Washington Employment Services

Meadowlark has provided employment support services for many years in the state of Oregon in counties that border Washington state. In 2024, Meadowlark expanded its services across the connecting borders into Clark, Cowlitz and Skamania Counties, and into King County.

Meadowlark is excited to grow its footprint and its ability to provide the Employment First Model in a sister state. Through employment strategies, support services and seasoned staff, Meadowlark will increase the opportunities for adults and youth with developmental disabilities to find integrated competitive employment in Washington.

Read more about our services, and get in touch with our staff if you’d like more information! And head to the Washington Division of Vocational Rehabilitation website to learn more about eligibility for services.

Comprehensive Employment Assessment

Job Placement Services

The discovery process is used to explore the individual’s strengths and capabilities which may lead to employment options. Discovery is designed to replace traditional comparative assessments and should include activities such as interviews with the participant, family, other significant individuals in the participant’s life, direct observation of participant’s typical life activities in their home environment and in the community, review of existing records and active participation of the participant. Discovery results in a comprehensive document that identifies the participant’s strengths, needs, interests, and vocational themes identified in the discovery process.

It typically involves meeting the participant in person preferably in their home or in the community, observation of the participant in familiar and unfamiliar environments, assessment of opportunities and resources in their neighborhood, and engaging with their support network, including family, friends, support staff, educators, and people they know in the community.

This service requires locating, securing, and placing a participant into a paid employment setting(s), or other realistic work setting(s), in which the participant performs work for a specified period of time with the direct provision of needed job supports and training.

Intent:

• Identify barriers to employment.

• Obtain information needed for the participant to select a suitable vocational goal.

• Determine the nature and scope of VR services an individual needs to achieve an employment outcome.

Assesses the individual’s abilities, capabilities, and capacity to perform in work situations.

Intent:

• Determine if the individual can achieve employment through the provision of VR services and are eligible for VR services.

• A TWE is done prior to the determination of eligibility or at any later point in the VR process before determining that the individual is not eligible or no longer eligible for VR services due to the significance of the individual’s disabilities.

• Determine if there is clear and convincing evidence that the individual cannot benefit from VR services due to the significance of their disability and is ineligible for VR services.

• Allow a participant to perform in one or more realistic work setting(s) while receiving appropriate support services.

An activity where a participant is placed into a competitive, integrated work setting where they get paid the Washington State minimum wage, the local minimum wage, or a wage consistent with the employer's typical pay for the position, whichever is greater, to perform a non-permanent job at an employer’s work site in accordance with Washington State Teen Worker rules established by the Department of Labor and Industries. WBLE is not intended to be a permanent placement. Participants shall be aged 16 through 21 years of age to participate in work-based learning.

Intent:

• Participants shall be paid an hourly wage by the Contractor or by the employer at the rate of the prevailing Washington State or local minimum wage, or a wage consistent with the employer's typical pay for the position, whichever is greater.

• The participants shall be placed in a competitive, integrated workplace setting outside of the traditional school setting and not at a CRP site. It shall be based on the participant’s areas of vocational interest, and is in alignment with their IEP, High School and Beyond Plan, or in collaboration with the high school.

• Contractor activities shall include developing the site; helping participants plan and access transportation to the site; providing workplace readiness instruction (e.g., grooming, social skills, appropriate workplace behavior, and other goals commensurate with individual participants needs); collecting employer feedback; post-WBL debriefing with participants.

• The contractor shall maintain accurate time sheets that document the dates and hours that a participants participates in a work-based learning experience.

• Work-based learning experiences are not considered assessments.

• Work-based learning experiences are considered vocational exploration and are not intended to be a job placement service or require job retention services.

In an informational interview, a participant has an informal conversation with someone working in a career area or job that interests the participant, who gives information and advice. It is for the purpose of research and is not expected to be a job interview or to find job openings.

Intent:

• To provide up to three informational interviews to participants with a disability for the purposes of career exploration.

• Each informational interview should last between 30-60 minutes.

• The informational interview should be located at a business or organization not related or connected to the contractor’s own agency.

• Specific areas of interest will be identified in coordination with the participant’s school and will be listed on the SDOP.

