Increase in Job Placement for NYS Blind
CBVH press release received from ACBNY-L email list:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
New York State Office of Children & Family Services
Contact: Edward Borges, Director of Communications 518-473-7793
Dec. 17, 2008NEW YORK STATE OFFICE OF CHILDREN AND FAMILY SERVICES ANNOUNCES INCREASE IN JOB PLACEMENTS FOR THE LEGALLY BLIND
Commission for Blind & Visually Handicapped Placed 402 Legally Blind Adults in Competitive Fields; Increasing Placements for Third Year in a Row
New York State Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS) Commissioner Gladys Carri?n, Esq., today announced that the Commission for the Blind and Visually Handicapped (CBVH), a division of OCFS, has successfully placed more legally blind adults in competitive jobs than it did last year - reflecting a three-year growth in job placements.
This year, CBVH placed 402 legally blind adults in fields as diverse as law, social work, financial consulting, family divorce mediation, radio, youth services, physical therapy, counseling, teaching, retail, food services, banking and research.
“When only about 37 percent of individuals with disabilities are employed in this country, it is incumbent upon the leaders of our state and nation to ensure that the disabled community is provided full opportunity to contribute in a supportive environment free of discrimination,” said Governor David A. Paterson. “Our work to confront this problem is only beginning, but I am pleased with the growing recognition that individuals with disabilities have the potential to contribute great things to our society. And with New York facing an economic crisis, it is critical that we give those opportunities to all capable individuals who can help make an immediate and positive impact on the future of our economy.”
“We are extremely pleased that with training and adaptive technology our clients can experience the satisfaction of supporting themselves and their families, and contributing their valuable skills and talents to the workplace,” said Commissioner Carri?n.
She added: “I am also grateful to our public and private partners who assist with training, and all those employers who recognize that our consumers, given the opportunity, make significant contributions to the workforce.”
CBVH works with not-for-profit agencies for the blind throughout New York State to provide assessment and technical, training, job placement, and resource assistance to clients to help them achieve economic self-sufficiency and full integration into society.
Michael Godino, a board member of the New York Vision Rehabilitation Association and a former client, said: “I’d like to congratulate CBVH and its partner provider agencies for their great success. Given the quality of service I received, it’s not surprising to me that the number of people placed in competitive jobs is increasing each year. We look forward to greater successes.”
Nancy D. Miller, Executive Director/CEO of VISIONS Services for the Blind and Visually Impaired in New York City, said: “The New York State Commission for the Blind is a leader in providing cost-effective services for blind and visually impaired persons of all ages. The focused interventions and successful collaborations among consumers, providers and CBVH counselors are at the heart of this achievement in employment outcomes.”
In addition to vocational rehabilitation, CBVH assists clients with daily living skills, orientation and mobility training, diagnostic evaluations, obtaining adaptive equipment, job development, job training, and job placement services.
CBVH also operates a Business Enterprise Program, assisting people who are legally blind to own businesses operating newsstands, snack bars and cafeterias in government buildings.
In addition, CBVH provides rehabilitation services to children who are legally blind, including working with and empowering parents, arranging services to supplement educational activities - including providing college scholarships, and ensuring a smooth transition to adult services to maximize their future independence. CBVH also provides children with the opportunity to attend summer camps and year-round recreation programs, which encourage independence and increase self-confidence.
For legally blind individuals who are 55 and older, CBVH has programs to teach the skills necessary to maintain safety and confidence in the home environment.
For more information on services for the blind, call toll free 1-866-871-3000 (TDD 1-866-871-6000) or visit the agency website at www.ocfs.state.ny.us/main/cbvh.
Patterson in a Snit Over ‘SNL’ Skit
From the NY Post [original article]:
Gov. Paterson didn’t see the humor in a “Saturday Night Live” bit that mocked his blindness.
During the “Weekend Update” segment of NBC’s irreverent comedy show, actor Fred Armisen played Paterson, imitating his wandering eye, gravelly voice and blunt, self-effacing demeanor.
But Paterson and advocates for the visually impaired didn’t appreciate stock blind jokes that had Armisen pretending to be disoriented and wandering aimlessly.
