Public Meeting Notice  MCB Statutory Advisory Board (SAB) Meeting

SAB Attendees: Brian MacDonald, Nancy Rumbolt-Trzcinski, Kathy Petkauskos, and Kerlyne Pacombe

MCB Staff Attendees: Justine Muir, Nathan Skrocki, and Lucy Evangelidis

Meeting held via Zoom, recording available to the public on the MCB YouTube channel. Public invited to participate through Q&A at the end of the meeting.

Minutes

A quorum was reached. The meeting was held via Zoom in accordance with authorization approved by Governor Healey through June 30, 2027. The meeting was recorded and will be posted on the MCB website along with the minutes.

A motion to approve the December 2, 2025 minutes was made by Nancy and seconded by Brian. The motion passed unanimously. No edits or questions were raised regarding the minutes.

Commissioner Update – Presented by Justine Muir (on behalf of Commissioner John Oliveira)

Justine shared the following updates on behalf of Commissioner Oliveira, who was on vacation:

• Federal budget status

• MCB continues to monitor the federal continuing resolution set to expire at the end of January.
• The agency remains hopeful that Congress will finalize the federal budget.
• MCB continues to operate without fiscal deficiencies.

• Social media recruitment campaign

The campaign focuses on increasing awareness of careers serving people who are blind or visually impaired, including orientation and mobility specialists, assistive technology specialists, vision rehabilitation therapists, and teachers of students with visual impairments.

Ads and short videos are running on Google, YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok.

Approximately 1.5 months into the campaign:

Over 2.6 million impressions (views).

More than 55,000 link clicks to the campaign landing page.

Engagement rates are reported as above industry averages, and the campaign is currently under budget (approximately $8,000 spent to date).

The landing page links to college and university training programs nationwide.

Additional analytics on clicks through to college program pages are expected in upcoming reports, with further analysis planned for March.

Data includes demographic breakdowns by age, gender, platform, and region.

Programs & Services Update – Justine Muir

• Visions of Collaborations Conference (May 2026)

Planning is underway for the annual conference, which will be held in May due to construction at the usual venue.

The Four Points venue was selected again after exploring alternatives.

External partners will be brought into the planning process soon.

A “Save the Date” will be distributed, along with a new Call for Presenters aimed at encouraging direct service staff and professionals to share best practices.

• Summer 2026 Internship Program

Early recruitment has begun.

Staff interested in hosting interns are encouraged to contact Carol Cullins, Dan Martin, or Justine.

Interns receive stipends paid by MCB for participation in program components (soft skills training, internship segments, and closing ceremony).

Internship schedules are flexible and individualized; placements are matched to student interests and availability.

Soft skills training is generally offered in person at the regional level, with flexibility to attend sessions in other regions if needed.

• Employment partnership – Direct Employers

MCB has established a new partnership with Direct Employers, a national organization of businesses committed to inclusive hiring.

MCB receives job leads one day before they are publicly posted.

Job postings are distributed regionally to VR supervisors, VR counselors, and employment services staff.

The partnership also allows MCB to promote job fairs and hiring events to member employers statewide.

• Employee Resource Group

MCB Connect hosted a staff holiday jubilee in December.

The event provided an opportunity for staff to connect and celebrate accomplishments from the past year.

Commissioner Oliveira sponsored the event, and staff organizers were recognized for their efforts.

Dashboard Update – Nathan Skrocki

Nathan provided updated consumer and service data:

• Open cases

• SR Children: 198
• SR Adults: 3,368
• VR Youth: 204
• VR Adults: 770

• Closed cases

• VR: 78 successful closures; 41 unsuccessful closures
• SR closures reset as of January 1

• Registrations and documents (FY25 totals)

• Certificates of Blindness: 8,192
• MCB ID cards: 1,081
• New registrants: 1,821
• Approximately 40 new registrations recorded in the first week of January 2026

Nathan noted that Certificates of Blindness can be emailed to consumers upon request and that options for data sharing with assessors continue to be explored, with attention to data security and consumer notification.

Public Comment & Questions

• Social media campaign

Nona asked whether focus groups were conducted prior to launching the recruitment videos.

Justine noted that UMass Boston and Commissioner Oliveira were involved in the video development process and agreed to follow up if additional details are needed.

• Internship program

Nona asked whether MCB itself serves as an internship site.

Justine confirmed that MCB has hosted interns in the past and currently has interns working in marketing and vocational rehabilitation roles.

• Certificates of Blindness

Nona asked whether certificates can be sent by email.

Nathan confirmed that certificates may be emailed upon consumer request.

Adjournment

A motion to adjourn was made and approved. The meeting adjourned.

1. Opening requirements:   
   1. Notification and Confirmation: This meeting is being held via Zoom that was approved by Governor Healey through June 30, 2027.
   2. Confirmation that MCB records SAB meetings, allows for local recordings and makes such recordings available to the public.
   3. Welcome to members of the public attending the meeting and instruction about Q&A period.
2. Vote to accept minutes of the SAB meeting: December 2, 2025
3. Commissioner Report :  John Oliveira
4. Deputy Commissioner Update: Justine Muir
5. Program Updates: Nathan Skrocki
   1. Review of Dashboard on Registrations, Process, and Outcomes.
6. SAB Members additional questions or comments.
7. Comments or Questions from the public
8. Public Meeting Adjournment