Provide the following data for each of the performance measures below. This will assist RSA in reporting results and outcomes related to the program.

The Department of Rehabilitation (DOR) provides comprehensive independent living services to individuals age 55 years and older throughout California. The Department, through its seventeen sub-grantees provide the majority of its services in the consumer?s every day surroundings be it home or community centers.

The program is implemented through sub-grant agreements with private, nonprofit community-based organizations, independent living centers and other service agencies that have expertise in providing effective services to individuals who are blind or visually impaired. The grant is advertised statewide and opened to non-profit eligible agencies providing core ILS services in-home and in community centers. For purposes of providing Title VII, Chapter 2 services throughout the state, DOR divided the state into 14 separate geographical areas with a goal to award at least one grant in each of the 14 designated geographical areas.

The applications of successful sub-grantees were assessed, scored and funding recommendations were based upon the following components:

? demonstrated ability to effectively provide ILS in a specified designated geographical area;

? proven expertise in providing core in-home ILS to older individuals who are blind or visually impaired;

? effectively provides services that enhance consumers' participation and integration in their communities;

? establishment of innovative tools to identify, target and reach, underserved, unserved and ethnically diverse population groups;

? provision of culturally sensitive and linguistically appropriate ILS services;

? developed a comprehensive plan of operation for delivery of services including referral processes;

? service delivery collaboration with local offices of Blind Field Services (BFS) for DOR consumers and non-DOR consumers;

Outreach Efforts to Unserved and Underserved Populations

Title VII, Chapter 2 sub-grantees are required to meet SPIL outreach challenges by utilizing methodologies that help ensure that eligible consumers are aware of services and to focus upon unserved and underserved population groups. The outreach challenges of the 17 sub-grantees to identify local needs of sub-population groups within their geographic area have been met with innovative and effective strategies that included:

? hiring culturally sensitive and knowledgeable Outreach Workers;

? encouraging inclusiveness of consumer involvement in impacted, underserved and unserved communities by coordinating peer-to-peer volunteer services and utilizing senior support groups to promote and advertise services;

? providing translation services for non-English speaking populations;

? incorporating gender and ethnic appropriate ILS promotional information via various media: specialty publications, ethnic-specific print, television, radio and public service announcements;

? partnering with senior advocacy organizations to disseminate information on the availability of ILS services;

? conducting ILS training information to eye care medical specialists and physicians serving targeted population groups in underserved and unserved communities to increase referrals for services;

? conducting presentations at adult day health centers and health/social services businesses located in unserved and underserved communities;

? ensuring that allied organizations promote services and are oriented to the ILS referral process;

? providing ILS services information to organizations, agencies and businesses serving target population sub-groups;

? utilizing ?senior mentors? to orient and demonstrate non-visual skills to members of targeted population sub-groups living in residential facilities, attending health and disability fairs and participating in cultural based social activities and support groups;

? recruiting volunteers representative of various cultures and languages of diverse population groups to identify and respond to barriers to services (i.e., transportation, geography, cultural sensitivity, translations services etc.);

? identifying underserved and unserved communities with high demand for ILS services and finite resources to help fill in service gaps;

? distributing ILS information at faith-based organizations and establishments located in underserved and unserved diverse communities:

The Lions Center for the Blind located in Oakland provides services throughout Alameda and Contra Costa counties. They utilize full time, part time and casual employees to serve the older blind consumers in orientation and mobility (O and M), ILS, Braille and computer training. The Lions Center offers Life Enrichment classes throughout the week which include Sewing, Exercise, Yoga and Spanish. They also conduct support groups outside their facility which spans the east bay. The Lions Center invites clients to participate in community awareness activities such as the International Macular Degeneration Support Group, and an audio-visual internet session presented on the second Thursday of each month. The center offers Foot Clinics in collaboration with the Over 60 Health Center for consumers in need of nail clipping and overall foot care. The Lions Blind Center continues to serve a high percentage of individuals with various ethnicities. For the 2009 reporting year 51.6% of consumers served by the Lions Center were from various ethnic groups. This compares with 26.2% average for all the California sub-grantees.

Another sub-grantee, The Center for the Partially Sighted (CPS), provides comprehensive low vision rehabilitation services with the goals of enhancing any remaining sight, providing emotional support, and training in independent living strategies. The center offers optometric care, the latest in computer and assistive technology, individual and group counseling sessions, independent living skills training, orientation and mobility instruction, a low vision store, as well as a variety of other services. Optometric evaluations are conducted on-site. Counseling is offered face-to-face or by telephone. Orientation and mobility and rehabilitation services are provided in clients? homes. The Center conducts outreach to low-income clinics, ophthalmology and optometric offices, and maintains a website.

