We’re redesigning our website!

Help us improve our navigation by taking our short study at this link and enter for a chance to win 1 of 3 $50 Safeway gift cards: https://ows.io/tj/8y3hx754 

If you are using assistive technology, such as a screen reader, and are having trouble completing the study, please email our Anthro-Tech research partners at DSBstudysupport@anthro-tech.com. They will be able to assist you further so you can still have your voice heard!

2017 Outcomes and Results

Results of Federal Fiscal Year (FFY) 2017 include:

Employment

  • One hundred thirty-three (133) customers (PDF) (Download Adobe Reader) gained or retained competitive jobs with an average wage of $19.14 per hour.
  • Our Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) program served 1,338 customers in FFY 2017.
    • 326 of these customers have been identified as Youth ages 14 - 24. Their average age at the time of VR application was 19 years old.
  • The Orientation and Training Center (OTC) served 65customers, which included:
    • Fifteen full-time residential students.
    • Fourteen full-time or part-time commuting students.
    • Twenty-five students attended the OTC's intensive workshops.
    • Sixteen students enrolled in Long Distance braille courses.
    • Two students studied English as a Second Language students.
  • Our Business Enterprise Program (BEP) provides opportunities for our customers to operate successful food service businesses in government buildings that benefit the state and our economy as a whole. In FFY 2017:
    • Twenty-one (21) facilities combined had total gross sales of $7,252,719.
    • $606,423 was collected as sales tax from all facilities.
    • $245,030 was collected as payroll tax from all facilities.

Independent Living

  • DSB provides services to adults who are blind or have low vision, aged 21 - 55, and do not choose employment. Some of these individuals choose an employment track after receiving our services. In FFY 2017, we served 155 individuals in this category.
  • 1,355 individuals over the age of 55, and not seeking to return to work, received independent living services. This included 22 individuals who were 100 years old or older.

Youth Services

School-to-Work Transition (Age 14 to High School Graduation)

  • The DSB Youth Employment Solutions (YES) 1 is a two-week program for 14-15 year-old students giving them the opportunity to explore their career interests and aptitudes. 20 students participated in YES 1 in FFY 2017.

  • Twenty-eight students participated in the YES 2 program – a six-week program designed to provide valuable work and independent living experiences to high school students.
  • The Bridge program enrolled two high school students in summer courses at Eastern Washington University (EWU), where they learned how to advocate for and secure accommodations in higher education programs, experienced life in the dorm, and developed systems for navigating the college campus.
  • Four high school graduates made up the inaugural class of the new Student Work and Academic Growth (SWAG) program. In addition to taking classes at EWU, these students expanded their responsibilities and independence by working part-time jobs and living in off-campus housing.

Services for Youth Ages 9 to 13

  • Thirty-six children ages 9 through thirteen received services.
  • DSB sponsored week-long camps in Mt. Vernon, Seattle, Spokane, and Vancouver for 26 students ages 9 through 13. The focus of the camps were on the expanded core curriculum: independent living skills, recreation, technology, and orientation and mobility.

Birth to Age 8

  • We served eleven (11) children from birth to age 8.

For more information, contact us at 800-552-7103 or info@dsb.wa.gov.