Informational interview services include:

• Working with participants to identify sites and contact businesses.

• Helping participants prepare and practice questions for the interview.

• Helping participants plan appropriate grooming.

• Helping participants plan transportation to the site, if on-site, or set up virtual interview.

• Accompanying participants to the site or coordinating virtual interview.

• Helping participants prepare and deliver a thank-you note to the person interviewed; and

• Post-interview debriefing with the participants.

In a job shadow, a participant works with an employee for a period of time to learn about new aspects of the job, organization, and behaviors or competencies related to the job.

Intent:

• To provide up to 10 hours (1-5 hours per job shadow) of job shadow experiences to a participant with a disability for the purposes of career exploration.

• Each job shadow consists of 1-5 hour observations at a business in the community that are consistent with the participant’s interests.

• The job shadow should be located at a business or organization not related/connected to the contractor’s own agency.

• Specific areas of interest will be identified in coordination with the participant’s school and will be listed on the SDOP.

Job shadow services include:

• Developing the job shadow site(s) based on the participant’s interests.

• Helping the participant prepare questions for the employer.

• Helping the participant plan appropriate grooming.

• Accompanying the participant to the site(s).

• Helping the participant prepare and deliver a follow-up note to the employer; and

• Post-job shadow debriefing with participant.

JOB PLACEMENT SERVICES

This direct service is provided in place of job placement services when the participant will need limited job search assistance. It includes helping facilitate the participant’s use of community resources in their independent job search.

The immediate placement of a participant into competitive integrated employment, that aligns with the participant’s job goal and the number of work hours requested, at any point prior to referral to the contractor.

Direct services authorized by the Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor and provided to teach the participant the essential skills necessary to complete required job tasks beyond what is normally provided by the employer. Job coaching services include onboarding activities, defined as necessary extensive assistance with activities such as attending new hire trainings, developing strategies to ensure comprehension of new hire expectations, and one-on-one review and study of employee manuals and job-related materials. Job coaching may also include job-related tasks such as basic work etiquette, job related time management, hygiene, organization, task analysis, self-advocacy, and disclosure.

Includes initial, ongoing, or maintenance of support to maintain and advance in an individualized competitive integrated job in the general workforce for which an individual is compensated at or above the minimum wage, but not less than the customary wage and level of benefits paid by the employer for the same or similar work performed by individuals without disabilities and maintain.

Initial:

Includes the time when the individual begins a new job.

1. Learning a new job

2. Developing communication and appropriate relationships with supervisors and co-workers

3. Ensure support is in place so that the individual will be successful on the job.

   1. Support to arrive at work on time

   2. Ensure proper hygiene

   3. Ensure proper and clean attire

4. Coordination with:

   1. Residential provider,

   2. Transportation provider,

   3. Natural supports

   4. Behavioral services

   5. Medical supports

5. Developing natural supports

Ongoing Job Coaching:

Ongoing Job Coaching support includes the support outlined for Initial Job Coaching. It is expected that, for most people, the degree and intensity of these supports will decrease around the time the rate for Ongoing Job Coaching begins.

Ongoing Job Coaching also requires assistance with helping the individual to advance in his or her career as evidenced by a job coach fading, raises, more hours, increased responsibility and/or promotion, etc.

One sign of successful job coaching is that the person has become more independent, allowing the job coach to fade as much as possible.

Maintenance Job Coaching:

Maintenance Job Coaching support includes the support outlined for Initial and On-going Job Coaching. It is expected that, for most people, the degree and intensity of these supports will have significantly diminished around the time the rate for Maintenance Job Coaching begins.

Maintenance Job Coaching is intended to provide auxiliary support to an individual who otherwise works independently, i.e. occasional consultation regarding work concerns, change in supervisor or duties, etc.

An array of individualized Services, provided by the Contractor, while working with the Participant and employer, to determine issues, and solutions on the job, to ensure Participant’s employment success. It includes ongoing and routine engagement of employer and or Participant to identify issues affecting job performance and to establish a plan for remediation which will allow the Participant to make changes to maintain CIE. This will be based on the Participant’s preference of disclosure. Retention has been successfully achieved when the Participant has reached 90 days of successful CIE and Job Stability.