LCO Vocational Rehabilitation Program Gives Membership Report

Editor's Note: The following was provided at the General Membership Meeting in January.

LCO Vocational Rehabilitation recently completed our fourth year of our five-year grant. We have three main goal areas listed within our grant. For our fourth year, we set a goal of serving 115 consumers with 25 successful closures. During our fourth year we had almost

300 applicants with 56 successful closure outcomes.

Due to the influx of applicants, going into our fifth year, we made the difficult decision to eliminate vehicle repair services so we can still accommodate all the new applicants we are receiving. In addition, our grant goal states that we will serve 8 transition students (high school students) per year. Currently our transition caseload sits at 26 students. We are in the process of writing a new five-year grant with the goal of being refunded in October 2024.

As a reminder, the LCOVR Program is not an emergency program. We have grant restrictions that we must follow, and it can take up to 60 days to make an eligibility decision. It does take time to obtain medical documentation, which is a requirement for eligibility. With an increase in our caseloads, it is taking closer to sixty days to make an eligibility determination.

The LCOVR Program does not provide any assistance with housing or utilities. All services must be disability and employment related. Our eligibility requirements are as follows:

Member of a Federally or State Recognized Tribe.

Have a physical or mental impairment which constitutes or results in substantial impediment to employment.

Needing VR services to prepare to enter, engage in, or retain employment.

Reside on the LCO Reservation or within Sawyer County.