The Center for the Partially Sighted should also be congratulated for serving 1,017 older individuals who were blind or visually impaired for the 2009 Federal fiscal year, and of that total 31.1% were from various ethnic groups.

Of all consumers served during the 2008-09 Federal fiscal year, Sub-grantees averaged serving 26.2% non-white consumers. The primary reason for the consistent services to underserved/unserved populations is sub-grantees? recruitment of 73 volunteers and staff representative of California?s diverse population groups. Below is a breakdown of the languages spoken by sub-grantees? staff and volunteers to help ensure cultural sensitivity and linguistic appropriateness:

Lighthouse for the Blind: English, Spanish, American Sign Language (ASL)

Blindness Support Services, Inc.: English, Spanish

Center for the Partially Sighted: English, Spanish

Blind and Visually Impaired Center: English, Spanish, Cantonese, Vietnamese, Mandarin, ASL

Earle Baum Center of the Blind/Sonoma: English, Spanish

El Dorado Center for the Visually Impaired: English, Spanish, ASL

Independent Living Services of Northern California: English, Spanish

Lions Center for the Visually Impaired: English, Spanish

Lions Blind Center of Oakland: Spanish, Vietnamese, Portuguese, Mandarin, Cantonese, Tigrinya (Russian), Amharic (Ethiopia), ASL

Vista Center for the Blind: English, Spanish, Portuguese

Society for the Blind: English, Spanish, Cantonese

Community Access Center: English, Spanish, ASL

Dayle McIntosh Center for the Disabled: English, Spanish, Slovak, Czech, Russian, Farsi (Iranian)

Valley Center for the Blind: English, Spanish

San Diego Center for the Blind: English, Spanish, Hebrew, Italian

Santa Clara Valley Center for the Blind: English, Spanish, French, German, Russian, Japanese, Cantonese, Mandarin

VTC Enterprises: English, Spanish, American Sign Language

FFY 2008-09 Sub-Grantees

Agency; Location; Counties Served

Blind and Visually Impaired Center of Monterey, CA; Monterey, County; Monterey County

Blindness Support Services, Inc.; Riverside, CA; Riverside, San Bernardino

Community Access Center; Riverside, CA; Riverside County

Center for the Partially Sighted; Culver City, CA; Los Angeles County, Santa Barbara County, Ventura County, Van Nuys Foothill

Dayle McIntosh Center for the Disabled; Garden Grove, CA; Orange County

Earle Baum Center of the Blind; Santa Rosa, CA; Sonoma County, Napa County, Lake County, Mendocino County

El Dorado Center forthe Visually Impaired; El Dorado, CA; El Dorado County

Independent Living Services of Northern California; Chico, CA; Butte County, Shasta County, Tehama County, Plumas County

Lighthouse for the Blind - San Francisco; San Francisco CA; Marin County, San Francisco County, Solano County, Humboldt County, Del Norte County

Lions Center for the Blind of Oakland; Oakland, CA; Contra Costa County, Alameda County

Lions Blind Center of Diablo Valley; Pittsburg, CA; Contra Costa County

San Diego Center for the Blind; San Diego, CA; San Diego County

Santa Clara Valley Blind Center; San Jose, CA; Santa Clara County, San Mateo County

Society for the Blind; Sacramento, CA; Sacramento County, Butte County

Valley Center for the Blind; Fresno, CA; San Joaquin County, Fresno County, Kern County, Merced County, Madera, Tulare, Kings County, Mariposa

VISTA Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired; Palo Alto, CA; Santa Clara County, San Benito, Santa Cruz County, Monterey County

VTC Enterprises; Santa Maria, CA; Santa Barbara County, San Luis Obispo County

The Independent Living Services of Northern California (ILSNC), a sub-grantee located in rural Northern California, maximizes opportunities for collaborations through public, private and medical professional (i.e., optometrists, ophthalmologists, etc) partnerships in planning and development to minimize duplication of services and enhance service provisions and resources.

ILSNC schedules and attends events on an ongoing basis that allows them to present information on the Older Blind Program. ILSNC staff coordinated the ?Vision Resource Expo? held in Paradise. There were a total of 29 vendors and a panel of doctors in attendance supplying the public with information and services available for individuals with low-vision. ILSNC provided a resource booth offering all their services including assistive technology devices as well as information on the California Assistive Technology Exchange (CATE) Loan Program in which devices for low vision were displayed. Also, program presentations were held for the Paradise Lion?s Club, Nature?s Pantry Health Store, and Fit One Health Club in efforts to increase the awareness of visual impairments in the community and offer their services to individuals unfamiliar with the OIB program.

Through the various collaborative activities and innovative services ILSNC has increased in consumers served each of the last two years. In 2007, ILSNC served 86 individuals 55 or older who were blind or visually impaired, and 250 in 2008, and 350 in the 2009 Federal fiscal year.

