Employment Equity for People With IDD Across the Lifespan: The Effects of State Funding.

Nord et al. (2020) looked at work records for adults with intellectual or developmental disabilities. They checked age and state spending on integrated job services.

The goal was to see if extra state dollars shrink the age gap in real jobs.

Young adults and seniors with IDD had the worst job rates. States that spent more on integrated employment closed those age gaps.

Money aimed at community jobs, not workshops, made the difference.

Kramer et al. (2020) show only 19 % of state-supported adults with IDD hold integrated jobs. Derek’s team agrees, but adds that higher spenders beat this low bar.

Emerson et al. (2023) visited three high-spend states and list seven team moves that drive success. Their stories back Derek’s numbers: coordinated systems turn dollars into paychecks.

Butterworth et al. (2024) still call outcomes “dismally low” after 40 years. This could sound like a contradiction, yet the 2024 paper looks at all states while Derek highlights the best spenders. Both papers push the same fix: put more money into integrated services.

You can’t control age, but you can steer funding. Use Derek’s finding when you write grant lines or speak to state councils. Ask for integrated-employment dollars, not generic day-program funds. Target young adults and seniors first; the data show they gain the most.