The Montana Choice: Customized Employment project is a Montana Job Training Partnership-administered and U.S. Department of Labor-funded project. The University of Montana Rural Institute provides training and technical assistance to the project.

The purpose of Montana Choice is to increase the integration of people with severe disabilities into the workforce. In order to accomplish this, the Montana Job Training Partnership (MJTP), the Rural Institute, Lone Eagle Consulting, and Roberts Consulting Services are working in four Montana communities that have Workforce Centers in the Job Service offices. The communities are Butte, Cutbank, Glasgow, and Hamilton. Each Center does outreach to neighboring communities, including Anaconda, Browning, Dillon, and Wolf Point.

During the course of the five-year project, a minimum of 352 individuals with disabilities will receive direct-client services. By the end of the five-year period, we expect 60 percent of all project participants will have entered conventional work or self-employment, earning an average wage of $8.50 an hour. Each Workforce Center has dedicated project funds to distribute to help clients with disabilities achieve their employment goals. Partnering with local vocational rehabilitation counselors to provide extended funding for employment options for people is also highly encouraged.

The project's comprehensive strategy will create systems change through a consortium of partners. MJTP and Rural Institute, along with Robert's Consulting staff, will engage local Workforce Community Management Teams (CMT) in strategic planning. Two hundred front-line staff, parents, individuals with disabilities, and community stakeholders will participate in the strategic planning and implementation of the customized employment project. The strategic plans will identify strategies and interventions to support customer choice and provide quality services which lead to successful job attainment.

Each Workforce Center will receive training and technical assistance to enhance the capacity of their already professional, well-trained, and versatile staff in customized employment strategies as well as to be responsive to the needs and interests of each customer. The project will document customized employment services that are used, such as e-commerce, self-employment, microbusiness, entrepreneurship, telework, and competitive employment. E-commerce and telework training and technical assistance services are provided by Frank Odasz of Lone Eagle Consulting in Dillon, Montana.

Project Goals

Montana Choice's goals are:

To engage local Workforce Community Management Teams in strategic planning which affects the design, development, evolution, continuous improvement, and evaluation of the Montana Workforce System.
To explore strategies and undertake initiatives to increase the recruitment of job seekers with disabilities who have not traditionally accessed the Workforce Centers
To provide capacity building workshops and technical assistance for project staff, workforce development personnel, Community Management Team members, local stakeholders and job seekers that will expand and enhance customized employment opportunities in their communities
To pilot a training model for individuals with disabilities, workforce development staff, and Community Management Team members who are interested in e-commerce or telecommuting opportunities.
To demonstrate innovative customized employment strategies.
To develop the quality and effectiveness of the "customized employment" model of services, for and with the job seeker, in each of the Workforce Centers impacted by the project.
To develop and successfully implement a technology-support and video conferencing-based network at each Workforce Center for the purpose of providing cross-training and technical assistance between and among all partners in a way that promotes mutual collaboration, problem solving, and sharing of blueprints for success.
To develop and implement a comprehensive system for electronic dissemination of project activities, outcomes, and resources.

To find out more about the Montana Choice project you can contact:

Lisa Newman, Project Director
Montana Job Training Partnership
302 N. Last Chance Gulch, Suite 409
Helena, MT 59601
(406) 444-1330
lnewman@mjtp.org

B. Roger Shelley, Project Director
The Rural Institute
52 Corbin Hall
The University of Montana
Missoula, MT 59812
Home Office: (406) 445-9168
r.shelley@worldnet.att.net

Frank Odasz
Lone Eagle Consulting
2200 Rebich Lane
Dillon, MT 59725
(406) 683-6270
frank@lone-eagles.com
http://lone-eagles.com

To find out if you are eligible to enroll in the project, you may contact the Workforce Center or project administrator in your area.

