Jayme Pendergraft >> Good afternoon, everyone, and welcome to today's Ticket to Work webinar, Ticket to Work and Reasonable Accommodations. I'm Jayme Pendergraft, Director of Communications and Outreach for the Ticket Program Manager, and I'm excited to have you here with us today. It's my pleasure to introduce our moderator, Derek Shields. Derek brings nearly 30 years of experience in disability services. He currently serves as Senior Employment Network Development and Training Manager for the Ticket Program Manager. In addition to his role here, Derek holds a master's degree in management and disability services, is president of ForwardWorks Consulting, and serves as advisory council co-chair of the National Disability Mentoring Coalition. Importantly for today's topic, Derek also spent 18 years working in reasonable accommodations and assistive technology. We're happy to have him guiding today's discussion. With that, I will turn things over to Derek.

Derek Shields >> Thank you so much, Jayme, for setting up today's Work Incentive Seminar event, or WISE webinar, as we call these, and for your kind introduction. I'm excited for the session that we have today, so all of you that have joined us can learn both about the Ticket Program and, of course, our featured topic, Reasonable Accommodations. We have a terrific session lined up, and I really appreciate you taking the time to join us to learn together. But before we begin with our content and hand it over to our guest presenters, I just want to cover a few logistics to ensure everybody has a quality experience. 

First, please know that all attendees will be muted throughout today's webinar. When asked how do you want to join the meeting's audio, please select the System Default option. This will enable the sound to be broadcast through your computer. Also, make sure your speakers are either turned on and/or your headphones are plugged in to access that sound. If you do not have sound capabilities on your computer or simply prefer to listen via telephone, please select the "Connect with Phone" audio button on the previous slide in the dial-in option. You can dial 1-800-832-0736 and then enter the access code we have here, 418-9148 pound sign. You can also use the join the meeting audio via receive a phone call, as shown in the image on the screen, and enter the same number and access code that I just shared. 
Okay. Let's now review the Adobe Connect platform itself. First, you will notice different boxes on your screen. These boxes we'll call pods. We have the presentation pod, that's the large area taking up most of the screen. Below that is an open space for the placement of the closed captioning pod. The top right corner is the Q&A pod, and below that is the Web Links pod. We'll talk about each of these pods in more detail shortly, but first, we want to cover accessibility. 

Real-time captioning is available and is displayed in the captioning pod, which you can place below the slides. You can show or hide the captioning display and can also choose the text size and text color combinations to meet your vision preferences. To open closed captioning, please select the CC option from the top menu bar. The captioning link can also be accessed in the Web Links pod under the title Web Captioning. You would find that in that Web Links pod number four, captioning for today's webinar. The captioning link can also be accessed - I'm sorry. You can also access captioning online in a separate viewing window, and you can use the preference of your choice. 

All right. If you're fluent in American Sign Language and would like support during today's webinar, we developed a resource that provides instructions on how to connect with an interpreter through the Federal Communications Commission Video Relay Service. The ASL user guide can be found in the Web Links pod. That's at item number five. We are here today to answer as many questions that you have about the Ticket Program and reasonable accommodations. Please do send your questions to us at any time throughout the webinar by typing them in the Q&A pod. We'll then direct these questions to our guest speakers during our Q&A portions. Today, we have three different Q&A set up, so please do send us your questions about Ticket to Work and Reasonable Accommodations, and we'll do our best to get as many of those questions as possible. If you are listening by telephone and not logged in, you're not going to be able to use that Q&A pod. However, you can also ask your questions by emailing them to us at ttwwebinars@ssa.gov; our team is standing by to receive those. Please note, we are not allowed to answer personal questions, so we do ask that you keep your questions general in nature. And certainly, please do not put any personally identifiable information in the Q&A pod. Again, our presenters today will be able to answer general questions about the Ticket Program and Reasonable Accommodations. 

Another available resource that we think you'll find very useful is the Web Links pod that I've been pointing to already. This pod, in the bottom right of the screen, lists the links to resources covered during the webinar. To access these resources, select the topic of interest, and then open the resource to learn more. The first two links in there are actually the content for today's presentation, Ticket to Work and Reasonable Accommodations. The others will be referenced throughout the content provided by our presenters. Again, if you are listening by phone and not logged in, you may email ttwwebinars@ssa.gov for a list of available resources, or you may reference your confirmation email for today's webinar, that included those resources. Please note that Social Security cannot guarantee and is not responsible for the accessibility of external websites. I do hope that everyone has an excellent experience during today's webinar. However, if you have technical difficulties, please use the Q&A pod to alert our team by sending us a message, describing your issues, or, again, email us at ttwwebinars@ssa.gov. This way, we'll ensure everyone has access to the session. 

Welcome, and my name is Derek Shields. I'll serve as today's moderator for this session entitled "Ticket to Work and Reasonable Accommodations." We appreciate you joining us for the session, and I'll now introduce our two guest presenters. First, we'll hear from Ray Cebula. Ray received his law degree from the University of New Hampshire's Franklin Pierce School of Law, spent 23 years providing legal services to individuals with disabilities and their interactions with social Security, and then became part of Cornell University's Work Incentive Support Center. And then in 2005, Ray joined the staff of Cornell's K. Lisa Yang and Hock E. Tan Institute on Employment and Disability. This is in the Cornell School of Industrial and Labor Relations. Ray now serves as the Program Director of YTI Online, that is Cornell's Work Incentives Practitioner Credentialing Program. 

Next, we will be joined by Wendy Strobel Gower. Wendy is the Thomas P. Golden Executive Director at Cornell University's Yang-Tan Institute on Employment and Disability. Wendy's professional work focuses on interpreting disability laws and regulations for application to workplace policy and practice, as well as developing and testing innovative approaches to cultural change in organizations related to the inclusion of people with disabilities. Wendy is also the project director of the Northeast ADA Center. Now, before we turn this over to our presenters, I'm going to quickly review our agenda. As we know, we are covering Ticket to Work and Reasonable Accommodations. First, we'll have Ray Cebula cover the Ticket to Work Program. We'll follow that by a short Q&A. Then, we'll have Wendy join us to review the Americans with Disabilities Act and Reasonable Accommodation, along with disclosing a disability. Following that, we will have a second Q&A, and then we'll bring Ray back to talk about the employment team, and wrap up with Matt's success story. After that, we'll have a final Q&A with both Ray and Wendy. And with that, it's now my privilege to turn the session over to Ray Cebula to talk about Social Security 's Ticket to Work Program. Ray?

