EARN A NATIONAL CERTIFICATE IN EMPLOYMENT SERVICES
Online Course: Supported Employment Web-Based Certificate Series

Upcoming offerings: August 1 - October 24, 2011
Click to Register Online
Cost: $200 per person

APSE and VCU-RRTC are partnering to offer APSE members a $50 discount on the regular registration fee for the Supported Employment Online Certificate Series. Instead of the regular registration fee of $250, APSE members pay $200. Of this $200, $50 will go to APSE to support its mission of training tomorrow's employment leaders. Please note that if you drop the course, this $50 is not refundable. Thanks and if you have questions, please contact Dr. Katherine Inge at kinge@vcu.edu.

ACRE Certification: Individuals who complete all of the requirements for VCU's online course in supported employment will be eligible to receive a National Certificate in Employment Services. The Association of Community Rehabilitation Educators (ACRE) awards nationally recognized Certificates of Achievement to providers of employment services to people with disabilities. This Certificate documents that the provider has satisfactorily completed a minimum of 40 hours of training or professional development provided by an ACRE-approved training resource. Virginia Commonwealth University is a member of ACRE, and the Supported Employment Online Certificate Series is an approved training program.

Learning Objectives: After taking this certificate series, participants will be able to:

• Discuss the federal policy and historical overview of supported employment.
• Demonstrate an understanding of the Discovery Process and the importance of identifying the individual's goals, aspirations, and dreams for employment.
• Describe the components of an employment profile to include situational assessments, vocational evaluations, and functional resumes.
• Illustrate an understanding of job development for career paths by developing a job search plan.
• Match a customer's strengths with the prospective business in order to customize a position that meets the individual's interests and needs as well as the needs of the business.
• Discuss the various job-site training support strategies (e.g., natural cues, workplace supports, compensatory strategies, instructional strategies, assistive technology) and their applications.
• Determine how to facilitate the natural supports of the workplace in order to facilitate long-term job retention.
• Define the features of a high quality long-term support plan.
• Describe the various alternative funding sources for supported employment.

Session 1: Overview of Supported Employment and Historical Perspective
Session 2: Customer Profile and Employment Selection
Session 3: Organizational Marketing and Job Development
Session 4: Job-Site Training
Session 5: Long-Term Support
Session 6: Funding

ALL instruction is web based. The course consists of six lessons, each of which lasts two weeks, giving participants ample time to complete the assignments. A new lesson is made available every other Monday morning by 9:00 a.m. ET. The course web site is always available, and you may log into the course at any time in order to view content, listen to the lectures, and complete the assignments. Each lesson will require 6 - 8 hours of staff time to complete. Please note that our online offerings are intensive, and we do not recommend taking more than one of these courses concurrently.

Course Credit: Participants can earn 3.5 CEUs or 35 CRCs upon course completion. Also, a certificate of completion will be issued to all participants who complete all course assignments.

System Requirements: Your computer must have a sound card, speakers, Adobe Acrobat Reader (free software), and RealPlayer or RealAlternative (free software). Each participant must have his or her own e-mail address and Internet access. VCU-RRTC staff are available to provide technical assistance on how to use the Internet for distance education. Transcripts are posted for all online audio lectures.

If you have questions about the technology applications, please contact Doug Erickson at (804) 827-0760. If you have content questions, please email Katherine Inge.