Julie Hallock
Northeast Montana Job Service/Workforce Center
74 4th St. North
Glasgow, MT 59230
(406) 228-9369
jhallock@state.mt.us

Ron Rides at the Door
Rocky Mountain Front
Workforce Center
501 E. Main
Cutbank, MT 59427
(406) 873-2191
rridesatthedoor@state.mt.us

Richard Clautu
Bitterroot Job Service/
Workforce Center
333 W. Main
Hamilton, MT 59840
(406) 375-6047
rclautu@state.mt.us

Bob Nichols
Ravalli Services
Community Employment
Box 558
Hamilton, MT 59840
(406) 363-5400
rsc@cybernet1.com

Dave Coleman
Southwest Montana Workforce Center
2201 White Blvd.
Butte, MT 59701
(406) 494-0310

Pioneering the Electronic Frontier

The Montana Job Training Partnership's Montana Choice demonstration project is bringing real choices for web-based self-employment to individuals with disabilities. A dozen Internet introductory presentations have already taken place in Montana communities from Plentywood to Darby. Online classes and hands-on skill-building workshops are available for Workforce Center customers in participating communities.

Heading up this electronic training effort is Frank Odasz of Lone Eagle Consulting in Dillon, Montana. Odasz has been a carpenter, oil field roughneck, dude ranch manager, college professor, and is now a "Lone Eagle," an independent instructional entrepreneur. He presented a program on e-commerce and telework at a recent Montana Workforce conference and was invited to participate in the Montana Choice project. Throughout the project he will work on developing rural e-commerce and telework strategies.

"Some rural folks are anti-technology and anti-literacy," says Odasz. "Many rural people are threatened by too much information and too much change and as a result the Internet is viewed negatively. But only through change and adaptation are rural communities going to thrive."

In January-February of 2004, Odasz barnstormed across Montana delivering twelve two-hour presentations about e-commerce on behalf of the project. Local Workforce Centers organized the trainings in computer lab facilities in schools and job service offices across the state. The sessions were open to the public and offered an online "beginner's guide" to the Internet and world of e-commerce. "eBay represents the easiest e-commerce opportunity and offers maximum flexibility for fast-track supplemental income", said Odasz.

Selling on eBay takes minimum technical training and is an easy way to get selling on-line and begin growing a business.

In April Odasz followed up with four regional six-hour skills workshops on search engines and how to create web pages. People who attended were also invited to participate in the online course, A Beginner's Guide to Profiting from the Internet, which provided ten two-hour, hands-on lessons covering an overview of what's already working for others in the fields of e-commerce and telework.

"The Federal Government is mandating expansion in telework to save money and for national security reasons," says Odasz. Telework includes information processing of all types - data entry, typing case files, and medical transcription to name a few. As information becomes increasingly managed electronically, opportunities increase for telework. "How we deal with new knowledge will determine if we can create new opportunities. Instead of out-sourcing telework jobs to India, we should be training rural citizens to do this work", added Odasz.

You can contact Frack Odasz at Lone Eagle Consulting, 2200 Rebich Lane, Dillon, MT 59725, (406) 683-6270, frank@lone-eages.com, http://lone-eages.com.

MONTANA CHOICE: the Local Perspective

The Rural Exchange recently interviewed four of the Montana Choice project staff in local Workforce Centers. Below are their comments about the differences Montana Choice is making in the lives of people with disabilities. Contact information for them is at the end of this publication.

Bob Nichols, Hamilton

Montana Choice has been a "positive and fulfilling experience" for Bob Nichols. The surprising trend he has noticed is the number of people with disabilities opting for self-employment. "Sixty percent are choosing self-employment and the Montana Choice grant makes it possible for people to buy equipment and pay for training" they need to start their businesses. The project helps "put the various pieces of the puzzle together to help them pursue self-employment."

Another surprise is the number of people "buying computers or getting training. Over 50 % are pursuing some use of technology to meet their employment needs. This has merged nicely with the work Frank Odasz at Lone Eagle Consulting has done on the project. We had over 100 people attend his initial workshop."

Dave Coleman, Butte

Dave Coleman serves people in a ten-county area of south-central Montana. "I've had a lot of windshield time" on the project. He feels Montana Choice makes a "huge difference in lives of participants." He was working with several people who were frustrated with the traditional rehabilitation funding process. In one case a woman was trying to set up a greenhouse. Once she qualified for the Montana Choice project, "we had the items she needed purchased the next week for her." Another person "simply needed snow tires and business cards." She was amazed at "how fast it was for her to get funding. The transformation in a person's life is truly remarkable and a humbling experience to a program manager for this project."