The goal of California?s Title VII program is to prolong the productivity of those with visual impairments. The sub-grantees participated in the following collaborative and community oriented activities:

? developed and implement initiatives that strengthen existing relationships with public and private health agencies;

? expanded partnerships with multi-cultural, ethnic and senior organizations to help close the gap to access to services among the state?s diverse population subgroups;

? participated on social marketing campaigns with other agencies serving seniors and the diverse senior communities;

? referred appropriate related services such as mental health services and public assistance programs;

? established networks of care systems with various providers, medical providers, agencies, associations and organizations that emphasize ILS to improve access and ensure cost-effective use of resources;

The DOR continues to provide technical assistance and consultation to sub-grantees on strategic planning of delivery of comprehensive ILS.

Community Awareness:

In addition, sub-grantees participated in the following community awareness activities:

? health forums sponsored by cities? parks and recreation departments;

? public awareness campaigns;

? annual health/social services events and seminars sponsored by organizations that target seniors (i.e., Arthritis Foundation, Diabetes Association, American Stroke Foundation, etc.);

? presentations at adult education schools;

? coordinating public events with various foundations and organizations that specifically serve the visually impaired;

? demonstrations in English as a Second Language classes;

? distribution of cultural and ethnical sensitive agency information at various events conducted by or provided to individuals of ethnicities who are unserved or underserved.

Currently, sub-grantees report quarterly on the outcomes of their ILS-OIB programs. The evaluation of the reporting requirements for the ILS-OIB is an in-house program evaluation activity. Careful documentation of service provision and consumer outcomes help measure sub-grantees? effectiveness and identify technical assistance needs. Moreover, the evaluations increase accountability, strengthen quality assurance and identify where program policy revisions are needed.

The evaluation process includes all components of the data collection requirements established by RSA.

Below are a few examples of sub-grantees narrative reports on their evaluations.

The Blind and Visually Impaired Center of Monterey (BVIC) reports the goals of each client vary with each individual reflecting his or her capabilities and needs. The success rate is high as goals are planned with the individual in mind and are modified as needed.

BVIC is proud to report clients are satisfied with the OIB services and have benefited from them. BVIC has not received any negative reports.

The Dayle McIntosh Center for the Disabled (DMC) has received 32 satisfaction surveys for the last quarter of the 2009 Federal fiscal year with good to excellent ratings directly relating to the person?s level of independence being improved due to the interaction with the Aging with Vision Loss Program. The agency survey is currently being modified to include specific questions from the new Title VII Chapter 2 report.

The San Francisco Lighthouse for the Blind reports that overall, collection of survey data has been difficult depending on availability of non-direct staff (to not sway answers). Also, bilingual staff while conducting surveys by phone, have identified difficulties with consumers who have hearing loss. The Lighthouse also reports that a large amount of time is spent on call backs to consumers. According to the most recent surveys from the Lighthouse, clients find services very helpful in maintaining there independence and not feeling alone in the process of training.

The Society for the Blind (Society) located in Sacramento reports that all of the results of their survey data has proven very favorable. All clients report success and improvement within a 90% range. Ideally more clients will be impacted by the Society?s training, but at this time it is evident by the survey results that life altering changes are occurring. Also, mobility skills continue to be the area that seniors struggle most with, and the Society will be reinforcing the training through activities and in-home visits. Support groups and other activities have proven to be successful, when referring to positive adjustment in seniors. The Senior Impact Project (SIP) staff plans to incorporate these more into the overall program.

A totally blind 76 year old consumer of the Blind and Visually Impaired Center of Monterey (BVIC), moved to a long-term care facility for medical reasons, which included some cognitive impairment. As a long time dog-guide traveler it was determined that the consumer?s overall cognitive, physical, and emotional functioning would best be served by being able to continue to use the dog-guide in the long-term care facility. The dog-guide school, the medical staff, and the family of the consumer worked with the BVIC Orientation a Mobility Specialist to make this possible. The consumer has now demonstrated the ability to use the dog-guide to travel semi- independently within the facility under close supervision. It has made a huge difference In the quality of life for this visually impaired individual who had started to lose cognitive functioning.

