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The CMEP is an
education and
training
coalition of
almost fifty
agencies serving
the ‘integrated
employment’
needs of
agencies in the
greater
New York City
area. Launched
in 1986, the
Coalition is a
forum in which
member agencies
come together to
solve common
problems and
promote the
growth of
community-based
employment
programs. While
the main focus
of the group has
been on
supported
employment, the
CMEP advocates
for all types of
integrated
options,
including
competitive
placement with
or without
supports,
transitional
placements, and
so forth.
The Coalition
seeks to train
providers’
staffs to
improve the
quality of
services by
educating and
training CRP
staff in issues
such as NYS
Office of Mental
Health’s new
PROS initiative
(Personalized
Recovery
Oriented
System),
Medicaid Waiver
conversion of
supported
employment
services by the
NYS Office of
Mental
Retardation and
Developmental
Disabilities (OMRDD),
and providing
technical
assistance for
VESID’s latest
RFA (Request for
Applications)
for supported
employment. The
CMEP meets every
other month,
bringing
together
managers with
day-to-day
responsibility
for the
operation of
their agencies’
integrated
employment
programs, using
ad-hoc
committees that
focus on
funding,
reporting,
marketing,
transportation,
staff training,
recruitment and
entitlements. It
also helps to
identify issues
and offer
alternative
ideas for
policymakers in
charge of
financing and
regulating
supported
employment
programs.
The Coalition of
Mainstream
Employment
Programs
represents a
wide range of
rehabilitation
agencies that
provide service
to consumers of
all disability
groups (MH, MR,
DD, LD, Blind,
Deaf, Substance
Abuse, TBI, and
so forth). The
CMEP has had a
VESID Staff
Training Grant
since 1989, and
since that time
supported
employment
programs have
both expanded
significantly
and seen
enormous
turnover of
staff. An
annual needs
assessment
conducted by the
Training
Coordinator
indicates needs
for training in
a cross-section
of skills
necessary for
the delivery of
quality
supported
employment
services to
consumers, and
seminars are
developed to
respond to these
documented
needs.
The CMEP has
long prided
itself on its
collaborative
efforts with
other agencies.
For the past
five years the
CMEP has worked
closely with the
RRCEP II Program
at SUNY -Buffalo.
RRCEP II has
co-sponsored a
significant
number of
trainings and
forums covering
a wide range of
topics. Most
notably, CMEP
has worked
closely together
in the last two
years on forums
covering Welfare
to Work Reforms,
including The
Work Incentive
Improvement Act
(WIIA), the
Workforce
Investment Act (WIA)
and Ticket to
Work (TTW). All
of these
programs have
had and will
have a profound
impact on the
disability
landscape, and
the CMEP in
collaboration
with NYSRA (New
York State
Rehabilitation
Association) and
RRCEP II have
come to the fore
on these
issues. In
addition, we
have worked
closely with
NYSRA, sharing
ideas and having
them co-sponsor
numerous
trainings and
forums, also
attended by
other disability
advocates, e.g.,
The Interagency
Council (IAC)
and APSE
members.
Currently a CMEP
board member
sits on the
RRCEP II
Advisory Board.
Linkages are
also present
with the New
York Work
Exchange of the
Coalition of
Voluntary Mental
Health
Agencies.
Funded through
OMH, the Work
Exchange has
worked closely
with the CMEP to
strengthen and
broaden
initiatives to
increase
employment
opportunities
for MH
Consumers, and a
CMEP
representative
sits on the
Education &
Training
Committee.
Lastly, the CMEP
has worked
closely with IAC
Day Services
Committee,
coordinating
initiatives and
sharing ideas.
A CMEP Member is
a co-chair of
this IAC
committee, and a
number of CMEP
board members
regularly
participate in
the Day Services
Committee
Meetings.
The CMEP looks
forward to being
an active force
in future
challenges
facing
New York ’s disabled workers.
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