October is National Disability Awareness Month, and State Conservationist for Idaho, Curtis Elke, is learning more about how USDA supports its employees with disabilities as he explores his options for assistive technology related to hearing loss.
October is National Disability Awareness Month, and State Conservationist for Idaho, Curtis Elke, is learning more about how USDA supports its employees with disabilities as he explores his options for assistive technology related to hearing loss.
Diagnosed as having profound hearing loss – 30% in one ear and 50% in the other – Elke has been relying on hearing aids and, at times, lip reading. Large meetings and teleconferences can be a struggle for him as voices merge when people talk over each other and he cannot always see who is speaking.
“I’m very open about the fact that I have hearing loss, so people are willing to accommodate me by speaking louder, positioning themselves closer to me, or making sure I get information in writing, but I wanted to get a little more proactive about investigating what technology is out there,” Elke said.
He recently got in touch the Food Production and Conservation mission area (FPAC) to learn if there was any help available. Within 24 hours, his inquiry was returned and provided contact information for Carl Butler, Team Lead for the Training Section of the Compliance and Training Branch of FPAC’s Civil Rights & Equal Employment Opportunity Division.
A conversation with Butler revealed that the USDA coordinates their Americans With Disabilities Act accommodations for its hearing-impaired employees with the Department of Defense (DoD) through the Computer/Electronic Accommodations Program (CAP). The program’s website,
www.cap.mil 
, provides a list of technological resources available through CAP. CAP personnel will do a needs assessment over the telephone (or computer) to help individuals determine which assistive technologies might best suit their needs.
“I’m impressed with the different technologies that I learned about from the website that may help me,” Elke said. “I am a great believer in leading by example, so I thought if there was another NRCS, Farm Service Agency or Risk Management employee out there who could benefit from me telling my story, then I ought to share it.”
In addition, there is also a CAP Mobile App that can be downloaded to a smartphone. According to Butler, the app also has a lot of helpful information.
“I’ve had my initial evaluation, and now I am in the back-and-forth process of determining what is going to best meet my needs,” said Elke. “It’s gratifying to know this service is available.”