A client of the Center for the Partially Sighted (CPS) is a 59 year old woman who is legally blind due to diabetic retinopathy. She was diagnosed with diabetes 25 years ago and developed impaired vision about 1 year ago. She lives with her husband and mother-in-law, but has felt isolated from her extended family following her loss of vision. She reports having difficulty with performing jobs as a newspaper editor due to problems reading the text. She also has problems reading the computer screen, traveling from home to work, and states that she cannot shop for items at the store because she cannot read the items on the shelves. The consumer is also a professional musician and has turned down numerous jobs because she cannot read the music visually. She requested glasses to assist with her daily shopping, cooking, and with identifying her medications. In addition, she requested a CCTV and computer to allow her to perform her job duties as a writer, composer and newspaper editor. The CPS case worker was also able to help her with applications for talking books, bible on tape, phone services, and a disabled parking placard. She has fallen a couple of times recently, so she receives ongoing orientation and mobility training in addition to a telescope to see bus numbers and street signs. The Center?s low vision optometrist has also conducted a low vision evaluation and assistive technology assessment and recommended readers for near tasks, sunglasses to reduce glare, midrange glasses (for music), Quick Look for shopping, lighted hand magnifier for portability, new monitor for increased print size, and software to enlarge text size. Finally, she has worked with our rehabilitation staff to obtain a talking glucose monitor to improve the ease of managing her blood sugar level.

A 68 year old gentleman consumer of the San Francisco Lighthouse for the Blind, lost vision due to glaucoma over 20 years ago, and has been advancing in his loss of hearing for the past 8 years. He had been an employee of the Lighthouse, and upon retirement returned to his passion in painting. The Lighthouse Older Blind Program provided ILS training, labeling to assist with painting, orientation and mobility instruction, and communication skills training (use of FM systems and beginning ASL). Due to the training that the consumer has received, he has become even more motivated to continue his art, recently showing a piece in the Lighthouse Insights Exhibit. Training has also provided an increased level of independence so as not to be as reliant on his wife and family.

This client of the Society for the Blind (Society) in Sacramento, 83 years old has been associated with the Society?s Senior Intensive Project since 2006. In 2007 he participated in a six-day senior retreat. Follow-up services have been provided through in-home and community integration meetings. The client lives in Modesto where he has attended support meetings and community integration programs on a regular basis. At one of these meetings this summer he was introduced to new computer software which captured his attention. A follow-up in-home appointment was scheduled to accurately assess the needs of the client. The client has no usable vision and has had difficulty with all of the software that he had tried in the past. It was determined that the Guide program might be most appropriate for his needs. A trial copy of the Guide software was then installed on his computer, and appropriate instructions for its use was covered. After a 30-day trial, the client was very excited to find that he had finally found a program which would allow him to fully utilize his computer. The next step was to contact the Veterans Administration for assistance in obtaining this program. He reported several weeks later that he had been approved and would be receiving the software. The client has been very appreciative of the Senior Impact Project. He will continue to stay connected both with Sacramento and with the Modesto groups he attends.

Vista Center for the Blind

Every month for the past 4 years more than 50 seniors have attended low vision support groups under Title VII funding. Over and over I hear from these individuals how much it means for them to have a chance to come together each month. Support group meetings are a place for them to share their experiences with vision loss, learn about resources that can help, and reduce feelings of isolation. These sessions connect them with Title VII services available at Vista Center, and as a licensed clinical Social Worker I am also able to refer them to other agencies and services in the community. We are offering not just a support group but a support network. Adjustment to Disability counseling is a vital service covered by Title VII funding. So often, age related vision loss occurs at the same time that seniors are experiencing other profound losses in their lives - the death of a spouse, friends passing away or moving away, gradual deterioration in hearing, giving up a home of many years to move to a retirement residence. Having multiple losses can compound the feelings of grief and depression brought on by loss of vision, and counseling with Vista Center social services staff members provides a source of support for dealing with these emotions.

One client of the Vista Center for the Blind, really benefited from his optical devices. He is 88 and used to golf all his life, (walking the course, not taking a cart) and also did many beautiful oil paintings that were displayed around his home. He is also hard of hearing and has glaucoma and only one of his eyes is functional. He is trying to remain in his home of 45 years (his wife recently passed away). When he tried the newly prescribed glasses he about cried with delight. He felt that the glasses will make a huge difference in his life, and was very thankful. He's just starting Orientation and Mobility training and agreed to try a cane. He is also attending the Vista Center support group at Cypress Senior Center in San Jose.

Another consumer of the Vista Center is an 87 year old woman who is legally blind due to macular degeneration. She was referred to Vista Center following a low vision evaluation at Kaiser and has been a Title VII client since 2006. At that time she had an ADL assessment and received a loaner CCTV which she found invaluable and which led her to obtain a permanent unit. She began attending the low vision support group at Cypress Senior Center in San Jose early in 2006 and has been a faithful attendee ever since. At a recent group session she complained that her vision was worse and that she was having more problems with some aspects of daily living. She agreed to meet again with an ADL instructor and has had several sessions to work on identifying money, labeling and organizing clothing, and improving her writing skills. During our March support group meeting she said she was finding this assistance extremely helpful, and she expressed her gratitude for all the help she has had from Vista Center.

There are no problems to report at this time.