Richard Clautu, Hamilton

Richard Clautu likes to tell the success story of a top-of-line-cabinet maker he has worked with. "This man sought help for a couple of years to get a business started and he ran into brick walls." Clautu got a list of equipment the man needed. "Before he got the equipment, he had a contract with a store to build counters. He is very self-motivated and a go-getter." He is doing quite well, pleased with the speed of the program and response to his needs. "His success is important to me because I see a man who is at wit's end and he finds a program that can help. He goes from living on SSDI to providing a better living for his family, which is what the majority of people with disabilities are shooting for."

Ron Rides at the Door, Cutbank

Ron Rides at the Door likes the Montana Choice program because "it is a perfect fit for the way I do things in my life—with sincere passion and commitment. It provides services that are direly needed." Due to the hard work of everyone involved, people can overcome a lot of challenges they may have experienced with other rehabilitation programs. "We work with individuals and find out what they want to do, not what the program wants them to do, and mold that job or training or self-employment around the individual and what they want to do. This helps them accomplish their dreams." The program has also helped expand on the network and partnerships that bridge the gap in financing the small entrepreneurs and in getting training from them. "By networking with Vocational Rehabilitation, we are able to fully capitalize the small business so they have a better chance of succeeding without a heavy debt load."

"Got a Goal, Do It"

by Doreen Hester; Owner of D.J.'s Paws-ititely Purr-fect Parlor and Nancy Maxson, The University of Montana Rural Institute

"I was 60 years old when I started this, and who would have known I would enjoy it this much," says Doreen Hester, the owner/ operator of D.J.'s Paws-itively Purr-fect Parlor. "I just love pets." Doreen is a professional dog groomer in Cutbank, Montana. "I have the business set up in my basement at this time and I do plan on remodeling my garage and putting my business out there." She does day-sitting for dogs and will also do sitting for a weekend or even a couple of weeks.

The dogs that stay overnight "have to be compatible with my dog because they live in my house with me. I don't have a kennel at this time." Doreen saw an article in her local paper about a dog grooming school in Havre, Montana. "It just really interested me and I was having a lot of physical problems at that time." She was hoping to find some kind of work she could do out of her own home. But "I had no help at all, no way of ever getting the finances" to pay the school fees.

A year earlier, Doreen had visited the Cutbank Job Service/Workforce Center. Geri Baker, the Office Manager for the Workforce Center, helped Doreen utilize a Workforce Investment Act "disability clause due to the fact that I had contracted rheumatoid arthritis." This did not mean Doreen was qualified for Social Security Disability Insurance, but with her disability status, she was able to access some of the programs at the Workforce Center for people with disabilities.

With her new idea of going to dog grooming school, Doreen went back to the Workforce Center. "I went down there thinking maybe they might have something else for me, and lo and behold Dawn [Barrett] and Michele [Rides at the Door] just went full bore." They helped Doreen apply for Montana/Wyoming Careers through Partnerships funds, administered by the Montana Job Training Partnership. "Within five-six weeks, I was in the school. The school started October 1 and I had everything I needed in before that. Dawn and Michelle worked it out, which was just so awesome."

Doreen attended the Montana School for Professional Dog Groomers in Havre for three and a half months. "They asked me to come back for two more weeks just because I was having so much fun there. I just really enjoyed it. I didn't realize how much went into grooming a dog."

Altogether, staff at the Cutbank Workforce Center helped Doreen access $3,100 to pay for her schooling and set her up in a business in her own home. "I think there were two or three programs they used. They all worked together to get me into the program that fast."

Doreen offers the following advice to other people with disabilities thinking about starting their own business. "My main advice, I would say is just if you've got a goal, do it."

Doreen Hester,
D.J.'s Paws-itively Purr-fect Parlor
702 E. Main, Cutbank, MT 59427
(406) 873-4658

Pursue Your Dream

By Michael Fletcher, Owner of Bigsky Inkjet

Anyone who has a dream needs to pursue that dream, despite whatever anyone says to the contrary. Put your idea together, put it on paper, work through the rough spots if you believe that it can happen.

I’ve been in computers for a long time and I thought about printers and what was available here in the Bitterroot Valley. Unfortunately, there wasn’t really a lot in the supply of printers and there wasn’t a place to buy printers here. So I thought, why not start something that would benefit the valley? Recycled cartridges—inkjet and laser—seemed to be the niche that was missing. So here I am with my new business, Bigsky Inkjet, and it seems to be doing ok.

I got help at the Bitterroot Job Service/Workforce Center. I was able to access funding through the Montana/Wyoming Careers through Partnership project, administered through the Montana Job Training Partnership. They helped me refine my business idea.

