Awardee:

Big Five Community Services, Inc.

PO Box 1577, 1502 North First

Durant, Oklahoma 74702

Contact: W. J. Haddock, Jr., Executive Director

Phone: (580) 924-5331

Proposed Award Amount: $297,751

Community Served: the 17 counties covered by the Southern Workforce Investment Board and the Consortium Southeast Workforce Investment Board

Project Emphasis: People with disabilities.

Summary Paragraph: Big Five Community Services, Inc. is the fiscal agent and administrative entity for the Southern Workforce Investment Board, which submitted this proposal in partnership with the Southeast Workforce Investment Board. These two Boards oversee six comprehensive One Stop Centers and five One Stop Satellite Centers, all of which will benefit from the grant. Highlights include installation of assistive technology and cross-training for front-line staff on this technology as well as on disability and awareness, legal issues, service delivery (assessment, counseling and support services), job development and job placement. This staff training will serve as a follow-up to ongoing capacity building led by the partnership of the University of Oklahoma, the Oklahoma Development Disabilities Council, and the National Center of Disability Education and Training. Project Coordinators will conduct outreach and marketing based on Advisory Teams One Stop Tool Kits, Disability Program Navigator Network and Best Practice models. Job screening and job matching systems customized for persons with disabilities will be [provided by the Department of Rehabilitative Services JobFit and the Workforce Oklahomas JobLink systems.

Partnerships: Besides the applicant consortium, partners include: WIA Title I, Welfare-to-Work, Developmental Disabilities Services, Head Start and transportation programs, the state and local Department of Health and Human Services, the University of Oklahomas Workforce Oklahoma Training Institute, state and local Departments of Rehabilitative Services, state and local Employment Service/Unemployment Insurance/Veterans Employment Services, One Stop Operators, KEDDO WIA Title I and Welfare to Work, state and local Adult Education and Literacy, local vocational education schools, and the Chikasaw and Choctaw Nations Employment and Training Divisions. In addition, the Consortium will work with the Oklahoma Development Disabilities Council, Office of Handicap Concerns, local CBOs, businesses, disability organizations such as BIOS and Independent Living Centers, etc.