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Disability Program Navigators (DPN)
In the areas most affected by the Gulf Coast hurricanes, there are many
people with disabilities in immediate need of assistance. The life-disrupting
impact of these disasters is likely to fall heavily on people with disabilities
and presents both a challenge and an opportunity for states and localities. To
help meet the needs of individuals with disabilities, the U.S. Department of
Labor, in partnership with the Social Security Administration, is funding
additional Disability Program Navigators.
Disability Program Navigators (DPNs) are state and local professionals
currently working in 17 states who are experts in integrating services for
people with disabilities through One-Stop Career Centers. Navigators are
experts at better connecting disabled customers with workforce investment
services, as well as the full spectrum of rehabilitation, benefit, training and
related services available.
The DPN Hurricane Initiative
Through the DPN Hurricane Initiative, up to 50 Navigators from the 17
Navigator states will be temporarily reassigned to the Gulf Coast area under
the direction of the state workforce and rehabilitation agencies in order to
locate people with disabilities, provide assistance that enables them to be
prepared to accept employment and connect them to reemployment services.
The first 14 -member DPN team will operate in Mississippi. The team
includes DPNs from Colorado, Maryland, Oklahoma and Wisconsin. Teams will then
begin operations in Louisiana, and the expansion of operations will be
supported by the participation of Navigators from California and Iowa. Finally,
the initiative may be further expanded to provide recovery and reemployment
services in Alabama and in evacuee host states such as Texas and Arkansas.
The DPN Hurricane Initiative is funded through existing grants to
states for the Disability Program Navigators.
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