Ray Cebula >> Thank you, Derek. Well, we're here to talk about reasonable accommodations, but we first have to go through some of the Social Security information that's going to help us focus this discussion. So, what is the Ticket to Work Program? We always start off with asking, "Which benefit do you receive?" And there are two disability benefits programs that are administered by the Social Security Administration. One is Social Security Disability Insurance, or SSDI, and that program just what it says. It is an insurance Program that pays benefits to workers who incurred disability. The other program is Supplemental Security Income, SSI. And this is a program that pays disability benefits on a needs basis. You're not required to have the full work history that you would be to be insured for SSDI. But it is available to people whether you've worked or not. Why do I ask what benefit you're receiving? The Work Incentives that we have to take you through to help you towards financial independence are very, very different. SSDI has one set, SSI has another, and never the twain shall meet. 

So, what is the Ticket to Work Program? The Ticket to Work Program is a free and voluntary Social Security Program that offers career development for people ages 18 through 64 who receive a Social Security disability benefit and want to work. So those are your basic qualifications. Are you aged 18 through 64? Do you receive a cash benefit from Social Security, and do you want to work? If the answer is yes, yes, yes, you are eligible to participate in this Program. How can the Ticket to Work Program help? The Ticket Program is going to connect you with free employment services to help you decide if work is right for you. So even if you're not really sure just yet, you can participate in the Program to talk to professionals. We'll call them your employment team members. But what might be right for you? How to prepare for work? Do you need rehabilitation services? Do you need educational services, a degree, or a certificate? Or do you just need to get your skills honed up because it's been a while? 

Find a paid work opportunity. Yeah, paid work opportunities, internships, things like that are just great. Many of them do turn into full-time jobs. And Matt, when we talk about Matt's Program success story later on, is one of those people who ended up working with the people who are helping him out. These experiences let you try different jobs in different areas, and there's no risk to your benefits. And then to succeed at work, this one I think is really, really important because we've talked to you and decided that, yes, work is right for you. We've helped prepare you for work. We've found you a work opportunity. Now we're not going to let you go yet. We're going to help you succeed at work. We'll provide you with on-the-job supports, you know, some-- possibly some meetings after work. We're just not going to let you go until you tell us you've had enough of us. You can learn more. What is Social Security 's Ticket to Work Program? A self-guided tutorial, the link is in the Web Links pod. All right. Derek, we're at the first Q&A. Back to you.

Derek >> This is Derek. Thank you, Ray, for reviewing the Ticket Program and covering some of those details. And thanks, everyone, for joining us who's just arrived. We have had some questions regarding eligibility and some more specifics. Well, let's start out with the question. There's a variety of questions that are around, how do I know if I'm eligible, and then how do I find out what I'm receiving, SSI or SSDI? What's your recommendation there, Ray?

Ray >> There are lots of ways, you know, and I think we're going to talk about, when we talk about the Ticket to Work, we talk about no wrong door. This is truly the case here. If you want to know what benefit you receive, any notice that you get from Social Security is going to tell you what benefit it is right on the top in great big letters. So that's one way to notice. Another way would be to call the Social Security Help Line and we will give you that number. It's in the Web Links pod as well. I'm going to have to look that number up for you, but we'll give that to you during the next Q&A session. And I think one of the best ways, and something that everybody should have, is to register for Social Security with a mySocialSecurity account. I've had one for years now, and if I log in today, I'm going to find out exactly what benefit I might be eligible for today, you know, what my spouse is going to receive, what type of benefit it is. These accounts are really, really helpful. And I'd encourage you, as soon as we finish today, go on to social Security.gov and click on mySocialSecurity account and get that started.

Derek >> Thanks, Ray. This is Derek. A few parents or other caregivers are with us today. What's your recommendation for them if they're representing the interest of a loved one? Where should they go to be able to explore the Ticket Program for either their child or other family member?

Ray >> You know, there are, again, all kinds of places. I'm thinking the two primary spots to go to are the Employment Networks, or ENs. They're eligible - I mean, they're available to speak with you about what types of programs they could offer your child or your loved one. You could also go to a benefits plan. Now the benefits plan is look at what will happen to your benefits as earned income comes into the picture. And I think you're going to be surprised of what happens. You know, particularly on the SSI side, no one is going to lose money by going to work. So those are the two primary spots. You know, the Social Security website, the Choose Work website has a lot of information that is also in your Web Links pod. And there's no obligation to use that. Just go in, take a look at some of the programs, some of the different Work Incentives that are available. And by all means, if you do have a child who's still in, you know, middle school or high school, it's not too early to start. You know, particularly when those school systems offer a paid work experience, even if your child is receiving SSI, do not pass on that opportunity. You know, do not. Meet with a planner, meet with an Employment Network, and you'll find out there really will be little or no harm to the benefits that are coming in for that child.

Derek >> Thanks, Ray. This is Derek. We have another question about kind of the Ticket to Work experience. Is this a one-time thing? You know, if I have a Ticket and I do sign up with an employment team member, and we'll talk about the Employment Networks more later, but is this a one-time experience? Like, how does that work? Can I start and stop? Can you explain that a little bit more?

Ray >> Well, you do have one Ticket, you know, per period of disability. Now, the period of disability is when you became eligible until something happens, and that is terminated. So you have one Ticket. Can you start and stop? You can use your Ticket with an Employment Network, you know, and get all of the services and put a team together, and if you do need to take a break because of your disability, you can kind of put things on hold for a bit, you know, and then come back to that. Yeah, there are lots of implications with starting and stopping and starting and stopping unless it's disability related. We can talk about those at a later time. But it is all possible. This is a program that is made for you. You are the chairperson of your Employment Network. And if you need to take a break, you need to take a break. And ideally, it's all going to work out. You know, there's a difference between taking a break and intending to start up again or taking a break and saying, "I've had it with this. I don't want to do it right now."

Derek >> Thanks, Ray. This is Derek again. Several questions have come in around the difference between full-time and part-time work. Can you explain how the Ticket Program works with different levels of work?

Ray >> Yeah, you know, as the minimum wage is increasing, you know, in cities and states and counties, we're seeing that part-time work fits into the Ticket Program pretty well, you know. The idea is that there is a three-way understanding here. You want to go to work, I'm going to provide you free services and guidance to help you along that journey. And as you make progress, which it sometimes is measured by the amount of money you earn, Social Security will pay me for your services. So there is that kind of understanding that we have to pay attention to. But again, given - you know, I live in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and the county minimum wage is $15, Santa Fe proper is $19.50 an hour. With those kinds of wages, you can be making a lot of money to meet those goals that your program has for you to allow that triangle to work very well. So it doesn't matter, you know, if you're not sure, give 20 hours a week a shot. If you're getting into this work and you're enjoying yourself, yeah, and your stamina is up and your physical-- your condition is okay, add some more hours, you know? No one's telling you how much you need to earn. You know, it's just a matter of paying attention to what those milestones are. And I would wish you all a journey that started part-time and ended up full-time.

