Rep. Virginia Foxx visits IFB Solutions, advocates for breaking down barriers to employment for people who are blind.

In her role as chair of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, Rep. Foxx is a leader in breaking down barriers that prevent workers from succeeding, including those who are blind or visually impaired.  She is meeting with executives and employees at IFB Solutions to learn how individuals who are blind are kept out of the workforce because of guidance provided by the U.S. Dept. of Education.

According to IFB Solutions, the largest employer of people who are blind in the country, the Department’s guidance associated with the Workforce Innovation and Opportunities Act (WIOA) is keeping individuals who are blind from being referred to job opportunities at agencies like IFB because some state vocational rehabilitation agencies may not consider them to be places of competitive, integrated employment.

“Individuals who are blind should have the freedom to choose where they pursue jobs and make their own successes,” says Dan Kelly, Chief Operating Officer for IFB Solutions and who also is totally blind. “Rep. Foxx is an advocate for removing barriers for anyone seeking to enter the workforce, and we want her to meet with several of our employees who have restarted their careers after losing their vision thanks to jobs at IFB.”

Rep. Virginia Foxx will meet with IFB COO Dan Kelly and speak with several employees including Ken Mullins who recently joined as a supervisor in the IFB optical lab. Mullins spent 16 years as a plant supervisor with a FORTUNE 500 company but had to leave that role when his vision diminished.  After three years of job searching, he found IFB.

Wednesday, August 15, 2018, 11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. (meeting & brief facility tour) Rep. Foxx will answer questions from the media at 12:15 p.m.

IFB Solutions, 7730 North Point Drive, Winston-Salem, NC 27106