Naturally it started with a business plan and then I had to go from the business plan to reality. I had to figure out, budget-wise, how to make the plan work. After a lot of research, I found a company that sold the equipment necessary to do a professional job of remanufacturing and refilling cartridges that fit into the budget. I wrote them and they also let me know that they offered a school, if of course I purchased my equipment through them.

I did purchase equipment through them and I did go to school. It was a three-day course, and while that may sound like a short course, it was three full days. You could stay for the fourth or fifth day. But as I had been in the field of computers before, I felt that three days was sufficient for me. I felt really comfortable after that training period and so I came back raring to go.

But there wasn't quite enough money for my business, so the people at the Workforce Center looked into other sources and were able to get additional funds through Montana Job Training Partnership Montana Choice project. With the combination of the funds from the two Montana Job Training Partnership projects, I was able to get a pretty solid foothold on this. I'm just continuing to keep things going on a solid foundation.

Marketing my business hasn't been that difficult. I've been getting the word out through advertising. In the local advertising newspaper, "Tidbits," I have a 1½ X 5 inch ad running almost each week, and the size does change from time to time, but I get a lot of business that way.

It seems that my market right now is the professional market. I have the mortgage companies, I have attorneys, psychologists, and various other professional people and it seems that it is going to expand. I've also had brochures, or fliers if you will, printed up that I will be mailing and marketing by business - so that the attorneys here in the Bitterroot Valley will get a flier for attorneys in their mail boxes and the accountants will get fliers for accountants. I'll specifically focus on particular businesses and build the business that way.

Michael Fletcher
Bigsky Inkjet
127 W. Main, Suite 111
Hamilton, MT 59840
(406) 375-9331

Never Stop Chasing Your Dreams

By Julie Hallock, Glasgow Job Service

My name is Julie Hallock. I am a facilitator at the Glasgow, Montana Job Service/Workforce Center of the Montana Job Training Partnership's Montana Choice: Customized Employment project. Montana Choice provides funds to help Montanans with disabilities achieve their employment dreams.

One of our main goals for the project here in Glasgow was to assist the folks with disabilities who are served at the Milk River Activities Center, a sheltered workshop and local developmental disabilities service provider.

One of the people served at Milk River that I know very well is Palmer Garsjo. I attended Milk River's open house during the Christmas season and Palmer presented me with a bag of shredded paper as a gift. Shredding is something that Palmer has always loved to do. I think Palmer was telling me not to forget him - he somehow associated me with employment and shredding because I used to work at the activities center. A few months later, we pulled together a team to help Palmer access funds and get him some employment. Palmer's team included him, his brother (who is his Representative Payee), other family members, and staff from Milk River who support him. Since Palmer loves to shred, we helped him set up his own shredding small business: Secure Shreds.

We decided what equipment he would need. After looking at some pictures, he chose some things and we made decisions about what we should do, how we should get started. With $1,800 in Montana Choice funds, Palmer purchased a shredder, a cart to move it around, a storage cabinet to keep it in at the Milk River workshop, plastic bags and other shredding supplies, and three secure drop-off boxes where customers could drop off their papers to be shredded. The drop-off boxes are set up at the Senior Citizens Center, Milk River, and in our Job Service office.

Palmer charges $.75 a pound for shredding, but offers his services free to senior citizens in exchange for having his drop-off box at their center. He started shredding for the Health Department, is doing some work here at the Job Service for the work program, and for the Welfare Office. He's also shredding for Go Postal, a building and office that is just starting next door to us, and he will soon be expanding his customer base to include Hi-Line Homes.

Montana Choice funds also paid for some marketing materials for Palmer. We ran a logo contest for his business and purchased business cards, hats, and shirts with the new logo. He has also done some paid advertising. But the best marketing happened by chance. He has been featured in the local newspaper. Palmer was celebrating his 50th birthday and the newspaper gave him a whole front page spread, with a picture and information about his shredding business. The article talked about how we should never stop chasing our dreams and employment is really possible.

So from the one bag of shredded material Palmer gave me as a Christmas gift, we helped him get started in his dream business.

52 Corbin Hall
University of Montana
Missoula, MT 59812

(406) 243-5467 Voice/TTY
(406) 243-4730 Fax
(800) 732-0323 Voice/TTY Toll-Free

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