Derek >> Fantastic, Ray. This is Derek again. I appreciate you getting us going with the Ticket Program information. I do encourage everyone listening to keep the questions coming in. We're going to have Ray back a little bit later to talk about those Employment Networks and take further questions regarding the Ticket Program. But at this time, what we're going to do is move forward to our co-presenter that's joining Ray today. As I mentioned earlier, we have Wendy Strobel Gower with us. Wendy is the Thomas P. Golden Executive Director at Cornell University's Yang-Tan Institute on Employment and Disability. And she also serves as the Project Director for the Northeast ADA Center. Wendy is going to be taking us through the ADA and Reasonable Accommodations, and also speaking to disability disclosure. She has a great amount of content with her today, and we're really excited to have Wendy go through this. Over to you.

Wendy Strobel Gower >> Thanks, Derek. And thank you all for letting me join you today. I'm going to talk about reasonable accommodations first. But the first thing I would like to say to you all is happy ADA 35. That anniversary was on July 26. So I hope you all did celebrate. But now that I've said that, let's get to work, right? There's a lot of content. So I just want to talk about some background on the ADA first. The original ADA was passed in 1990, and it's a civil rights law that prohibits discrimination based on disability in a lot of different areas. The point of the ADA is really to prevent discrimination against people with disabilities and to enable people with disabilities to live and work in their communities. There are five titles of the ADA. Title I protects people with disabilities in employment. Title II, state and local government, and activities operated by state and local government. Also, public transportation. Title III covers places of public accommodations. Those are private businesses, hotels, restaurants, stores in your community that are privately owned. Title IV is telecommunications. It's how you get the relay system. And Title V is miscellaneous items, things like how to file a lawsuit, prevention of retaliation, things like that. So the ADA is pretty expansive. 

Today, we're focused on Title I, the employment provisions of the law. So Title I helps individuals with disabilities access the same employment opportunities and benefits of employment as individuals without disabilities, right? It's non-discrimination. It's important to remember that the ADA is not an affirmative action model. There's nothing that says an employer has to hire you because you have a disability. So that's a really important thing to remember. And the other thing is the law says that people can't treat you differently or worse because you have a disability. You have the same right to apply for jobs, to interview for jobs, and to get hired for jobs, but no extra rights. So I hope that that makes sense. Okay, I see we're having a little bit of audio trouble.

Derek >> Hey, Wendy, this is Derek again. I just want to kind of jump in. Yeah, we're getting a little like tensile feedback, either from your microphone or from your computer. Let me just take a minute and try to adjust a little bit. We'll do a quick test.

Wendy Strobel Gower >> Let me - is this better? I switched my microphone.

Derek >> Yes. Let's give that a try.

Wendy Strobel Gower >> I apologize. I apologize for that.

Derek >> You sound great. No issues.

Wendy Strobel Gower >> Okay. Great. Okay. Now I just need to find where I am. So give me one minute. Okay. So I'm still on this slide. One thing to know is that employers are obligated to provide reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities under the ADA. We're going to talk more about that today. The other thing I want to tell you is - I think that's it for this slide, so I'm going to go on. Let's see. We have a whole section on disability disclosure, but I want to introduce this now. Just to tell you that in order to be eligible to receive a reasonable accommodation, you do have to let your employer know that you have a disability. And that's at every stage of the employment process. So, if you need an accommodation to participate in the application process, you need to let your employer know that you need an accommodation because of a disability. Same with essential job functions, and same with receiving those equal benefits and privileges of employment. And that's things like if your employer offers transportation, if they offer a gym membership, you have the same right as a person with a disability to access those as people without disabilities who work for your employer. So it's really important to remember that you have to make that initial disclosure and that initial request. Okay? And understand too that accommodations for an applicant, that's pretty straightforward. You don't need a lot of documentation for that, right? You say I need large print forms, or I need to have the interview in an accessible location. And the employer should provide that without a lot of back-and-forth with you. But they may ask you for additional information once you're an employee. The employer has a right to do that. And again, we'll talk about that more later. 

All right. We're going to go on to the next slide. One really important part of the ADA is that it defines disability. So there's two things. It says this is our definition of disability, and it's a three-pronged definition. The first is the person has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities. So this means that you approach life and activities in a different way, and it's things like bending or lifting or reading, or concentration. Those are all major life activities. This part of the law also includes major bodily functions, things like your endocrine system or your breathing, or your learning. Those are all covered by the ADA. 

Okay. The next part is having a record of such an impairment. And just to give you an example, because I know that can be confusing, might be someone who, when they were in high school, they were in a psychiatric facility for treatment. Someone who they are interviewing with happens to know them and know that they were in a psychiatric facility and decides not to hire them based on that information. Okay. And then the third prong, it might be it's regarded as having such an impairment. So this person may or may not have a disability. The point under "regarded as" is that they were treated differently because the employer perceived that they had a disability. So consider someone who has like a burn injury on their face, and everyone can see that they look differently. So the employer treats them differently because they perceive that person as having a disability. And just to give you an example, an employer might say, "We're not going to put you in front in the store because we don't know what people would think." Right? You're being denied an opportunity to serve in a certain role because of the way you look, because they perceive you as having a disability. Okay? 

Go on to the next one. We're going to move into the nitty-gritty of reasonable accommodations. I know everybody loves to talk about reasonable accommodations. Under the ADA, again, employees have a right to a reasonable accommodation. The definition of reasonable accommodations are changes to a job, a work environment, a work schedule, or any other adjustment that makes it possible for an employee with a disability to perform a job for which he or she is qualified. Okay. Again, you have a right to accommodation and application in the hiring process, performing a job, and in accessing benefits and privileges of employment. 

A couple of things to know about reasonable accommodations. Did someone want to break in? Or is Ray just misbehaving? Probably Ray is misbehaving. Is that the employer in the end is the person who decides what accommodation gets put into place? You negotiate with them. So you can say, I have a visual impairment, and I'd really like to have a screen reader. And they might say, "Well, I appreciate you want a screen reader. Will that work in this environment? Or can you use an enlarged monitor? Is there another solution? And then you negotiate a solution. So, you don't always get what you've asked for. It is a negotiation, and the employer is the one who ends up making that decision. 

