Jean E. Winsor is a Senior Research Associate and Project Manager at the Institute for Community Inclusion (ICI). Her research focuses on state systems and integrated employment, with an emphasis on bridging research to practice through technical assistance to employment system stakeholders. She is the coordinator for the StateData.info project, is a policy specialist for the State Employment Leadership Network (SELN),, and is Project Director for the Florida EmployMe1st Project.
During her tenure at ICI she has investigated the policies and practices of states with high rates of integrated employment, states that have engaged in multi-agency systems change to support youth and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities to obtain community employment, and states that are using Employment First agendas as a catalyst for systems change. Dr. Winsor has also engaged in research to better understand the methods states use to collect data on employment outcomes, the strategies states use to fund employment services, and the factors that impact the choices individuals with intellectual and development disabilities make about employment.
Prior to joining ICI in 2002, Jean provided school and community-based supports to adolescents and adults with IDD for ten years. Dr. Winsor received her B.A. in Psychology from Binghamton University-SUNY and her M.S. in Educational Psychology and Methodology from the University at Albany-SUNY. She is a graduate of the Ph.D. in Public Policy Program with a Concentration in Special Education and Disability Policy at the John W. McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies at the University of Massachusetts Boston.
Click here to follow Dr. Winsor's work on SelectedWorks.
This brief is the third in a series focusing on Employment First implementation as it relates to one of the seven elements within the High-Performing States in Integrated Employment model. As states undergo implementation of their policies, it is important to understand how state agencies have built employment knowledge and capacity. Download here.
Since the introduction of supported employment in the Developmental Disabilities Act of 1984 and the Rehabilitation Act Amendments of 1986, there has been continued development and refinement of best practices in employment services and supports.
Effective supervision of employees with intellectual or developmental disabilities can be challenging for businesses that may not have experience in hiring people with diverse support requirements. This is largely due to the relatively low participation rates of people with disabilities in the workforce. This is, thankfully, changing as more businesses are seeing the value of diversifying their workforce, which includes hiring people with diverse cognitive abilities like people with intellectual or developmental disabilities.
Download the article here. Purpose: Recent policy changes expanding community employment for people with intellectual/developmental disabilities (IDD) and awareness of the important role of family members as facilitators of these opportunities motivated this scoping review of the literature on family engagement with
This brief is the first in a series focusing on Employment First implementation as it relates to one of the seven elements within the High-Performing States in Integrated Employment model. It examines the background of circumstances under which Employment First efforts began in seven states, and introduces each state’s values, mission, and goals around increasing employment opportunities for people with disabilities. States may use the lessons in this brief to develop an Employment First policy, or to evolve existing efforts.
This brief is the first in a series focusing on Employment First implementation as it relates to one of the seven elements within the High-Performing States in Integrated Employment model. It examines the background of circumstances under which Employment First efforts began in seven states, and introduces each state’s values, mission, and goals around increasing employment opportunities for people with disabilities.
Access the latest information about employment and economic self-sufficiency for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Both national and state-level statistics are included.
Watch the recorded webinar here. In the fall of 2017, researchers from the Institute for Community Inclusion (ICI) will lead a series of online discussions on the "State of the Science" (SoS) in employment for people with IDD.
Beginning in FY 2012 and 2013, the Administration on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (AIDD) funded eight Partnerships in Employment (PIE) systems change projects under the Projects of National Significance program. PIE is a national transition systems change project whose purpose is to identify, develop, and promote policies and practices to improve transition, post-secondary, and competitive employment outcomes for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD).