Wisconsin’s Efforts:  Access to Integrated Emloyment Project

This project promotes integrated employment participation for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD).  As part of AIE project, the Institute has collected and catalogued Promising Practices by State Agencies, a webpage designed to highlight innovation and broaden perceptions about the strategies that can promote integrated employment outcomes at the system level.

According to the promising practices by state agencies webpage, “An average Community Conversation included a group of about 15–20 participants, where people sat in groups of about 5–6 people per table, each with a table facilitator. The conversations began by addressing two or three questions.  This way it was possible to thoroughly explore each question and discuss many ideas”.

The web page further states “In Wisconsin, Community Conversations created a foundation for establishing a local coalition around youth employment. These events not only built civic pride, but instilled a sense of ownership–a feeling that integrated employment for youth with IDD is the community’s issue, rather than an individual or family issue.  Because of the value found in eliciting responses, building relationships, and generating many ideas very quickly, Community Conversations have now been included as a component in several other statewide grants and projects”.