Okay. So, some examples of reasonable accommodation. It's things like modified or a flexible work schedule. I saw someone put into the Q&A, you know, can I take a break in the middle of the day if I need it for my disability? You can negotiate that with your employer. You know, you just adjust your work schedule. Say the general work schedule is 8 to 5. You could do 7 to 12, take a two-hour break, and then work from 2 to 7. I think that's the right number of hours. As long as that worked within the workplace. Another example, someone with an anxiety disorder may need to take medicine at night that makes them drowsy in the morning, so they negotiate a later start time. Someone might need flex time for medical appointments, right? You have to go to treatment during the day, so you, again, adjust your work schedule in order to do that. Some people are able to negotiate working from home. It does depend on the nature of the job and the essential duties of the job. It doesn't work for every job. If you - if presence in the workplace is important to your job, work from home is not going to be an option. But for other people, those of us who sit at a desk or who work on the phone or do their meetings over Zoom, where presence is not required, that's very often a reasonable accommodation. 

Job coaches, readers, or other assistants. So, having someone to help you learn your job on the job is considered a reasonable accommodation. If you need someone to do ASL for you during important meetings for your job, that would be a reasonable accommodation. And then there is all kinds of equipment and technology, and, you know, other pieces of equipment that can really help you do your job. That might be an alternative mouse or a keyboard, a headphone, a screen reader, voice recognition, all kinds of stuff. That usually is also a reasonable accommodation. 

All right. I want to talk now about disclosing a disability. And this can be a sensitive issue, right? There's a certain amount of risk that you put yourself in when you're disclosing a disability. And so I think it's an important thing to think about when you are a person with a disability, because you do need to disclose to get that reasonable accommodation. So let's say, God forbid, Ray is my boss. Sorry, Ray, I'm just teasing. And I wanted to arrange a flexible schedule because I needed to go get some treatment during the day. And it was, say, every Thursday at 2 o'clock. So I would have to go to Ray and say, "Ray, because of a medical condition that I have, I have a recurring doctor's appointment that I need to go to, and I need to talk to you about adjusting my work schedule." That's disability disclosure. That's kind of what it looks like. Okay? And it's not - there's no formula to it, right? But to ask for an accommodation, you do have to have that discussion with your manager or with HR. So the magic thing is something about a disability or medical condition that makes some part of your job hard. You need to tie that disability or medical condition to the job. Okay? Your employer may ask you for additional information about the nature of your disability, the limitations involved, or how it affects your ability to perform job tasks. That's their right to do that with you, to have that interactive discussion. 

Okay. So, people ask the question, "Do I have to tell my employer that I have a disability?" And you don't. You aren't required to disclose your disability. You don't have to disclose it when you apply for the position. You don't have to disclose it the first few months you're there. You don't have to disclose it if you're there for 20 years. But if at some point, you need a reasonable accommodation to do your job well or to keep your job, then you do have to disclose a disability. I encourage people not to wait until it's too late, right? So if there are performance issues on the job where you can't do a part of your job without accommodation, then it's time for you to ask. Okay? So and also, some of you who have visible disabilities, disabilities that are obvious when someone looks at you, it's not going to be a choice for you, right? You're automatically disclosing. But for other people, people with hidden disabilities, you really have to weigh the options. If you have a good relationship with your manager, if you can say, here's all the things I'm good at this job. This is why you want to keep me. But I also need an accommodation. I think it's always good to think about how you disclose your disability. You're not required to. You can do it at any point in the employment process. Day one, day 600, day 6000. It's up to you. But when you need that accommodation and when your performance is suffering, that's when it's a good time to disclose a disability. 
All right. There are a few reasons why you might choose to disclose a disability. To ask for an accommodation. So, like we said, we've really hit hard today. If you want accommodation, you do have to let people know you have a disability. If you want to go to the office party but they put it on the second floor of a building and you aren't able to do the stairs, you need to let them know that you can't do the stairs, and there has to be an alternative. You might also disclose a disability to explain an unusual circumstance. You know, I am not going to be turning on my camera in Zoom today because I have anxiety, and it makes me uncomfortable to have my camera on. So that's another reason that you might disclose. 

Okay. So, asking for accommodations during a job search. I think it's good to consider your timing. You know, you might not do it when you are putting in your initial application, but when the person calls you to set up the interview, that's a perfect time to let them know. "Oh, you know, it would help me to succeed in this job interview if it was in an accessible location." "If there wasn't a lot of extraneous noise." "If I get the interview questions in advance." Whatever that is. But think about when is the best time for me to have this conversation? Some people worry that telling someone when they're just initially putting in the application will limit their choices. That's not true in all cases; it may be true in some. So make the choices to what timing works best for you. Make sure you ask questions about the hiring process. It may be that you're going to be on your feet for five or six hours during an interview, right? Or the walk from the parking lot to the building is long. So ask the questions, how close will I be parking to where the interview will occur? Because that's going to inform you as to what accommodations you need and what you might ask for. Also, be specific about your needs. If it is just a shorter walk to the interview location, just say, "Well, it's hard for me to walk a really long distance. Is there any way I can park closer?" And always frame your request positively. I always tell employers accommodation is a win-win; it should be a win-win. So, you know, I would be so much more ready for this interview if I didn't have such a long walk. Is there any way we can make it shorter? And I think just the most important thing is you don't need to give people your whole medical history. You need to just ask for what you need and say why you're asking, as in, "I'm better if I have a shorter walk." Okay? 

So tips for requesting accommodations. It doesn't have to be, "I have this diagnosis and under the Americans with Disabilities Act, I need a reasonable accommodation." You can really just use plain English and have a conversation. "I have this medical condition, it makes it hard for me to do this." You don't have to put it in writing, but documentation can help support you. To say, "I spoke with my manager on July 30, then I had a disability, and I was having trouble with this. I want to follow up and understand what the next steps are." If God forbid you ever need to file a complaint with the EEOC, you have that documentation. So it protects everybody, especially you. So do document, follow up in writing. And make sure you talk to the right people. Telling a co-worker that you have a disability does nothing. They don't have to do anything; they just say, "Oh, that's very interesting." But if you tell your supervisor, if you tell an HR representative, if you tell an ADA coordinator, those are the people that you tell. It may be written down in the employee manual, it may not. HR is always a great place to start if you're uncomfortable talking to your manager. All right. I think that the other source of help you can get is your employment team, right? They can help you have that conversation. Reasonable accommodation requests don't always come from the individual. They can come from a job coach. They can come from an EN. They can come from a parent or a spouse. So you can get help. If it's really uncomfortable for you to ask, make sure that you're reaching out for support. Okay. All right. I hope I didn't take too long.

