New Horizons 2008 Volume 47-3 Fall
New Horizons 2008 Volume 47-3 Fall
New Horizons 2008 Volume 47-3 Fall
H RIZONS
S O U T H C A R O L I N A V O C AT I O N A L R E H A B I L I TAT I O N D E PA R T M E N T
NEW
Fall 2008
Larry C. Bryant will retire as commissioner of the South Carolina Vocational Rehabilitation Department effective Jan. 2, 2009. A native of Chesnee, Bryant has been with the agency 35 years and its commissioner since January 2002. During his tenure, the department has continued to build upon its long history of national prominence in enabling South Carolinians with disabilities to prepare for, achieve and maintain competitive employment. Looking back, hes proudest of getting people to think about how to improve service delivery within the organization, he said. When you get people to think in those terms, there is a lot of new innovative opportunity. As commissioner, Bryant implemented a leadership model that empowers supervisors, work teams and individual employees while providing clear guidelines for agency accountability and personal responsibility. He has guided the agency through a period of budget reductions without compromising quality service delivery for clients and has emphasized the strengthening of business partnerships and relationships with other agencies to maximize employment opportunities for clients. Derle A. Lowder Sr., chairman of the State Agency of Vocational Rehabilitation, praised Bryants leadership through times of significant changes in the program.
See Bryant, page 2
Commissioner Larry Bryant prepares for one of his post retirement activities as he tries out a bulldozer during the groundbreaking for the Lyman facility. See story, page 3.
Quality Award
SCVRDs continuous improvement journey reached another successful checkpoint as the department received a Gold Achiever award at the South Carolina Quality Forums annual conference in October. The forum assesses public and private organizations for their effectiveness using the Baldrige Criteria for Performance Excellence and the resulting successes in key areas of performance. Third District Congressman Gresham Barrett and Dr. Harry Hertz, director of the Baldrige National Quality Program, made the presentation. This marks the third time that SCVRD has participated in the awards process, which requires a
See Gold, page 3
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New Horizons is published by the South Carolina Vocational Rehabilitation Department (SCVRD), 1410 Boston Ave., P.O. Box 15, West Columbia, SC 29171-0015. The Public Information Office provides all news and information. News materials may be reproduced with credit to New Horizons. SCVRD distributes New Horizons free by mail. Subscription requests or changes of address may be sent to the Public Information Office at the above address, telephone (803) 896-6833 or e-mail [email protected] In accordance with federal and state laws, SCVRD does not discriminate against any race, color, sex, national origin, age or disability in employment or in provision of services.
Agency: Derle A. Lowder Sr., chairman, Sumter
Larry C. Bryant, secretary, Columbia
H. Lucius Laffitte, M.D., at-large, Allendale
Dr. Roxzanne Breland, Greenville
Timothy W. Evatt, Pendleton
Rhonda J. Presha, Elgin
Alease G. Samuels, Walterboro
Joseph A. Thomas, Conway
CommissionerLarry C. Bryant
EditorSharon H. Kelly
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SCVRD:
SCVRD Offices:
(All numbers have TDD capability.) Aiken: (803) 641-7630
Anderson: (864) 224-6391
Beaufort: (843) 522-1010
Berkeley-Dorchester (Moncks Corner):
(843) 761-6036; (866) 297-6808 (Toll free) Camden: (803) 432-1068 (866) 206-5280 (Toll free) Charleston: (843) 740-1600 Conway: (843) 248-2235 Florence: (843) 662-8114 Gaffney: (864) 489-9954 Greenville: (864) 297-3066 Greenwood: (864) 229-5827 (866) 443-0162 (Toll free) Hartsville: (843) 383-2662 Lancaster: (803) 285-6909 Laurens (Clinton): (864) 833-4121 (866) 443-0103 (Toll free) Lexington (West Columbia): (803) 896-6333 (866) 206-5184 (Toll free) Marlboro (Bennettsville): (843) 479-8318 (800) 849-4878 (Toll free) Oconee-Pickens (Seneca): (864) 882-6669 (866) 313-0082 (Toll free) Orangeburg: (803) 534-4939 Richland (Columbia): (803) 782-4239 Rock Hill: (803) 327-7106 Spartanburg: (864) 585-3693 (866) 451-1480 (Toll free) Sumter: (803) 469-2960 Walterboro: (843) 538-3116 (888) 577-3549 (Toll free) Williamsburg (Kingstree): (843) 354-5252 Enabling eligible South Carolinians with Disabilities to prepare for, achieve and maintain competitive employment.
Bryant
His passionate, clear focus on meeting the needs of South Carolinians with disabilities in an efficient, cost-effective manner has been impressive, Lowder said. He met the challenges of significant budget cuts and the impact of losing seasoned staff due to the TERI program with proactive, innovative strategies. After he retires, Bryant plans to play some golf and do some work
NEW HORIZONS
Construction on the new Vocational Rehabilitation center in Lyman, S.C., is under way. State legislators, Lyman town officials, architects and SCVRD officials broke ground for the facility on Sept. 30. Construction is expected to be completed by late 2009. The 25,000-square-foot facility has been in the planning stages for 10 years. Funding for the first stage was allocated last year. It will house an area office and comprehensive services unit, which will offer physical therapy, occupational therapy, a brain injury program, a pain management program and rehabilitation engineering on a day basis for people with significant disabilities. The Lyman center also will offer counseling and guidance and vocational assessment.
