand what they need as we help people with disabilities into the workforce. That sounds like a great item to save on your desktop, as a counselor.

Heather Servais:  Absolutely. And thinking about how we engage businesses, this second resource that I have is a business engagement toolkit that was completed by the Institute for Community Inclusion. And this toolkit has a collection of useful information that can be used by VR counselors and VR agencies, and even some of those employment services or community rehabilitation providers. This toolkit is comprehensive and it has everything from training modules, information briefs. Has a compendium. There’s a lot of different layers to this toolkit. So I highly recommend you check that out as you’re thinking about how to engage your businesses because it gives you both sides. It gives you the voc-rehab side, and it also talks you more about that language of business and really getting down to what their needs are when fulfilling positions.

The third resource I have for you today is called Engaging the Private Sector: Strategies for Achieving Better Employment Outcomes. And this resource is from the Center for Innovative Training in VR. And this is actually a training module that goes into enhancing the engagement with private sector businesses to help boost employment for people with disabilities. Some of the key topics that are covered in this training are identifying and addressing business pain points with state VR solutions and recognizing the impact of identity and business interactions, as well as looking at those strength-based approaches that align with the VR customer’s talents and the employer needs.

So this training is great because it provides actionable steps to create business relations for improved employment outcomes. And another key perk about this one is, for those of you that are CRC, it is worth 1.5 CRC credits once you complete the training.

And then the last two that I have are from the Employer Assistance and Resource Center on Disability, also known as EARN. This first one is called Inclusion at Work: a Framework for Building a Disability Inclusive Organization. And this is geared towards those businesses. This document was put together with an input from a large range of employers with excellent track records in disability employment, and this framework outlines seven core components of a disability inclusive workplace, along with a large menu of strategies to help you achieve them.

And then the last and final resource I have for you today is a small business series: Local and State Disability Inclusion Incentives and Resources for Small Businesses. This is also done by EARN, and this recorded training provides an in-depth look at some of these innovative state and local programs, like VR, that assist small businesses in hiring and retaining talent with disabilities. So, participants that go through this training are going to learn about some of these successful initiatives from around the nation and hear from experts on how to develop and implement similar programs. There’s also some highlights on the benefits of tax incentives and financial support and workplace accommodations. It covers a wide range of strategies for fostering partnerships between small businesses, community organizations, and government entities to promote workforce inclusivity.

So it’s like all of the VR resources and this whole process with business engagement in a really comprehensive training.

Rick Sizemore:  If you’re joining us for the first time today, you’ll want to make this segment of the podcast something that you save and look to frequently because it’s filled with tips, resources and information that every VR counselor needs at their fingertips.

Heather Servais directs RSA’s National Clearinghouse of Rehabilitation Training Materials and joins us each month for the Clearinghouse report. Links and resources from the NCRTM are included in the show notes at vrworkforcestudio.com. Thanks, Heather.

Heather Servais:  Absolutely. Thanks for having me, Rick.

Rick Sizemore:  Well, thank you for getting involved in today’s show. If you or someone you know has a disability and wants to get into the workforce, Vocational Rehabilitation may just be the answer to kickstart your career. Visit us at vrworkforcestudio.com to find links and resources as well as our contact information. On behalf of my co-host Betsy Civilette, I’m Rick Sizemore inviting you to join us as we podcast the sparks that ignite Vocational Rehabilitation.

Jake Hart: The VR Workforce Studio Podcast is owned and operated by Vocational Rehabilitation’s partners in podcasting. Audio content for the podcast is provided to VR Partners in Podcasting by the Virginia Department for Aging and Rehabilitative Services in exchange for promotional considerations.