‘TICKET TO WORK’ PROGRAM TO ASSIST STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES

WACO, TEXAS- Students with disabilities and their parents are invited to discuss income options related to Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Social Security Disability Income (SSDI) during a ‘Ticket to Work’ program. The Education Service Center (ESC) Region 12 will present the ‘Ticket to Work’ program through an interactive teleconference from Noon to 3 p.m., Saturday, Feb. 21 at ESC Region 12 in Waco.

The Ticket to Work program is a comprehensive national program designed to allow eligible Social Security Administration (SSA) clients to work while they continue to receive benefits. The SSI and SSDI benefits are the centerpiece of the Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Improvement Act of 1999 and have been incorporated as part of Bush’s New Freedom Initiative.

Parents of students receiving SSI or SSDI are often reluctant to allow their child the option to work because they fear that once a certain amount is earned their child will no longer be eligible for SSI or SSDI. This program allows more choices for receiving the employment, vocational rehabilitation (VR), and other support services that students need to obtain and maintain employment.

The interactive teleconference will be delivered by the Texas Education Telecommunications Network (TETN), a network that provides communications among educational entities throughout Texas.

About the Ticket to Work program
The unemployment rate for working-age persons with disabilities is a staggering 72 percent. The Ticket to Work program through the SSA seeks to drastically reduce this trend by offering voucher-like “Tickets” to eligible disability insurance (SSDI) and security income (SSI) recipients to overcome obstacles to securing and maintaining employment. Lack of transportation resources often is one such key barrier in this endeavor.

By offsetting the costs incurred by providers in offering these services, the Ticket becomes a bridge between the individual and agency. Once a client has found sustained employment and his or her SSDI and/or SSI cash benefits are reduced to zero, the provider will receive reimbursement for the service it provided in that effort. The program will support these services for each individual for up to 60 total months (not necessarily consecutive).

(Source: The Community Transportation Association)

About ESC Region 12
One of 20 centers throughout Texas, ESC Region 12 assists 78 independent school districts and 11 charter schools in attaining the Texas Education Agency’s goals and objectives. Based in Waco, with offices in Copperas Cove, Corsicana, Goldthwaite, Hillsboro, and Teague, the ESC Region 12’s service area includes Bell, Bosque, Coryell, Falls, Freestone, Hamilton, Hill, Lampasas, Limestone, Mills, McLennan and Navarro counties.

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