Comprehensive Statewide Needs Assessments (CSNA)
State Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) Agencies contract with the IPARRT team to develop their triennial Comprehensive Statewide Needs Assessment (CSNA). CSNAs are required under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) and overseen by the Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA), the federal partner responsible for supporting and monitoring the VR program. IPARRT works collaboratively with state VR agencies and key stakeholders to identify the needs and challenges individuals with disabilities face in obtaining and maintaining competitive integrated employment.
With respect to students and youth with disabilities, the WIOA legislation specifically requires state agencies to:
- identify, report, and address their need for pre-employment transition services or other transition services; and
- assess the needs for transition services and pre-employment transition services and the extent to which such services are coordinated with transition services provided under the IDEA.
The IPARRT team supports the CSNA process by collecting and analyzing qualitative (e.g., focus groups and interviews) and quantitative (e.g., RSA-911) data to identify gaps and challenges, develop recommendations, draft reports, and disseminate findings. In partnership with the state agency, CSNAs inform policy and programmatic decisions and state plans, and improve career development opportunities and outcomes for individuals with disabilities.