(a) General. The veteran's progress in reaching the goals of the plan will be reviewed and evaluated as scheduled in the plan by the case manager and the veteran.

(b) Comprehensive review required. The case manager and the veteran will review all of the terms of the plan and the veteran's progress at least every twelve months. On the basis of such review the veteran and the case manager will agree whether the plan should be: (1) Retained in its current form; (2) Amended; or

(3) Redeveloped.

Authority: 38 U.S.C. 3107(b))

§ 21.98 Appeal of disagreement regarding development of, or change in, the plan.

(a) General. The veteran may request a review of a proposed, original, or amended plan when Department of Veterans Affairs staff and the veteran do not reach agreement on the terms and conditions of the plan. A veteran who requests a review of the plan must submit a written statement to the case manager which:

(1) Requests a review of the proposed, original, or amended plan; and

(2) Details his or her objections to the terms and conditions of the proposed, original, or amended plan.

(b) Review by Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment Officer. Upon receipt of the veteran's request for review of the plan, the counseling psychologist or the case manager will forward the request together with relevant comment to the VR&C Officer who will:

(1) Review relevant information; and (2) Inform the veteran of his or her decision within 90 days.

(c) Review by Director, Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment Service. The veteran's request shall be reviewed by the Director, VR&C in any case in which the VR&C Officer is the case manager. The veteran will be informed of the decision within 90 days.

(d) Appeal to the Board of Veterans Appeals. The veteran may appeal an adverse decision of the VR&C Officer, or the Director, VR&C to the Board of Veterans Appeals.

(Authority: 38 U.S.C. 3107(c))

[49 FR 40814. Oct. 18, 1984, as amended at 62 FR 17708, Apr. 11, 1997]

COUNSELING

§ 21.100 Counseling.

(a) General. A veteran requesting or being furnished assistance under Chapter 31 shall be provided professional counseling services by Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (VR&C) Service and other staff as necessary to: (1) Carry out an initial evaluation in each case in which assistance is requested;

(2) Develop a rehabilitation plan or plan for employment services in each

(Authority: 38 U.S.C. 3118)

(d) Limitations. (1) If a veteran resides within a State, counseling services necessary to carry out the initial evaluation and the development of a rehabilitation plan or a program of employment services will be furnished by counseling psychologists in the Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (VR&C) Division;

(2) If a veteran does not reside in a State the counseling services necessary to carry out an initial evaluation may be accomplished in the same manner as for a veteran residing in a State or through other arrangements when deemed appropriate by the VR&C Division. These alternative arrangements include, but are not limited to:

(i) Use of counseling centers or individual qualified professionals under

contract to VA; and

(ii) Professional staff of other Federal agencies located in the area in which the veteran resides.

(3) Alternative arrangements to provide counseling are subject to the following requirements:

(i) All arrangements must be consistent with the provisions of paragraph (c) of this section regarding utilization of professionally qualified persons to provide counseling services dur- 12 ing the initial evaluation;

(ii) All determinations of eligibility, 2 entitlement and the development of a rehabilitation plan will continue to be de made by counseling psychologists in the VR&C Division.

(4) If a counseling psychologist in the VR&C Division determines that the evidence of record is insufficient to carry out an initial evaluation in a case in which alternative arrangements were used, VA staff may authorize the veteran to travel to a VA facility to complete the evaluation.

(Authority: 38 U.S.C. 3118(c))

(e) Definition. For the purposes of this section, the term State means each of the several States, the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.

(Authority: 38 U.S.C. 101(20))

[49 FR 40814, Oct. 18, 1984, as amended at 54 FR 32071, Aug. 4, 1989; 62 FR 17708, Apr. 11. 1997]

EDUCATIONAL AND VOCATIONAL
TRAINING SERVICES

$21.120 Educational and vocational TE training services.

(a) Purposes. The purposes of providing educational and vocational G training services are to enable a veteran eligible for, and entitled to, services and assistance under Chapter 31 to: (1) Meet the requirements for employment in the occupational objective established in the IWRP (Individualized Written Rehabilitation Plan);

(2) Provide incidental training which is necessary to achieve the employment objective in the IEAP (Individualized Employment Assistance Plan);

(3) Provide incidental training needed to achieve the goals of an IILP (Individualized Independent Living Plan):

training, completion of which usually results in a diploma, certificate, degree, qualification for licensure, or employment. If such courses are not available in the area in which the veteran resides, or if they are available but not accessible to the veteran, other arrangements may be made. Such arrangements may include, but are not limited to:

(1) Relocation of the veteran to another area in which necessary services are available, or

(2) Use of an individual instructor to provide necessary training.