On hand to do the ground-breaking honors were, from left, Dr. Roxzanne Breland, a member of the S.C. State Agency of Vocational Rehabilitation, who represents the Fourth Congressional district; SCVRD Commissioner Larry C. Bryant; Sen.-elect Lee Bright of Roebuck; Rep. Joe Mahaffey, R-Spartanburg; former Lyman Mayor Robert N. Fogel; and Lyman Mayor Rodney Turner.
Gold
Continued from page 1
50-page application outlining the organizations practices. All state agencies in South Carolina use the criteria as a framework for annual accountability reports. The four examiners met with State Office and Evaluation Center staff as well as local staff at the Richland, Lexington, Sumter and Aiken offices. This recognition is indicative of our staffs dedication in providing services that enable people with disabilities to successfully establish themselves in our states workforce, said Commissioner Larry Bryant. A detailed feedback report from the examiner team will be used to address opportunities for improvement in future strategic planning.
Fall 2008
More than 150 students with disabilities from around the state got a chance to explore careers they might like to pursue as they participated in Disability Mentoring Day on Oct. 15. The S.C. Vocational Rehabilita tion Department coordinated the event in South Carolina as part of National Disability Employment Awareness Month. Disability Mentoring Day is a worthwhile experience for both students and employers, said Lucerne Iseman, project manager for the event. The students think they know the particulars about their career choices, but the first-hand exploration that DMD provides is always an eye-opener for them, she said. The employers, too, benefit from interacting with an individual with a disability on a lowcommitment level, while possibly considering a potential employee, she added. The experience may also diffuse any misunderstandings regarding people with disabilities in the workforce. In the Midlands, 33 students from Swansea High School, Richland Northeast High School and SCVRDs Information Technology Training Center looked at careers in fields such as veterinary medicine, tattooing, heavy equipment, dentistry, radiology, the military, engineering, business and social services. Feedback from the students was positive. One liked the opportunity to experience first-hand an actual job atmosphere. Another learned so many new things about my
NEW HORIZONS
Nicole Reynolds of Swansea High School helps Dr. Nicholas Chambers examine Max the Shiz Tzu at Van Crest Animal Hospital.
Lillie Bracero of Alliance Consulting Engineers Inc. answers a question from MingKwong Kenny Lau, left. Lau and Leonard Windom, center, are both students at SCVRDs Information Technology Training Center.
Jason Holt of Swansea High School operates a bulldozer at Linder Industrial Machinery.
career of choice. And a third appreciated getting to learn more about the job and getting to help. Most of the recommendations involved allowing more time with the mentors. Mentors in the Midlands included: Dr. Jimmy Duensing, DMD; Linder Industrial Machinery; Lexington Medical Center; Lexington
Department of Social Services; Van Crest Animal Hospital; Fort Jackson; the Purple Lotus tattoo parlor; Alliance Consulting Engineeers Inc.; B.P. Barber & Associates; City of Columbia; Richland County; VA Hospital; S.C. Retirement Systems; Palmetto Health Baptist Hospital; Colonial Life; Blue Cross/Blue Shield; and SCVRD.
SCVRD offices around the state held open houses during October in conjunction with National Disability Employment Awareness month. Here are pictures from some of them.
Aiken area supervisor Alethea Harry, left, poses with Rep. Bill Clyburn, D-Aiken, and Rhonda Pitts, SCVRD area development director, at the Aiken area open house.
Rhonda Pitts, left, SCVRD area development director, and Steve Heape, a Camden area counselor, show Rep. Laurie Slade Funderburk, D-Kershaw, around during the Camden area open house.
Neal Getsinger, left, SCVRD assistant commissioner for field operations; Carol Anderson, Florence area supervisor; and Derle A. Lowder Sr., chairman of the S.C. State Agency of Vocational Rehabilitation; pose with Ralph C. Fennell Jr., superintendent of the Williamsburg County schools, at the Williamsburg Work Training Center open house.
Fall 2008
37 celebrate
state service
anniversaries
Thirty-seven SCVRD employees recently celebrated landmark state service anniversaries. Celebrating 30 years were: Penny Bethea, Elizabeth Cale, Sally Daniel, Pat Green, Lana Griffin, Janet Holliday, Philip McNeil, Rachael Richardson and Carol Teal. Marking 20 years were: Karen Adkins, Kay Asbill, Vicki Belk, Mary Burnett, Teresa Butler, Clara Cooper, Teri Eakins, David Faile, Rashidi Fawcett, Patricia Gilliard, Diane Hare, and Andy Harrell. Also, Barbara Hollis, Anne Iriel, Barbara Kinard, Michael Laney, Margaret Mack, Shirley Mains, Vickie Manning, Nancy Mitchum, Anita Monts, Perry Pitts, Donna Quigley, Elaine Singleton, James Smith, Deborah Triplett, Mark Wade and Brenda Winter.
The South Carolina Vocational Rehabilitation Department reports that it printed 5,300 copies of this newsletter at a cost of $1,047, or about $.20 a copy.
South Carolina Vocational Rehabilitation Department 1410 Boston Avenue Post Office Box 15 West Columbia, SC 29171-0015 Return Service Requested
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