Profile of Illinois Supported Employment Specialists: An Analysis of Educational Background, Experience, and Related Employment Variables

Coordinators of Illinois supported employment programs were surveyed for information regarding the demographics and reasons for job turnover of employment specialists. In addition, the employment specialist position was compared with that of direct service personnel in local rehabilitation agencies in terms of salary, benefits, and turnover. Survey results showed that although 58% of the programs responding required employment specialist applicants to hold a bachelor's degree, only 34% of those employment specialists actually hired held a bachelor's degree in a related field and an additional 10% held a degree in an unrelated field. Approximately two individuals were hired for every available employment specialist position in the Illinois supported employment program, with salary identified as the primary reason for the turnover. Although the nature of the direct service role fulfilled by the employment specialist in supported employment differs greatly from that of traditional direct service personnel within the local rehabilitation agency (e.g., workshop floor supervisors, day activity trainers), 55% of the programs responding stated that the salary levels for the two groups were comparable.

Service Delivery Alternatives for the Mainstreamed Hearing-Impaired Child

During a 6-year in-service training program demographic and correlational data were obtained on 162 hearing-impaired children in public schools. A discussion of these data and specific case histories of three children are used to describe a set of appropriate service delivery options which may be used by direct service personnel.

Comparison of Administrators and Direct Service Workers in Agencies Dealing with the Elderly

This article presents comparative information, gained from mailed questionnaires, on the attitudes, knowledge, and perceptions of clients' needs held by 62 administrators and 57 direct-service personnel working with the aged. Administrators and direct-service workers were remarkably similar on each of these dimensions. Both groups demonstrated positive attitudes toward the aged and a deficit of certain types of factual knowledge about aging. Education was positively related to factual knowledge and favorable attitudes toward the elderly.