Derek >> No. Hey, Wendy, this is Derek. No, not at all. We're doing great on time, and we really appreciate you making it through such important information. So we're at our second Q&A, and I have a chance to try to get some of the questions from our audience to you and also get some more examples from your experiences. One of the questions that has come in, and you were mentioning this, but since I saw it three or four times, it was around the timing of when to ask for the reasonable accommodation. I know you mentioned it, but I'm going to ask you to go back to that. You know, the question has been asked in two forms. "Do I have to disclose during the interview process?" And then the other one is, "Do I have to disclose kind of at the point of hire?" Can you go through again the point of disclosure and when that can be or not be?

Wendy Strobel Gower >> Sure, sure. And really, disclosure is your choice. That's the most important thing to know. And really, it's about asking for what you need when you need it. So, for an interview, if you can participate fully in an interview and you can show your skills and shine in an interview without accommodations, you don't have to say a word. You just go to the interview and you do the interview, and then if you get offered the job and you say, "Well, in order for me to work, I have to do X." Perfectly acceptable. If you start your job and you're there for a month, and you think, "Okay. Well, this little part of being so far away from the bathroom, for example, is just really hard for me. And I would do so much better if I was closer. I would be less anxious. I would have less time away from my desk." You can ask. We always tell people that deciding not to disclose a disability is not lying. It's exercising a legally protected choice. Okay? So, by not telling your employer, you're not lying to them; you're exercising your rights under the ADA. And that's a really important thing to know. That's my answer.

Derek >> Thanks, Wendy. Yeah, thanks, Wendy. This is Derek. And I like that legally protected choice. Discuss for a second for us the difference between disability disclosure and self-identification of having a disability. Can you clarify that for everyone?

Wendy Strobel Gower >> Sure, so disability disclosure we talked about, that's tying a disability issue to your work, right? I, as a person who has this job - and let's say that you're an administrative assistant, I as an administrative assistant am having trouble holding the phone because of arthritis in my hand. I, as an administrative assistant in this job, could really use a headset to make my job easier. Okay. That's disability disclosure. Self-identification is a form that you fill out, that your employer gets to track the number of people with disabilities that they've recruited, hired, retained in advance. It helps them in their EEO reporting, and it also allows them to understand the people who are in their workforce so that they know if they need to alter the benefits or some of the programs that they offer within their company. It's a data point. So you fill out a form and you give that to your employer, usually not your manager. They usually don't see that information. But your employer will have that information so that they can track their own success in affirmative action planning. I hope that makes sense.

Derek >> This is Derek. Yes, thank you, Wendy. It's really important that people know that disclosure is a choice, and it is, in many cases, to support productivity at work, getting access to do your job. That self-ID is checking a box with a lot of privacy behind it. You've been in the field for a long, long time. We appreciate your leadership in helping businesses understand the value of workers with disabilities. Take us through a case from your career that you would like to share around how reasonable accommodation really made a difference and allowed somebody to not just retain a position, but experience a really successful career. Anything that comes to mind that you could share?

Wendy Strobel Gower >> You know, there are so many examples because reasonable accommodation is so simple, but it can be so life changing. And it's as simple as my back, I've injured my back, I have a spinal injury, I cannot sit all day. I need to be able to stand up periodically, right? When you're uncomfortable at work, you get up, you're away from your desk, you're not meeting your quotas, you're not getting the work done, you get a sit-stand desk, right? And all of a sudden, you're more productive. Gosh, I worked with this one person, and it was a while ago, but she had trouble writing, and she worked in a student - it was where they make the student IDs on a college campus. And she couldn't write, and that's how they tracked, because the people would be up and down all the time changing stations to take information, and they'd go over to the picture station and take a picture. So they just hand-wrote everything, and she couldn't handwrite. So we put it on a computer. And so, instead of everyone handwriting, they put it into a computer. And we got her an alternative mouse because she wasn't able to use a standard mouse. She had cerebral palsy, so she had some movement issues. And then we also got her a money counter because she wasn't able to, you know, physically count money. Counting money is actually - you have to have pretty good dexterity when you count a lot of it. You might not know this because who has a lot of money. So we did three things. We computerized the record-keeping. We gave her an alternative mouse to operate the camera, and we gave her a money counter. And we got the money counter for free from a bank who was retiring the technology. And I came back into that job site probably two months after we did all that, and all of a sudden, everyone in the office was using a different mouse. They had bought extras. They loved the computerized record keeping. And everyone was forced to use the money counter because people were making mistakes, and they found that if they ran it through a couple of times it gave them very accurate numbers. So sometimes the success balloons even beyond the person, but it can be a very individual and you just need a different piece of technology, a larger monitor, and something to enhance the audio on your phone. There are so many examples.

Derek >> Thanks, Wendy. I really appreciate that. And it sounds like, you know, thinking about how technology could assist really helped that person, and probably change the workplace for the better for everybody over time, too.

Wendy Strobel Gower >> Yes, for sure.

Derek >> So let's talk about services as opposed to equipment. You mentioned that as one of the forms of reasonable accommodation. When it comes to some services, they could actually be a little bit more expensive or require a little bit more work on the behalf of the employer to set up. Any tips there for somebody that's thinking about work but might want to request a reasonable accommodation that's a service instead of equipment?

Wendy Strobel Gower >> Sure. And I think that is a fear that people have. Let's just take, for example, sign language interpreting. That can be pretty expensive. So let's say you're a person who's deaf and you got a job working in a sales position or in an office environment where you process forms, or something like that. You don't have to have - there are a lot of ways that you can communicate. So maybe in the day-to-day, you email people, you jump on one of the messaging services like Slack or Teams to have conversations with your co-workers. But when it comes to an important meeting or you have a performance dialogue, or something where you want to make sure that you don't miss any nuance of the conversation because of the way that you communicate, then you get a sign language interpreter in. So if you're a deaf person, you're probably not going to have a sign language interpreter walk around with you everywhere you go, all the time you're at the job. It's how can I effectively communicate with my co-workers, with people in the workplace, and still get what I need when I need that enhanced communication. A lot of employers nowadays will have standing contracts when they have deaf employees, will have standing contracts with interpreting services where they can schedule that without a lot of difficulty. They don't have to arrange a new contract every time. They have the same contract. They say, I need an interpreter at this location at this time for this contact kind of thing. So every employer does it different, but you're going to negotiate your individual needs with your employer to make sure that you get what you need. I hope that makes sense.

Derek >> This is Derek, it sure does. Thank you very much for that specific example. And we do see more employers having, as you provided, the reasonable accommodation of sign language services in place, or perhaps captioning services already in place. I like your example too. I was at a conference a couple of weeks ago, and a deaf colleague of mine was going around networking. And she didn't have the sign language interpreter with her for that. It wasn't an essential portion of her job. But it's what a lot of people do in conferences. And so, she would use an app on her phone. And that's how we would communicate. She would type in it, and I would speak into the app, and then we could engage that way. So it's a form of accommodation, but it really wasn't one the employer provided. It just allowed us to communicate together. So I like those solutions. What about when an employer denies a request? Or like, how does that work? You mentioned a few of these, but there's a lot of concern out there that if I do have the courage and the right to disclose, and I do that, how can an employer deny my request?

