NRTC Receives $7.3M in Grants for Vision Impairment Research & Training

The National Research and Training Center on Blindness and Low Vision (NRTC) at Mississippi State University has just received two national grants totaling over $7.3 million. These funds will allow the NRTC to expand into new areas while continuing to maximize employment opportunities for individuals with vision impairments.

From the NRTC:

In October, the NRTC was awarded a competitive federal grant sponsored by the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR). This grant funds the NRTC to function as a Rehabilitation Research and Training Center (RRTC) on Employment Outcomes for Individuals with Blindness or Other Visual Impairments. Projects funded by this grant are focused on generating new knowledge about the efficacy of rehabilitation services and technology used to support improved employment outcomes for individuals who are B/VI, and include a focus on three specific subpopulations: youth who are B/VI, individuals who are deaf-blind, and individuals with combined traumatic brain injury and B/VI.

This grant will fund RRTC-related work over five years and encompasses six major research projects:

• Development of an App to Help Parents and Youth Focus on Employment: This app, which will be developed by the NRTC and a group of partners, will help youth who are B/VI and their parents focus on the steps they need to take, starting early in life, to obtain employment upon completion of their education. An app for parents of youth with deaf-blindness and other disabilities will also be developed.
• Summer Work Experience Plus: This intervention adds a guided job search component to an existing summer work experience program conducted by a vocational rehabilitation (VR) agency with youth in their home communities. Researchers will look to see whether youth experience better employment outcomes when they gain experience in conducting a job search.
• An Experiment to Evaluate Employer Intervention Approaches: This project uses a randomized, controlled design to test the effectiveness of different approaches to a first meeting between a VR professional and a potential employer.
• The Effectiveness of an Evidence-Based Approach to VR Counselor Training: In this project, the NRTC will partner with four VR agencies to provide training to counselors on evidence-based methods for interacting effectively with employers. The training will be based on results from a current NIDILRR-funded project.
• Job Retention and Advancement: This exploratory study will generate new knowledge regarding job retention and advancement for individuals who are B/VI. Using a combination of surveys, secondary data analysis and case studies, the NRTC will evaluate factors that help individuals who are B/VI maintain their jobs, as well as the best policies VR agencies can use for job retention cases.
• Exploration of Secondary Data: Using two large existing databases, NRTC researchers will analyze data to increase knowledge about subpopulations (youth and adults who are deaf-blind, individuals with combined traumatic brain injury and B/VI) to gain a more comprehensive understanding of employment outcomes for these rarely studied populations.

The second five-year grant received by the NRTC in October 2015 will allow the Center to implement new training and technical assistance projects focused on agencies serving older individuals who are blind (OIB). This grant is funded by the Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) under the Department of Education. Projects under this grant will be led by B. J. LeJeune, the NRTC’s training supervisor. To accomplish the goals of the project, the project staff will be working in collaboration with the American Foundation for the Blind (AFB), the Helen Keller National Center for Deaf-Blind Youths and Adults (HKNC), and VisionServe Alliance. All activities are designed to improve the operation and performance of OIB programs through improved community outreach, use of best practices in the provision of services, improved data reporting and analysis, and stronger financial and management practices. The six major projects under this grant are:

• Intensive Training and Technical Assistance (TA): Three OIB programs per year will be selected to receive specialized consultation, in-depth training, technical assistance, and a follow-up plan in order to improve their operations and performance.
• Electronic Trainings: Each year, two new online training sessions for OIB service providers will be developed. In addition, existing training modules from collaborative partners will be updated specifically for OIB program use and made freely available to designated service providers.
• OIB Collaborative: Program administrators will be consulted regarding training and technical assistance opportunities available to their staff members.
• Community of Practice (CoP): The NRTC will develop a website that will host a CoP for individuals and programs in the OIB field. All activities will promote communication, quality service delivery, resource sharing, and professional support.
• Communication and Dissemination Network: A network of service delivery systems will be created and shared to reduce redundancy and promote cross-agency training, TA, service delivery, and professional development.
• Evaluation: Ongoing evaluations of activities under this grant will be aimed at improving training and TA throughout the project and to determine the effectiveness of services provided.

Both grants will allow the NRTC to partner with a broad variety of organizations in the field of blindness and low vision, and national advisory councils will guide research, training, and TA efforts and help disseminate results for both projects. Outputs from all projects, including peer-reviewed publications, online short courses, and policy and practice guides, will be made available on the NRTC website.

The grants will also allow the NRTC to expand and broaden our ability to conduct training and research through hiring additional staff members.

Have a question about blindness or visual impairment? Ask the Experts at MSU's National Technical Assistance Center on Blindness and Visual Impairment (NTAC-BVI) by using their online form, or call 662-325-2001.

Click here to read more about the NRTC | Click here to see job opportunities at the NRTC