“I can take a joke,” Paterson told reporters.
But he called the SNL spoof a “third-grade depiction of people and the way they look” that could lead others to believe that “disability goes hand-in-hand with an inability to run a government or business.”
“I run the place I work in, so I don’t have to be worried about being discriminated against,” noted Paterson
Although Paterson is legally blind and has aides help him with some tasks, the governor is rarely out of step with his surroundings and seems comfortable in virtually all settings.
After Armisen’s sketch with “Weekend Update” co-anchor Seth Meyers, the joke continued.
As longtime “SNL” player Amy Poehler was announcing her departure from the show, Armisen’s Paterson started wandering, as if lost, in front of the camera.
“Gov. Paterson . . . you’re in the shot!” a chuckling Poehler said.
The skit could leave viewers with the impression that blind Americans cannot be competent employees, advocates for the disabled said.
“When you have a perception problem like we have, you take these things a little more seriously,” said Chris Danielsen, spokesman for the National Federation of the Blind.
“We have 70 percent unemployment - and it’s not because we can’t work. Obviously, the governor of New York is blind, and he’s doing the job. Whenever you have a portrayal that calls the basic capacity of [blind people] into question, that’s a potential problem.”
Danielsen claims “SNL” has a long history of mocking the blind - going back to Eddie Murphy’s Stevie Wonder impression and, more recently, a “Weekend Update” one-liner that hybrid cars are dangerous to blind people because they can’t hear the engine.
Paterson’s spokesman, Errol Cockfield, said, “The governor is sure that ‘Saturday Night Live,’ with all of its talent, can find a way to be funny without being offensive,” Cockfield said.
“Knowing the governor, he might even have some suggestions himself.”
An NBC spokesman could not be reached for comment yesterday.
Okay, first I’ll admit it, I actually found the skit pretty darn funny. If that makes you hate me then I’d suggest not reading further because you’re not likely to enjoy what you’ll find.
Budget Cuts Continue
Governor Patterson continues to detail his proposed cuts. [Quoted from the Times Union article.]
Work force: The plan calls for a delay of salary for five days this fiscal year essentially moving a week’s worth of payroll off this year’s accounts. Also, the Governor is asking to withold the 3 percent 2009-10 salary increase previously negotiated with several unions. Also, state workers will be asked to contribute a greater share to their health insurance costs; require workers and retirees to contribute to Medicare Part B premiums.
As a state employee, I have to admit all these budget cuts make me very uneasy about job security. No one at SED has lost their job at this point, nor has anyone been “encouraged” to retire early. Although, I can’t say everyone wasn’t mildly concerned when the Commissioner announced his resignation.
I’m not exactly thrilled with the idea of not getting a raise next year and losing a week of pay AND having a higher premium or deductible or BOTH. But I would certainly rather have my job at the end of the day if it meant having to suffer through any or all of that. From what I’ve been hearing, though, the unions are not happy with this plan and are being quite rigid about their already agreed upon contracts. I can understand that, considering some of them were several years behind when they finally went through earlier this year.
Oh, well.
President Barack Obama!
Regardless of how you voted, you can’t deny this has been an historic election. I stayed up to see the results and watch the speeches. I was pretty much glued to my Facebook page where I had a widget of MSNBC’s election map refreshing every two seconds with the called states and reading the different headlines that popped up. And it was there that I first saw the electoral votes jump past 270 in favor of Obama and turned my attention back to the television to wait for the speeches themselves.
McCain was very gracious, though his supporters were somewhat immature and disrespectful, in my opinion. President-elect Obama’s speech literally brought me to tears and made me quite glad again to be part of this country. Something I haven’t felt in a long time. I’ve never been a fan of the constant bickering between the two parties and while bipartisanship is easier said than done, it’s always heartening to know there are those in government who really do strive for it.
I’m also deeply intrigued by the House and Senate races that now gave us a Democratic majority in both. I’m wary, to say the least, but very interested in how this will play out the next four years. I sincerely hope that Obama proves as good as his word and really does bring about the changes needed to get this country back on track.
October 21, 2008
I’m left rather much speechless, but it’s worth noting that this occurred about two blocks from my own apartment.
I’ve no further comment.