Wendy Strobel Gower >> So that's a complex question, and the one we get a lot, and it does happen. Let's say that I work in customer service and I work at a store, you know, where my presence at work is part of what makes the job the job. And I say I have anxiety, and I need to work from home. Just coming into the office and interacting with people is just uncomfortable for me. So I can't do it, and I need to work from home. Chances are, your employer is going to say no. We can't do that. We can't let you work from home, because it's an essential function of the job in that case that you're physically present in the workplace. Employers never have to change the essential functions of a job to accommodate someone with a disability. Another example, let's say you worked in an office with three or four people, and you say, "I can't answer the phone. I can't do it. It makes me uncomfortable. I never know what people are going to say. I can't prepare." But the way that the office is scheduled, each of the three or four people that you work with are assigned times that they're on the phone, right? So, Sally comes in early. She works from 6 a.m. to 11 a.m. She answers the phone from 6 to 9, and then she has two hours to do her duties, right? You come in at 9 o'clock and you answer the phone from 9 o'clock to noon. That's your time, right? And so on and so forth. And you say, "I can't answer the phone at all." The employer would be able to maybe ask Sally to do a later shift because the 6 to 9 shift is lighter, and you could take that one, but they probably wouldn't say, "Okay, you're just off the phone, and everyone else will work it out." Because that would be an administrative burden. It would impact the way that the business operates, and so they probably wouldn't do that, right? But you could negotiate for that earlier start time where the phone was less busy. So there are things you can work around, but the employer doesn't have to do anything that's an undue hardship for them, and that includes administratively and also financially. If you say to them, "No, I can't do a sign language interpreter just for meetings, I need them with me all the time I'm at work." That's going to be pretty expensive. And if you work for a smaller, even a medium-sized business, that's going to get to be a prohibitive cost, right? So they could say, "Well, that's an undue financial burden." And the financial burden is super hard to prove. I'm not going to lie to you because let's say that the business that you worked for had, you know, offices in five states, they were bigger than just your branch, they're going to have to prove they don't have the money anywhere in the company. But if it's a smaller or medium-sized business that's just a standalone business, they may have a case to say this is an undue financial burden. So there are cases where your employer can say no. They can also say - let's say you wanted to bring a servicing animal to work, and you worked in food service. They could say, "We're not going to let you bring a servicing animal to work. Let's talk about another accommodation that might work for you." So again, it's a negotiation between you and the employer, what's the job, what's the environment, what do you need? And the employer ultimately decides what accommodation gets put into place, but that accommodation has to work. It has to be effective. So sometimes it's no, but how about this? And sometimes it's just like, no, that's an essential function of the job. And it depends on a lot of the elements that we talked about, the environment that you work in, the job, and your needs, and also what's reasonable for the employer.

Derek >> Wendy, thank you so much. I know that's a complicated one, but it's on the mind of so many of the attendees, and I appreciate you walking through that. And I think, you know, there are employers out there that don't look at this as we need to defend ourselves and our budgets, but they look at it as about being productive. We have quality employees, and we want everyone to stay in the workforce and be as productive as possible. So, we're going to have you back in a little bit for our third Q&A, and I have a couple more questions that I'll bring up then. But at this point, we need to continue on with our content and bring Ray Cebula back in, and Ray is going to talk about who can help with reasonable accommodations, specifically from the Ticket Program service providers. So, Ray, let's bring you back in. And, Wendy, thanks, we'll have you -

Ray >> Okay. Thank you, Derek. And thank you, Wendy. Just to let you know before we start with this session that's going to focus on Employment Networks and State VR… there is another branch of services that are available to you through the Protection and Advocacy agencies. They have a grant to help people who may be denied reasonable accommodations, along with other items. And you'll be able to find that just the way you can find the Employment Network. So follow along, but that agency, that Program is called PABSS, the Protection and Advocacy for Beneficiaries of Social Security, and should you have a problem with the reasonable accommodation being denied or your negotiations aren't going well, please feel free to give them a call. 

All right. So, who can help with reasonable accommodations? As you think about returning to work and reasonable accommodations, you may have questions and need support. Connecting with a Ticket Program service provider can help you develop achievable goals and establish steps to find and maintain employment. Now remember, we are talking about maintaining employment so that you can be successful; this notion of reasonable accommodations is going to fall into this very well. The Ticket Program providers can help you identify what reasonable accommodation is right for you, decide if your disclosure is right for you, and obtain that reasonable accommodation. As Wendy said, these accommodation requests don't always come from the worker. They come from a spouse. They come from an Employment Network. They could come from a PABSS professional working with you. So the two providers we're going to focus on are Employment Networks, called ENs, and Vocational Rehabilitation. That's your State Vocational Rehabilitation agency, or VR. Let's get into the Employment Networks. The EN is a private or public organization that has an agreement with Social Security to provide free employment services to people who participate in the Ticket Program. And you do have to use your Ticket in order to participate with an Employment Network. Many state public workforce systems, such as American Job Centers or One Stop Centers, as I still call them, are workforce ENs. And I want to talk about those American Job Centers just for a second. They're great places. You can go to one of those job centers to search for jobs in your area to help you build a resume, and help potentially fill in some of the blanks. And if they are workforce-y ends, they can help you through this entire process that we've discussed, from getting ready for a job, you know, from finding that job, for asking for that accommodation to being successful on the workplace. How can you - how can working with an EN help? The ENs are really, really good systems. They really, really are. They're going to provide you with services and supports that are designed to help you on the path to financial independence through work and could be one of these items or more.
 
