As a follow up to the revisions of the AHEAD Program Domains, Standards, and Performance Indicators (2021), the Board of Directors appointed a task force with the charge of developing a white paper that would provide guidance to the membership and the field about reasonable staffing levels in the disability resource office (DRO).
Determining reasonable staffing for the DRO is not a simple or quick calculation. Rather it entails a careful review of office practices, potential office inefficiencies, current gaps in service delivery, and professional role strain on DRO staff.
This page contains links to the AHEAD white paper, Understanding and Assessing Disability Resource Office Staffing Needs (PDF Download) (Word Download), as well as multiple resources designed to support disability resource professionals in the application and use of this content.
Suggestions for how to proceed:
1. Read the white paper;
- Become familiar with key concepts described in the white paper including
- Reasonable staffing levels
- Work load vs. case load
- Operational efficiency
- Electronic data base
2. Complete the DRO Self-Assessment Rubric
3. Some DROs may wish to gather data from peer institutions to inform their self-assessment. Appendix B in the white paper contains additional information.
4. Identify resource needs and talking points based on Self-Assessment findings to provide to the relevant administrator on campus who makes financial and support decisions for the DRO.
5. Review case studies posted on this page for ideas on how to present this information to your supervisor and/or relevant administrator on campus who make financial and support decisions for the DRO.
For questions, comments, or feedback, please contact Adam Meyer (Adam.Meyer@ucf.edu )