(Authority: 38 U.S.C. 3107)

(c) Charges for education and training services. The cost of education and training services will be one of the factors considered in selecting a facility when:

(1) There is more than one facility in the area in which the veteran resides which:

(i) Meets requirements for approval under §§ 21.292 through 21.298;

(ii) Can provide the education and training services, and other supportive services specified in the veteran's plan; and

(iii) Is within reasonable commuting distance; or

(2) The veteran wishes to train at a suitable facility in another area, even though training can be provided at a suitable facility in the area in which the veteran resides.

(Authority: 38 U.S.C. 3104(a)(7), 3115(a))

[49 FR 40814, Oct. 18, 1984; 50 FR 9622, Mar. 11, 1985]

$21.122 School course.

(a) Explanation of terms-schools, educational institution, and institution. These terms mean any public or private school, secondary school, vocational school, correspondence school, business school, junior college, teacher's college, college, normal school, professional school, university, scientific or technical institution, other institution funishing education for adults.

(Authority: 38 U.S.C. 501(a), 3104)

or

(b) Course. A course generally consists of a number of areas of subject matter which are organized into learning units for the purpose of attaining a specific educational or vocational objective. Organized instruction in the units comprising the course is offered within a given period of time and credit toward graduation or certification is generally given.

(Authority: 38 U.S.C. 3104(a)(7))

(c) School course. A school course is a course as defined in paragraph (b) of this section offered by a facility identified in paragraph (a) of this section.

(Authority: 38 U.S.C. 3115)

§ 21.123 On-job course.

(a) Training establishment. This term means any establishment providing apprentice or other training on the job, including those under the supervision of a college or university or any State department of education, or any state apprenticeship agency, or any State board of vocational education, or any joint apprenticeship committee, or the Bureau of Apprenticeship and Training established in accordance with 29 U.S.C. Chapter 4C, or any agency of the Federal government authorized to supervise such training.

(b) On-job course, An on-job course is pursued toward a specified vocational objective, provided by a training establishment. The trainee learns, in the course of work performed under supervision, primarily by receiving formal instruction, observing practical demonstration of work tasks, and assisting in those tasks. Productive work should gradually increase with greater independence from formal instruction as the course progresses.

(Authority: 38 U.S.C. 501(a), 3104)

[49 FR 40814, Oct. 18, 1984; 50 FR 9622, Mar. 11, 1985]

§ 21.124 Combination course.

(a) General. A combination course is a course which combines training on the job with training in school. For the purpose of VA vocational rehabilitation, a course will be considered to be a combination course, if the student spends full-time on the job and one or

more times a week also attends school on a part-tme basis. A veteran may pursue the components of a combination course in the following manner:

(1) Concurrent school and on-job training;

(2) Primarily on-job with some related instruction in school;

(3) In a school as a preparatory course to entering on-job training; or (4) First training on-job followed by the school portion.

(b) Cooperative course. A cooperative course is a special type of combination course which usually:

(1) Has an objective which the student attains primarily through school instruction with the on-job portion being supplemental to the school

course;

(2) Is at the college or junior college level although some cooperative courses are offered at post-secondary schools which do not offer a college degree or at secondary schools;

(3) Requires the student to devote at least one-half of the total training period to the school portion of the course; and

(4) Includes relatively long periods each of training on the job and in school such as a full term in school followed by a full term on the job.

(Authority: 38 U.S.C. 3104(a)(7))

[49 FR 40814, Oct. 18, 1984; 50 FR 9622, Mar. 11, 1985]

§ 21.126 Farm cooperative course.

(a) Definition. An approvable farm cooperative course is a full-time course designated to restore employability by training a veteran to:

(1) Operate a farm which he or she owns or leases; or

(2) Manage a farm as the employee of another.