Identify your work goals. You know, lots of people have trouble with that one. You know, I know what kind of work I want to do, but I'm not sure what my capacity for work is, you know, how many hours a week will I be able to work? Sit down with an Employment Network. And again, we can start part-time and work up to full-time, or work part-time and stay there. It's all up to you. Writing and reviewing your resume. You know, and I like to tell everybody that the last time I wrote a resume was 25 years ago. If I needed to do that now, I'd need help. You know, because I don't know what a current resume looks like. And it's important for those documents who are your first effort to communicate with somebody about yourself, be prepared properly. You know, prepare for interviews. Have you been in a job interview in a while? You know, I certainly haven't. You know, I can anticipate a few questions people might ask me, you know, but it would be nice to sit down with an expert and have a few practice interviews. It also would be nice if you, the future worker, can do a little bit of research. The ENs can provide you with some assistance so that you know more about this company. If I'm going to work for Derek's consulting organization, if I know a little bit about Derek and a little bit more about what his agency does, when he asks me, "Ray, do you have any questions for us?" I'm going to have some questions that are going to show him I was interested enough to find out about him to ask these questions. Reasonable accommodations, that's the topic of the day. The Employment Network cannot only help you determine what the best reasonable accommodation would be, but they can talk to you about either how to ask for the accommodation or help you ask for that accommodation. And then receiving benefits counseling. You know, this is my end of this whole thing. I really think everyone who's returning to work needs benefits counseling, because you need to know what will happen to your benefits, both your cash and your health care, as you begin earning money. And if we stay on the current theme, working 20 hours a week and then increasing to 25, or 30, or full-time, we want to have benefits counseling each step along the way, so that we're aware of what's going to happen, you know, and what can be expected to happen. State Vocational Rehabilitation agencies, the VR agencies, you know. A State VR agency can provide a wide variety of services to help people with disabilities return to work, enter new lines of work, or enter the workforce for the first time. You know, these are big agencies that may tend to have more money than the ENs have to support you through your job search and being successful. A State VR agency may - excuse me. A state VR agency may offer benefits counseling and may also be able to help you with vocational rehabilitation, get you ready to work, and training and education. You know, it may very well be that if you want to become an electrician, want to become a plumber, you need a certificate, at least, right? You need to be licensed by the state. A VR can help you and potentially fund that effort. Some state agencies have a separate VR agency that serves individuals who are blind or visually impaired. I'm in a state right now in New Mexico, we have one VR agency. So it's one of those combined. They help everybody. When I was living in Massachusetts, we had Mass Rehab, which was the rehabilitation agency for people with disabilities, and we had Mass Services for the Blind and Visually Impaired. Two separate agencies, it doesn't matter which one you call, you'll get to the right place. 
How can working with a VR agency help you? We're usually looking at people who need a significant amount of services. These... VR is the place where you're likely to get assistance paying for an associate's degree, paying for that certificate, potentially paying for a bachelor's degree to get into the field that you want. They are also available to provide you with some real heavy-duty vocational rehabilitation if you need it, and provide you with assistive technology that's going to help you with everyday life as well as work. In some states, this is going to include intensive training, education, and rehabilitation. And when you see training, education, and rehabilitation, lots of dollar signs pop up. That's why VR agencies are there. They may also provide career counseling and job placement assistance, as well as counseling about how earnings from work may affect your Social Security benefits. You know, that's the benefits planning part. You need these services. You need to know before things happen so that you can prepare. 

How do you find a service provider? Again, there's no right way, or I should say there's no wrong way to do this. Every one of these doors that we've talked about today will get you to the right place. So that's the best thing about this. But for a list of the service providers, you can call the Ticket to Work Help Line. This is the line I was talking about earlier, at 1-866-968-7842. Or for TTY users, 1-866-833-2967. Those lines are available on Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. ET. To find a service provider online, visit the Find Help page. There's a link in that Web Links pod for you. And you can search, you know, you can just ask for everybody, but we don't necessarily want to do that. You'll have a big list to consider. I want somebody who provides services in my zip code. I want to keep it real local. That's a method of searching. What kind of services are offered? Do I need a certificate? Do I need an associate's or a bachelor's degree? What kind of services are offered by VR? What kind of services are offered by an EN? You may have an Employment Network who helps people who are blind. If I have a physical impairment, I don't necessarily want to work with somebody who focuses on people with blindness. I can put in what kinds of services I'm going to need and be matched up - not be matched up, but at least my search results will match and give me a smaller list of the Employment Networks that I actually want to speak to. The disability type, you know, as I said, one might serve the blind population, one might serve the deaf population, one might serve the traumatic brain injury population. That will also help you limit your search and find those people who are best situated to help you. Language spoken. If you're more comfortable dealing with somebody who speaks Spanish, by all means, limit your search to that or whatever other language you may have. And then provider types. You can search for ENs only. You can search for workforce ENs, Vocational Rehabilitation, or PABSS. Whatever you need, you can search for. Again, to either expand or limit that search. 

Now we've got a fantastic success story today, and I'm really excited to share this one with you. Matt, he is our story today. Matt's success story. Matt received SSDI due to a hearing loss and other medical issues that interfered with consistent employment. He said, "I always wanted and planned to work, to be productive, build a career, and earn more money." He worked with his VR counselor, and the counselor explained that Social Security 's Ticket to Work Program could provide the comprehensive employment services he needed. Matt's VR counselor connected him with Community Integrated Services, CIS, a Pennsylvania-based EN. Matt worked with his job development team at CIS that included a career counselor, an American Sign Language interpreter, and a benefits counselor. After helping Matt develop his resume, locate possible job leads, and practice interviewing skills, Matt's career counselor advised him about reasonable accommodations and his legal rights under the Americans with Disabilities Act, the ADA. What did Matt do? Matt and his counselor identified accommodations that were essential for him, and he decided to disclose his disability and request his accommodations. Matt did secure employment. On the job, Matt's primary means of communication is a keyboard. Using email is the best way for him to communicate with coworkers. Because Matt can read lips, one-on-one meetings were more productive than meetings with larger groups. In large meetings, he needs an interpreter to help him participate fully. He worked his way to financial independence. He was actually hired as a human resource assistant by his Employment Network, CIS. And Matt's role at CIS has evolved, and he has since taken on more responsibility in his managing employee benefits and unemployment claims. What does he think about this? He said, "I am in supportive employment and - in a supportive environment and position that works well for me. It feels good to be productive, and now I can afford things that I could not have before." That's a great story. You know, that's a wonderful story and one of my favorite aspects of these little discussions that we have. So, I'm going to turn it back to you, Derek, for more questions.

Derek >> Thank you, Ray. This is Derek again. And we've come to our third Q&A session. I appreciate, Ray, you going through the service providers, the employment team, and calling out the Find Help tool, along with the Help Line, as a point of entry for everyone. So we do have a little time for some questions that have come in, and we'll entertain those to both Ray and Wendy. Ray, I just want to go back, you speak too about the Employment Networks and, of course, today's topic is reasonable accommodations. How specifically can the Employment Networks as service providers help with all these questions that are coming in about, you know, when should I disclose, how can I practice disclosure, and request for reasonable accommodation? Are the Employment Networks a good resource for folks?

