The American Indian
Vocational Rehabilitation
Services Program
A History of Tribal Advocacy in
Legislative & Regulatory Policy
Presented by:
Marie Parker Strahan, CANAR Legislative Committee
CANAR Mid-Year Training Conference
April 22-24, 2014, Albuquerque, NM
WHY A SEPARATE AIVRS PROGRAM?
Native American/Alaska Native
individuals with disabilities did not, and
still do not, receive adequate services
from the State agency VR system.

Isolation/Rural Access Issues

Reservation Status and Tribal Sovereignty

Bias and Prejudice

Language/Cultural Barriers

Transportation Barriers
AIVRS Purpose Statement
“The purpose of this program is to assist tribal
governments to develop or to increase their capacity to
provide a program of vocational rehabilitation services,
in a culturally relevant manner, to American Indians with
disabilities residing on or near federal or state
reservations. The program's goal is to enable these
individuals, consistent with their individual strengths,
resources, priorities, concerns, abilities, capabilities,
and informed choice, to prepare for and engage in
gainful employment. Program services are provided
under an individualized plan for employment and may
include native healing services.”
Rehabilitation Services Administration
U.S. Department of Education
Authorized by Title I, Part C, Section 121of the Rehabilitation
Act of 1973, as amended. Parts 371/361 Regulations
History of Advocacy for VR in Indian Country

1947 - In 1947, the Federal Office of Vocational
Rehabilitation and the Bureau of Indian Affairs signed
the Cooperative Relationship Memorandum 21 resolving
to focus their efforts to serve Indians with disabilities.
(No info on impact of Memo 21.)

1973 - There is no reference to “American Indian” in the
text of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Public Law 93112, signed into law on September 26, 1973.

Navajo Nation approached Arizona Department of Labor
in 1975.
History of Advocacy for VR in Indian Country, cont.
 Prior to 1975, VR services non-existent in Indian
Country.
 1975 – The Arizona Division of Vocational
Rehabilitation awarded a three year Establishment
Grant to the Navajo Nation Tribal government
(required matching funds), to begin serving
persons with disabilities living on the Navajo
Reservation.
 1978 – In the 1978 Amendments to the
Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Section 102 required
the State VR agency to provide adequate
vocational rehabilitation services to handicapped
American Indians residing in the State;
Two Key Provisions in 1978 Amendments
1. Established American Indian Vocational Rehabilitation
Services under a new part D of Title 1 of the Act. Authorized
the Commissioner to make grants (not shall, may) to Indian
tribes under Section 130 of the Act for demonstration projects,
“under which the tribes shall develop the capacity to
administer vocational rehabilitation services for handicapped
American Indians residing on or near to Indian reservations.”
2. Authorized grants to Indian tribes under Section 131 of the
Act to provide vocational rehabilitation services to
handicapped Indians residing on or near to reservations,
administered by tribes as a substitute for the services
previously administered by the State (unless the State chooses
to continue to offer additional services).
1978 Congressional Intent Language
(from House and Senate Reports of 1978) -“. . . services provided under the AIVRS program
are to be comparable to those provided under the
State VR program.”
“. . . American Indian VR program is a substitute
for the State VR services for American Indians
living on/near to the reservation and must provide
equal access to the same kind of VR program . . .”
Note: In 1978, Congress viewed the AIVRS program as a
substitute for State VR services.
OUTCOME of 1978 Amendments:
In 1978 a tri-state agreement was entered
into by the state vocational rehabilitation
agencies of Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah.
This agreement combined funds and used
those funds to award a grant to the Navajo
Nation Navajo to continue serving cases
opened during the 1975-1978 Arizona grant
period.
(Navajo Times Article Handout)
History of Advocacy for VR in Indian Country, cont.
 1981 – Federal regulations published govern AIVRS
projects 1981 - Navajo Nation becomes the first
reservation.
 1985 – Two more projects were funded, the
Northern Cheyenne Chippewa-Cree Tribes of
Montana
 1992 - AIVRS funding went from 3 to 5 year
funding cycles and a 10 point preference was
assigned to existing programs –
History of Advocacy for VR in Indian Country, cont.

1993 CANAR was formed and AIVRS programs
made a philosophical decision to cooperate and
not compete with each other.

1998 Reauthorization of the Rehabilitation Act... A
watershed for rehabilitation systems change… the
CANAR 22 (handout) made about 19 significant
changes to the Act

1998 CANAR became the primary change agent for
American Indian Vocational Rehabilitation.
NOTE : 1995 CANAR Conference - AIVRS programs agreed to share
information with each other. (Grant periods became 5 yr. vs 3 yr.,
Rapid growth in Applications - see chart, Rapid increase in Awards)
History of Advocacy for VR in Indian Country, cont.

1999 RSA decided to study the AIVRS Program…
award given to Development Associates (DA) in DC…
first comprehensive study of AIVR with
recommendations for changes in the program.