(b) Reaching the goal of a farm cooperative course. The farm cooperative course must enable a veteran to become proficient in the type of farming for which he or she is being provided rehabilitation services. The areas in which proficiency is to be established include:

(1) Planning; (2) Producing;

(3) Marketing;

(4) Maintaining farm equipment; (5) Conserving farm resources;

(6) Financing the farm;
(7) Managing the farm; and

(8) Keeping farm and home accour (c) Instruction, including organi group instruction. Instruction in a fa cooperative course may be by a m ture of organized group (classroom) struction and individual instruction by individual instruction alone. course which includes organized gre instruction must meet the followi criteria to be considered as full-time

(1) The number of clock hours of struction which should be provid yearly shall meet the requirements §21.310(a)(4) and §21.4264 pertaining full-time pursuit of a farm cooperati

course:

(2) The individual instructor porti of a farm cooperative course shall i clude at least 100 hours of individu instruction per year.

(d) Instruction given solely by an in vidual instructor. (1) Instruction in farm cooperative course may be giv solely by an individual instructor if c ganized group instruction is:

(i) Not available within reasonab commuting distance of the veteran farm; or

(ii) The major portion of the org nized group instruction that is avai able does not have a direct relation t the veteran's farming operation ar pertinent VA records are fully ar clearly documented accordingly.

(2) To be considered full-time pursu the individual instruction provided i these course must:

(i) Consist of at least 200 hours of ir struction per year;

(ii) Be given by a fully qualified indi vidual instructor by contract betwee VA and the instructor or an edu cational agency which employs the in structor.

(e) Plan requirements for farm operato or farm manager. (1) The plan for train ing developed by the case manager an the veteran in collaboration with the instructor must include:

(i) A complete written survey includ ing but not limited to the areas identified in § 21.298 (a) and (b);

(ii) An overall, long-term plan basedupon the survey of the operation of the farm;

(iii) An annual plan identifying the part of the overall plan to be implemented which will be prepared before the beginning of each crop year; and

(iv) A detailed individual training program showing the kind and amount of instruction, classroom and individual, or individual; and

(2) The farm must meet the requirements for selecting a farm found in § 21.298.

(Authority: 38 U.S.C. 3104(a)(7))

49 FR 40814, Oct. 18, 1984; 50 FR 9622, Mar. 11, 1985]

$21.128 Independent study course.

A veteran may pursue a course by independent study under the following conditions:

(a) College level. The course is offered by a college or university.

(b) College degree. The course leads to or is fully creditable towards a standard college degree.

(c) Course content. The course consists of a prescribed program of study with provision for interaction between the student and regularly employed faculty of the university or college by mail, telephone, personally, or class attendance.

(d) School responsibility. The university or college:

(1) Evaluates the course in semester or quarter hours or the equivalent; and (2) Prescribes a period for completion.

Authority: 38 U.S.C. 3104(a)(7))

$21.129 Home study course.

(a) Definition. A home study course is a course conducted by mail, consisting of a series of written lesson assignments furnished by a school to the student for study and preparation of written answers, solutions to problems, and work projects which are corrected and graded by the school and returned to the trainee.

(b) Limitations on inclusion of home study courses, in rehabilitation plans. A veteran and his or her case manager may include a home study course in a rehabilitation plan only when it supplements the major part of the program. The purpose of the home study course is to provide the veteran with theory or technical information di

rectly related to the practice of the occupation for which the veteran is training.

(Authority: 38 U.S.C. 3104(a)(7))

$21.130 Educational and vocational courses outside the United States.

(a) General. VA may provide educational and vocational courses outside a State if the case manager determines that such training is in the best interest of the veteran and the Federal Government.

(b) Specific conditions. (1) The training must be necessary to enable the veteran to qualify for, obtain, and retain suitable employment in the occupational objective; and

(2) Either:

(i) The training is not available in the United States; or

(ii) The training is available in the United States, but personal hardship would result from requiring that the veteran pursue training in this country; and

(3) All necessary supportive and follow-up services, including medical care and treatment and employment services, reasonably can be provided by or through VA, considering such factors as the availability, accessibility and cost of such services.

(Authority: 38 U.S.C. 3114)

[49 FR 40814, Oct. 18, 1984, as amended at 55 FR 27822, July 6, 1990]

§ 21.132 Repetition of the course.

(a) Repeating all or part of the course. A veteran, having completed a course under Chapter 31 according to the standards and practices of the institution, ordinarily will not pursue it again at the expense of VA. However, VA may approve repetition of all, or any part of the course when VA determines that the repetition is necessary to accomplish the veteran's vocational rehabilitation. A veteran repeating a course under Chapter 31 is subject to the same requirements for satisfactory pursuit and completion of the course as are other veterans taking the course unless a longer period is needed because of the veteran's reduced work tolerance.

(Authority: 38 U.S.C. 3104(a)(7))