Ray >> Yeah, I really think they are, Derek. You know, the Employment Networks, you know, are all prepared to have these discussions with you. You know, they are working with people with disabilities all the time. They have resources. The Job Accommodation Network, or JAN, has a great website. They have people you can speak with, so it may be if the Employment Network needs help, they're going to have access to help as well, you know, all of your providers, you know, including us, need help sometimes. But they're going to be the ones that have experience doing the interviews, talking about reasonable accommodations. If you're real local, if I picked an Employment Network in my zip code, I may be able to draw on that Employment Network’s experience with local employers. You know, which employers? If you take this employer, you can have a tougher time with reasonable accommodations and may need some help. If you pick this employer, they're going to be very accommodating and they're going to help you out any way they can. So the whole bit of community there that doesn't exist if you pick somebody who is based in Chicago and helps half the country. But yeah, they are the people who can help you. They're going to have knowledge about what accommodations are, how best to ask for when, you know, like what happened to Matt - when do you decide to ask? After discussions with his Employment Network, he decided to do it right away. Yeah. And as Wendy said, it was Matt's choice, it was nobody else's choice. So yeah, I think Employment Networks are a great place to get help.

Derek >> Thanks, Ray. This is Derek again. I just wanted to call out for folks, if you're online with us, in the Web Links pod, we have number eight is a resource to the Job Accommodation Network’s Searchable Online Database, the most amazing collection of reasonable accommodation and equipment details that has been collected anywhere. And also, number nine is to the Northeast ADA Center's resources page, and that's, of course, Wendy is the project director there. And we encourage you to check out those two resource pages for more on reasonable accommodations. And just a note, you know, I have visited a national EN and I know that some of these groups have done a significant amount of training on reasonable accommodation with their associates. So I just encourage you to, you know, if you choose an Employment Network, you can choose the Employment Network of your choice. It could be a local, regional, or national, but go ahead and interview them a little bit. Find out if they can help you around reasonable accommodation. That choice is up to you. Back to Wendy. Wendy, let's get into reasonable accommodation for an evolving disability or condition. If somebody's condition changes and they need an accommodation, a different accommodation, what recommendations do you have for that person?

Wendy Strobel Gower >> That's a great question, Derek, thanks. I think disability changes, that's, you know, one of the hallmarks of it, right? Again, I go back to the "ask for what you need when you need it." Remember that we talked about accommodation has to be effective. So let's say that I have a disability that gets worse over time, and I ask for a very specific accommodation that is what I need at this time. A year down the road, five years down the road, two months down the road, my needs change. I go back and have another conversation with either my manager or someone in HR, whoever does accommodations in the company that you work for to say, "My disability has changed, and I think it would really help me if we could look at the reasonable accommodation that I have and see if we could do something that would help me with my stamina, say how long I can stand up or move around." And you would have that, again, that interactive discussion with your manager or with HR so that you can say, here's what I need and here's why I need it. And they can say, well, here's what will work for us in relationship to your job. So, accommodations are not a one-and-done. When your needs evolve, the accommodation has to evolve with it because, again, it has to be effective.

Derek >> Thanks, Wendy. This is Derek again, and a follow-up there on that evolving disability or condition, but really for all reasonable accommodation. People are asking about medical documentation in our Q&A. Do they have to provide medical documentation up front, or should they wait until somebody asks for it? What's your advice there?

Wendy Strobel Gower >> Yeah, so an employer has a right to collect medical documentation for disabilities that aren't obvious. So if you use a wheelchair, let's say, and you go to your job and you say, "I can't reach that shelf," it's pretty obvious that you are going to need some kind of accommodation to get the materials on the higher shelf. But let's say you have a learning disability and you say, "These reports are pretty dense and I'm having a hard time extracting the information that I need to do my job." A learning disability isn't something that you can see. And so, they may say, "I'm going to need to know why you need this accommodation." So the employer may have you sign a release so that they can get information from your doctor that documents the need for the accommodation that you're asking for, and that is something that they can do. They don't have to do it. I don't usually recommend that people volunteer that documentation. I usually say wait until they ask you for it because they may not want it. And again, when you do document your disability, it is not your entire medical history. It's related to verifying the need for accommodation. So, yes, I do have this disability. Yes, I do need this accommodation. Not, here's all my medical files from the last 30 years. So, the information request should be pretty targeted.

Derek >> This is Derek. Thanks for that advice, Wendy. I'm sure that will help beneficiaries that are attending, also these advocates, and the other service providers that are with us today as well. And as this happens, our time has passed quickly. I'd like to take a moment to thank both Wendy and Ray and Cornell University as our partners for your time and knowledge, and being with us today. It's been excellent information sharing, and I'm sure people have had a great experience because of you. Thank you. And with that, I'm going to turn to wrap us up. We do appreciate you all joining us today to learn from Ray about the Ticket to Work Program and the service providers, and the featured content from Wendy focused on reasonable accommodations, and how to effectively use reasonable accommodations in the workplace to do the essential job functions. 

We obviously have a lot of resources out there for you. The Ticket to Work Program has those available, and we encourage you to start where you are comfortable. Two places that we always offer. First is the Ticket to Work Help Line, you can reach the Help Line at 1-866-968-7842, or for callers that are deaf or hard of hearing or have speech disabilities, you can use the TTY line at 1-866-833-2967. That's the Ticket to Work Help Line. Alternately, you can use our website, the Choose Work! site is at choosework.ssa.gov. There's a lot of information out there, success stories like Matt, a lot of resources that can support, including the tutorial, but also the Find Help tool is there at choosework.ssa.gov/findhelp. For some of you, that might be a preference to look around on your own and not talk to a Help Line agent. Great information and resources in that Find Help tool as well. We also would like to connect with you not just during our WISE webinars but throughout the month and year. You can find us on social media or subscribe to the Choose Work! blog and other email updates by visiting choosework.ssa.gov/contact. This link also appears in the Web Links pod under the Ticket to Work contact information. 
Next, to get info on our next webinar or receive advice and encouragement and read stories like Matt's about our success stories of people around the country achieving financial independence with the help of the Ticket to Work Program, you can opt in to receive text messages. If you're interested in receiving those from our Program, please text Ticket, T-I-C-K-E-T to 1-571-489-5292. We encourage you to join thousands of others receiving these messages. Standard messaging rates may apply. Or you can always send us an email. We encourage you to do that at tickettowork@ssa.gov. And finally, we invite you to join our next WISE webinar. Next month, on August 27, from 3 to 4:30 p.m. ET, we will feature “Working for Yourself with Ticket to Work.” We encourage you to register online at choosework.ssa.gov/wise or to contact the Ticket to Work Help Line. And one of those beneficiary support specialists will help you register. Thank you again to Ray and Wendy from Cornell University for your presentations. And thank you all for attending today's WISE webinar. This ends today's session.