2002 The DA AIVR study was published, providing a
comprehensive look at AIVRS programs, documenting
their impact in tribal communities

2003 The CANAR 11 (handout) was developed and
compressed to the CANAR 5… awaiting
reauthorization
NOTE: Since 1992 the number has steadily grown to 85 federally
funded AIVR programs in the US today serving approximately 300
Native communities. Funding has increased from $650,000 in 1981 to
approximately $40,000,000 today.
Key Provisions of Current Section 121
1. Commissioner’s Authority to make grants to governing bodies of Indian Tribes.
2. 90/10 Federal/Tribe match requirement (funding or in-kind)
3. Application Requirements:
•
•
•
•
•
Commissioner’s requirements – Grant Competition Package
Assurance that VR services to American Indians comparable to State’s VR
May include services traditionally used by Indian tribes
Assurance that Tribal application developed in consultation with State VR
Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act applicable
4. Awards for 60 months (5 years).
5. States must continue to provide services to American Indians residing on/near
reservation when State includes American Indians in population count [Sec.110(a)(1)]
6. Priority consideration given to AIVR applications for continuation.
7. No separate service system for Indian residents residing in non-reservation areas.
8. Defines reservation as “Indian reservations, public domain Indian allotments,
former Indian reservations in Oklahoma, and land held by incorporated Native
groups, regional corporations, and village corporations under the provisions of the
Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act.”
TODAY –Again, today there are 85 AIVR programs located in
26 states representing approximately 300 federally
recognized tribes and Alaska Native entities along
with approximately 60 state recognized tribes.
Alaska alone has 11 AIVR programs representing 178
of 227 tribal entities.
CANAR is partnering with many individual state
agencies, national groups and agencies such
CSAVR, CCD, NCAI, NIHB, NRA, RSA, and USDA.
AIVRS Program Growth Data
Fiscal Year
New Grants
Continuing Grants
Total
1981
1
1
1
1986
3
1
4
1990
4
10
14
1991
2
12
14
1992
9
7
16
1993
11
11
22
1994
7
20
27
1995
14
19
33
1996
3
32
35
1997
4
35
39
1998
11
38
49
1999
6
49
55
2000
9
55
64
2001
2
64
66
2002
3
66
69
2003
3
67
69
2004
3
67
70
2005
5
67
72
2006
0
72
72
2007
1
72
73
2008
2
73
74
2009
5
75
80
2010
3
80
83
2011
2
83
85
2012
--
--
85
2013
--
--
85
AIVR PROGRAM 2013
CANAR IS KEY
In 1993 CANAR was established as an ad hoc member organization.
It was incorporated as a non-profit organization in 2003 with paid staff and
offices in New Mexico and Louisiana.
Before CANAR –
 AIVRS projects were isolated, fragmented, competitive.
 A total of 4 programs existed
 Only 3 year grants
 Little or no information sharing
 Lots of resistance from the state VR agencies
 AIVRS Support only from RSA Central and Regions 10, 9, and 8
Mission
The mission of CANAR is to serve as an
avenue for collaboration and
cooperation between Administrators of
rehabilitation projects serving Native
American persons with disabilities, to
increase and enhance the quality of
services resulting in positive outcomes
for Native American persons with
disabilities.
Why Legislative Advocacy
In 1975 there were no provisions for culturally relevant
services for American Indians in the Rehabilitation Act. The
term “American Indian” did not appear one time in the text
of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.
The first time the term appears is in the 1978 Amendments to
the Act, as a result of Legislative advocacy by the Navajo
Nation.
Today (2014) the term “American Indian” appears more than
27 times in the Rehabilitation Act. The AIVRS program
successfully serves thousands of individuals in need in
hundreds of Native communities throughout the country.
What does CANAR do?

Provides a forum for study, deliberation, Public Education and
Advocacy

Establishes clear goals to expand quality rehabilitation services to
Native American with disabilities.

Provides a forum for developing and expressing collective points
of view on Native American rehabilitation and on issues affecting
rehabilitation on reservations, trust territories, Alaskan Native
villages and in the nation

Disseminates views and studies to members, elected Tribal and
Federal officials, national partners and Federal funding agencies

Conducts and supports research, demonstration, training and
technical assistance for improvement of rehabilitation services for
Native Americans

Promotes and maintains strong service outcomes of the AIVRS
Program

Maintains a strong professional identity for practitioners in Native
American/Tribal vocational rehabilitation system

Conducts and supports efforts to increase the number of culturally
sensitive Native American practitioners in Vocational
Rehabilitation
CURRENT ISSUES
(Similar to those in the Past - We are not finished!)
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Poverty
High Unemployment – Poor Local Economy
Rural/Remote Communities
Language and Cultural Barriers
Limited Local Resources
Lack of Support Services/Systems
Minimal Health Supports
Lack of Understanding by Non-Native Federal/State
Administrators and non-Indian Communities
Formal and Informal Sources:
http://www.canar.org/index.php
Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended
Treva Roanhorse, President CANAR, Navajo Nation
Marie Strahan, Kansas, Original AZ Grant Staff
Jud Cunningham, Hawaii, Original AZ Grant Staff
Caleb Roanhorse, Navajo Nation, Original AZ Grant Staff
Elmer Guy, Former Director, Navajo Nation Vocational Rehabilitation
Richard Corbridge, Retired RSA
Navajo Times, Navajo Nation
Jimmy Warne, California, SDSU
Jim Downing, U.S. Department of Labor, Former Senate Fellow, CANAR 22
Joseph Kelley, Executive Director, CANAR
CANAR Board of Directors